I spent my July 4th holiday off work reading about a fictional British character based on another fictional British character. I read this whole thing in a day, but even if I hadn’t had the day off work, I would have zoomed through it. I just love this series, its whole vibe. I’ve said this before, but I’m so impressed with how Sherry Thomas has managed to create her own sort of chemistry with these characters and these stories, when reimaginings can often feel pretty lackluster. This definitely doesn’t.
The plot in this one centers around “Sherlock Holmes,” aka Charlotte, being approached by Lady Ingram to find her missing sweetheart, who she used to meet up with once a year in secret (just a glance they would share, but this is still scandalous of course, because he isn’t an appropriate match and she’s married now). That her sweetheart just so happens to be Charlotte’s half-brother is quite the coincidence. The specter of Moriarty is also starting to loom . . .
My only beef with this series, and it’s a small one, is the same one I had with the first book, which is that the denouement can get a bit confusing, and if you’re not paying strict attention and keeping characters in your mind, it’s very easy to forget who is who and what they’ve done, if they’re not the central characters. I’m jumping into the next book in September, so hopefully that’s soon enough.
Chipping Away at Mt. TBR, July 2022—Book 4/31
