The Beekeeper's Apprentice

I had heard good things about The Beekeeper's Apprentice, by Laurie R. King, but had a few reservations--the combination of which meant I got a copy for my TBR pile but kept finding other books that I wanted to read more.  Thank goodness for the R.I.P. reading challenge and my decision to read a bunch of mysteries from my pile, because it was great and I'm eager to read more in the series.

The basic idea is that Sherlock Holmes has retired to a quiet country life in Sussex, keeping bees, and we find him in 1915 in his early 60's pottering around the countryside.  Enter Mary Russell, age 15, who is basically a younger, female version of the great detective. They strike up a friendship and he takes her under his wing, teaching her to use her logical brain, acute powers of observation, etc.

Holmes is the beekeeper, Mary (aka Russell) is the apprentice.

Mary grows up, attends Oxford, and the pair team up to solve a wonderful mystery--someone keeps on trying to blow up Holmes, Mrs. Hudson, Watson (aka "Uncle John" to Mary), and, of course, Mary herself.

The story has everything--a bit of London, a bit of English countryside, a side trip to Palestine, Oxford, Moriarty (dead though he is), baffling clues, an endearing child, clueless Americans, lots of tea and sandwiches and pipe smoking, a touch of opium, chess, a good intriguing backstory for Mary.

The premise has plenty of room for a good series, and the chemistry between Holmes and Russell is strong, believable, and complex.

A thoroughly enjoyable romp with a pair of enjoyable, interesting characters.

There's some fun fan art out there featuring Holmes and Russell. Here are a couple of my favorites.

That's number three in the R.I.P. reading challenge for me so far!

My Particular Friend: 5-star review and giveaway!

Sherlock Holmes stories were among the first non-kid books that I read as a teenager, and I've revisited them many times over the years, each time relishing the nostalgic feelings I get reading them and enjoying the characters and stories and absolute cleverness of Doyle and his masterful creation.

My Particular Friend, by fellow Coloradoan author, Jennifer Petkus, is a glorious reworking of Sherlock Holmes and his friend Dr. John Watson.  Reincarnated into Regency England as Charlotte Holmes and Jane Woodsen, My Particular Friend recounts the adventures of the pair as they solve mysteries matrimonial rather than murderous. 

The book was enormously fun to read on several levels.  First, the stories themselves are interesting as are the characters of Charlotte and Jane, as well as the servants, friends, and clients who surround them.  I loved seeing characteristics from the originals shine forth in their Regency-lady-versions--Charlotte is every bit as clever, self-assured, and focused as Sherlock, and Jane is a tireless sidekick, taking notes, offering theories, and serving as a sounding board, foil, and companion.  I also liked the fact that Petkus threw in a bit of romance for Jane in the form of the dashing Dr. Wallace (be still my beating heart!).

It's also great fun to catch the author's many references and allusions to her favorite authors, including Jane Austen, P.G. Wodehouse, Oscar Wilde, and Shakespeare.  The book is scattered with # symbols, and you can visit its website to read the footnotes associated with each # sign.  The footnotes include tidbits explaining Regency dress, customs, and other details of life as well as literary allusions.  I didn't read an ebook version of the book, but I imagine the # signs are hotlinks to the footnotes, which is very cool.

I recently reread The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, which contains some of my favorite stories, and I had to smile to see the Conan Doyle story The Naval Treaty reworked by Petkus into The Affair of Brotherly Love. Petkus did a marvelous job translating it to her own fictional world and reimagining the challenge of removing a valuable document from an impregnable stronghold.  It is a story worthy of the original--clever, full of blind alleys, and immensely satisfying to read.

That said, I have to admit that my personal favorite story was The Affair of the Reluctant Bachelor, in which a Bertie Wooster character, recast as Bertie Worcester, finds himself engaged to two women at the same time.  Charlotte and Jane must help Bertie as his faithful valet, Cheevers (Jeeves, in the P.G. Wodehouse stories that inspired this one) is not on hand to tell him what to do.  I laughed through the whole story--loved Petkus's Bertie as much as I've loved Wodehouse's Bertie, and felt the whole was light, bright, and sparkling.

I'm hoping that Petkus is working on volume two as I'm not nearly tired of reading Charlotte House stories and just hope she never feels compelled to send her creation to Reichenbach Falls.  My Particular Friend is charming, literary, and witty--basically, everything I look for in a particular friend, and it turned out to be a particularly good read!

I am happy to announce that Jennifer Petkus has offered up two versions of My Particular Friend for a giveaway. 

A paperback version is available for U.S. residents, and a Kindle version is available for non-U.S. residents. 

To enter the giveaway, please leave a comment below and include your email address so that I can reach you should you be one of two happy winners.  The contest ends on Saturday, July 14 at 8 pm MDT.