It's Sherlock Bond I presume. I can't recommend it for those who like Sherlock Holmes

A bit uneven and scatter shot, but with some real kernels of intrigue and interest that could be expanded upon in any sequel. The characters are strong and the setting/plot polishes some trodden area with a new shine. Would I cut down on the changes in perspective and flashbacks? For sure, but those are course corrections that are easily done. Would recommend, as the potential strength of the series is strong.

I would like to thank NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book. Sherlock Holmes was assisted by a group of orphaned children called the Baker Street Irregulars, led by a boy named Wiggins. He has now grown, served in the military and is trying to support himself.

With a recommendation from Holmes, Wiggins is approached by Vernon Kell from the Home Office, who has been tasked with finding evidence of German spying. Kell's operatives have all been gentlemen who stood out against the workers in the munitions factory that they have been observing, resulting in their discovery and death. Wiggins, who was raised on the streets, has the ability to fit in. While he refuses at first, he realizes that this position would also allow him to look into the death of a close friend.

These are the early days of the Secret Service and Wiggins' employment was a step in acknowledging the need to adapt. With political instability in Europe and Russian dissidents urging revolution in England, Kell recognizes the importance of his office.

This is also Wiggins' story. H.B. Lyle takes the reader from the orphanage in his early years to his meeting with Holmes and the formation of the Baker Street Irregulars. This book should appeal to fans of Sherlock Holmes as well as those of Anne Perry. Hopefully, this is only the beginning of a new series.

As a young orphan boy in Victorian London, Wiggins had been trained by the best. Known to us today as the Baker Street Irregulars, Wiggins and his fellow street urchins were initiated into the world of trade craft by none other than Sherlock Holmes. After a stint in the military, Wiggins is back on the streets working for a debt collector. A thankless job that isn’t paying the rent. Enter Captain Vernon Kell from the War Office. It is 1909, trouble is brewing abroad and England will be at war in five years. There is a Bolshevist uprising in Russia, an arms race with Germany and European treaties are in peril. Foreigners are bringing their problems to Great Britain and Kell badly needs agents to work undercover.

Wiggins turns up his nose at the offer to go “official” until an old army buddy is killed by Russian anarchists. Sherlock Holmes, who recommended him to Kell, urges him to put his talents to good use. At first, Wiggins agrees to go undercover in a munitions factory only because he wants revenge. Before long, the investigation quickly becomes a complicated game with alarming consequences for the Empire.

H.B. Lyle was in the film industry and it shows. The story is fast-paced, rich in descriptions and the dialogue is true to the characters. Overall, this book is just plain fun. It is sprinkled with real life personages, such as Captain Kell, Winston Churchill and MI6 founder, Mansfield Cumming, as well as the literary characters of Wiggins, Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. There is even a link to Her Majesty’s favorite spy, James Bond.

Set in England in the early 1900s the novel uses the founding of the British Secret Service to spin a very well done story about people involved in it's inception. Captain Vernon Kell is looking to set up such a service to serve England both at home and abroad but finds that upper class individuals traditionally used in high level government work are not suited for the dirty work needed to get things done in the world of spying. He is working under orders to find some evidence of German activity in obtaining secret information on British activities that are geared towards bettering military capabilities. The use of upper class gentlemen to do the field work in the spy game gets several killed with no useful information obtained.
One of the men is a policeman named Bill who is killed by Russian anarchists. The killing is noted by Bill's friend; a man named Wiggins. Kell approaches Wiggins to help find and arrest Bill's killers and has hit the best person possible for the job. Wiggins served in the British war against the Boers in South Africa,and as an urchin on London's streets helped the great detective Sherlock Holmes form a group of children into a "The Baker Street Irregulars." Sir Arthur Conan Doyle the creator of Sherlock Holmes places this group into activity aiding Holmes in several novels written by him.
The description of London at the point the novel is set in is extremely well researched by H.B. Lyle. We have the combination of horses and horse drawn wagons with early motor cars, buses and trucks. Slum areas and homes for the well to do and the beginnings of opportunities for the poor class to climb the economic ladder thanks to the burgeoning industrial revolution.
This novel is obviously the first of what should be a series of books about the organization that later became both MI5 and MI6. The principal characters are in place and a period that has the problem of impending war looming over it. The book stands quite well on it's own and the author's styling is certainly an attraction for novels that will follow.