The Detective, the Woman, and the Silent Hive

      

This is the third book in Amy Thomas's brilliant series. I first came across Book One (The Detective and the Woman)in 2015, and was charmed by it. I’ve always been intrigued by Irene Adler, the woman who outwitted Sherlock Holmes in Doyle’s A Scandal in Bohemia, and whom (according to Dr. Watson) Holmes refers to ever after as “the woman”. Thomas has turned them into a dynamic duo of sleuths following Book One, when Holmes was given the assignment by Mycroft to prevent what looked like an assassination plot against Adler. Having worked as a team, these former enemies developed a friendship, and in the next three books have been solving mysteries together. 

By Book Three, Irene is living in a peaceful village in Sussex, pursuing singing engagements, but finding peace and relaxation in cultivating beehives. Her peace is shattered when, unaccountably, hive by hive, the bees contract the bacterial disease, “foulbrood”. Since there are no other cases around, it seems to have been purposely introduced by infected bees. Irene goes to London to seek the advice of her friend and sleuth-mate, Sherlock Holmes. 

As it turns out, a nefarious plot is actually aimed at Sherlock Holmes and can be traced back to an earlier case he thought was solved. More than that, I won’t say, because the pleasure is in finding out the who, what, when, where and why. But the author tells the story with a deft hand.

Like the earlier books, the story unfolds through alternating viewpoints -- the clinical Holmes' in third person distant, and the expressive singer's in first person close. It’s a device that works very well, allowing, among other things, the two main characters to reflect and comment on each other and to develop them believably. Other characters are also nicely developed, from Billy, the porter, Wiggins, the leader of the “irregulars”, loyal Mrs. Hudson, grumpy Lestrade, and the ever-gallant Dr. Watson (who also has eyes for Irene’s housekeeper in Sussex).

The author captures beautifully details of Victorian London, from elegant homes to shabby neighborhoods, the wealthy and the poor. Scenes and interiors (including a night in jail) were vivid.

This is a well-paced novel with satisfying twists and turns that kept me engrossed to the end. There is also a Book Four, out: The Detective, the Woman, and the Pirate's Bounty. Can't wait! 

                                     You can learn more about Amy Thomas by 

                                      clicking on these links:

                 Her blog: 

                 Girl Meets Sherlock

                 Facebook

                                      She also podcasts with 

The Baker Street Babes           

Sherlock Has a New Helper!

Author, Brenda Seabrooke

Meet Digby!

Since I have a fascination with Sherlock Holmes, I'm always delighted to find a new story that involves him and his reliable Boswell, Dr. Watson. So when I had the chance to read Scones and Bones on Baker Street, Sherlock's Dog (Maybe) and the Dirt Dilemma, by award-winning Brenda Seabrooke,  I grabbed it.

The hero of this tale is a street dog named Digby whose motto in life is “Never daunted, never fazed,” a motto that befits him. The story opens with Digby prowling the streets of London, hoping for a scrap of food, some water, and a safe place to sleep. When he endangers himself to rescue a cat from a horse-drawn hackney, a foot sends him flying out of harm’s way then disappears into the crowd. Digby goes on a sniffing search to find that foot and thank its owner, who, as it turns out, is Sherlock Holmes.

Sherlock may have gotten Digby’s attention with a kick, but Digby wins his attention by accidentally foiling a bomb plot (no spoilers here as to how and where). He follows Holmes and Watson to 221B Baker Street, where he now has a new goal in life—to become Sherlock Holmes’s right paw dog and help him solve cases. But winning Sherlock’s attention isn’t the same thing as winning his affection. The detective doesn’t particularly want a dog, and it’s up to Digby to change his mind. The misadventures that follow are hilarious as Digby shadows Holmes and Watson and becomes embroiled in their new case—a case familiar to Sherlockians, but now seen through the point of view of this lovable mutt.

Seabrooke has created a believable character in Digby, who reads the world through his sense of smell and his loyal doggy heart. One hopes more cases will follow. Brian Belanger’s illustrations capture Digby’s quirky personality. “Fun Facts” at the bottom of each page introduce a young reader to both historical details of Victorian London and the concept of footnotes.

You can get a copy of this delightful book HERE:

You can learn more about the author and her many books HERE

A question for you: Do you enjoy stories for children told through the eyes of an animal? Why or why not? Have you come across any tales for adults told from an animal's point of view?

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Celebrating Two Good Reads

It's celebration time again, and I'm celebrating two good reads -- one based in Victorian London, the other based in Belle Epoque Paris.

But first a reminder that this fun blog hop is co-sponsored by Lexa Cain @ Lexa Cain , L.G. Keltner @ Writing Off The Edge , and Tonja Drecker @ Kidbits Blog, who co-host this "Celebrate the Small Things blog hop. You can go to any of these sites to get all the links and add your name to the links. 

The Victorian London read is a scientific picture book for children, BURN, by Darcy Pattison. It's a distilling, so to speak, of a Christmas lecture for children given by Michael Faraday in 1848 at the Royal Institution in Victorian London. I found this a delightful book, thoroughly engrossing, one adults will enjoy as much as children. It would be a lovely addition to an elementary classroom, both for the scientific emphasis and Faraday's approach to experiments, and for a glimpse of Victorian England -- Peter Willis's  quirky illustrations show how people dressed in the era.
(Darcy Pattison also has an interesting website about writing, called, Fiction Notes .

The second  book is a mystery, Murder on the Eiffel Tower, by Claude Inner (a pen name used by two sisters who are book sellers on the banks of the Seine.) By now, most of you know I love mysteries, and I am entranced by anything to do with Belle Epoque Europe. Especially France. Even more especially, Paris. This mystery immerses a reader beautifully in the time and place -- although I have a quibble with how the murderer and the murderer's motive was revealed at the end. (No spoilers here, because others may find the ending just right.) This is the first of a series, so a reader can plan on more journeys through 19th century Paris. Unfortunately, I couldn't find a website for the author(s).


I would recommend either book, depending on your interests. Meanwhile, check out the other links on this blog hop, and have a great week-end and a great week.

What are you celebrating today?

The Game is Afoot

Before reading my post, have a look HERE at Grace Elliot's post on coffee in Victorian London.

Meanwhile, regarding the picture on the right, how did this come about? Why is this woman dressed like . . . Sherlock Holmes?

It all started with a visit a few years ago to my cool brother, Nathan, and his classy wife, Mary, when they were living in Luton, England. (My brother has passed away since then and is sorely missed. My sis-in-law now lives in Bristol, and Rajan and I enjoyed a visit with her last summer.)

Classy lady and cool guy

But back to that earlier visit: While I was there, they took me to see the Sherlock Holmes Museum on Baker Street. 

As you can see, it's done up very nicely: There was even a bobby at the door - just keeping an eye on things, I'm sure:

The museum

The Bobby

And a little seed was planted in my imagination that slowly began to grow. And that little seed finally turned into a book--A middle grade mystery that's going to be published by MX Publishing in June! 

MX Publishing is based in UK, but has a division in the US. The company specializes in Sherlock Holmes related books. Sherlock fan that I am, I am probably going to go broke shopping there, because there is such a wonderful selection: You'll see what I mean if you go HERE for their UK site or HERE for their US site.

In the meantime, that visit led to a middle grade mystery: Imogene and the Case of the Missing Pearls. Please keep it in mind when June rolls around. (You can read some reviews of it HERE under the Product Description section. And you can pre-order now if you wish.)

Meanwhile, how about you? Has an event during a visit to someone ever sparked a new book idea for you? Are you a fan of Sherlock Holmes? Fan fiction? Historical fiction?