Will Thomas, born 1958 in

Bucks County, Pennsylvania Bucks County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 646,538, making it the fourth-most populous county in Pennsylvania. Its county seat is Doylestown. The county is named after the Englis ...

, is a novelist who writes a Victorian mystery series featuring Cyrus Barker, a Scottish detective or "private enquiry agent," and his

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

assistant, Thomas Llewelyn. The Barker/Llewelyn novels are set in the 1880s and often feature historical events, people, and movements. Martial combat is a recurring theme throughout this

hardboiled Hardboiled (or hard-boiled) fiction is a literary genre that shares some of its characters and settings with crime fiction (especially detective fiction and noir fiction). The genre's typical protagonist is a detective who battles the violence o ...

series. In interviews, Thomas has said that Barker is based on men such as

Richard Francis Burton Sir Richard Francis Burton (; 19 March 1821 – 20 October 1890) was a British explorer, writer, orientalist scholar,and soldier. He was famed for his travels and explorations in Asia, Africa, and the Americas, as well as his extraordinary kn ...

and

Edward William Barton-Wright Edward William Barton-Wright CE, FRSA, MJS (member of the Japan Society) (8 November 186013 September 1951) was an English entrepreneur specialising in both self defence training and physical therapy. He is remembered today as one of the firs ...

, founder of

Bartitsu Bartitsu is an wikt:eclectic, eclectic martial art and self-defence method originally developed in England in 1898–1902, combining elements of boxing, jujitsu, cane fighting and French kickboxing (savate). In 1903, it was immortalised (as "barit ...

. Prior to writing novels, Will Thomas wrote essays for

Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a " consulting detective" in the stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with observation, deduction, forensic science and ...

society publications and lectured on crime fiction of the Victorian era. Will Thomas' first novel was nominated for a Barry Award and a

Shamus Award The Shamus Award is awarded by the Private Eye Writers of America (PWA) for the best detective fiction ( P. I. = Private investigator) genre novels and short stories A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one si ...

, and won the 2005 Oklahoma Book Award. He has been employed as a librarian with the

Tulsa City-County Library The Tulsa City-County Library (TCCL) is the major public library system in Tulsa County, Oklahoma. Overview The library system serves those who live, work, go to school in, own land in, or pay property taxes on land in Tulsa County. There are 24 b ...

System, and featured on the cover of

Library Journal ''Library Journal'' is an American trade publication for librarians. It was founded in 1876 by Melvil Dewey. It reports news about the library world, emphasizing public libraries, and offers feature articles about aspects of professional prac ...

. ''The Black Hand'' was nominated for a 2009 Shamus Award. ''Fatal Enquiry'' won the 2015 Oklahoma Book Award. Will Thomas is a great fan of

Rex Stout Rex Todhunter Stout (; December 1, 1886 – October 27, 1975) was an American writer noted for his detective fiction. His best-known characters are the detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, who were featured in 33 novels and ...

, author of the

Nero Wolfe Nero Wolfe is a brilliant, obese and eccentric fictional armchair detective created in 1934 by American mystery writer Rex Stout. Wolfe was born in Montenegro and keeps his past murky. He lives in a luxurious brownstone on West 35th Street in Ne ...

mysteries. Thomas studies Victorian martial arts such as

and

Hung Gar Hung Ga (), Hung Kuen (), or Hung Ga Kuen () is a southern Chinese martial art belonging to the southern Shaolin styles. The hallmarks of Hung Ga are strong stances, notably the horse stance, or "si ping ma" (), and strong hand techniques, not ...

, which he uses in his novels.

Books

Barker & Llewelyn Novels

*''Some Danger Involved'' (2004) *''To Kingdom Come'' (2005) *''The Limehouse Text'' (2006) *''The Hellfire Conspiracy'' (2007) *''The Black Hand'' (2008) *''Fatal Enquiry'' (2014) *''Anatomy of Evil'' (2015) *''Hell Bay'' (2016) *''Old Scores'' (2017) *"An Awkward Way to Die", short story (2017) *''Blood Is Blood'' (2018) *''Lethal Pursuit'' (November 12, 2019) *''Dance with Death'' (April 13, 2021) *''Fierce Poison'' (April 12, 2022)

Sherlock Holmes Short Stories

* "The Adventure of Urquhart Manse", in ''The MX Book of New Sherlock Holmes Stories - Part I'' (2015) * "Take Up and Read!", in ''The MX Book of New Sherlock Holmes Stories - Part XIII'' (2019)

Notes

References

*Wilda Williams
"Librarians who write thrive on how well their chosen careers complement one another"
''

'', February 15, 2004. *Alex Knapp
"Series Review: The Barker-Llewelyn Novels by Will Thomas"
''Heretical Ideas'', October 23, 2008 *Joe Myers

''Oklahoma Center for Poets and Writers'' (author interview).

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Will 1958 births Living people 21st-century American novelists American male novelists American mystery writers People from Broken Arrow, Oklahoma People from Bucks County, Pennsylvania Novelists from Oklahoma Novelists from Pennsylvania 21st-century American male writers