Review: So Many Women...So Little Time...
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 11 5, 2013
Departed by Nick Stephenson take us into the world of criminology consultant Leopold Blake and to the edge of the insanity of a killer. With echoes of Jack The Ripper from the 1880's, Blake must be careful not to be led down that primrose path, which he knows will be a dead end for all concerned.Blake's contacts with New Scotland Yard and London Metropolitan Police give him everything they have to help him assist them with solving this series of murders in the Whitechapel district - including a referral to a professor who has studied the Ripper cases, and Blake finds him extremely helpful. The man is a former psychiatrist who found life on campus and teaching more to his liking. He is well-mannered, well-cultured, and serves a fine line in liquor. He is also extremely proficient not only on Ripper lore but on historical background, which seems to include thousands of years of Druid custom. Blake finds this interesting on an intellectual basis, but useless when searching for his killer.Another consultant Blake meets is a Security Services (MI-5) agent. He often wonders why this branch of government is concerned with his investigation, but finds that the man is good at what he does. It appears that the case is solved with his help. But Blake is not completely satisfied with the outcome, and has to take one more investigative step - a step that he finds is on a slippery slope that may lead to his own imminent demise!Departed is masterfully written, the characters are realistic enough that I began to look for them in my living room. If you love a good mystery, a really good murder mystery, Departed, by Nick Stephenson is for you.