Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.93 AVERAGE
3.93 AVERAGE
The teenage sherlock holems paired with teenager girl version of Watson? yes please, when i was young i really love detective story, and i admired Sherlock Holmes so much but i have not read any classical detective story for a long time and when i heard there is a book retelling Sherlock holmes with teenager as the main characters and the probability of best friend romance make me picked this up immadiately. At first i have kind of hard time with the english, and later on the english that made me love this book even more! it was refreshing and added new vocabularies for me. the story is about Rachel or "Watt" who moved from country to Mellbourne for her family to work and made new life, she really hated the city and waiting for her 18 birthday so she could leave it and live on her own. she befriend with her neighbour, eccentric genius boy who continiously endangered himself, Mycroft (i should restrain myself calling him Mycrosoft LOL). Just like Sherlock holmes, Mycroft befriend with various people that included Dave the beggar who always hang out near the zoo when Mycroft and Watt found him died with his throat sliced, Mycroft will not let the killer get away. He and his partner, Watt together they tried to found out who the killer is and what his/her motive is even it made them in very dangerous situation. Having read many books included ridiculously rich people, its very refreshing to read book when the two main characters both having financial problem, it feels real for me when the main character are thinking twice when they spend their money (as often broke university student i could totally related -_- )
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
-DNF-
It felt like I was missing some pages. Or maybe I am missing some since I downloaded it through the Internet.
Am too confused. Can't finish it.
It felt like I was missing some pages. Or maybe I am missing some since I downloaded it through the Internet.
Am too confused. Can't finish it.
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was one of those rare novels that met all of your priorities when looking for your perfect book. This book was not a light read. It was intense and captured your attention from page 1. Character development was written very well and the characters were amazing. The main character, Rachel, or as some people call her, Watts, is an amazing person. She is down to earth and so....real. She wasn't scared to say her opinion and she did what she wanted. A real take-charge type of person. The other main character, James, or as everyone calls him, Mycroft, is an amazing roll model (most of the time).
He is a very.....different character. He is not like most boys that you would read about. He is his own person completely and that is to be appreciated. He was definitely my favourite character. The romance was very good in it as well. You could tell when the feelings began to spark between them. They are really good together, in my opinion.
This book was not at all what I expected. It was way better. This is a breath of fresh air. It really gives you an aspect on how others in the world live. It was detailed well. 100% for me.
I recommend this book to any mystery lovers and romance junkies!
He is a very.....different character. He is not like most boys that you would read about. He is his own person completely and that is to be appreciated. He was definitely my favourite character. The romance was very good in it as well. You could tell when the feelings began to spark between them. They are really good together, in my opinion.
This book was not at all what I expected. It was way better. This is a breath of fresh air. It really gives you an aspect on how others in the world live. It was detailed well. 100% for me.
I recommend this book to any mystery lovers and romance junkies!
Such a captivating story with a modern twist to that detective everyone loves so much. I was sucked in from the first few pages. Ellie Marney has a fantastic way of capturing Melbourne so that I could picture every detail in my mind so clearly.
Rachel Watts is a fresh, new type of character who I liked straight away! A country girl trying to fit in while in the big city. The romance between Mycroft and Watts was something, after hearing reviews, that I was looking forward to and boy was I happy with what I got. It slowly crept up on me, it happened so quickly and all of a sudden I was left feeling all warm and gooey inside.
There was also a lot of depth to both Mycroft and Watts. Their friendship is something I savoured and enjoyed. I was learning things about them that they were finding out for themselves and because of this I could really connect with them.
The grisly murder that kick starts Mycroft and Watts into a duo detective team was developed perfectly. Little tastes of what may have happened were ever so slowly revealed until the most unlikely character is found out. I liked how the whole story seemed real, I didn't think while reading that certain things they were doing seemed too ridiculous. I believed that two teenagers can solve a murder. Although there is quite a unique and frightening escape made by Mycroft and Watts at the end which I found to be a bit unbelievable, but I can let that slide because it was so quirky. (there are others books in the series so I'm not giving any spoilers away by telling you they lived!)
I have heard even better things about "Every Word", so I'll have my magnifying glass ready. I fell into this book head first hoping and wishing for it to be wonderful, and I got that and SO much more! The game's afoot and I never want it to end!
Also on my blog
Rachel Watts is a fresh, new type of character who I liked straight away! A country girl trying to fit in while in the big city. The romance between Mycroft and Watts was something, after hearing reviews, that I was looking forward to and boy was I happy with what I got. It slowly crept up on me, it happened so quickly and all of a sudden I was left feeling all warm and gooey inside.
