3.5, such a strange premise for this series, and maybe one of the more convoluted plots, but still enjoyable in the end. The feud between Mycroft and Mary adds an interesting tension. ( )

Way back when my daughter was a youngish teen, she and I enjoyed mightily the storied of The Beekeeper's Apprentice and the ongoing story of Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes. So recently, in my hunt for mystery authors for Bloody Words Stormy Weather in Halifax, I grabbed this book from the library to see what Mary Russell was up to now.
Well, maybe I'm older and more cynical (I read Swedish authors, after all) but this book didn't grab me at all, with it's lengthy and needlessly complex setup. I feel certain that, had I stuck it out, I'd find a nugget of goodness there - King is a fluid writer and often funny and I enjoy that. But after many many pages, I had to toss it into the "return to library" pile.
Perhaps it would have been better to read the series again from the beginning, but I didn't enjoy them that much. I find Holmes a bit annoying at the best of times ("Those of you who think you know everything are annoying to those of us who do" and all that) and really hate deus ex machina mysteries where the magical detective whips the secret out from under his cloak (it always seems to be a him) at the end.
Still, for fans of Holmes, it's interesting to see him as a non-drug-addicted, married man. For me, something doesn't fit. ( )

As much as I'd like to say this was another great Mary Russell book from Laurie King, I cannot. In fact I was surprised how slow moving it is and that the usual twists and turns in any Russell/Holmes story are completely missing. Having read four others she'd written this was a real disappointment though I'll still continue to work my way through all the Mary Russell books. ( )

My least favorite of the Russell/Holmes series. ( )

In England's budding silent-film industry, megalomaniac Randolph Fflytte is king. At the request of Scotland Yard, Mary Russell is dispatched to investigate rumors of criminal activities. At Lisbon rehearsals for "Pirate King", based on Gilbert and Sullivan's "The Pirates of Penzance", thirteen blond-haired, blue-eyed actresses meet the real buccaneers Fflytte has recruited to provide authenticity. But when the crew embarks for Morocco and the actual filming, troubles escalate. ( )