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Elementary, She Read
(Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery #1)
by
Gemma Doyle, a transplanted Englishwoman, has returned to the quaint town of West London on Cape Cod to manage her Great Uncle Arthur's Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium. The shop--located at 222 Baker Street-specializes in the Holmes canon and pastiche and is also the home of Moriarty the cat. When Gemma finds a rare and potentially valuable magazine containing the fi
...more
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Hardcover, 308 pages
Published
March 14th 2017
by Crooked Lane Books
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Start your review of Elementary, She Read (A Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery, #1)

4 stars to Vicki Delany's Elementary, She Read, the first in a new "Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery" series. I've read a few other books by this author, jumping at the chance to read this new series, as I really enjoy her ability to immerse you in the setting of a quaint and charming little town full of memorable characters. And it did not disappoint.
Story
Gemma is a transplant from England, now residing in West London on Cape Cod in Massachusetts as part-owner of her uncle's Sherlock Holm ...more
Story
Gemma is a transplant from England, now residing in West London on Cape Cod in Massachusetts as part-owner of her uncle's Sherlock Holm ...more

In this first book of the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery, Emma Doyle introduces herself: I am the half owner, manager, head shop clerk, and chief duster of the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium in the Cape Cod town of West London, Massachusetts. As well as reprints of the original Sir Arthur Conan Doyle books, we carry new books representing anything and everything in the pastiche or vaguely derived from the Holmes legend.
The store was originally a hardware store, but Gemma’s great-uncle A ...more
The store was originally a hardware store, but Gemma’s great-uncle A ...more

In this first 'Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery', a new book store manager has to hustle to avoid being arrested for murder.
*****
Gemma Doyle moved from England to Cape Cod, Massachusetts to manage 'The Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium.'


Gemma co-owns the establishment with her 90-year-old great uncle Arthur Clive Doyle, who claims distant kinship with Arthur Conan Doyle - the creator of Sherlock Holmes. Spry Uncle Arthur is often off on excursions (or with lady friends), leaving Gemma in ch ...more

Gemma Doyle manages a small, Sherlock Holmes themed book and souvenir shop in picturesque Cape Cod. The store is owned by Gemma's uncle (who believes he is a distant relative of the author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle), and she's moved from her native England to help out her aging relative. Her best friend, Jayne, runs a tea room right next door.
Although Gemma shares the same keen sense of observation as the famed detective Holmes, she never expects to be part of a murder investigation. One day, Gemm ...more
Although Gemma shares the same keen sense of observation as the famed detective Holmes, she never expects to be part of a murder investigation. One day, Gemm ...more

Dollycas’s Thoughts
This series is off to an amazing start!
We meet Gemma Doyle, relative of Sir Authur Conan Doyle??? She says no, but her Uncle’s name is Arthur so you just never know. She and her uncle own the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium at 222 Baker Street. The also own half of the tea shop next door run by Gemma’s friend, Jayne. Both shops are very popular with the tourists. While setting the store to rights after a rush of customers, something Gemma is very particular about, she fi ...more
This series is off to an amazing start!
We meet Gemma Doyle, relative of Sir Authur Conan Doyle??? She says no, but her Uncle’s name is Arthur so you just never know. She and her uncle own the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium at 222 Baker Street. The also own half of the tea shop next door run by Gemma’s friend, Jayne. Both shops are very popular with the tourists. While setting the store to rights after a rush of customers, something Gemma is very particular about, she fi ...more

*received for review from the publisher through Cozy Mystery Review Crew*
This book sounded so good that I was really excited to get it and looking forward to reading it. And it was good, but not quite up to my (admittedly high) expectations. The first person narrator, Gemma Doyle, runs a book store/gift shop devoted to Sherlock Holmes and items related to Holmes, Arthur Conan Doyle, and the Sherlock canon. Not because she is a particularly devoted Sherlock fan, but because her uncle, who IS a pa ...more
This book sounded so good that I was really excited to get it and looking forward to reading it. And it was good, but not quite up to my (admittedly high) expectations. The first person narrator, Gemma Doyle, runs a book store/gift shop devoted to Sherlock Holmes and items related to Holmes, Arthur Conan Doyle, and the Sherlock canon. Not because she is a particularly devoted Sherlock fan, but because her uncle, who IS a pa ...more

