The Hudson Diaries: The Life and Times of a Baker Street Resident

by Kara L. Barney

Victorian England, 1880—Sherlock Holmes is at it again! But this time, instead of his faithful chronicler Watson at the helm, his tales come from another source…Mrs. Hudson, the housekeeper. A new set of tales for a new generation, Sherlock Holmes is given to us in a whole new “The Great Detective” before he became great. From their first meeting to her place as a permanent resident of Baker Street, Mrs. Hudson helps us rediscover the ever-logical detective who has become a literary icon.

47 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 5, 2012

Reviews

[Joy H.]

Added 8/3/18. (first published July 5th 2012)

Around July 2018, I read most of the stories in this book about Sherlock Holmes' maid. They were pretty good mysteries but not compelling.

[OpenBookSociety.com]

Brought to you by OBS reviewer Angie

Enchanted. Enthralled. Engrossed. I don’t know what else to say. I loved every moment of this story.

It is a short read (62 pages on a Kindle) and it kept me turning page after page. I’ve not read any of the Sherlock Holmes books… yes, I still call myself a reader… so this was a nice way to discover that these books might really be right up my alley. There is a central storyline that follows throughout the book, but interspersed are several ‘mini-mysteries’ that keep your mind active. There isn’t too much to swallow all at once so you can focus on a quick story while still watching a beautiful relationship unfold. It gives the audience a look at the more gentle, personal side of Mr. Holmes.

I absolutely loved this story and will go out of my way to read more about Sherlock Holmes.

http://openbooksociety.com/article/th...

[James Adams]

I have never been a Sherlock fan, but I quite enjoyed this take on it from someone else's point of view. I am glad to see Kara - having been my editor - write something of her own and hope to see more from her in the future.

[Sue]

The best thing about this book was the cover. I did read the whole book, but only because it was so short...and I was hoping it might get better. It didn't.

[Brie]

Nice Read

Cute book. I liked the "other side" of things view! Nice little read to accompany the Sherlock fans. : )

[Susan Ottaway]

A good read!

It was like visiting Sherlock Holmes in his residence. Seeing a side of him and Dr. Watson that gave a different perspective. I enjoyed it.

[Jacquie]

I liked the concept of this book but the writing was extremely choppy. Each chapter/section ends with something along the lines of "I resumed my duties as housekeeper of Baker Street, and have thus remained, and will remain to the end of my days", "I became a permanent fixture of Baker Street, bestowing my services on the home and its residents for many years to come", or "I was reinstated under Mr. Holmes, and have been so ever since". The repetitive statements got really old, really fast! I couldn't find a common thread to string the stories together, Several involved intruders to Baker Street who either threaten or injure the narrator and a few others detail the deaths of characters close to her. The Sherlock Holmes crime solving action I was expecting however takes place off stage. All-in-all it feels a bit like the reader's digest condensed version and I read it start to finish in half an hour. It gets two stars because I felt like there is potential here, but we're only being given maybe a third of each story which was very unsatisfying. I feel like the author relied too heavily on the original stories for character development and if that is the route she is going to take she would have been better served to re-imagine the how the original mysteries might have been experienced by Mrs. Hudson. What character development of Holmes she does attempt was done rather badly as she portrays him as infatuated with Mrs. Hudson and he is completely out of character.

[Judith D]

The story does add to the flavor of the Sherlock Holmes stories. If you ever wondered about his famous house keeper Mrs. Hudson, this story will enlighten you. Mrs. Hudson plays a part in most stories about this famous detective. It answers questions about how she was hired, who she married, and why she stayed most of her life as Holmes's housekeeper. She has a few mysteries to solve of her own.

[Elyse]

3.5 stars.

[Andrea]

Meh...

[Victoria]

I enjoyed the stories, wish they were longer.

[Peter Taylor]

An interesting twist to classic Holmes, told from the point of view of Mrs. Husdson. Not as clever as real Holmes or some of the better homages. Very short, so not sorry that I read it.

[A Voracious Reader (a.k.a. Carol)]

I had to abandon my plan to review this as I can't find it in my files.

[Emily M]

Not good "mysteries." Holmes, Watson, and Mrs. Hudson resembled their originals only in their names. If I want stupid melodrama, I'll go read one of Louisa May Alcott's thrillers.