Mrs Hudson and the Blue Daisy Affair (A Holmes & Hudson Mystery, #5)

by Martin Davies

A bloodstained room, a missing woman, a passionate affair gone wrong.

September in London, and the city basks in a glorious Indian summer. Sherlock Holmes has more work than he can handle, and when the Home Office asks him to sniff out a plot by Russian assassins on radical politician George Dashing, Holmes and Watson find themselves distracted by more pressing cases.

Meanwhile, there is scandal at the home of Dashing’s great political rival, Sir Henry Catanache. When Sir Henry’s housemaid goes missing, leaving only a pool of blood behind, his son is the prime suspect. Can Sherlock discover the truth? Or will the Catanache family be rescued by Laurence Martin, a detective newly arrived in London who is dazzling society with some remarkable triumphs?

Martin proves a surprising and enigmatic figure, and Mrs Hudson and Flotsam, her intrepid helper, soon find themselves as intrigued by the detective as they are by the crime...

A compelling cosy crime novel based in the legend of Sherlock Holmes, perfect for fans of M. R. C. Kasasian, Oscar de Muriel and Elly Griffiths.

• ISBN13: 9781800325289
• Publish Date: 4 November 2021
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: Canelo
• Format: Paperback (B-Format (198x129 mm))
• Pages: 93000
• Language: English

Reviews

[annieb123]

Originally posted on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

Mrs Hudson and the Blue Daisy Affair is the fifth book in the cozy English mystery series by Martin Davies. Released 4th Nov 2021 by Canelo, it's 305 pages and is available in ebook format. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.
This is on the surface a nice tie-in series starring the redoubtable Mrs. Hudson (of 221B Baker St. fame), and featuring lots of nice Holmes and Watson cameos. As always, this installment also features Mrs. Hudson's assistant Flotsam who has blossomed into a capable, honourable, intelligent, and fearless protagonist in her own right.

There are several disparate plot threads - Russian spies, assassination plots, women's suffrage, rigid social class divisions - and they all twine ever more tightly together to reach a satisfying climax and denouement. The author weaves fictional characters and events so skillfully around real historical characters that it's not always easy to figure out where fact shades into fiction.

Despite being the 5th book in the series, it works perfectly well as a standalone, and I had no trouble keeping up with the plot.

Four stars. This would be a good choice for public library acquisition as well as for fans of historical British cozies. It would also make a good choice for bookclub discussion or a buddy-read for online cozy enthusiasts.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.