Status
Available
Call number
Collection
Publication
Bantam 2006.
Description
Fiction. Mystery. Suspense. Thriller. HTML:�??A truly bravura performance [with] all the magnetic appeal of the best of the original Conan Doyle novels.�?��??The Strand Magazine En route to San Francisco to settle her family�??s estate, Mary Russell, in the company of husband Sherlock Holmes, falls prey to troubling dreams�??and even more troubling behavior. In 1906, when Mary was six, the city was devastated by a catastrophic earthquake. For years Mary has insisted she lived elsewhere at the time. But Holmes knows better. Soon it is clear that whatever unpleasantness Mary wanted to forget hasn�??t forgotten her. A series of mysterious deaths leads Russell and Holmes from the winding streets of Chinatown to the unspoken secrets of a parent�??s marriage and the tragic �??accident�?� that Mary alone survived. What Russell discovers is that even a forgotten past never dies . . . and it can kill again. BONUS: This edition contains excerpts from Laurie R. King's The God of the Hive and … (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member rretzler
Mary Russell and her husband, Sherlock Holmes, have finished their stay in India and are traveling to San Francisco so that Russell can visit her inherited holdings there. On the way, Russell begins to have recurring nightmares which Holmes believes have something to do with her childhood in San
This book is the 8th in the Mary Russell series by Laurie R King. I have enjoyed each of the books as I have read them, and each one seems better than the last. This particular book, I just could not put down. It was exciting and suspenseful every step of the way, and the way that the relationship between Russell and Holmes is portrayed is wonderful.
King does such a good job of describing and letting us get to know the characters. I now feel as though Russell and Holmes are old friends.
This book is unique in the Russell/Holmes series as part is written in first person from Russell's point of view and part is written in third person centering upon Holmes. Interestingly, when reading the last book, I had thought that I would like to get more from Holmes perspective, and I was pleased to see it had happened.
I really enjoy King's writing style. It flows and makes me feel as though I am really there with the characters. It is easy to read, and the dialogue rings true. In my opinion there is certainly nothing wrong with this book.
I highly recommend this book, however, I would not read it as the first in the series as it will not mean as much without reading at least the first book first.
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Francisco and the accident that killed her parents and brother when she was 14. Holmes soon finds Russell unreliable and Russell finds that everything is not as she remembered.This book is the 8th in the Mary Russell series by Laurie R King. I have enjoyed each of the books as I have read them, and each one seems better than the last. This particular book, I just could not put down. It was exciting and suspenseful every step of the way, and the way that the relationship between Russell and Holmes is portrayed is wonderful.
King does such a good job of describing and letting us get to know the characters. I now feel as though Russell and Holmes are old friends.
This book is unique in the Russell/Holmes series as part is written in first person from Russell's point of view and part is written in third person centering upon Holmes. Interestingly, when reading the last book, I had thought that I would like to get more from Holmes perspective, and I was pleased to see it had happened.
I really enjoy King's writing style. It flows and makes me feel as though I am really there with the characters. It is easy to read, and the dialogue rings true. In my opinion there is certainly nothing wrong with this book.
I highly recommend this book, however, I would not read it as the first in the series as it will not mean as much without reading at least the first book first.
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LibraryThing member MrsLee
O joy! I found another Mary Russell book and read it all in one day. Who could put it down? Wonderful author and this book had San Francisco as the center fo action, also the 1906 earthquake and fire. Excellent. Love how she weaves other famous detectives or authors into these stories.
LibraryThing member Capnrandm
I don't recall past Russell novels providing such an intimate glimpse of Holmes point of view, and while it was frustrating experiencing a tiny bit of Russell's distress, King balances this beautifully with Holmes' methodical yet concerned perspective. It's a delicate business imaging the rigidly
Full review at Read Fragment.
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controlled Holmes as a husband or lover, and King strikes the right note in LOCKED ROOMS by discussing the supportive aspects of their relationship. This book explores an aspect of American history that was unfamiliar, and painted such a portrait of Russell's family that I was pained that no resolution could deliver what I deeply wanted... for them all to be alive and well again. Full review at Read Fragment.
