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59th out of 389 books
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The Language of Bees (Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes #9)
by
Laurie R. King (Goodreads Author)
In a case that will push their relationship to the breaking point, Mary Russell must help reverse the greatest failure of her legendary husband’s storied past—a painful and personal defeat that still has the power to sting…this time fatally.
For Mary Russell and her husband, Sherlock Holmes, returning to the Sussex coast after seven months abroad was especially sweet. There...more
For Mary Russell and her husband, Sherlock Holmes, returning to the Sussex coast after seven months abroad was especially sweet. There...more
Hardcover, 416 pages
Published
April 28th 2009
by Bantam
(first published May 2006)
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actually i only read the first two chapters online, since the book only comes out by the end of april!
it promises to be fantastic according to these chapters!
this is a real pageturner! just right, not too bloody, not too cozy, like i said, just right! and so british i simply love it, even made me have toast and orangemarmelade for breakfast!
i loved it, but there are some loose ends, thank god there will be a sequel!
it promises to be fantastic according to these chapters!
this is a real pageturner! just right, not too bloody, not too cozy, like i said, just right! and so british i simply love it, even made me have toast and orangemarmelade for breakfast!
i loved it, but there are some loose ends, thank god there will be a sequel!
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The latest (ninth) adventure for Sherlock Holmes and his wife, Mary Russell, begins as they arrive at their home in Sussex after an absence of almost a year. The immediate problem of the missing bees from their farthest beehive means that they don't even get into the house before going to check on the hive.
When they get back to the house and even bigger surprise awaits. Sherlock's son Damian (his mother is Irene Adler!) is waiting on the doorstep with a problem. A big one. It seems h...more
When they get back to the house and even bigger surprise awaits. Sherlock's son Damian (his mother is Irene Adler!) is waiting on the doorstep with a problem. A big one. It seems h...more
Fabulous read! One of the best entries in an insanely good series.
I need to re-read the Mary Russell series - many of the references from this entry (#9) back to previous books went over my head. It's been awhile!
But it's still an excellent mystery on its own. Russell and Holmes investigate a man's missing family -- complicated by the identity of the man himself, someone closely related to Holmes. Holmes wants to protect him, so Mary and Mycroft (Sherlock's brother) find themselves leading major portions of the investigation to try and keep him fro...more
But it's still an excellent mystery on its own. Russell and Holmes investigate a man's missing family -- complicated by the identity of the man himself, someone closely related to Holmes. Holmes wants to protect him, so Mary and Mycroft (Sherlock's brother) find themselves leading major portions of the investigation to try and keep him fro...more
Part of a series based on the retirement years of Sherlock Holmes and his young wife Mary Russell, this volume is the first of a two volume story that is completed in The God of the Hive.
Holmes and Russell come home from seven months abroad to find one of his bee hives has died out and that he is the father to a grown man. Waiting for them is young Surrealist artist Damian Adler, Holmes' son by Irene Adler, who was his opponent in Arthur Conan Doyle's story "A Scandal In Bohemia."...more
Holmes and Russell come home from seven months abroad to find one of his bee hives has died out and that he is the father to a grown man. Waiting for them is young Surrealist artist Damian Adler, Holmes' son by Irene Adler, who was his opponent in Arthur Conan Doyle's story "A Scandal In Bohemia."...more
Arriving home from San Francisco, Holmes is concerned only with why one of his bee hives has swarmed and is now deserted, however this is about to change when Damian Adler the artist, and Holmes's son by Irene Adler arrives out of the blue to beg the help of the father he'd only met once before in 1919 under less than ideal conditions; Adler's wife Yolanda and young daughter Estelle are missing, and he needs his father and Mary Russell's help to find them. A wild journey for all of them ensues, ...more
Actual rating is 4.5 stars.
I do adore this series featuring Mary Russell and her husband Sherlock Holmes. And it had been way too long since I'd last read a story about them.
This book almost made up for the long wait though, since it lived up to all my expectations. Beautifully written, we plotted and exciting without depending on thrills, this was a fascinating read.
Mary and Holmes return home after a long journey to find Damian Adler waiting for them there. Damian is the son of ...more
I do adore this series featuring Mary Russell and her husband Sherlock Holmes. And it had been way too long since I'd last read a story about them.
This book almost made up for the long wait though, since it lived up to all my expectations. Beautifully written, we plotted and exciting without depending on thrills, this was a fascinating read.
Mary and Holmes return home after a long journey to find Damian Adler waiting for them there. Damian is the son of ...more
Lady Knight
rated it
Weighing in at 432 pages, this is definately the biggest Mary Russell mystery to date. Along with its impressive size, the plot was incredible! I was so happy to receive my copy and sat down to read over half of the book in one sitting (five hours of bliss! - much to the detriment of other things that needed doing...). Amazing is the only possible word to describe this story!
