Have you read Laurie R. King’s The Beekeeper’s Apprentice?
If so, you may have been enjoying the series about Mary Russell and her husband,
Sherlock Holmes, for 20 years! If not, you are in for a treat and have a full baker’s
dozen of novels involving suspense and adventure to enjoy. I just finished King’s newest addition, Dreaming
Spies, and am definitely recommending it. The main characters are
travelling from India to the western United States and stop in Japan along the
way.
Although the story starts slowly, I appreciated that this novel seemed to
be a “gentler” read than some of the later titles in the Russell/Holmes series.
In fact, King includes a Haiku poem at
the beginning of each chapter, further inviting the reader to speculate about the upcoming twists and turns. Set in 1924 and 1925, I especially liked the focus on an
ocean voyage (a closed room mystery in a sense), all the rules of etiquette from
that time period, and the visits to the reading rooms at Bodleian Library back
in Oxford. While reading Dreaming Spies, I learned quite a bit
(as did Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes) about Japanese culture, temperament and
traditions. On board ship they meet an intriguing young woman, Haruki Sato, who
involves them in an international mystery encompassing ancient poetry, a missing
book and deadly blackmail.
Visit the author’s website (http://www.laurierking.com/)
for more information about Dreaming Spies and others in this
creative series. Looking for more mysteries to read? Try titles written by Miriam
Grace Monfredo (Seneca Falls historical mysteries), Jacqueline Winspear
(featuring Maisie Dobbs), and Charles Todd (set in Great Britain).
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