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dchiurka's review against another edition
3.0
Felt like it jumped around. Multiple times I’d go back to reread to see if I had missed some information. Hard to keep track of the characters, especially with who had what bomb etc.
kpeninger's review against another edition
4.0
I was kindly sent an ARC by the author in order to provide a review.
I very much enjoy the Portia Adams stories, and of course have missed them the past few years, so I am thrilled that another one is on the way! This book is slightly different than previous Portia Adams books, in that previously they were structured in such a way that there were a few shorter mysteries in the book, and then one larger mystery that was all tied together at the end. In The Detective and the Spy, the smaller mysteries are throughout the entire book rather than divided into specific chapters. This book also felt like it was a little more action/adventure rather than sheer mystery. I enjoyed the fast-paced nature of the book quite a bit, though at times I felt there was too much going on; I think for my poor addled pandemic-life brain, I would have liked one less mystery to work through. But for those who like mysteries with multiple threads, this will probably appeal. The plot itself was quite fun; I liked that we had such high stakes.
It was good to be reunited with the old crew, especially Annie, who is my favourite of the Portia Adams secondary characters. Their friendship is as strong as ever, and the ending left me absolutely DESPERATE for the next book. Brian is there, an excellent boyfriend for Portia, and Gavin makes a return. We also have some new characters appear, most notably Lancaster, who I hope will get to make another appearance in the future. Misri does character very well; I always enjoy the people we meet along the way. I love her use of the Baker Street Irregulars, and the bloodhound Nerissa quite possibly rivals Annie as my favourite non-Portia character. I continue to enjoy the sense of lore that Misri injects into these stories, with the families of Watson, Holmes, and Adler intertwining, and the ongoing sense that we only really know a portion of their story. This is handled so well, and it continues to be present in this book - I wanted to shake it to make some of the family secrets fall out.
I do have two complaints which made me rate this book lower, but may not be a problem for other readers. They are slight spoilers so I'll put them behind a cut. I do not like the way Portia's ultimately temporary disability was done. Disability done in this way is rarely done well, and there are definitely missteps along the way. It felt like Portia bemoaned the change in her life and then abruptly it was no longer a problem. The book needed to be longer to give the disability its due, and to make it seem like it wasn't just a plot device. I also very much disliked the addiction plotline. Again, I think if this had been a longer book, or hadn't felt like it had been largely wrapped up by the end of the book (with the potential to come back when needed for the plot) I wouldn't have been bothered with it, but I'd really like to be able to read more Sherlock Holmes pastiches without opium dens showing up. I want to believe that both of these issues will become reoccurring ones - that Portia's Deafness will not be quite so temporary and she'll need to learn to detect while hard of hearing (and stop acting like it's the end of her career), and Brian will have ongoing struggles with addiction that aren't so easily overcome. If that happens, I'll be less fussed about both of these issues.
And one major spoiler, like, THE spoiler, so don't read if you haven't read: I absolutely hated that the Deaf Black woman was the villain in the end. I loved Amelie because it was so wonderful to have a Deaf Black woman in a Sherlock Holmes pastiche, of all things - pastiches are notoriously full of white cis ablebodied straight dudes, and anytime an author decides to remember that London was a very diverse city, I am very excited. It's honestly something I appreciate about the Portia Adams series in general. Which is why it was so disappointing to lose Amelie to villainhood. She would have been an amazing reoccurring character. Villainhood, of course, doesn't mean she can't come back - but I would have preferred her as an ally.
Overall, despite the issues I found, I still enjoyed this book. I think that fans of the Portia Adams will enjoy it as well, and the ending really is absolutely tantalizing. I will definitely be picking up a copy to add to my shelves once it comes out.
I very much enjoy the Portia Adams stories, and of course have missed them the past few years, so I am thrilled that another one is on the way! This book is slightly different than previous Portia Adams books, in that previously they were structured in such a way that there were a few shorter mysteries in the book, and then one larger mystery that was all tied together at the end. In The Detective and the Spy, the smaller mysteries are throughout the entire book rather than divided into specific chapters. This book also felt like it was a little more action/adventure rather than sheer mystery. I enjoyed the fast-paced nature of the book quite a bit, though at times I felt there was too much going on; I think for my poor addled pandemic-life brain, I would have liked one less mystery to work through. But for those who like mysteries with multiple threads, this will probably appeal. The plot itself was quite fun; I liked that we had such high stakes.
It was good to be reunited with the old crew, especially Annie, who is my favourite of the Portia Adams secondary characters. Their friendship is as strong as ever, and the ending left me absolutely DESPERATE for the next book. Brian is there, an excellent boyfriend for Portia, and Gavin makes a return. We also have some new characters appear, most notably Lancaster, who I hope will get to make another appearance in the future. Misri does character very well; I always enjoy the people we meet along the way. I love her use of the Baker Street Irregulars, and the bloodhound Nerissa quite possibly rivals Annie as my favourite non-Portia character. I continue to enjoy the sense of lore that Misri injects into these stories, with the families of Watson, Holmes, and Adler intertwining, and the ongoing sense that we only really know a portion of their story. This is handled so well, and it continues to be present in this book - I wanted to shake it to make some of the family secrets fall out.
I do have two complaints which made me rate this book lower, but may not be a problem for other readers. They are slight spoilers so I'll put them behind a cut.
And one major spoiler, like, THE spoiler, so don't read if you haven't read:
Overall, despite the issues I found, I still enjoyed this book. I think that fans of the Portia Adams will enjoy it as well, and the ending really is absolutely tantalizing. I will definitely be picking up a copy to add to my shelves once it comes out.
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