Kerry Hammond is on a Sherlock Holmes kick and decided to read a new-to-her author who puts her own twist on a beloved character.
The Devil’s Due is the third book in author Bonnie MacBird’s Sherlock Holmes series. MacBird got her start in the film industry and has
numerous writing credits to her name—in addition to Emmy awards for three documentaries
she wrote and produced. MacBird started her Sherlock Holmes series because of
her love for Conan Doyle’s work, and readers in 17 languages are extremely glad
she did.
In this installment to the series, we find ourselves in
London in the year 1890. Watson takes his wife Mary’s visit to the country as
an excuse to check in on his old friend Sherlock Holmes. He finds the detective
being targeted by a slanderous media campaign; a reporter is calling Holmes the
devil incarnate and blaming him for a series of deaths that Holmes is actually
investigating. Prominent London citizens are being murdered and each of the
deaths is suspiciously followed by another, this time a suicide, of a friend or
loved one.
To add to the difficulty of the investigation, New Scotland
Yard has a new chief and he is hell bent on closing cases. The problem is, he doesn’t seem to
care about the actual investigation, or whether or not he’s caught the right
culprit. With all of these strikes against him, Holmes is more than motivated
to get to the bottom of the murders and catch the killer before he or she kills
again.
I am embarrassed to say that this is my first read by Bonnie
MacBird. After devouring the book, I am shocked at myself. It was a thoroughly
enjoyable story and I’m not sure how in the world I managed to miss the boat on
this series. MacBird does an excellent job of channeling Doyle’s detective and
creating a mystery that fits in with the spirit of the original works.
I found the book entertaining, puzzling, fast paced, and
just plain enjoyable. I’m thrilled to have discovered such a wonderful series.
I’m a huge fan of everything Sherlock Holmes (come back next week for my post
about my visit to Meiringen, Switzerland, the town at the base of Reichenbach
Falls where Holmes and Moriarty plunged to their “deaths”). I highly recommend MacBird's series, whether you’re a Holmes fan or just like a good historical mystery.
This book was provided to Mystery Playground by the
publisher. The review was fair and completely independent.
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ReplyDeleteI love that there is another take on Sherlock Holmes! Thanks for the recommendation - I've read many of the other books recommended here on Mystery Playground. And I will admit to trying a few of the cocktails that were paired with some of the books :^)
ReplyDeleteKeep up the great reviews and recommendations.