Note: I read this book last month, but the publisher has asked that reviews be held until the month the book is released.
Somewhere it must be written that heroines (or heroes) of so-called cozy mysteries must be the most obnoxious and interfering people on the face of the earth. I realize that without those characteristics, the plots probably wouldn't go much of anywhere - but boy, does it ever get under my skin. Gemma Doyle, the heroine here and co-owner of the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Empo ...more
Somewhere it must be written that heroines (or heroes) of so-called cozy mysteries must be the most obnoxious and interfering people on the face of the earth. I realize that without those characteristics, the plots probably wouldn't go much of anywhere - but boy, does it ever get under my skin. Gemma Doyle, the heroine here and co-owner of the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Empo ...more

Gemma Doyle is English, but has moved to West London, MA to help her Great Uncle Arthur run his bookstore and emporium. The shop is located at 222 Baker Street and sells all things Sherlock Holmes -- everything ranging from books and magazines to busts and movie posters. Right next door, Gemma's best friend Jayne has a tea shop, Mrs. Hudson's Tea Room. Gemma loves everything about her new home, except maybe the shop cat, Moriarty, who doesn't seem to like her one bit.
I am a BIG Sherlock Holmes ...more
I am a BIG Sherlock Holmes ...more

***The Summer of Sherlock 2019***
I am not usually a fan of the cozy mystery--I tend towards the darker Scandinavian style detective story, rather than the sweetness & light. But I couldn’t put this particular cozy down!
Delany is a good writer and she has crafted a fun, fast moving little story here. Gemma Doyle (a maybe relation to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle) has taken on a Sherlock Holmes book store and gift emporium both to help her uncle and to support herself. She is rather logically driven ...more
I am not usually a fan of the cozy mystery--I tend towards the darker Scandinavian style detective story, rather than the sweetness & light. But I couldn’t put this particular cozy down!
Delany is a good writer and she has crafted a fun, fast moving little story here. Gemma Doyle (a maybe relation to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle) has taken on a Sherlock Holmes book store and gift emporium both to help her uncle and to support herself. She is rather logically driven ...more

Thank you for the recommendation, Library Queen! This was an unexpectedly delightful cozy read.
It follows the fairly standard cozy tropes as far as the mystery and plot go (Downside: bumbling, small-town police who target the heroine for No Apparent Reason. Upside: lots of hot men floating around for No Apparent Reason.) But the heroine, Gemma, proved fairly original and it helps a lot.
Sure, she has a Standard Cozy Heroine Job (small business owner.) And she has the standard Cozy Heroine Relat ...more
It follows the fairly standard cozy tropes as far as the mystery and plot go (Downside: bumbling, small-town police who target the heroine for No Apparent Reason. Upside: lots of hot men floating around for No Apparent Reason.) But the heroine, Gemma, proved fairly original and it helps a lot.
Sure, she has a Standard Cozy Heroine Job (small business owner.) And she has the standard Cozy Heroine Relat ...more

I really enjoyed this book. While Gemma's character had some of the traits of Sherlock Holmes, she also was a loving, caring woman. She wasn't the robot that Sherlock is sometimes portrayed to be. While the robot thing works well on the screen, it is hard to connect with that person in a novel. I think that is why the original Holmes books were shown through Watson's eyes. No need to do that with this book though. Although reserved, Gemma has a lively personality that a lot of introverts can rel
...more

Feb 01, 2017
Dorie - Cats&Books :)
rated it
really liked it
Shelves:
netgalley-feedback,
mystery-thriller
Elementary She Read was a fun, fast paced, cozy mystery, just what I was looking for! I don’t usually read this genre so I just went with what sounded interesting and I wasn’t disappointed.
The setting is Cape Cope in a quirky, touristy area where Gemma Doyle,formerly of London, is co owner of the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium. The shop is connected through a doorway to the cafe next to it where her friend and co owner Jayne serves up fresh pastry and does a proper English tea.
One mornin ...more
The setting is Cape Cope in a quirky, touristy area where Gemma Doyle,formerly of London, is co owner of the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium. The shop is connected through a doorway to the cafe next to it where her friend and co owner Jayne serves up fresh pastry and does a proper English tea.
One mornin ...more

ELEMENTARY, SHE READ (A Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery #1)
In this brand new series which is a cozy mystery Gemma Doyle and her Great Uncle Arthur own a bookstore that is also a gift shop specializing in Sherlock Holmes books and gifts. Emma's best friend Jane who runs the adjoining coffee shop and bakery called Mrs. Hudson's Tea Room, owns half of the Tearoom business. One day a busload of bridge players takes a tour to visit their business. In the same time frame Gemma notices a woman come in ...more
In this brand new series which is a cozy mystery Gemma Doyle and her Great Uncle Arthur own a bookstore that is also a gift shop specializing in Sherlock Holmes books and gifts. Emma's best friend Jane who runs the adjoining coffee shop and bakery called Mrs. Hudson's Tea Room, owns half of the Tearoom business. One day a busload of bridge players takes a tour to visit their business. In the same time frame Gemma notices a woman come in ...more

