Fascinating intro to the underworld of 18th century London.Interesting twist in the shared relationships of the central characters:must admit to being historical thriller fan and this fits in nicely with the likes of Sansom and McGee.

If you are looking for a story book, you've found one. If you're not bothered about creative style, characters who jump off the page or historical accuracy, Mr. Easter obliges. I found the whole thing a blur because nothing seemed real. None of the characters were believable and thus no image of them could be created. There are some very basic descriptions; 'craggy features', ' ruddy complexion', 'muscular man with a broken nose' but nothing that allows the reader to identify with these people and get to know how they tick. Unfortunately, because of that, it is easy to lose interest. Some of the characters are also very stereotypical which hints at scant research. Mr. Easter acknowledges that any mistakes are his and historically there are a fair few. When talking of execution, one character says how he would like to see another's head on a spike at Temple Bar when that practice ceased fifty years earlier. The hospital scenes are from at least fifty years later and in 1798 no ex governess would then work in a hospital as they were not considered to be decent places for well brought up young women to be. The narrative is a little erratic too but I wouldn't say it spoils the story. The sad thing about this book, is that it has the makings of something much better but it appears that the author has taken his knowledge of the river police, dumped it in a dark and threatening era in the worst part of old London and expected it to work. It is all very well to have a formula but it needs the finishing touches and in this case it's creative writing and imagination. Very flat, this book.