If there's one book I wish I'd written, it's this one. Despite reading all his others, this remains my favourite Blaylock work. The characters are superb, the atmosphere a proper `pea souper' and the action just fantastic. I can hear every accent when I read it, and taste every mouthful of frothy beer! The villains are just as villains should be, and the heroes likewise. It's a world which never was yet which feels 100% real.
I find that Blaylock writes with such authority that I simply don't question the unbelievable nature of what's going on, or the adversaries, or even the pseudo-science. Whenever I read it I think that a British writer probably never could have made this book feel so British, which is strange!
An old boyfriend `borrowed' my original copy years ago and I never saw it again! Eventually, I had to replace it as I needed my 'fix' (but I do miss the old cover which was really busy and fitted the story perfectly).