[fsbofk]

I dont' know anything about the Holmes' book, but I highly recommend Francis K. Mason's The Avro Lancaster, published in 1989 by Aston Publications. Now out of print (and used copies are not cheap), it covers the development and operations of the Lancaster in 436 well illustrated pages. Included are representative color profiles, a fold-out cutaway illustration of a Lanc, and an 88 page appendix identifying all Lancasters, with a short "history" of each.