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3.99 AVERAGE
3.99 AVERAGE
1924 and Mycroft summons Mary and Holmes to find a spy. They track their way through India as traveling carnival performers and make their way to a Rajas extravagant palace. Parts of this book felt very much from a colonist viewpoint.
an interesting twist on the Sherlock Holmes story--Anali, I think you might enjoy these.
Entertaining and very descriptive. The characters are interesting and, while I didn't get into this one as much as some of the other Mary Russell books, it was still very fast paced and fun.
I really enjoyed this 7th Mary Russell story. This is another great adventure for Mary and Holmes. Very well written and engaging.
Not my favorite of the series, but a very solid book, nevertheless. Perhaps it's unfair that I read this right after Justice Hall and O, Jerusalem, both of which I adored. I loved the historical figures pulled into this book, and although I haven't read Rudyard Kipling's book, it's cool how the author turned "Kim" into a "real" person. And I loved the cheeky little Bindra! One of the things that really struck me in this one is that Holmes is still very much Holmes and there are still times when his intellectual leaps leave Mary scrambling to catch up, and yet, he never looks down on her for it. Similarly, she is amazing and accomplishes many things and there are times when she is more suited than him to accomplish something and I love that she can continue to shine without diminishing him. Truly they are worthy partners and it continues to keep me hooked with this series.
The Game
What exotic experience befalls Mary Russell, this time? Loyal subjects of the glorious British Empire in all its benevolent wisdom are aghast at the mad cruelty of an Oriental demi-despot.
In this as in other books in the series, don’t be surprised when anyone unusually brave, clever, loyal—no matter that they appear to be of a browner race—anyone with finer qualities—will turn out to be English, or at least half-English.
That’s not to say all Englishmen are always good. “My god, this Englishman was madder than the maharaja.” As if madness were particularly surprising in an Englishman.
It’s appropriate, in historical fiction, that a character have attitudes typical of her place and time. So, despite her education, Mary Russell’s attitudes and assumptions are typical of insular British superiority in the waning years of the Empire. Very well. Believable for the period: “I was ready to dive for cover, but my companion was made from the stuff that had built an empire.”
But a character like Mary; sensitive, intelligent, observant; when taken from her little island and exposed to the varied colors and classes of wide travel and broad investigation, ought to grow and change, revising her initial views.
You won’t see that happening. If anything, she seems to see every acquaintance and experience as further proof of British supremacy.
Spoiler alert for a different series: When I picked up the first novel in the Miss Julia series by Ann B. Ross, I almost put it down and never picked up another. But there was just enough humor being poked at the character, just enough over-the-top-ness to her classism and racism, that I suspected something was up, so I stuck with the series. I’m glad I did. I had the pleasure of seeing Miss Julia forced to challenge her assumptions, and grow, and change.
I wish I could see as much in Miss Russell. That Mary is a staunch feminist is some comfort, it’s true, but she was that from the first. So where is the character development? I’ve been entertained by these books, but I wanted more. I guess it’s time to stop writing lukewarm reviews, and start finding something else to read.
If you cringe when you hear people being repeatedly called “orientals,” if you don’t long for the good old days when Brittania ruled the waves, if white supremacy is not your cup of tea, you might want to give this series a miss. I’m done with it.
ETA Disclaimer on the Miss Julia series: about a half dozen books from the end, it goes downhill, and Miss Julia becomes as ossified in the head as any stalwart defender of the privileged. Well, heck.
What exotic experience befalls Mary Russell, this time? Loyal subjects of the glorious British Empire in all its benevolent wisdom are aghast at the mad cruelty of an Oriental demi-despot.
In this as in other books in the series, don’t be surprised when anyone unusually brave, clever, loyal—no matter that they appear to be of a browner race—anyone with finer qualities—will turn out to be English, or at least half-English.
That’s not to say all Englishmen are always good. “My god, this Englishman was madder than the maharaja.” As if madness were particularly surprising in an Englishman.
It’s appropriate, in historical fiction, that a character have attitudes typical of her place and time. So, despite her education, Mary Russell’s attitudes and assumptions are typical of insular British superiority in the waning years of the Empire. Very well. Believable for the period: “I was ready to dive for cover, but my companion was made from the stuff that had built an empire.”
But a character like Mary; sensitive, intelligent, observant; when taken from her little island and exposed to the varied colors and classes of wide travel and broad investigation, ought to grow and change, revising her initial views.
You won’t see that happening. If anything, she seems to see every acquaintance and experience as further proof of British supremacy.
Spoiler alert for a different series: When I picked up the first novel in the Miss Julia series by Ann B. Ross, I almost put it down and never picked up another. But there was just enough humor being poked at the character, just enough over-the-top-ness to her classism and racism, that I suspected something was up, so I stuck with the series. I’m glad I did. I had the pleasure of seeing Miss Julia forced to challenge her assumptions, and grow, and change.
I wish I could see as much in Miss Russell. That Mary is a staunch feminist is some comfort, it’s true, but she was that from the first. So where is the character development? I’ve been entertained by these books, but I wanted more. I guess it’s time to stop writing lukewarm reviews, and start finding something else to read.
If you cringe when you hear people being repeatedly called “orientals,” if you don’t long for the good old days when Brittania ruled the waves, if white supremacy is not your cup of tea, you might want to give this series a miss. I’m done with it.
ETA Disclaimer on the Miss Julia series: about a half dozen books from the end, it goes downhill, and Miss Julia becomes as ossified in the head as any stalwart defender of the privileged. Well, heck.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Again, like the last Mary Russell/Laurie King book, I became uninterested but this time, much sooner. Still many chances to like these books but as I go one by one, I wonder if they were worth picking up. I stuck with the last one, hoping it would come out different to me and it didn't. This one, I told myself, I was going to give 3 chapters and found myself wanting to give up at the beginning of the 2nd one. I find myself wanting to continue with the actual Doyle books, of which I will return to.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No