London, 1892–Cyrus Barker is brought into a game of international espionage by the Prime Minister himself in the newest mystery in Will Thomas’s beloved series.Private enquiry agents Cyrus Barker and Thomas Llewelyn receive in the mail an unexplained key stamped with the letter Q. Barker, recognizing it for what it is, uses the key to unlock an anonymous door in the alleyway, which opens to an … which opens to an underground tunnel leading to Downing Street.
The Prime Minister has a small task for Cyrus Barker. A Foreign Office agent stole a satchel in Eastern Europe, but was then himself murdered at Charing Cross. The satchel contains a document desperately wanted by the German government, but while the agent was killed, the satchel remains in English hands. With a cold war brewing between England and Germany, it’s in England’s interest to return the document contained in the satchel to its original owners and keep it out of German hands.
The document is an unnamed first century gospel; the original owner is the Vatican. And the German government isn’t the only group trying to get possession of it. With secret societies, government assassins, political groups, and shadowy figures of all sorts doing everything they can–attacks, murders, counter-attacks, and even massive street battles–to acquire the satchel and its contents, this small task might be beyond even the prodigious talents of Cyrus Barker.
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private-investigators, historical-fiction, historical-research, action, danger, suspense, secret-society, mystery, England
Meet the private investigative team of Barker and Llewellyn and get embroiled in intrigue and secret societies in 1882 England and beyond. A very dramatic beginning is followed by astounding events and associations with misdirections and more twists than a challah. The publisher’s blurb is a pretty good hook and no need for spoilers. Excellent read!
I requested and received a free ebook copy from St Martin’s Press / Minotaur Books via NetGalley. Thank you!
Will Thomas stirs up a delectable pot of spies, government intrigue and murder to test the mettle of Barker and Thomas. Full of twists and surprises to tantalize the reader’s intellect.
London 1892 The newly wed Thomas Llewelyn and the still recovering Cyrus Barker are pulled into international intrigue by the Prime Minister when a British spy is murdered in the streets just a few blocks from their door.
Newly returned from the continent, the spy brought back a holy relic that could change the course of politics and religion if it ends up in the wrong hands.
Itching to investigate the murder of the spy, but ordered to act as courier to the relic, Barker confounds everyone with his lack of interest in doing what the Prime Minister has ordered.
Poor Thomas once again finds himself attacked by the youths who murdered the spy in search of the relic and shamed by one of the suspects, but in true Llewelyn fashion he survives to fight again.
The surprise in this story is Thomas’ bride who proves she is not just a pretty face.
Will Thomas is an excellent story teller and Antony Ferguson the perfect voice to tell it. Action, history, intrigue, drama, romance, and secret societies, what more could a reader want. I adore this series and look forward to reading each one.
Lethal Pursuit is the 11th book in the Barker & Llewelyn series by Will Thomas. I haven’t read the first ten books, but I’m a new fan of historical mysteries and this one sounded quite intriguing. I thought I would be totally lost, but this book stood alone extremely well. I will admit I enjoyed this one so much I want to read all the prior ones; I’m very interested in seeing how the relationship between Barker and Llewelyn developed.
The story starts with a bang as a British spy is on the run, pursued by Germans who are trying to retrieve an important document he stole from the German government. He is brutally murdered, but is able to thwart his pursuers before he dies. Barker and Llewelyn, private enquiry agents, are summoned by the Prime Minister. They are tasked with returning the document, a previously unknown gospel, to its previous owner, the Vatican. Sounds simple enough, right? But apparently, things are never simple in the world of Barker and Llewelyn. Barker has his own ideas that don’t exactly jive with those of the Prime Minister. What follows is an exciting story of secrets, intrigue, possible war, religion, eugenics and secret societies.
The partnership of Barker and Llewelyn is quite interesting. Though Thomas was recently made a partner, he still seems to be treated as an assistant; Barker makes decisions without telling Thomas about them. I thought both characters were great, but I especially liked Thomas; I felt an affinity with his sarcastic comments. There were so many twists and turns I never figured out whodunit, which is hard to pull off. The history was absolutely enthralling. I can’t wait to read more about this exciting duo!
I received an ARC of this book courtesy of the publisher and NetGalley. I received no compensation for my review, and all thoughts and opinions are entirely my own.
I received a free electronic copy of this British PI novel from Netgalley, Will Thomas, and Minotaur Books. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me. I have read this novel of my own volition, and this review reflects my honest opinion of this work. I am more than pleased to recommend Lethal Pursuit to friends and family. It is a historical British spy and PI tale to keep you guessing. Will Thomas is a spymaster to keep you coming back for more.
Lethal Pursuit is the 11th novel written by Thomas that showcases curmudgeon Cyrus Barker & newlywedded Thomas Llewelyn. Our story begins on the tenth of January, 1892, in the London high streets. Within ten or fifteen pages and 50 feet of the offices of Barker & Llewelyn, we have experienced the death of 34-year-old British spy Hillary Drummond, (though he had cached the secret artifact in his keeping at the Charing Cross Station), and another ten or twelve pages bring our protagonists B & L into the picture, they discover a hidden passage leading directly to the office of the Prime Minister, and they are assigned a case for the government – to transfer said unnamed artifact into the hands of the Catholic Church in Calais.
The historical picture of London, the travel experiences, the clothing, the politics are all true to history, and the energy level stays high. The Back-and-forth between Barker and Llewelyn reminds me fondly of that between Nero Wolfe and Archie.
Enigmatic Cyrus Barker and novice Thomas Llewelyn are partners in the most loved, hated, respected, disreputable enquiry agency in London. The description all depends on who you ask. Cyrus Barker doesn’t suffer fools gladly and those who try to manipulate him soon come to understand that when it comes to wily, smooth and sly manipulators, Barker is king. Barker is always three steps ahead in any situation – it is too bad that he doesn’t always share those steps with poor Llewelyn who always seems to be trying to catch up with his mentor.
It seems that Barker and Llewelyn are on everybody’s bad list in this fast-paced tale of spies, theft, and murder. They are called to the Prime Minister’s office and given a simple task – to deliver a package to Calais. However, as they talk, Barker quickly realizes that it isn’t the simple task the Prime Minister would have him believe it to be. Being Barker, and not appreciating being dictated to, he manipulates the Prime Minister into saying that Barker could use his own judgment in the delivery.
Prior to Barker and Llewelyn getting the package to deliver, an agent of the Home Office was murdered on his way to deliver the package to the English government. Barker decides to also solve that murder – since he’s working for nothing anyway, why not give the government their money’s worth.
There are many plots and villains afoot in this story and you’ll have to pay attention to figure out who is who. With all of the murder attempts and the shenanigans of the leader of Scotland Yard – and a successful murder, you’ll be in a whirl parsing out the facts and clues.
I always love it when the bad buys get their just desserts – and this one surely did – but – not before poor Llewelyn was – AGAIN – injured. Seems the poor man stays injured from one book to the next.
This was an enjoyable read and I hope you enjoy it as well. I do have to say that Barker has never really won my favor. I keep trying to like him – and I don’t hate him – I just tire of his arrogance and how he treats Llewelyn. Barker has Sherlock Holmes-like brilliance and deductive abilities – that I have to admire – but – I’m just not fond of his treatment of poor – often hapless – Llewelyn.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.