If you are a true murder mystery fan and love a story with quick wits, the occasional British humor, and quirks, minus any type of romance, this book is for you. This has a Sherlock Holmes feel to it where you think the story has ended and all is well and then the real answer reveals itself self.

I will admit, I have never read any of the previous 13 books by Will Thomas, but after reading The Heart of the Nile, I can tell there was some correlation between previous novels, as you can tell there had been a build-up of both main characters over time, but it wasn't fully necessary for me to have read previous books it to fully enjoy it. However, I will be starting this series from the beginning.

The Heart of the Nile will keep you interested with the witty conversations between Barker and his mate, Llewelyn. The love for the mysterious Egyptian history is an added bonus. I enjoyed the POV from Llewelyn as the story was told. I loved the characters, and the way they were described. The ending felt a tad rushed, but I will assume that is part of the "Sherlock" type endings (as in the ending really isn't the ending).

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read and review this ARC of Heart of the Nile!

Oh my goodness! If you are a fan of mysteries, somewhat in the style of Holmes and Watson - you will LOVE this book! I could not put it down!

A mummy, a mysterious jewel, a missing husband - these are the things that start the investigation into the young schoolteacher who goes missing after discovering a jewel in the chest of an ancient mummy. When his body turns up, the investigation will take several twists and turns. Who is responsible, and where did the jewel go?

Absolutely a stunning and well-crafted book. I could not put this one down at all! The audio version was fantastic, and I listened through it almost non-stop (minus 30 minutes in the car with kids). Cannot wait to read more from this author!

Mummies, murder, and more! Heart of the Nile has a bit of a Watson and Holmes vibe. I didn't realize this was part of a VERY long series when I requested the ARC, but I found it enjoyable nonetheless.

Heart of the Nile by Will Thomas
Narrator, Antony Ferguson
Book 14 Barker and Llewelyn
I have only read one previous book in this series, the one just prior to this one, but I plan to go back and start at the beginning of the series after this.
The title made me think we were going to Egypt in this book; however, although there is an Egyptology hook to the story, it is set in Victorian London. I love the two main characters, especially their many personality differences. The setting is very atmospheric and the mystery kept my interest. I loved the addition of real personalities of the era such as Flinders Petrie and an author with the initials ACD.
Narration by Antony Ferguson is enjoyable although some of his pronunciations are a bit strange. The word dolorous should not sound like the name Dolores, for instance.

I am a Will Thomas fan, but I hadn’t realized he had more Barker and Llewelyn books after his 2008 book. So when I saw Heart of the Nile I jumped at it. Many thanks to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio and Minotaur books for the advance copy.
I did thoroughly enjoy this book- with the exception of Chapter 17 which was a little too over the top maudlin for me,
In short Barker and Llewelyn- Private Inquiry Agents find themselves without female companionship and without a case during the week between Christmas and New Years. Of course, this problem is solved in short order, when a worried wife arrives asking for help locating her missing husband. The husband, an earnest sort, went missing after volunteering at the British museum, where he may had discovered quite an important mummy. Intrigued and feeling this case may be easily solved by Mew Year’s the pair take it on. In typical fashion, a wild ride ensues- full of side moments of Victorian fashion, vocabulary and entertainment. Thomas is able to add in historical details- without making them awkward,- though I may not note all the historic details as I’m not very familiar with Victorian England.
As neither an expert on Victorian life, nor Egyptology, I found this book to be an easy, pleasant read. I’m definitely going to be looking at the books published between 2008 and this one as well. I appreciate that the reader really doesn’t have to read these in order, and that thework well as stand alone novels.
Highly recommend as an “airplane read” or waiting room read, possibly even a beach read. My only disappointment is that there was a distinct lack of the Asian influence that typically accompanies Barker, but perhaps there was just not room for that.
I listened to this on Audio and the narrator was ok. There were a few times when I wished I had a paper copy, but I tend to fare better with audio these days.