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LibraryThing member fuzzi
I love this book, I've read it more than once, twice, maybe even more than thrice. The author does a fantastic job of not only giving us a twisty plot, but also developing the characters even more so, beyond the previous installments of the series. I don't think there is anything I can fault in
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this one. Show Less
LibraryThing member gmathis
This is my favorite of the series. Not only do we finally piece together some of the details of Mary Russell's pre-Holmes days, there's a nicely done departure in narration that presents part of the story from Holmes' viewpoint. We also get to meet a young and appealing Dashiell Hammett...a nice
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characterization of the (at the time of the novel) struggling writer. Show Less
LibraryThing member jlapac
Another in the Mary Russel/ Sherlock Holmes mystery series.
I wasn’t that enamored with the last one, but this one was
fantastic. First, it is set in San Francisco and I always
enjoy reading about The City in books. Second, the book
delves into Mary Russell’s past and resolves some issues
that make
books, Holmes comes across as not really caring about
his wife and this book starts out that way as well, but the
reader finds, as the book continues, how he really feels
about her. The earthquake and fire are mentioned, as are
various figures in San Francisco history, which all come
together to make a good story. This is definitely a book I
would read again.
I wasn’t that enamored with the last one, but this one was
fantastic. First, it is set in San Francisco and I always
enjoy reading about The City in books. Second, the book
delves into Mary Russell’s past and resolves some issues
that make
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her character less prickly. In most of thesebooks, Holmes comes across as not really caring about
his wife and this book starts out that way as well, but the
reader finds, as the book continues, how he really feels
about her. The earthquake and fire are mentioned, as are
various figures in San Francisco history, which all come
together to make a good story. This is definitely a book I
would read again.
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LibraryThing member Meredith47
I believe this is book 8 in the Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes series which Laurie R. King writes so beautifully. This is one of the first in which we start to see the world through eyes other than Russell, in this case, Holmes himself. (As a Holmes fan since the age of 12, do you think I was excited
Russell has been knocked off her pins, more than a bit, due to a series of revelations about her past. And in this book most of it is clarified.
I put in my usual warning: don't read this if you have to get to sleep in 20 minutes!
If you don't know the series, start with the first: The Beekeeper's Apprentice. If you don't believe someone could write the "next Holmes stories" and do it well (neither did I), you could start with The Moor. I think you will be thrilled.
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about this? I guess so!) And Laurie King does not disappoint. Russell has been knocked off her pins, more than a bit, due to a series of revelations about her past. And in this book most of it is clarified.
I put in my usual warning: don't read this if you have to get to sleep in 20 minutes!
If you don't know the series, start with the first: The Beekeeper's Apprentice. If you don't believe someone could write the "next Holmes stories" and do it well (neither did I), you could start with The Moor. I think you will be thrilled.
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LibraryThing member monado
Beekeeper's Apprentice 8: The sorrow of Mary's life is that her parents and brother died, and she was injured, in a car crash in California when whe was fourteen years old. Eighteen years later, she returns, with her husband Sherlock Holmes, to put her father's affairs in order. But the memories
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and nightmares return to haunt her; and when the two try to unravel her past, they find a murderous mystery with its roots in the San Francisco earthquake of 1906. Show Less
LibraryThing member cmbohn
I really enjoyed this one, although I felt that Mary Russell took WAY too long to figure out what was perfectly obvious to the reader. Still, a good mystery.
LibraryThing member parelle
Mary Russell heads to San Fransisco - where she last left after the death of her entire family not long before we meet her. She's come to perhaps break her ties, but instead discovers an old mystery lying in wait for her - and what she cannot remember. A cameo, shall we say, by another narrator
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changes the usual first-person structure usual to the Russell books, but serves pretty well. Learning more of Russell's background is well worth the read. Show Less
LibraryThing member krsball
I'm a big fan of this series (Mary Russell) and this was one of the best!
LibraryThing member tjsjohanna
This was the most interesting in terms of character development - set in San Francisco. Nice change up of type of story.
LibraryThing member siubhank
Back in her hometown of San Francisco, will Russell come to terms with the loss of her family and the gaps in her memory? Will returning to her families home, left vacant all these years help or hurt? Sherlock is slightly at sea, as dependable Russell becomes Mary the vulnerable child and Mary the
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willful 'flapper'. He manages to separate the two and solve the old mysteries that bedevil his wife. Show Less
LibraryThing member dperrings
I found this book to border on pathetic.
First the idea that Sherlock Holmes would be married is proposterous. Having him play second fiddle to a second rate detective is also absurd.
If an author is going to put Holmes into a book, they need to be up to the task.
