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The Moor: A Mary Russell Novel by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Amazon.com Longtime fans of Arthur Conan Doyle's fictional detective, Sherlock Holmes, might think that their favorite sleuth met his fate at the hands of Dr. Moriarty at the Reichenbach Falls. Anyone who believes that, however, obviously hasn't read Laurie R. King's delightful series featuring Holmes and his wife(!), Mary Russell. In The Beekeeper's Apprentice, Holmes succumbs to the Oxford scholar's charms; now, in The Moor, fourth in the series, Holmes and Russell are summoned to Devonshire to solve a tin miner's mysterious death. Lonely Dartmoor provides plenty of opportunities for King to both relate the haunting legends of that part of the world and offer some amusing revisions to one of Holmes's most famous cases, Hardcover edition. Reader Reviews weakest of the excellent Mary Russell series, September 11, 2003 Reviewer: audrey_the_librarian from boston, ma united states This is the fourth book by Laurie King about Mary Russell and her partner, Sherlock Holmes. King is a superb writer and she captures the eeriness of the English moor, but I was a bit disappointed with this novel, and give it a lower rating than the first three books in the series. This is a good book -- with interesting characters and circumstances -- but the pacing is very sloooooow, the mystery is not terribly interesting and, most egregious of all, the dialogue between Russell and Holmes, usually the high point of this great series, never sparkles. Perhaps others are disappointed at the lack of detail concerning the couple's romantic life; I am more interested in their intellectual communion, and that is sorely missing here. I also noticed a fair number of typographical errors for the first time in the series, suggesting lazy or hurried writing, or perhaps a lack of editorial assistance. Perhaps Ms. King should take a rest between novels? It's a shame that this book does not live up to expectations, being a continuation (of sorts) of Holmes' greatest adventure. The mood of the moor and Baskerville Hall are great, the many characters are well written, but unfortunately the spark is not here. Still a fun read for fans, but not as good as the three previous efforts. I will continue to follow the series, but will probably buy them used.
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