There was also a lot of depth to both Mycroft and Watts. Their friendship is something I savoured and enjoyed. I was learning things about them that they were finding out for themselves and because of this I could really connect with them.
The grisly murder that kick starts Mycroft and Watts into a duo detective team was developed perfectly. Little tastes of what may have happened were ever so slowly revealed until the most unlikely character is found out. I liked how the whole story seemed real, I didn't think while reading that certain things they were doing seemed too ridiculous. I believed that two teenagers can solve a murder. Although there is quite a unique and frightening escape made by Mycroft and Watts at the end which I found to be a bit unbelievable, but I can let that slide because it was so quirky. (there are others books in the series so I'm not giving any spoilers away by telling you they lived!)
I have heard even better things about "Every Word", so I'll have my magnifying glass ready. I fell into this book head first hoping and wishing for it to be wonderful, and I got that and SO much more! The game's afoot and I never want it to end!
Also on my blog
Somehow, despite the strong writing, the references to Melbourne and the country that I know gave me the impression that this book would not be surprising. I was enjoying it from the start, but didn't expect to be wow'ed.
And then, all at once, I knew I had been tricked, knew that I had trusted my protagonists to be able to figure out the mystery and never doubted their abilities. The conclusion was intense, dramatic, and made me start reading it when I had only a minute to spare, just so I could see what would happen in the next couple of sentences.
Regarding romance, it never felt forced. I could empathise with being attracted to a friend and being more than happy with nothing coming out of it lest it ruin the friendship, and I completely believed the electricity between the characters. I liked the casual references to the Mai and Gus' utter attraction to each other too; they are constantly aware of each other in a way that teenage couples tend to be, hanging out for the next opportunity to give in to their impulses.
An excellent book! So glad I read it, and definitely recommending it as an example of Australian genius.
And then, all at once, I knew I had been tricked, knew that I had trusted my protagonists to be able to figure out the mystery and never doubted their abilities. The conclusion was intense, dramatic, and made me start reading it when I had only a minute to spare, just so I could see what would happen in the next couple of sentences.
Regarding romance, it never felt forced. I could empathise with being attracted to a friend and being more than happy with nothing coming out of it lest it ruin the friendship, and I completely believed the electricity between the characters. I liked the casual references to the Mai and Gus' utter attraction to each other too; they are constantly aware of each other in a way that teenage couples tend to be, hanging out for the next opportunity to give in to their impulses.
An excellent book! So glad I read it, and definitely recommending it as an example of Australian genius.
I think I would’ve liked this book a lot more if I hadn’t approached it with the expectation that it was a “teenage Sherlock Holmes.”
Similarities to the “essence of Sherlock”: there’s a guy whose last name is Mycroft and a girl, Rachel, whose last name is Watts. Mycroft is smart, but socially inept. Like Sherlock, Mycroft is prone to doing stupid, offensive, and/or outrageous things that the reader is supposed to overlook on account of them being “expressions of brilliance.” Rachel holds her own in smarts and yet is somehow, inexplicably, illogically stuck on Mycroft because of course your first reaction if your new friend is constantly getting in trouble with the school principal is to stick by his side.
I would have been fine with this premise, shortcomings of the original aside, if EVERY BREATH hadn’t tried to add more layers to the tale. There’s the romantic tension aspect between Rachel and Mycroft, of course. I get that Sherlock Holmes has Byronic appeal, and Watson’s against-all-logic loyalty for Holmes can lead one to many (b)romantic musings. (Holmes-Watson fanfic, anyone?) This surfaces again and again in other works inspired by Sherlock Holmes. The older Holmes character in Laurie R. King’s Mary Russell series does not always remain securely in a paternal role to Mary. The TV show Elementary even makes Watson a woman (and Sherlock a really hot man) just to open that can of worms / realm of possibility further.
Through it all, though, Holmes and Watson’s relationship has always remained pure: a professional working relationship that worms its way into Holmes’ emotionally inept heart. If there’s any sexual or romantic tension to be had, it’s pretty much all in your head.
That’s why they call it fiction.
And I like that kind of fiction. Imagining it has so much more “scope for the imagination” than seeing it printed.
So, reading about Watts’ physical reactions to Mycroft’s lanky, tall, messy-haired, electric-blue-eyed body felt almost…dirty, since I was trying to hold this image of a pure Holmes-and-Watson relationship in my mind.
