I am almost finished reading Laurie King's "The Moor". It was on the new shelf at the library and I picked it up with no expectations - but have been pleasantly surprised. These are a series of books written from the perspective of Sherlock Holmes's wife, Mary. They take place after the general Sherlock Holmes cases and husband and wife work together. Unlike the modern mystery genre, this story unfolds slowly but the writer's witty language and perspectives keep it moving along. I enjoyed how the mystery was not presented immediately in the first chapter, but came about later on. It kept me guessing and surprised when it did.
The story is set in Dartmoor and King does an exceptional job of conveying the dreary, forsaken gloom of the moor which only adds to the mystery, yet by the end I wanted to go take a tour and maybe even meet some of the characters from the close-knot moor society.
Also a bit of trivia: one of the main characters is the Reverend Sabin Baring-Gould. Sound familiar? He penned "Onward Christian Soldiers" and "Now the Day is Over", both, of course, included in our own hymnbook.
So, if you liked "The Hound of the Baskervilles" or any other Sherlock Holmes mystery, give it a go. And if you have never read any Arthur Conan Doyle, pick it up anyhow. I think you'll still enjoy it.
Or read the Doyle mystery first. "The Hound of the Baskervilles" is classic literature and you might find the original mystery genre intriguing. Reading King's book made me want to open these classics again.
I also want to read the first books in this series to get a better handle on Mary and her relationship with Sherlock Holmes. The title is: "The Beekeeper's Apprentice" in case you want to beat me to it.
Happy Reading!