Elementary She Read by Vicki Delany will appeal to the bookworm as well as the cozy mystery fan!
Gemma Doyle is very much like the Sherlock to whom her bookstore pays homage. Sharp powers of observation, keen deductive reasoning, and a lack of tact in delivering them, etc. But you forgive what could be annoying because she’s such a hoot. She’s unintentionally funny and awkward, and you just want to hug her. Though, I don’t think that would go over especially well.
The back-and-forth between Gemma ...more
Gemma Doyle is very much like the Sherlock to whom her bookstore pays homage. Sharp powers of observation, keen deductive reasoning, and a lack of tact in delivering them, etc. But you forgive what could be annoying because she’s such a hoot. She’s unintentionally funny and awkward, and you just want to hug her. Though, I don’t think that would go over especially well.
The back-and-forth between Gemma ...more

Elementary, She Read is the 1st book in a new series. Many have written short synopsis of the plot so I will relate my thoughts on what I thought about the book. It appears to be a popular new start to the series due to the reviews. For me, it was just an ok read. I had trouble staying interested in the book. It was a little too descriptive for me and the plot didn't hold my interest. I don't think I am a fan of Sherlock Holmes either but didn't think that should make a different as many cozies
...more

Cozy mysteries aren't usually my style, but as a fan of Sherlock Holmes I really got a kick out of Elementary, She Read by Vicki Delany. I've never read the author before, but I know that I'll need to come back for the sequel to this series opener, Body on Baker Street. What really makes this mystery for me is the cast of characters, Gemma herself being my favorite but her friend Jayne is also pretty great as well. If you love a good mystery and the great detective, you're going to have to pick
...more

I loved this one! Gemma Doyle runs a small bookstore that specialized in Sherlock Holmes books, DVDS, and memorabilia. She splits the space with her best friend's tea shop and bakery. During a busy rush, she finds out someone has hidden a valuable magazine among her regular cheapies. Knowing the value, she seeks out the woman who dropped it off to see what's up. Once there, she finds the woman - *gasp!* - murdered, and from there on gets sucked into a whopper of a mystery. Not only is she trying
...more

A cozy mystery located in the small town of West London. At first, I had trouble understanding if the bookshop was in England or the United States. I felt the characters were well developed. Once I was into the story the characters caught my attention and I read until I finished the book. Gemma' attitude annoyed me.
Gemma Doyle co-owns and manage a bookshop offering all kinds of merchandise about Conan Doyle and his works of Sherlock Holmes. Gemma and her best friend, Jayne become involved in a m ...more
Gemma Doyle co-owns and manage a bookshop offering all kinds of merchandise about Conan Doyle and his works of Sherlock Holmes. Gemma and her best friend, Jayne become involved in a m ...more

Elementary, She Read: A Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery by [Delany, Vicki]
Elementary She Read A Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery by Vicki Delany is a wonderful beginning to a new series. I totally enjoyed this book. As a big Sherlock Holmes fan I was skeptical whether or not I would like this book but was pleasantly surprised how good it was.
Gemma Doyle runs the Sherlock Book Shop and Emporium in West London on Cape Cod 222 Baker Street (don't you just love the address) and her friend Jayne is ...more

May 26, 2020
Novella
rated it
it was amazing
Recommends it for:
mysteries, cozy mysteries, clean mystery
Okay, so I re-arranged the books in my library by category, now I'm on this quest to read the library/bookshop books on my shelf that have been sitting there. Starting with this one I have to admit that my first thought was it looks pretentious. The only thing I found slightly that way was the occasional name dropping of other authors or actors. But, being a bookshop the sounded more like recommendations.
Nothing of the sort with Gemma. She is a serious businesswoman taking over her uncle's boo ...more
Nothing of the sort with Gemma. She is a serious businesswoman taking over her uncle's boo ...more

Gemma Doyle is a reincarnated version of Sherlock Holmes. She is hyper observant, honest to the point of rudeness and can't not solve a mystery presented in front of her. Ironically her uncle and she own a Sherlock Holmes bookstore and memorabilia shop as well as co-own the adjacent tea shop with her best friend, Jayne. Jayne is very Watson like in that she is a reluctant co-investigator, can't lie to save her life and is extremely sociable. The author did a nice job of weaving the mystery while
...more

