Firstly I love this series, I’m so glad it came back. It’s been a while since the last book so it took me a minute to get back into this world and remember who everyone was and how they fit together but once I did I was all in. We find Wiggins working on a building site and as far away from the intelligence services as he can get until flipping Sherlock Holmes’s only goes and gets himself murdered and this of course cannot stand. Wiggins must have his vengeance and that means working a case that has dogged himself and the Great Detective for years all while the world descends into the chaos that leads the world to war and Captain Kell is the only one paying attention. I loved this, the sheer audacity of murdering Sherlock Holmes, Wiggins running out of fucks to give last Wednesday and Kell doing his best Cassandra and shouting into the void of British government, a guest appearance from Poirot its all going on. So much fun. I’ll have another please and thank you.

This is a well plotted and entertaining series featuring a former Holmes' Irregular, Wiggins.
It's fast paced, action packed and gripping.
An entertaining pastiche that I thoroughly enjoyed
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

I believe this is the fourth book in the irregular series. I haven't read any of the others so was a bit unsure about being able to get to grip with the characters and the background but honestly it wasn't an issue at all. In fact, I enjoyed it so much its made me look out for the other books.
Its a great story about espionage. Lots of spy action, lots of fight scenes, chasing, sneaking, double bluffs. So much fun.
The characters were great. I loved having familiar names in there, both real and fictional.
I can't wait to read the others!

This fast paced thriller is full of unexpected twists and turns. Sent in the backdrop of the weeks and months prior to the First World War, the Britsh Secret Service enrol the reluctant Wiggins to track down a spy who is in possession of lethal information. Wiggins reluctance dissolves and the mission becomes personal when his target murders his mentor. The story proceeds at pace and if you are like me, you will be delighted to come across some familiar characters within the literary crime world. It is very difficult to write more without giving spoilers, so go ahead and read it and delight in the Easter Eggs you will find on the way.
Thanks to #Netgalley for providing me with this ARC

This is a fast-paced book where personal stories unfold against the backdrop of the build-up to war. Wiggins, one of Sherlock Holmes's 'irregulars', is resisting being brought back into working for Holmes and is instead currently working on London building sites. But when Sherlock Holmes is killed, Wiggins is drawn back to his undercover work to investigate the crime.
Wiggins is a great character and very likeable. He has an emotional side and genuinely cares about the people he comes across who are suffering - such as women fighting for the vote or suffering violence - although his attempts to help don't always quite work out. Wiggins travels across Europe trying to track down Holmes's killer, putting his own life in danger.
The settings are great and true to life, with Lyle creating slums filled with realistic characters. It's great to have Wiggins travelling around areas of South London which are very recognisable to me.
It's a very well-written book with lots to keep the reader's interest.

The book is not easy to read. I like it, but I got myself lost at certain points! The ending was very good. Some layout polishing may be required before the book is ready for publishing.

This is part of a series which I had not encountered but it did not matter.
The story of Wiggins a secret agent and former Baker Street boy and his attempts to show the powers that be how imminent war is in June and July 1914.
It mixes true events like the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand with fictional characters including Sherlock Holmes via Mata Hari. It has evil killers and secret codes, train adventures and suffragettes.
Great adventure story.

For Wiggins, things gets personal in this solid spy tale.

Following the events of "The Year of the Gun", our hero Wiggins has returned to civilian life, off the radar. It's 1914 and although the British government is in denial, his former boss Kell, knows war is coming. When his attempts to re-recruit Wiggins fail, he assumes this is the last he will hear of his top (and only) spy.

However, through a series of seemingly unrelated events, Wiggins witnesses the murder of his mentor and friend Sherlock Holmes. Although he only has a glimpse of the killer, he knows who is responsible. With nowhere else to turn, he reluctantly joins forces with Kell, who discloses that Holmes was working for him.

And so the reader is swept into a chase across Europe, in pursuit of an old enemy. Wiggins, wracked with grief and rage uses all the skills and knowledge he learned at the feet of Holmes to track down the killer. He's still the same belligerent, no-nonsense spy readers have come to love, but this time, he's driven. This is full-on Wiggins and it reads like a dream. Von Birk gets a bigger role to play and reveals just how accomplished a spy he is, and as his importance in the run up to war is revealed, the pressure is on Wiggins to run him to ground. The scenes between them are superbly enacted and a delight to read.

As in previous books, while Wiggins is most comfortable in his native London, when he gets to Brussels and beyond, he soon finds how different Europe can be. Although they do have excellent beer. Oh, and he gets to meet Mata Hari, who is revealed in a different light to what might be expected. There are chases, where our hero employs all his skills evading tails, and encounters with so many colourful characters, it's a riot.

Kell also shines here - a man sure of his convictions about the imminent war, but with a suffragette wife and only a belligerent Winston Churchill for an ally, he is a man on the edge. But his trust of and confidence in Wiggins shines through, as does his love for his wife.

Dr Watson has a role to play in the book too - riddled with grief at the death of his friend, he embarks on his own search for the killer. This thread is a poignant one and will resonate with fans of the Conan Doyle stories.

Those fans of Holmes may not agree with "spin-off" stories about their favourite characters, but what HB Lyle has done with one of Conan Doyle's minor characters is nothing short of inspirational. There's echoes of John Buchan in these books and enough hard-core spy stuff to keep aficionado's happy. The story ends with a promise there could be more adventures with Wiggins should you author choose to record them We can but hope.

Thoroughly recommended.