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3.91 AVERAGE
3.91 AVERAGE
Mary Russell rarely disappoints, and Castle Shade has a wonderful gothic quality that makes it loads of fun. One of my favorite of Laurie R. King’s recent books in this series.
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Oh! I didn't realize this was the most recent book, and blew through it anticipating the next one. . . Guess I'll just keep that anticipation up a bit longer than I'd imagined!
This one was great, but I'm anxious about Mary and Sherlock and their as of yet undiscussed martial stuff.
This one was great, but I'm anxious about Mary and Sherlock and their as of yet undiscussed martial stuff.
Another great episode from the chronicles of Mary Russell and her husband, Sherlock Holmes. As this series progresses, Mary has become more confident in her abilities and her modern feminist worldview is slowly affecting Sherlock's. In the canon, Sherlock often seemed unprepared for dealing with women, most notably with that woman, Irene Adler, and with Mary by his side, he's become more aware of his limitations.. As this series has evolved, it is more Mary's story with Sherlock cloaked in the shadows.
Castle Shade weaves together threads of Count Dracula and Europe between the two world wars to create an engaging mystery (and made me aware that I really need to understand more about the history of that period!). Another must-read from Laurie King!
Thanks to Random House Publishing for access to a digital ARC via NetGalley.
Castle Shade weaves together threads of Count Dracula and Europe between the two world wars to create an engaging mystery (and made me aware that I really need to understand more about the history of that period!). Another must-read from Laurie King!
Thanks to Random House Publishing for access to a digital ARC via NetGalley.
I read EVERYTHING that LRK publishes, and my favorites are her Mary Russell series. Although there have been decades in between the first and the most recent books, the storylines within have only aged a couple of years. It helped that I recently re-read Riviera Gold, the book before Castle Shade, as there are callbacks to that story peppered throughout. For the most part though, you can read the latest in the series without remembering a lot of details from the other books if you don't have time for rereading.
The setting- Transylvania- was unique and well researched. LRK does a phenomenal job of sharing her research with readers and interacting with us and discussing various trains of thought or motivations for certain choices. Her Sherlock Holmes remains as true (with a twist) to her original.
The setting- Transylvania- was unique and well researched. LRK does a phenomenal job of sharing her research with readers and interacting with us and discussing various trains of thought or motivations for certain choices. Her Sherlock Holmes remains as true (with a twist) to her original.
When you are seventeen books into a series, it takes some doing to keep the characters and the storylines fresh. I’ve kind of grown bored with the series, but as fate would have it, I found the most recent one for five dollars at a used book sale. In hardcover no less! Decided that it was worth a try.
My thriftiness aside, I would say this book as well worth the read. Mary and Holmes travel to Romania to help a queen with a problem. Someone is threatening her daughter and there are potential vampire sightings in the village. Oh, did I mention that they’re very close to Transylvania?
The reason for all of the vampire crimes and such was kind of disappointing, but I have to say that I enjoyed the buildup of the novel—because this is a slow burn story—and since I enjoyed the buildup I can’t complain too much.
There was a good mix of historical and fictitious characters and everyone felt distinct and well-rounded. Like I said, the villain was a little meh and the crazy chapter at the end (a climax perhaps?_ could’ve been something different and I wouldn’t of been upset. Buttt as I said it was a good book
All and all I’m not sure I would pick up the series and start with this book (for a number of reasons), but it was a solid addition to the series.
As always, I’m a little freaked out that there is a forty year age gap but I’m this many books deep and I haven’t stopped reading yet so I guess we are just accepting it. I also really like that the author still pretends that she is publishing memoirs written by Mary Russell herself. I don’t know why but it’s cute.
My thriftiness aside, I would say this book as well worth the read. Mary and Holmes travel to Romania to help a queen with a problem. Someone is threatening her daughter and there are potential vampire sightings in the village. Oh, did I mention that they’re very close to Transylvania?
The reason for all of the vampire crimes and such was kind of disappointing, but I have to say that I enjoyed the buildup of the novel—because this is a slow burn story—and since I enjoyed the buildup I can’t complain too much.
There was a good mix of historical and fictitious characters and everyone felt distinct and well-rounded. Like I said, the villain was a little meh and the crazy chapter at the end (a climax perhaps?_ could’ve been something different and I wouldn’t of been upset. Buttt as I said it was a good book
All and all I’m not sure I would pick up the series and start with this book (for a number of reasons), but it was a solid addition to the series.
As always, I’m a little freaked out that there is a forty year age gap but I’m this many books deep and I haven’t stopped reading yet so I guess we are just accepting it. I also really like that the author still pretends that she is publishing memoirs written by Mary Russell herself. I don’t know why but it’s cute.
Another solid Mary Russell adventure - 3.5 stars, set in Transylvania with the legend of Dracula and Royal princesses as backdrops.
Mary Russell is still the lead character, but for once we also get some 1. person narratives from Holmes, getting some little insights into his view on the relationship.
A series that keeps surprising at volume 17, impressing !.
By coincidence i actually read Dracula less than a month before this one, which made the references stand out clearly.
Mary Russell is still the lead character, but for once we also get some 1. person narratives from Holmes, getting some little insights into his view on the relationship.
A series that keeps surprising at volume 17, impressing !.
By coincidence i actually read Dracula less than a month before this one, which made the references stand out clearly.
mysterious
medium-paced
adventurous
dark
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Rescuing the royalty from themselves? It appears to be the theme and thankless Queen Marie seems, yet her daughter and lover—Prince Stirbey seem more grounded in the reality of the Romanian people. Indeed, it seems this mirrors historical reality as well. What a troubled past the Romanians.
I wouldn’t have guessed… done it!? I almost never do with Laurie King. She’s a master storyteller unto the last paragraph and I appreciate that snippet of history one gets at the same time. Do I dare tire of the King plot, though?
I really enjoy this series; I realized I had gotten a few books behind and used the quarantine time to catch up so I was delighted to get an early copy from the publisher and Netgalley to review.
This one picks up right where Riviera Gold left off, tying into Holmes trip to Romania while Mary went to the French Riviera. It's starts out with a very nice section driving home how difficult travel could be in the 1920s and then plunges right into the mystery once Mary and Holmes reach Bran Castle.
There are a number of different mysteries running through the story, all well developed and tracking. I really loved the depth of the history covered in the story and how it all tied together in the end. It's a good read for that historical fiction-mystery intersection and I really enjoyed it.
This one picks up right where Riviera Gold left off, tying into Holmes trip to Romania while Mary went to the French Riviera. It's starts out with a very nice section driving home how difficult travel could be in the 1920s and then plunges right into the mystery once Mary and Holmes reach Bran Castle.
There are a number of different mysteries running through the story, all well developed and tracking. I really loved the depth of the history covered in the story and how it all tied together in the end. It's a good read for that historical fiction-mystery intersection and I really enjoyed it.