Art in the Blood (Sherlock Holmes Adventure, #1)

Questions About Art in the Blood (Sherlock Holmes Adventure, #1)

by Bonnie MacBird (Goodreads Author)

Reader Q&A

To ask other readers questions about Art in the Blood, please sign up.

Answered Questions (2)

What did you like most about this book? Don't be shy. I've attached my HuffPost review here http://www.huffingtonpost.com/paola-k-amaras/art-in-the-blood-a-rousin_b_8222910.html so we can talk about the book.
Lorraine Petkus The author brought the story alive by adding historical data on her web site. So much so I bought a bottle of the perfume mentioned in the book for $3…moreThe author brought the story alive by adding historical data on her web site. So much so I bought a bottle of the perfume mentioned in the book for $350, that hurt, but it is lovely and I wear it every day.(less)
flag
Check out my review on the Huffington Post. This is a fun book! ? https://www.goodreads.com/questions/550079-what-did-you-like-most-about-this-book http://www.huffingtonpost.com/paola-k-amaras/art-in-the-blood-a-rousin_b_8222910.html so we can talk about the book.
Roger Yee “Here,” said a friend, handing me a gift-wrapped copy of Art in the Blood, by Bonnie MacBird, “is something as intricate as those structures you deal …more“Here,” said a friend, handing me a gift-wrapped copy of Art in the Blood, by Bonnie MacBird, “is something as intricate as those structures you deal with that won’t take years to finish and is lots more fun.” I spend much of my time as the editor-in-chief of a publishing house producing books on architecture, design and urban planning, so I welcomed this newly created adventure of Sherlock Holmes without knowing what lay ahead.

What did I find? First, a disclaimer: I’m not a Holmesian. Having read just a handful of stories by Arthur Conan Doyle, I cannot speak with any authority on the language, structure, plotting, characterization, settings or other vital literary signs of Sherlock Holmes, John Watson and the 19th-century world they inhabit.

But I found Art in the Blood to be a carefully observed, colorful and fast-paced visit to London, Paris and the English countryside led by a brilliant but imperfect Holmes and a sensible and not-too-bumbling Dr. Watson. The mystery that propels the book, helping the good doctor rescue the great but dispirited detective from a mid-life crisis, focuses on the affairs of the powerful Earl of Pellingham: the disappearance of Emil, the Earl’s illegitimate young son, the Earl’s purchase of a stolen French art treasure, the Marseilles Nike, and the brutal slaying of several boys employed at the Earl’s silk mill. Holmes is roused to action by an appeal from Emil’s estranged mother, Emmeline La Victoire, a French cabaret singer, to find her son.

That these issues are all connected is not obvious to anyone except Holmes, of course, and perhaps his talented sibling rival Mycroft, who occasionally bursts on stage from the wings of this drama as an important yet shadowy official in His Majesty’s service. But Holmes is soon in hot pursuit of suspects and evidence as he accepts Mlle La Victoire’s case, and he and his newlywed friend--yes, happily married and no longer residing at 221B Baker Street--find themselves playing a dangerous, high-stakes game the moment they meet the beautiful and calculating chanteuse. Before long, there are tense confrontations, violent fights and even a murder to complicate matters.

I’m not going to tell how the mystery unravels, since others have described the plot quite well already. More importantly, Art in the Blood takes the reader on a very enjoyable journey as it brings the culprits to justice. We get to meet such striking characters as Jean Vidocq, an alleged great-grandson of Eugène François Vidocq, the French criminal who founded the Sûreté Nationale (now part of France’s Police Nationale) and the world’s first private detective agency, and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, the great French post-Impressionist artist, along with numerous other memorable personalities. We also are treated to vivid tours of the unfettered nightlife in Paris’s Montmartre, the rough and tumble docks of London and the privileged if confining atmosphere in one of England’s stately homes.

It’s great fun, supported by a careful pacing of scenes that contrasts quiet, contemplative moments with lively and telling conversations, as well as scenes of swiftly unfolding, non-stop action. Before you know it, Holmes has solved the case--unless you accept Vidocq’s version of events--and he and Dr. Watson are back in London. Holmes tinkers with meditation to preoccupy himself before the next worthy case arrives, while Watson dutifully accompanies his wife on a holiday in Brighton that bores him immensely. Worry not. Author MacBird, a Hollywood screenwriter, actor and director, is hard at work on another Holmes mystery, Unquiet Spirits. Our two friends won’t be idle for long, nor will many a grateful reader of this book.

(less)
flag

Unanswered Questions (1)

About Goodreads Q&A

Ask and answer questions about books!

You can pose questions to the Goodreads community with Reader Q&A, or ask your favorite author a question with Ask the Author.

See Featured Authors Answering Questions

Learn more