What a fun, fun book…
The Sherlock Holmes stories were some of the first mysteries I graduated to after Encyclopedia Brown and Nancy Drew, and I loved them. But I’ve always felt that a lot of Holmes pastiches (Laurie R King’s Mary Russell series aside) fall a little flat. So I was very pleasantly surprised by Mrs Hudson and the Blue Daisy Affair, which is the fifth in the Holmes & Hudson series by Martin Davies. It is simply a thoroughly enjoyable book!
Davies speculates on what might happen in the Holmes universe “if the real brains of Baker Street weren’t Sherlock’s” – but actually were Mrs. Hudson’s. In the process, he breathes life into two delightful characters, Mrs. Hudson herself, and Mrs. Hudson’s orphaned protégé, Flotsam. The story itself revolves around a gruesome murder scene – the blood-spattered room in which a former housemaid has apparently been murdered by the scion of the house she used to work in. The case seems to be perfect for Holmes, so imagine the shock when the Catanaches hire the trendy new detective in town, Laurence Martin, to establish their son’s innocence, rather than Sherlock himself. Holmes and Dr Watson are pretty busy anyway with a couple of other cases, including a Home Office “special request” that weaves in and out around the main storyline. But Mrs. Hudson and Flotsam have no intentions of ceding the field to some upstart detective – so they investigate and all turns out well.
I enjoyed pretty much every minute of Blue Daisy, which I read far too late into the night. The story is told from Flotsam’s point of view, and she’s a smart, funny, and engaging narrator. I enjoyed watching her investigate, do a bit of code-switching, and grow up some along the way too. I very much hope there will be more books in the series – inquiring minds want to know how Scraggs’ new enterprise works out – and more about his relationship with Flotsam too! And I have now also added the first four Holmes & Hudson books to my “To Be Read” list, which is already far too long – sigh. Finally, please note that I received an advance review copy of Mrs Hudson and the Blue Daisy Affair from the publisher, Canelo, and from NetGalley.
And, to top it off, Blue Daisy is very attractively priced right now – $2.99 at Kindle US, £1.99 at Kindle UK, and CAD$3.99 at Kindle Canada. And the same, or just a little more at the various Kobo sites, if you prefer ePub…
Buy: Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon Canada | Kobo US | Kobo UK | Kobo Canada