The 'guvenor' in this one. Is aware that Sherlock Holmes is a competitor but he feels he has it all over him because he's more about reading people ... we are told the story of one grizzly case in this volume by his functionary Mr Barnett - who is a smart thug and righteous - they are lead up the garden path by a young French woman searching for her brother. The central figure of the detective is a burly, conniving fellow whose sister has taken him in hand since his wife left years ago - with an occasional failing of drink when he gets too low, he is an emotional fellow - and Barnett saves him from his own temperament many times - including helping the local police inspector. So all the elements paralleling the Holmes stories are here - perhaps there are dips in the pace of the story, and there is not the witty finesse of Conan Doyle's characters and plots - but it is entertaining and i was gripped wanting to know what was up - many events occur - murders, beatings up, burglaries in the cause of justice, kidnapping - so the whole package - all very entertaining and set in same era at the original Conan Doyle stories.

Entertaining Sir Arthur Conan Doyle style narrative with a super Sth London atmosphere. Sleazy bad guys abound and our heroes grapple with seeking the truth in seasoned smoke and mirrors fashion. All becomes clear in a tense and absorbing denouement. Well written and recommended!

A very enjoyable private detective novel set in South London in 1895. It follows Arrowood and Barnett as they try to solve crimes before either anyone else gets killed or even worse - before Sherlock Holmes, Arrowood's loathed nemesis, is called upon to assist. .
I love Sherlock Holmes novels so it was great to read something set in the same era, but from the "poorer" side of the city with an opposing and sleazier (Finlay's opinion!) slant.
Great read and I will definitely look out for any sequels.

A fantastic crime thriller with a nod to Sherlock Holmes. I loved it.

Really good book, thoroughly enjoyable storyline and all with some humour thrown in, I will be recommending this to my friends.

This is quite fun as a sideways pastiche of Sherlock Holmes: all the elements are there (a young woman in distress, a detective and his narrator side-kick, young boys being used as messengers and watchers, a sibling and links to Afghanistan) but they're all given a slight twist both acknowledging Conan Doyle's creations and yet recreating them anew.

The plot is perhaps more politicised than the typical Holmes stories and there's more violence here. Arrowood himself is a bit disappointing: for all his boasting that he can do things that Holmes can't, we don't get much demonstration of that.

Both a light read and one which deals with some of the fraught politics of the late Victorian era that look forward to the C20th: 3.5 stars.