Amy B. (BaileysBooks) reviewed on 5/28/2015 + 491 more book reviews

This is Book 7 of the Barker & Llewelyn mystery series.

Will Thomas has managed to pull off two feats that, in my opinion, trip up so many other authors who try to write murder mysteries set in Victorian-Era London.

First, there are the main characters themselves. Throughout seven books, Thomas has been able to develop two characters that are obviously inspired by Holmes and Watson, but are unique enough to stand on their own merit. I have little tolerance for true Holmes pastiches, mainly because they can never truly capture the tone of the original stories, and there is always the uneasiness that comes when someone else tries to add to, alter, or edit the canon.

In this series, Thomas has taken the spirit of Holmes and Watson and given them new identities. This technique negates the need for direct comparisons between the new and the original, and makes the overall story arc more enjoyable and less distracting. Thomas has taken his time with character development, and I have thoroughly enjoyed being involved in the process.

Secondly, there is the issue of Jack the Ripper. At some point, every author who writes about crime and murder in 1880s London takes on a Ripper-inspired plot at some time or another. Some authors do for the Ripper what Thomas did for Holmes: create a new character inspired by the original. Some try to be creative and write the story from the Rippers perspective. Others create a bloody mish-mash of fact and fiction. In most cases, it is a poor plot device that quickly falls into cliché and I typically try to avoid them.

At first, I was a little put off by Thomass approach with this book. He has always borrowed from real historical people or events to flavor his novels, but in this case he truly took his fictional characters into an otherwise non-fictional world. He incorporated real-life Scotland Yard inspectors and detectives in the investigation. He quoted verbatim the three most popular Ripper Letters, and he used the canonical five victims as the basis of the plot. This bothered me at first, because the Ripper murders have technically remained unsolved for over 125 years. Would Barker succeed where so many others have failed? Would Barker fail like all the rest?

My spoiler-free assessment is that Thomas managed to pull off a convincing Ripper mystery with a sufficiently satisfying ending. It was factual without being dry, engaging without being sensational, informative but not overdone. Thomas also succeeded by making this book about so much more than the murders themselves. He managed to incorporate the political infighting that was rampant among the various arms of the London police force, the publics growing distrust of the Jewish people, the disparity of the classes, and the struggles of the working poor. This required a delicate balance, but it was very well done and struck just the right tone.

Fatal Enquiry might have been one of Thomass weakest works, but he more than redeemed himself with Anatomy of Evil. This will certainly be a tough act to follow, but I have no doubt that Thomas will deliver.

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