The 6th of January is Sherlock Holmes's birthday, and lucky for Gemma Doyle, January is also the slowest time of the year at both the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium, and Mrs. Hudson's Tea Room. It's a good time for Gemma and her friends to travel to England for a Holmes Convention. For Gemma, the trip provides an opportunity to visit her parents, Jayne Wilson is excited about seeing all the sites London has to offer, and Ryan Ashburton just wants to spend some time with Gemma. But the trip is immediately derailed when Gemma's father Henry recognizes his brother-in-law Randolph Denhaugh, who disappeared more than thirty years ago on the night he stole a valuable painting from his own parents.
Henry, a retired detective with Scotland Yard, has been keeping tabs on the man's career as a forger of Old Masters and he warns Randy to stay away from his family. It's up to Gemma, with the help of her friends, to plunge into the "lowest and vilest alleys" of London to save her father from prison.[summary via Amazon]
I'm a big fan of Vicki Delany's other mysteries, the Year-Round Mysteries and the Lighthouse Library Mysteries (as Eva Gates). I recently decided to plunge right into the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery series with the latest book, There's a Murder Afoot.
There's a Murder Afoot fits all my favourite things in a cozy mystery: books within books - definitely, a interesting mystery that's difficult for me to solve - oh yes, and tea - of course, we are in England aren't we?
I'm not a huge Sherlock Holmes fan. When it comes to vintage mysteries I much prefer Agatha Christie over anyone else, but I'd have to be living in a cave not know about Sherlock Holmes. Sherlock has made it big in pop culture, especially with recent movie and tv adaptions, and I love that this has helped spread the word about mysteries even more. There's a Murder Afoot takes the theme of Sherlock Holmes and creates such a strong mystery around it, that you almost forget that this wasn't written by Arthur Conan Doyle!
Gemma is back in England attending a Sherlock Holmes convention, and catching up with her family. She gets thrown right into a mystery when her long-estranged Uncle Randolph is found dead, and her father is pinned for the crime!! Gemma puts on her detecting hat, and sets about trying to unravel the mystery of not just Randolph's death, but his life as well!
I was simply charmed by the mystery and the characters. I've yet again dove straight into a series with the latest book, and I didn't feel lost at all!! I got swept up in the mystery, and enjoyed learning more about the world of art, as Uncle Randolph was an artist - of sorts!
Gemma has some really interesting family and friends! I hope this isn't the last of her sister, Pippa, that we see. Let's just say Pippa has a very interesting life - especially her work, and I'm really hoping she pops up again!!
As There's a Murder Afoot is set in England, and away from the bookshop, we don't see a lot of the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium. However I was given just enough of a taste of Gemma's life back in America - and especially her Uncle Arthur - that I can't wait to dig into the earlier books and find out all there is to know about the bookshop.
I highly recommend There's a Murder Afoot for fans of literary cozy mysteries. Vicki Delany is a master in the genre of cozy mysteries, and once you read one of her books you're going to want to read them all!! Alike to me you can jump right in with any book, and be positively charmed (as I was), but I guarantee that you will be wanting to read all the other books as well!!
No comments:
Post a Comment