Ensconced in domestic bliss, the recently married Dr. Watson receives a note from Mrs. Hudson, Sherlock Holmes's landlady; there was a fire at 221B Baker Street. Holmes is unharmed, but out of it; he still hasn't recuperated from his recent stint in gaol, and there is evidence that the Great Detective is again under the influence of cocaine. But then Holmes receives a missive from a French chanteuse: her son has disappeared. The boy is the illegitimate son of an Earl, which greatly complicates matters. And so Holmes drags Watson to Paris to investigate the case.

ART IN THE BLOOD is a very complex story where in addition to looking for the child, there are mysteries surrounding an art collection that might have been acquired under suspicious circumstances. Some minor characters are taken directly from history, such as artist Toulouse-Lautrec and a Jean Vidocq, who is presumably the grandson of the founder of the French Sûreté, and Vidocq is a very entertaining character, which I would like to see again.

The tone and the pacing of ART IN THE BLOOD are extremely faithful to Conan Doyle's, as are the characters of Holmes and Watson. The descriptions are so eloquent and vivid that I could easily picture Paris and London in the Victorian era, as well as a 34 year-old Sherlock exalted and whooshing about. I also enjoyed the author's attention to detail, particularly when it came to medical and scientific matters; there is not a hint of revisionism, which greatly pleased me. There is plenty of action, the characters are uniformly well-rounded, and the clever ending took me completely by surprise. ART IN THE BLOOD is a very well written mystery that does justice to the original!