The new owner of a Sherlock Holmes-themed bookstore—and its cantankerous resident cat—discovers a rare manuscript and stumbles into a mystery in this charming series debut.
Perfect for fans of cozy settings like that of Before the Coffee Gets Cold.
Gemma Doyle, a transplanted Englishwoman, has returned to the quaint town of West London on Cape Cod to manage her great uncle Arthur's Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium. The shop—located at 222 Baker Street—specializes in the Holmes canon and pastiche and is also home to Moriarty the cat, who seems to love everyone but Gemma. When Gemma finds a rare and potentially valuable magazine containing the first Sherlock Homes story hidden in the bookshop, she and her friend Jayne (who runs the adjoining Mrs. Hudson's Tea Room) set off to find the owner, only to stumble upon a dead body.
The highly perceptive Gemma is the police's first suspect, so she puts her consummate powers of deduction to work to clear her name, investigating a handsome rare books expert, the dead woman's suspiciously unmoved son, and a whole family of greedy characters desperate to cash in on their inheritance. But when Gemma and Jayne accidentally place themselves at a second murder scene, it's a race to uncover the truth before the detectives lock them up for good. National bestselling author Vicki Delany’s outstanding series debut is sure to charm the most discerning fan of the great fictional detective.
Full of quirky characters and bookish charm, this murder mystery series is perfect for fans of cozy settings, book lovers, and Sherlock Holmes enthusiasts!
A British expat running a Sherlock Holmes bookshop on Cape Cod, finds what appears to be an incalculably valuable original of A Study in Scarlet hidden on her shop shelves. When she attempts to return it to the woman she suspects of hiding it there, she finds a dead body instead.
I wasn't sure about this one at the beginning. Gemma (how is that pronounced anyway? Soft g or hard?) is obviously supposed to be a modern day, female version of Holmes with superpower levels of analytical skill and a slightly detached personality. The thing is, Delany doesn't seem to appreciate the subtle difference between absent/single-mindedness and thoughtlessness. Gemma is thoughtless a couple of times at the start of this book, without remorse or shame. Holmes was cold-bloodedly objective, but he was always a gentleman.
Things get better in the second half of the book, although the use of the evil nemesis trope had my eyes rolling around in my head a bit. The mystery plotting was really excellent, and while I suspected something wonky, I didn't see where the author was taking me until I was there.
Overall, it wasn't as strong as it could have been, but it was good. I enjoyed it enough to look forward to coming back to it. Not sure if I'll read the next one or not though. Maybe.
Reading updates
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Started reading
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3 April, 2017:
Finished reading
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3 April, 2017:
Reviewed