Things are quiet at the Private Inquiry office of Barker and Llewelyn as the year nears a close when a woman of little means visits their office. Her husband never came home after his overnight volunteer job at the British Museum where he has been helping to catalog the Egyptian mummies. Barker has a soft spot for the downtrodden; since they are doing little else, they take on the case. A case that might be their most dangerous yet.

Heart of the Nile is the 14th book in the Barker & Llewlyn mystery series. I just started with this series with book 12 so there's no need to read the previous books to enjoy this one. I read book 12 but I've listened to the last book and this one and I enjoy the stories more as audiobooks.

1890s England isn't usually a time period I read but I like Thomas Llewlyn. As the story is told by him, he is the character we know best, but even Barker is growing on me. The 1890s was a harsh era. The wealthy gave little thought to anyone who wasn't a peer while the poor lived in abject poverty - not to mention the corruption in many social institutions. I like that Barker and Llewlyn have no qualms about championing those the rest of the world is willing to ignore.

The mystery is interesting and definitely deadly as everyone wants the treasure found in the mummy. There are a few twists that I didn't see coming. It really kept my interest.

One character that I've come to really enjoy was mostly absent. I always find Llewlyn's wife to provide a bit of levity to the story.

If you enjoy historical mysteries then you really should try this series. And if you have tried this series, but only felt lukewarm about it, I recommend trying the audiobook. The narrator is great and the story is easy to follow.

My review will be published at Girl Who Reads on Thursday - https://www.girl-who-reads.com/2023/04/heart-of-nile-by-will-thomas-review.html

Murder, jewels, human artifacts- an 1893, London Mystery/thriller that leaves you on the edge of your seat as investigator Cyrus Baker and his trusty assistant, Thomas Llewelyn are in search of a killer.
This is a standalone book by Will Thomas. It reminds me of the British Sherlock Homes Mysteries, to which I enjoy immensely. The two investigators are asked by a missing Boston Museum Mummy archaeologist’s wife to search for him as he has not been home nor has he shown up for his day job as a teacher. The Museum discovers that the last mummy he was working with appeared to hold something within a gaping cavity. But where is the missing archeologist? The artifact? And who is the mummy?
I loved that the mystery was presented in old British style English. This helped with location, scenery, characters and the overall enjoyment of the book. The character voices were easy to distinguish between, the pace, fluency and tonality were on point. Emotion was important here and the narrator used it appropriately. Nice job! I look forward to listening to more books read by Antony Ferguson.
Overall, I was very impressed with the writing style, level of excitement, historical accuracy, and smooth narrative. It definitely met my expectations as I puzzled through the facts in order to solve this mystery myself only to be stumped at the end. I loved it!
I would recommend this book to any mystery, thriller or Sherlock Homes lovers. Very enjoyable!
Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the opportunity to review this book. All opinions are my own.

I wanted to like this one more than I did. The concept seemed fun and interesting but it just fell flat for me. It probably doesn't help that this is book fourteen in a series and it's the only one I've read. The plot had really slow pacing but did have a nice ending. I just felt bored listening to this one. The writing was still really well done and I liked the atmospheric prose. So while this one wasn't for me I'm sure someone else will love it.

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Heart of the Nile by Will Thomas is the 14th book in the Barker & Llewelyn historical mystery series. It is very skillfully narrated by Antony Ferguson. This was the first book/audiobook of this series that I read/listened to and I really quite enjoyed it. It made me interested to read all the books from the beginning.

The story line is very interesting and quite clever. Egyptian mummies, jewels, thieves, murders. I loved it. A lot of rich and eccentric characters. A good amount of humorous dialogue. This was a very entertaining book and I liked it a lot!

This is one of my favorite series and one of my favorite narrators, and this latest in the series did not disappoint.

I greatly enjoy Will Thomas' ability to draw on historical events while keeping the mystery fresh and interesting. Llewellyn's trademark humor and Barker's trademark grumpiness play well together as always, plus we got to see our favorite cast of characters - Dummolard, Harm, Mac, Ho, and Rebecca. Thomas has kept this series fun and relevant, and Antony Ferguson's masterful narration is just the cherry on top.

