The Moor: 4 (Mary Russell Mystery) - Softcover

King, Laurie R

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0312427395 ISBN 13: 9780312427399

Publisher: Picador USA, 2007

Synopsis

In re-creating Sherlock Holmes in previous books as an adjunct to her chief protagonist, Mary Russell, King has set the couple's adventures in a milieu consistent with her own creation and, although true to the place and period, independent of Conan Doyle's work. Holmes has been invited by his old friend the Rev. Baring-Gould to look into not only an unexplained death on the moor but, more important in the ancient cleric's mind, sightings of a phantom coach on the moor - possibly inhabited by a phantom noblewoman and accompanied by some phantom dogs. Holmes, in turn, pulls Mary from her studies at Oxford, enlists her in the quest, and finds himself taking a second seat to her endeavors. True to their expectations on the forbidding and difficult moor, the rumors have a real-world explanation, but it is one that combines more wild emotion, surprise, and frightening suspense than any ghost story could.

About this title

Review:

Long-time fans of Arthur Conan Doyle's fictional detective, Sherlock Holmes, might think that their favourite sleuth met his fate at the hands of Dr Moriarty at the Reichenbach Falls. Anyone who believes that, however, obviously hasn't read Laurie R King's delightful series featuring Holmes and his wife (!), Mary Russell. In The Beekeeper's Apprentice Holmes succumbs to the Oxford scholar's charms; now, in The Moor, fourth in the series, Holmes and Russell are summoned to Devonshire to solve a tin miner's mysterious death. Lonely Dartmoor provides plenty of opportunities for King to both relate the haunting legends of that part of the world and offer some amusing revisions to one of Holmes's most famous cases, The Hound of the Baskervilles. Though Holmes purists might resent the liberties taken with their hero, readers in search of a strong female protagonist, some fascinating local history, and spooky ambience will enjoy The Moor. --Amazon.com

Review:

"Erudite, fascinating . . . the most successful re-creation of the famous inhabitant of 221B Baker Street ever attempted." --The Houston Chronicle

"There's no resisting the appeal of Laurie R. King's thrillingly moody scenes of Dartmoor and her lovely evocations of its legends." --The New York Times Book Review

"Dazzling may be the word to describe King's latest Mary Russell-Sherlock Holmes adventure. . . . Add King's devilishly clever plot and eccentric characters, her ability to achieve a perfect balance between serious mystery and lighthearted humor, and the charm with which she develops the captivating relationship between Holmes and Russell, and the result is a superbly rich read that would please Doyle himself." --Booklist

"King has the tone, mood, and voice precisely right. . . . Very good." --The Boston Globe

"Mary's description of how she thinks through all the elements of a mystery--so deep in thought as if she were in a trance---is excellent." --Salon.com

About this edition

• Publisher: Picador USA
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 0312427395
• ISBN 13: 9780312427399
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 320