Russell and Holmes have just returned home after almost a year spent abroad solving all manner of crimes (deta...more
Russell and Holmes have just returned home after almost a year spent abroad solving all manner of crimes (deta...more
An excellent read, as are all of Laurie R. King's Mary Russell books. I found myself both wishing to travel to England and Scotland and Wales to SEE these places ("lay eyes and hands on them," as a friend of mine would say), envying those who live there and know them, who feel the weather, smell the land. Toward the end, though, I became tired - it's possible that I genuinely was - and wanted to find some soft edge somewhere. Perhaps find respite with Estelle's evocatively innocent you...more
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Marfita
rated it
Recommends it for:
masochists ... who love King's Mary Russell series
Shelves:
mysteries,
period-mystery
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
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I tried to read this one when it first came out, but because Brant was just a new born and I was severely sleep deprived, I couldn't get into it and I really wanted to save this one till I could really enjoy it. So, now that Brant is FINALLY sleeping a LITTLE better I have started/finished/loved reading this book. One of the things that I love about this series is that it just feels like a Sherlock Holmes book....it's doesn't feel like someone trying to copy or reinvent the fabulous Doyle stor...more
As most of my friends know, I'm extremely interested in books that are set in the post World War I period and this book is no exception. Also, I learned more about the care and raising of honeybees from this book than I ever thought that I would know. But that's only half of it. The two major characters in this series are the retired Sherlock Holmes who is now tending to bees in rural England and his wife, Mary, who is at least 40 years younger than he is. And who knew that Sherlock Holmes d...more
This will not make me popular with the rabid Russell fans of which I can count myself. It almost feels sacreligious to say I was disappointed with the newest novel by Laurie King "The Language of Bees" but there it is, what a let down. I was anticipating a rousing period mystery with Sherlock Holmes and Mary Russell collaborating like old times but what transpires is a complete absence of Holmes right from his abrupt departure in the first chapter. I thought the plot was clever, especi...more
This isn't my favorite of the Mary Russell books, but it does add to our knowledge of Sherlock Holmes (was in love with an actress, Irene Adler as a young man; he has a son, Damian, unknown to him until 1919 and whose whereabouts have been unknown since then). When Damian Adler, shows up in Sussex at the Holmes/Russell home on the day that they have returned from a long time away, both Holmes and Russell are surprised that he is there, but relieved that he is alive and apparently well. He has co...more
Although the author took a break from the series, she plopped this book in front of us as if she never stopped. It has all of the care, character development and attention to detail the we naturally expect. Like all of her other books in this series, it clearly has careful research as its backbone. Did I like it? Yes, very much (and that goes for the eight prior novels as well). Would I recommend it? Yes, again.
Although memory and time may be misleading me, it seems that the in...more
Although memory and time may be misleading me, it seems that the in...more
How Laurie King integrates bee lore with Sherlockian lore is a wondrous mix. It is not really important to be a lover of bees because Ms. King's research provides plenty of interest. As in three other novels with the secret life of bees integral to their plot, "The Language of Bees" is up there with the best.
How Mary Russell came to be the wife of Sherlock Holmes becomes plausible in the retelling of the story here. Holmes with a son married to a former Chinese prostitu...more
How Mary Russell came to be the wife of Sherlock Holmes becomes plausible in the retelling of the story here. Holmes with a son married to a former Chinese prostitu...more
This was an excellent addition to the Holmes/Russell series, building on that brief mention of a son in book 2. Holmes' lovely lost son reappears, and leads Holmes and Russell on a painful and deadly chase through occult places in the UK.
I liked the opportunity to see the Bohemian side of 1920's England, and the tour through standing stones and other unusual places. The odd relationship between Holmes, Russell, and Damian was well drawn and sympathetic, and I loved the descriptions...more
I liked the opportunity to see the Bohemian side of 1920's England, and the tour through standing stones and other unusual places. The odd relationship between Holmes, Russell, and Damian was well drawn and sympathetic, and I loved the descriptions...more
I love the title of this the 9th Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes novel. In name and spirit, THE LANGUAGE OF BEES brings things back to the beginning once more. Back to the Downs, back to the hives, back to a 15-year-old Mary Russell stumbling over a retired detective tending his bees in peace, thus setting into motion the unlikely formation of a most formidable and engaging partnership. What an adventure it's been, and how fascinating to follow these two dominant personalities meet and clash and me...more
Outside of the Russell series, I have only read one of King's books and I didn't like it nearly as well. There was lots of swearing and sex, and the story didn't do a lot for me. So, I was a bit afraid going in that King's style had changed so much in the past three years that I wouldn't like this newest Russell. It only took a couple of chapters to realize this was the same Russell in the same world that I had grown to love. Quite frankly, I thought it was fabulous.
The initial myste...more
The initial myste...more
Well, I like this series of books A LOT, and the three stars from me is an anomaly in my house, but I felt like this book could have gone through one more re-write. Specifically, the link between the bees and the "case" is tenuous at best; and if there isn't supposed to be any link between the two themes, then the bee story should go away. Maybe the loneliness theme will be continued in the next installment? And that's why we got the bee story? I mean, it did seem like Mary was protest...more
I really like this series, and this book was pretty good but not life changing. There were some exciting parts, but some that dragged. I like the interplay between Holmes and Russel, but this book took me a really long time to get through for some reason. I'll still probably read the next in the series though!
