Publishers Weekly
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King’s sprawling 18th investigation for the now-retired Holmes and his much younger wife, Russell (after Castle Shade), finds the duo heading to the French countryside to visit Holmes’s adult son, Damian Adler, whose mother is American contralto Irene Adler. Upon Holmes and Russell’s arrival, they discover that Damian, his fiancée, and his precocious young daughter have fled to Paris following an alarming break-in at their home. Holmes sets off to find them, leaving Russell, who has injured her ankle, to stay behind. Bored, she rummages through a recently delivered steamer trunk containing memorabilia belonging to the prolifically artistic Vernet family, including a journal in coded French, which Russell takes pains to translate into English. She deciphers a series of passages written by a girl named Lakshmi, which King alternates with Holmes and Russell’s pursuit of the home invaders. Soon, the pair is tangled up in a mystery involving kidnappers, a lost inheritance, and burning family secrets. The elaborate family lore King has constructed for Holmes impresses, and she pays longtime readers dividends with a number of satisfying disclosures about the detective’s past. Series fans are sure to be pleased. Agent: Alec Shane, Writers House. (Feb.)

Book list
From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.

In their latest appearance (after Castle Shade, 2021), Sherlock Holmes and Mary Russell are looking forward to spending some time with Sherlock’s son, Damian Adler, a well-known artist, and his family. When they arrive in the village of Délieux, France, a caretaker with a shotgun greets them and tells them that the family has fled an intruder. Sherlock immediately sets out to find Damian, while Mary, nursing a sprained ankle, stays in the house. She discovers several shipping crates in Damian’s studio; in them, she finds an antique lamp that appears to be a type of zoetrope and a journal written in code. As she works to decipher the journal, she realizes that its pages are linked to scenes on the lamp, telling the story of a young woman in India fleeing from her home. Further study leads Mary to think that this relates to Damian and Sherlock's’ family. Readers will enjoy learning about the Holmes family as they uncover interesting information about the history of India and the role and status of women in Victorian England.