THE MURDER OF MARY RUSSELL is book 14 in the Mary
Russell and Sherlock Holmes series by the redoubtable
Laurie R. King. I absolutely adore this series! Sherlock
Holmes has been one of my most cherished literary
characters since grade school, and I love it when a
contemporary author does their own fabulous interpretation
of the Sherlockian cannon. In King's series, Sherlock
meets Mary, an orphaned bluestocking from America, after he
has retired from his consulting practice to Sussex to raise
bees. With his massive intellect and ability to notice minute
details just as he can, Sherlock recognizes a kindred spirit
in the young Mary. He trains her to become his
partner in sleuthing, and they eventually fall in love.
Such a seemingly unlikely pairing, at the start of the
series, has settled into a comfortable mix of domesticity
and odd intrigue, as Mary and Holmes continue to pursue
unusual cases that take them around the globe.
I'm not going to say much at all about the
plot here, because this is a book that the reader should go
into blindly. The slow unveiling of clues is utterly
consuming and suspenseful, alternating current events with
flashbacks of Clara Hudson's (Holmes' housekeeper's) past.
At one point I had to shut the book and walk away because I
was so tense, but 10 minutes later I couldn't stand it
any more and cracked it open to continue devouring the
story.
THE MURDER OF MARY RUSSELL feels very different from the
previous books in the series. Most of the book is about
Mrs. Hudson and her previous life. I have to admit as I
read about her now in King's books, I picture Una Stubbs,
the Mrs. Hudson from BBC's hit show Sherlock, and hear her
voice speaking Mrs. Hudson's dialogue in the books! And
wow, what a backstory Mrs. Hudson has been hiding behind
her respectable housekeeper's appearance. We learn about
what Clara Hudson's life entailed before she took on
Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson as tenants in their 221
B Baker Street flat.
Sherlock Holmes does not really show up in the story
until about halfway through the book, which feels odd for a
Sherlock Holmes and Mary Russell book, but fits the event
of this book perfectly. The glimpses of early Holmes are
endearing, and I love the skillful entwining of an early
Conan Doyle story, "The Adventure of the Gloria Scott,"
into the current tale. I think The Murder of Mary Russell
is one of King's finest in the whole amazing series. King
is a fantastically gifted historical mystery author who
keeps this series fresh and inventive.
Laurie R. King’s bestselling Mary Russell–Sherlock Holmes
series weaves rich historical detail and provocative
themes with intriguing characters and enthralling
suspense. Russell and Holmes have become one of modern
literature’s most beloved teams. But does this adventure
end it all?
Mary Russell is used to dark secrets—her own, and those
of her famous partner and husband, Sherlock Holmes. Trust
is a thing slowly given, but over the course of a decade
together, the two have forged an indissoluble bond.
And what of the other person to whom Mary Russell has
opened her heart: the couple’s longtime housekeeper, Mrs.
Hudson? Russell’s faith and affection are suddenly
shattered when a man arrives on the doorstep claiming to
be Mrs. Hudson’s son.
What Samuel Hudson tells Russell cannot possibly be true,
yet she believes him—as surely as she believes the threat
of the gun in his hand. In a devastating instant,
everything changes. And when the scene is discovered—a
pool of blood on the floor, the smell of gunpowder in the
air—the most shocking revelation of all is that the grim
clues point directly to Clara Hudson.
Or rather to Clarissa, the woman she was before Baker
Street.
The key to Russell’s sacrifice lies in Mrs. Hudson’s
past. To uncover the truth, a frantic Sherlock Holmes
must put aside his anguish and push deep into his
housekeeper’s secrets—to a time before her disguise was
assumed, before her crimes were buried away.
There is death here, and murder, and trust betrayed.
And nothing will ever be the same.
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