I found Eveline to be less likable in this book than in the first book in the series. I still liked it a lot, and will definitely read book 3 when it comes out, but it was a bit of a disappointment since I loved book 1 so much.

Received from netgalley

Disclaimer: I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive any form of compensation.

I was sooo glad to see this one pop up on NetGalley. I absolutely devoured the first book in the series, A Study in Silks. And it wasn’t just because it was steampunk. It was because it was a well written book that just screams to be read over and over again.

And just like A Study in Silks, I couldn’t put this book down either. Have you ever had one of those books where you are so caught off guard by the characters actions or some situation where you actually shriek out loud? Well that happened to me in several points in this book.

I certainly can’t wait to get my hands on the third book in this series. I will definitely be keeping my eye out for more books by Emma Jane Holloway.

Fun steampunk world-building.

So I was really disappointed in this book, especially after having really enjoyed the first one. I feel like the author completely abandoned the characters she had created in the first novel, and let them become flat clichés. The plot also seemed to take a hit with even more angles and complications added to an already complicated story. And then it didn't seem very tied together. I felt like I was jumping from one random situation to the next.

I really didn't like how Evelina just seemed to completely collapse on herself and forget her logical mind and personal aspirations. The first book ended very well I thought, with neither Nick nor Tobias having her heart because they were both proper jerks. But then this book started with her mooning over Tobias and their "star-crossed love". When exactly did she change her mind about him?! Like she found out he shot her uncle and was willing to lie to her about it and she was rightly done with him. But now she utterly loves him again?? Gross.

And then Nick, the bastard who forced himself on her angrily at the end of the first book; the jerk who displayed abusive behaviour, Mr. I-killed-a-man-for-you-so-you-owe-me-your-love - this is the guy who she ends up with?! What the eff?! It's not like there was even any character development with him to show that he's changed. Just "oh, btw four months has passed and now Nick's a pirate and clearly becoming a man outside the law has made him a more moral person, yup."

I expected so much better of Evelina given how she was portrayed in the first book. And not just in terms of romance. She seemed to lose all her detective skills in this book as well, with the majority of the mystery solved by her happening to be in the right place at the right time, or being solved by other people entirely. I felt she was super awesome in the first book, sneaking out at night and battling magical fire dragons and whatnot, and now she just goes to live in a poor neighbourhood and supposedly questions people and investigates for an entire month and finds out utterly nothing. Of course, a month really isn't that long, after all she's in a coma for that long and it's not like anything has changed in that time, because everyone was just waiting for her to get better before starting to plot their evil deeds again. Seriously?

I have other issues with the book too, but I don't feel like ranting about them. I don't really wanna bother with the third book, but I might have to just to find out what happens, although I'm not sure there is any reasonable explanation as to how Imogen's soul would get trapped in the magical clock.

A Study in Darkness picks up about four months after [b:A Study in Silks|17262144|A Study in Silks (The Baskerville Affair, #1)|Emma Jane Holloway|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1367256722s/17262144.jpg|23858942]. Evelina has been living with her Grandmother and is just returning to London hoping to be able to convince her Uncle Sherlock to side with her about continuing her education. Of course upon arrival things don't go quite as planned when Evelina is greeted with a bomb going off in Sherlock's home.

Meanwhile Imogen, along with her parents, are away at a country house of Jasper Keating's. Imogen, missing her friend, invites Evelina to the house. Unfortunately their reunion is short-lived and Evelina finds herself in the clutches of the Gold King. Keating's threat over Evelina gives her a limited amount of time to get the information he requires before Keating destroys her and her family. Trying to protect those she loves, Evelina decides to throw herself into the thick of things and spy on King Coal, but this means she will emerse herself in the seeder side of the city. Evelina must meet her deadline, but she also must be cautious because her spying happens to coincide with Jack the Ripper's reign of terror and murder. In order to protect herself Evelina starts using / understanding the darker side of her magic, but will it be at the cost of her soul?

To put it plainly, A Study in Darkness is much darker than its predecessor. Not everything started in [b:A Study in Silks|17262144|A Study in Silks (The Baskerville Affair, #1)|Emma Jane Holloway|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1367256722s/17262144.jpg|23858942] was resolved and we find many of those issues coming up again here. I will say it was one of those books that I couldn't put down, but there were parts that made me want to put it down so badly because they were just so heartbreaking. No one is truly happy. Everyone has sacrificed something and yet everyone is still being manipulated by the Steam Barons. The rebels are getting more of a foothold in overthrowing the Barons, but it's still difficult to tell where everyone's loyalties lie.

As the book went on and as Evelina immersed herself more into her task of spying the book became easier to read. I guess Evelina herself was healing and that translated to the reader as well. I liked Emma Jane Holloway's take on the Jack the Ripper case. It was interesting the see things unfold from the persective of someone living in the area at the time. I will say though that this mystery took a definite back seat to the overall story arc started in the first book.

This book is left off with our characters in even more dangerous situations. I anxiously want to pick up [b:A Study in Ashes|17264589|A Study in Ashes (The Baskerville Affair, #3)|Emma Jane Holloway|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1368550431s/17264589.jpg|23862393] and finish the story, but other things must be read first. I only hope that at the end of this trilogy everyone gets one big Happily Ever After. They've all earned it ten-fold.

*Arc provided by Netgally for an honest review.

THE ENDING. Oh my goodness.

Coming Soon! A Duel Review with Jaclyn on our blog, The Book Adventures

A bomb at her uncle's home sends Evelina into the Gold King's home and an indiscretion there puts her firmly in his power. As she hides in Whitechapel trying to find who is helping the Blue King she also tries to avoid Jack the Ripper and learn magic from a mysteriously resurrected Mangus. Evelina suffers from being over confident in herself and never seeming to be able to ask for advice from her famous uncle or when he is in a position to help her she doesn't take the lifeline she should use. The book does suffer from being a middle book in a series so no real conclusions to the final arc but some things are settled in the story.


Digital copy provided by the publisher through Edleweiss

I read the last book in this trilogy (so far?) before this one, and I'm actually glad because nothing good ever happened and life is a vale of tears.

Seriously, though, what I like about Ms Holloway's books is that she doesn't even try to give her characters an easy time of it. If something bad can happen, something probably would. And her characters always rise to occasion. And I think that's what's really admirable.

I don't think I've ever been a fan of novels that 'add' to the Sherlock Holmes mythos, but I'm a fan of this series. The Holmes brothers don't really make much of an appearance here, it's always about Evelina Cooper, but it works so much better with the Holmesian elements.

It's really so nice to see steampunk done right while still playing fair to all characters (female and male alike). Also, a love triangle that's not all about 'But which one would I choose?' *swoons*

Ugh. All the weaknesses of the first book with many fewer strengths. Serafina's big reveal(s) took WAY too long to manifest, considering the heavy handed foreshadowing. The moment between Nick & Evelina with the magic spinning didn't get any exploration, despite the huge emphasis in the first book. Once again the wrap-up was provided to the reader from a deus ex machina perspective which is total bollocks in a mystery novel. Boo.