London, 1893. A man is working late at the British museum. He is weighing Egyptian mummy remains when one of them is much heavier than it should be. He is not authorized to do anything to the remains but he knows there's something inside it. He breaks open the chest cavity to reveal a huge uncut gemstone. He knows that he can't leave it there. He takes it with him, risking his job. The next morning the man's wife hires a duo of private detectives to find her missing husband. The pair embark on a crazy chase where it seems like everyone wants the gemstone, but no one should even know about it.

I really enjoyed this book. It reminded me of the same style as Agatha Christie novels. I love the historic setting. There were a few parts where it seemed to jump from one scene to the next and was a bit confusing. Overall, I enjoyed the setting, the story, and the characters.

Heart of the Nile is the 14th Barker & Llewelyn Victorian historical mystery by Will Thomas. Released 11th April 2023 by Macmillan on their Minotaur imprint, it's 320 pages and will be available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.

This is a well established series and the characters are quite finely drawn in a well written whole. The background research is impressive and the descriptions really do call up Victorian London. The story is fictionalized but written around a real historical framework and intertwined so skillfully that it's not always easy to tell where real history shades over into fiction.

The denouement and resolution are well done and satisfying. My only quibble (and it's a fairly minor one) is that the dialogue feels anachronistic in some places. It isn't clunky or awkward, but there is some modern vernacular and a most egalitarian (and non-period) mixing of social classes. The mystery itself is quite convoluted and the climax and denouement were full of twists I hadn't foreseen.

I enjoyed the inclusion of archaeology, Egyptology, and the British Museum especially. The eccentric and intellectual staff and hangers-on were compassionately done and not at all sarcastically or cruelly written. There are some moderately graphic descriptions of blood and violence included, so readers who are very sensitive to bloodshed should be aware. All in all it's a very well written and engaging historical mystery.

The unabridged audiobook has a run time of 9 hours 59 minutes and is superbly narrated by Antony Ferguson. He has a rich baritone voice and the quick switches in dialogue from Barker's brogue to east London Cockney thugs without a wobble is a thing of beauty. The sound and production quality is high throughout the recording.

The books are self contained stand-alones, so it's not necessary to have read the books in order to understand what's going on.

High quality historical mystery. Four and a half stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley.com in exchange for an honest and candid review of the book.

This is a classic British whodunit, set in the late 19th century, in the tradition of Sherlock Homes. When I requested access to this book, I didn't notice that it was #14 in a series. While there were clear allusions to characters and plot points from previous novels, it was easy to follow and wasn't an obstacle to be jumping into the middle of the stream. The formula isn't new-- an eccentric and formidable private investigator and his plucky and worldly assistant tenaciously untangle a mystery that has everyone else, including Scotland Yard, stumped. But, there is a reason the formula is popular and repeatedly returned to: it works.

In this novel, the team helps a downtrodden woman locate her missing husband, seen last after discovering a valuable treasure in the Egyptology department of the British Museum in the middle of the night. The book includes a mix of 19th century Egytomania with asubtext of modern sensibilities and views on imperialistic "collection" of other nations' cultural treasures, while telling a satisfying tale of intrigue and murder.

Sherlock Holmes can step aside. Will Thomas has created a new duo that is on the case. Barker and Llewelyn are likeable characters and the storyline is quick paced and continually engaging. I really enjoy mystery stories and there's just something about historical fiction so when combined into a good ol' whodunit, well, I'm just a sucker. Antony Fergeson brings each character to life with their own unique qualities and keeps the audiobook version interesting. If you are looking for a book to fall asleep to, this is not for you! Instead, you will be left trying to problem solve alongside the detectives and seeking the next clue in the next chapter.

* The audiobook version of this book was provided to be as an advance reader copy in exchange for my honest review. *