Amazon.com Product Description (ISBN 0753824000, Paperback)
It is 1834 and with the birth of the Industrial Revolution, railway fever sweeps the country. Pyke is uneasy with the luxury his aristocratic marriage has brought him, and when he is asked to unofficially investigate a decapitation in Cambridgeshire, he can not resist the chance to resuscitate the old skills he learned on the streets. But with the industrial world comes a new and faceless enemy—men who have money and power, and who will stop at nothing in their pursuit of both. For Pyke, with his young wife and child and an elevated place in society to protect, the stakes have suddenly become alarmingly high. From the sweat shops of the east end to the palace of the Queen-in-waiting; from the elegant drawing rooms of the newly rich, to the bloodspattered backrooms of London's taverns; Pyke's investigation stirs up a hornets' nest of trouble. As the death toll rises, his wife becomes involved with the radicals' fight against the industrialists, and an alluring woman from his past returns to threaten the life he has made for them both, Pyke must adapt to the ever-changing world around him and draw on all of his resources if he is to protect his family and survive.
(retrieved from Amazon Fri, 24 Apr 2009 07:58:19 -0400)
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Wikipedia in English
It seems to have lost direction and become confused,with just too many strands,so that it does not hold the readers interest.
We have Pyke sent off by Sir Robert Peel to investigate (unofficially) the discovery of a headless body. There is much made about the construction of a new railway line and the efforts by various groups to disrupt it. Then there is the potential failure of Pyke's bank and a Royal scandal.. There is just too much going on and the whole thing lacks focus.Pyke is busy rushing about threatening to 'tear [some-ones] head off' or to 'tear[ some-ones] tongue out'. At the same time he is doing some rather nasty things himself to others without any compulsion. A completely unlikable and unbelievable character.
You may wonder who the Captain Paine of the title is by the way,well I won't spoil (spoil.ha !) it for you,but suffice to say,it doesn't really matter anyway. (