Mar 06, 2017
Jan
rated it
really liked it
Shelves:
i-own-it,
kindle-version,
e-book,
cozies,
mystery,
arc,
resort-town-setting,
netgalley-arc,
sherlockish
3 1/2 stars. Gemma owns a Sherlock Holmes themed emporium in West London in Cape Cod. When a priceless magazine is found on one of her shelves she is pretty sure who left it. When she goes to find the woman, she finds her dead body. Gemma finds herself om the list of suspects and is determined to clear her name.
This series is walking an interesting line. Gemma is hyper observant, ala Holms. And she could be really annoying but her personality saves her. She seems to be unaware that her observati ...more
This series is walking an interesting line. Gemma is hyper observant, ala Holms. And she could be really annoying but her personality saves her. She seems to be unaware that her observati ...more

I'm not a crazy Holmes fan, but started on the Basil Rathbone movies then read all of the A.C. Doyle's original works along with a few of the Mary Russell and watch Elementary and Sherlock. This book fits in nicely, Gemma is very much like the observant Holmes and her deductions drive much of the story forward , Jayne plays her Watson role very well without any bumbling or doctoring replacing that with baking. I'll read the next one in this series.
...more

My favorite first book of the New Year! Didn't want to put it down.. Loved the characters and the setting.. I admit, I am not that "into" the Sherlock theme but that really didn't matter. The writing and dialogue are wonderful.. Can't wait to read the next one in the series..
...more

Gemma Doyle moved from England to West London, Mass. to help her great uncle Arthur. His in his nineties and is not one to settle down but he couldn't help buying a building when it was on Baker Street because he is a huge Sherlock Holmes fan. It wasn't doing very good because he was just selling the Sherlock Holmes cannons, but when Gemma came she realized that it would make more money if she stocked all the retellings and even books in that era as well as memorabilia. She didn't have to like a ...more

This is the first in a new series and I enjoyed getting to know Gemma Doyle and her friend Jayne. Gemma manages the Sherlock Emporium in Cape Cod. It is a Sherlock Holmes themed book and souvenir shop. The store is owned by Gemma's great-uncle Arthur Doyle, who believes he is a distant relative of the author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Gemma moved to the United States from England after ending her marriage and to help her uncle. Her best friend, Jayne, runs a tea room right next door. Gemma is known
...more

I had only read the 3rd in this series so I definitely had to go to the beginning and see how it all started. Gemma is really very impressive with her observation skills, something that not a lot of people possess and I wish that the one police officer, Louise Estrada, would be nicer to her or at least I wish she'd treat her with a little more dignity than she does. Estrada's partner, Ryan Ashburton, used to be involved with Gemma (would be interesting to read a prequel about that and when she v
...more

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Lots of fun! If you're a Sherlock Holmes fan, you will enjoy this one. Gemma and Jayne are good characters for an amateur sleuth setting. Gemma is always getting in trouble with the police, but this case may need a mystery lover to help solve this whodunit. I'm definitely on board with reading the next book because I want to know more about uncle Arthur, and hope we'll see more of him in upcoming books instead of ...more
Lots of fun! If you're a Sherlock Holmes fan, you will enjoy this one. Gemma and Jayne are good characters for an amateur sleuth setting. Gemma is always getting in trouble with the police, but this case may need a mystery lover to help solve this whodunit. I'm definitely on board with reading the next book because I want to know more about uncle Arthur, and hope we'll see more of him in upcoming books instead of ...more

I seem to be on an odd trend with books: ones I think I should love don't grab me, and books I feel I should dislike are very enjoyable. This book fell into the latter category, and was a very nice pleasant surprise.
Gemma Doyle [apparently a very distant relation to Arthur Conan], transplanted Englishwoman, living in smalltown West London, [which is on Cape Cod] is a highly annoying individual to many of the people she interacts with. She notices, remembers, and feels compelled to tell/correct p ...more
Gemma Doyle [apparently a very distant relation to Arthur Conan], transplanted Englishwoman, living in smalltown West London, [which is on Cape Cod] is a highly annoying individual to many of the people she interacts with. She notices, remembers, and feels compelled to tell/correct p ...more
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“It’s a crime not to read Delany,” so says the London Free Press.
Vicki Delany is one of Canada’s most varied and prolific crime writers.
She is the author of four cozy mystery series: The Tea by the Sea series from Kensington Books, the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop series from Crooked Lane and the Year Round Christmas series from Penguin. Under the pen name of Eva Gates she writes the Lighthouse Libr ...more
Vicki Delany is one of Canada’s most varied and prolific crime writers.
She is the author of four cozy mystery series: The Tea by the Sea series from Kensington Books, the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop series from Crooked Lane and the Year Round Christmas series from Penguin. Under the pen name of Eva Gates she writes the Lighthouse Libr ...more
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Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery
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