But what was even more jarring for me was the subplot about Rachel’s splintering family and their bumpy adjustment to city life after their farm forecloses. Rachel was already getting on my nerves with her drawn-out, near-hysterical reactions to discovering the body. (Side note: Inner Editor REALLY wanted to ask for a rewrite of the first half of the book. Too much near-fainting! Too much recalling the night of finding the body! Drag, drag, drag.) Then, whenever she is in a scene with any family member, it’s all drama this, drama that, fight here, fight there. Call me out of touch with the feelings of teenagers (I guess I am an adult now *cries*), but when I am expecting a Sherlock Holmes-esque book, I want ACTION and DEDUCTION and PWNAGE and not family soap opera.
And that is the problem with using comparisons to classics as your marketing strategy. Any new element added—no matter how well done—will cause your hackles to rise as you internally defend your love for the original. So, in the end, EVERY BREATH was actually more well-written than many books out there, but I was anticipating a certain set of elements that I associate with Sherlock Holmes so much that I couldn’t put them aside to appreciate Mycroft and Watts’ story for itself.
Final words: EVERY BREATH is a good read for fans of Sherlock Holmes. It is NOT—repeat, NOT—a YA version of Sherlock Holmes. Mycroft is not Sherlock. Rachel is not Watson. (And it took me until I typed those words to finally realize that.) Adjusting your expectations in this way could make a big difference as to how much you let Rachel and Mycroft into your heart.
Similarities to the “essence of Sherlock”: there’s a guy whose last name is Mycroft and a girl, Rachel, whose last name is Watts. Mycroft is smart, but socially inept. Like Sherlock, Mycroft is prone to doing stupid, offensive, and/or outrageous things that the reader is supposed to overlook on account of them being “expressions of brilliance.” Rachel holds her own in smarts and yet is somehow, inexplicably, illogically stuck on Mycroft because of course your first reaction if your new friend is constantly getting in trouble with the school principal is to stick by his side.
I would have been fine with this premise, shortcomings of the original aside, if EVERY BREATH hadn’t tried to add more layers to the tale. There’s the romantic tension aspect between Rachel and Mycroft, of course. I get that Sherlock Holmes has Byronic appeal, and Watson’s against-all-logic loyalty for Holmes can lead one to many (b)romantic musings. (Holmes-Watson fanfic, anyone?) This surfaces again and again in other works inspired by Sherlock Holmes. The older Holmes character in Laurie R. King’s Mary Russell series does not always remain securely in a paternal role to Mary. The TV show Elementary even makes Watson a woman (and Sherlock a really hot man) just to open that can of worms / realm of possibility further.
Through it all, though, Holmes and Watson’s relationship has always remained pure: a professional working relationship that worms its way into Holmes’ emotionally inept heart. If there’s any sexual or romantic tension to be had, it’s pretty much all in your head.
That’s why they call it fiction.
And I like that kind of fiction. Imagining it has so much more “scope for the imagination” than seeing it printed.
So, reading about Watts’ physical reactions to Mycroft’s lanky, tall, messy-haired, electric-blue-eyed body felt almost…dirty, since I was trying to hold this image of a pure Holmes-and-Watson relationship in my mind.
But what was even more jarring for me was the subplot about Rachel’s splintering family and their bumpy adjustment to city life after their farm forecloses. Rachel was already getting on my nerves with her drawn-out, near-hysterical reactions to discovering the body. (Side note: Inner Editor REALLY wanted to ask for a rewrite of the first half of the book. Too much near-fainting! Too much recalling the night of finding the body! Drag, drag, drag.) Then, whenever she is in a scene with any family member, it’s all drama this, drama that, fight here, fight there. Call me out of touch with the feelings of teenagers (I guess I am an adult now *cries*), but when I am expecting a Sherlock Holmes-esque book, I want ACTION and DEDUCTION and PWNAGE and not family soap opera.
And that is the problem with using comparisons to classics as your marketing strategy. Any new element added—no matter how well done—will cause your hackles to rise as you internally defend your love for the original. So, in the end, EVERY BREATH was actually more well-written than many books out there, but I was anticipating a certain set of elements that I associate with Sherlock Holmes so much that I couldn’t put them aside to appreciate Mycroft and Watts’ story for itself.
Final words: EVERY BREATH is a good read for fans of Sherlock Holmes. It is NOT—repeat, NOT—a YA version of Sherlock Holmes. Mycroft is not Sherlock. Rachel is not Watson. (And it took me until I typed those words to finally realize that.) Adjusting your expectations in this way could make a big difference as to how much you let Rachel and Mycroft into your heart.
This book changed how I wrote. This book improved the way I wrote. Ellie Marney is a beautiful human being and her stories will always hold a special place in my heart, even if I've moved on from the genre as a whole. Enola Holmes who?