The second Johannes Cabal novel (the author’s note in the third gives the title of at least one published short story and implies the existence of others). This looks almost like a fix-up of a novel originally written with a different protagonaist re-worked to include the main character. Almost. It differs radically from the first one in a number of ways. For a start there’s a map showing how the action moves around the fictional geography of Ruritania-esque (Ruritania is mentioned though the action does not go there) places. It establishes Cabal as a German immigrant to the UK as a youngster (or maybe born there but with parents who gave him German as a first language and German-accented English) and with the somewhat forced appearence of a characte from the first novel clears up the setting of that as the UK. The setting here is now also clearly steampunk with airhips not raised by lighter than air gas but suspended from aetheric currents. It’s a reasonable murder mystery plot but Cabal is still not likeable enough as a main character and indeed does some things which don’t quite fit the character as set up to date in order to further the plot. Passable but not brilliant.