A Study in Silks can’t seem to decide if it wants to be a mystery, a steampunk adventure, a comedy of manners, a drama, or a romance. The main character is Evelina Cooper, daughter of a circus performer and a lady from country gentry. From her father’s family she inherits magical abilities and on her mother’s side she is niece to Sherlock Holmes. In her world, magic is illegal in England, and while Victoria rules in name, London is really controlled by a group of industrialists known as the Steam Council. This would be the steampunk aspect. Evelina is staying with a school-friend Imogen whose father is a lord, and together they are about to participate in their first Season, a period of social activity but for girls, also marriage hunting (hence the novel of manners component). Before the social events start, there is a series of murders of servants at the house (this would be the mystery). Evelina starts to suspect the involvement of Imogen’s father Lord Bancroft and older brother Tobias (with whom Evelina might be a little in love), and then there’s the probably evil sorcerer Dr Magnus, and the Steam Council- especially the Gold King (the Council members all have nicknames) Jasper Keating-, and Evelina’s childhood friend from the circus, Nick who clearly has a crush on Evelina.
All together, this is not a bad set up. In spite of the large number of characters, the plot moves well enough and the narration stays mostly with Evelina’s perspective with just enough departure to other characters for suspense. I noticed about halfway through that the steampunk was really more of a setting than a genre because the Steam Council related parts are about politics not magic or technology. Did I mention there’s the possibility of a rebellion against the control of the Steam Council? We do get a glimpse of the famous Sherlock Holmes but he does not play too much of a role here. As much as I love the Great Detective, it’s a good thing he’s not too prominent because that would probably distract from the other characters.
The problem comes in when characters get distracted by their emotions, which starts to happen a lot in the second half of the novel. Evelina is torn between Tobias and Nick who both clearly fancy her, and Imogen starts to realize feelings for one of Tobias’ pals, Bucky. Tobias is a little torn by his feelings for his sister’s friend and his duty to his father and family, while Nick is focused on trying to get over Evelina or get her love. There’s also the problem of Jasper Keating who is planning to use his daughter Alice (who is the same age as Evelina and Imogen, and takes a liking to Tobias) in his schemes to gain more control over London.
The story ends with some grand reveals, but none that solve any of the mysteries. The murder of Grace Childs (the first servant to die) is not solved, but all of the Bancrofts (namely Tobias and his father) and Nick are cleared as suspects. Magnus may or may not be out of the picture, and Jasper Keating remains in control of his schemes and half of the characters’ lives by the end. None of the emotional turmoil is solved either, except that Imogen and Bucky realize that their attraction is mutual. As this is book 1 of a trilogy, I don’t mind the open-ended conclusion, but the shift towards the feels is very worrisome. Given the promise of the adventure, the magic, and the mystery, I really hope the series does not turn into a romance. We’ll see.