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A review by poachedeggs
The Beekeeper's Apprentice by Laurie R. King
3.0
I enjoyed King's writing in the first part of the book - the late 1800s style is something I find really comforting, and I think she managed to capture some of the essence of that period.
I found the mysteries confusing and rather pointless, though. Rather than intellectual exercises (which I associate with Holmes), they are action-adventure type things. Not so fun for me.
Most disturbing of all is the relationship between Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes. Mary was 15 when she met Holmes, who must have been in his 40s if not 50s (I forget). Is it because Holmes needs someone much more juvenile to imprint his lessons onto that King has made Mary so young? I'm really not sure, but the friendship just seemed really odd, largely because I didn't get a strong sense of the chemistry that was supposed to exist between them.
I'll probably not be reading the next book in the series, partly because King's books are simply too long (to the point of being bloated) for what they have to convey.
I found the mysteries confusing and rather pointless, though. Rather than intellectual exercises (which I associate with Holmes), they are action-adventure type things. Not so fun for me.
Most disturbing of all is the relationship between Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes. Mary was 15 when she met Holmes, who must have been in his 40s if not 50s (I forget). Is it because Holmes needs someone much more juvenile to imprint his lessons onto that King has made Mary so young? I'm really not sure, but the friendship just seemed really odd, largely because I didn't get a strong sense of the chemistry that was supposed to exist between them.
I'll probably not be reading the next book in the series, partly because King's books are simply too long (to the point of being bloated) for what they have to convey.