Sandybanks
rated it
·
review of another edition
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Holmes fans who do not insist on their hero being an eternal bachelor; period mystery fans
Starts up with an intriguing premise: a mystery involving Holmes' son with The Woman, a wayward artist whose wife is mixed up with some kooky cult that turns sinister. Yes, we MUST absolutely have cults and human sacrifices in a Holmes story (Guy Ritchie had the exact SAME idea). It is a fun romp for a while, though sometimes the flippant tone jars with the darker elements of the story. Then halfway through, it sort of lost its way among the meandering mystery plot --- which is dealt with a some...more
Pamela Gibson
marked it as to-read
Since this comes out just before my birthday, I choose to think of it as a reward for making it through yet another year in fine form. Going to live in the Russell universe for a few hours is a vacation, and it is by far the cheapest one I know of. Better yet, it can be enjoyed over and over, and with all the layers and references and complexities, it is new each time. The characters live in readers' minds, and they hop around in ways we don't see coming, even though the author has played by the...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
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I am a long time fan of Laurie King, who is a California author living on the Central coast near Santa Cruz. She is a mystery writer with has two series: one features Mary Russell, who is Sherlok Holmes' wife! King writes about the time when Conan Doyle stopped writing about Holmes and had tried to kill him off in Africa. King is free to expropriate an even more exotic life for Holmes that his original author could imagine. Together Holmes and Mary Russell travel abroad, and solve mysteries many...more
Another wonderful installment by Ms. King. In this Mary Russell series book, Mary Russell and Holmes return to England after seven long months absence. But their homecoming is not what they had anticipated.
Without a moment to recuperate from their long journey, Holmes is immediately thrown into a mystery of his' beloved bees, that have mysteriously abandoned one of their hives. If this was not enough, his long lost son appears out of the blue, to seek assistance from Holmes and Mary R...more
Without a moment to recuperate from their long journey, Holmes is immediately thrown into a mystery of his' beloved bees, that have mysteriously abandoned one of their hives. If this was not enough, his long lost son appears out of the blue, to seek assistance from Holmes and Mary R...more
Once again Laurie King has taken us back to join Sherlock Holmes and his amazing wife, Mary Russell. The novel not only expands our knowledge of Mr. Holmes' family ties in a logical link to the Conan Doyle stories, but also allows us to see Mary deal with a new dimension of their relationship. It is not unusual in these stories to have Sherlock disappear for a while so we can focus on Mary's perceptions of events, so this didn't disturb me as much as it did some reviewers. The cliff-hanger end...more
Ann aka Iftcan
rated it
Ok, I'm going to start this review off with a warning for those who haven't read this book yet--it IS a cliff-hanger. On the other hand--the following book IS out, so you don't have to wait very long to read it.
I've enjoyed all of the Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes books that I've read so far. This one actually introduces us to Sherlock's son with Irene Adler. It shows the first meeting with him, back when Mary is young and still Holmes's apprentice/very early days of their partners...more
I've enjoyed all of the Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes books that I've read so far. This one actually introduces us to Sherlock's son with Irene Adler. It shows the first meeting with him, back when Mary is young and still Holmes's apprentice/very early days of their partners...more
Ellen
rated it
Augh... I decided to listen to The Language of Bees and the last few tracks on the disc were badly distorted. Therefore no spoiler alert is needed, although I think it's fair to warn you that it's a "to be continued" ending.
The Language of Bees explores Holmes' and Russell's relationship with his son, Damian, whose wife has gone missing. Yolanda and Damian are involved with a cult leader patterned after Aleister Crowley whose vision of transformation seems to depend heavily...more
The Language of Bees explores Holmes' and Russell's relationship with his son, Damian, whose wife has gone missing. Yolanda and Damian are involved with a cult leader patterned after Aleister Crowley whose vision of transformation seems to depend heavily...more
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Edgar-winning mystery writer Laurie R. King writes series and standalone novels. Newest is the tenth Mary Russell novel The God of the Hive, in stores April 27, 2010. In the Russell series, a brilliant teen becomes student, then partner to Sherlock Holmes. [Excerpt of The Beekeeper's Apprentice] The Kate Martinelli series follows an SFPD detective's cases on a female Rembrandt, a holy fool, and...more
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“I would have stolen it for you, had I known you were interested." His voice was muffled by the door to the lumber room down the hallway, and I heard thumps and a crash.
I raised my voice a trifle more than mere volume required. "I'm interested because she was. Both of them, come to that--Damian's art is infused with mystic symbols and traditions."
Holmes' voice answered two inches away from my ear, making me jerk and spray a handful of maps across the floor. "Religion can be a dangerous thing, it is true," he remarked darkly, and went out again.”
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I raised my voice a trifle more than mere volume required. "I'm interested because she was. Both of them, come to that--Damian's art is infused with mystic symbols and traditions."
Holmes' voice answered two inches away from my ear, making me jerk and spray a handful of maps across the floor. "Religion can be a dangerous thing, it is true," he remarked darkly, and went out again.”