While i finished the book by the
David Perrings
First the idea that Sherlock Holmes would be married is proposterous. Having him play second fiddle to a second rate detective is also absurd.
If an author is going to put Holmes into a book, they need to be up to the task.
While i finished the book by the
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time i got to the end i really had lost all interest.David Perrings
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LibraryThing member Kathy89
Mary Russell and her husband, Sherlock Holmes, sail to San Francisco to settle her parents' estate. While there they undercover the reason for Mary's nightmares which relate to the great earthquake and fire to solve the murders of several close friends and associates of her parents.
Was a little
Was a little
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repetitious in that the story was told from both Mary and Holmes point of view. Show Less
LibraryThing member hemlokgang
Another really engaging mystery by Laurie R. King. I like both of her series. This one, with Mary Russell and her husband, Sherlock Holmes, is my favorite! If you like intellectual mysteries, this is for you!
LibraryThing member PamelaBarrett
In book one, The Beekeepers Apprentice, we meet teenage Mary Russell who is living in England under the care of her aunt. We know little about her family, other than she was orphaned in America after being in an automobile accident. Her English mother, American father, and little brother all
Mary’s neighbor in England is the reclusive semi-retired Sherlock Holmes. The two strike up an unlikely friendship and partnership. With his tutelage and her quick mind, she is soon solving crimes along with him. Locked Rooms brings them to San Francisco where Mary, now an adult, is finally ready to deal with her family home and other assets in America. The closer they get to America the more she is plagued by disturbing dreams and memories of her former life.
Laurie King’s genius is well placed detail, historical correctness and believable characters that keep me coming back for more. Fortunately, this series has plenty of mysteries to solve. There are several books in-between these 2, but after reading an excerpt of Locked Rooms I couldn’t wait to read it. I’m so glad I skipped ahead, even if I missed the references to past stories, still this one can stand alone as a great read. It’s on my favorites list because it is as good as the first book.
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perished in the crash.Mary’s neighbor in England is the reclusive semi-retired Sherlock Holmes. The two strike up an unlikely friendship and partnership. With his tutelage and her quick mind, she is soon solving crimes along with him. Locked Rooms brings them to San Francisco where Mary, now an adult, is finally ready to deal with her family home and other assets in America. The closer they get to America the more she is plagued by disturbing dreams and memories of her former life.
Laurie King’s genius is well placed detail, historical correctness and believable characters that keep me coming back for more. Fortunately, this series has plenty of mysteries to solve. There are several books in-between these 2, but after reading an excerpt of Locked Rooms I couldn’t wait to read it. I’m so glad I skipped ahead, even if I missed the references to past stories, still this one can stand alone as a great read. It’s on my favorites list because it is as good as the first book.
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LibraryThing member seasidereader
Locked Rooms was especially meaningful to read as we approach the centennial of the great San Francisco earthquake, and the addition of Dashiell Hammett brought several smiles. You don't need to be a Sherlock Holmes fan to savor this series. Start with The Beekeeper's Apprentice.
Recorded
Recorded
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Books'(unabridged audio) narrator Jenny Sterlin has become Mary Russell to me; she is excellent. Show Less
LibraryThing member ImBookingIt
I loved to revisit these two characters. The added viewpoint was an interesting twist. Russell's mental fight with her past rang true, even while leading to out of character behaviour for her.
LibraryThing member Joycepa
Eighth in the Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes series.
Sailing from Bombay to San Francisco in order to take care of pressing business concerning the estate she inherited from her American father, Russell begins to have a series of three dreams so disturbing that she can not sleep. Holmes convinces her
In San Francisco, Russell discovers a puzzling codicil to her father’s will. She also finds out that her psychiatrist, who helped her through the worst months after the car accident 1914 that killed her father, mother and younger brother--was murdered shortly after Russell left for England to live with her aunt and to have her fateful meeting with Holmes. Holmes is convinced that there is something mysterious and dangerous going on, but Russell scoffs, claiming that Holmes is bored and needs something to occupy his time.
This is a most unusual installment in the series, focusing as it does on Russell’s past to which other books have alluded but which has always remained unclear. It takes place in 1925 San Francisco, and explores the events of the tragic earthquake and the devastating fire of 1906. In between, it looks at the lives of Chinese immigrants to the city during that period of time through the eyes of a family whose husband worked for the Russells and who had a critical, mysterious connection with the aftermath of the fire on the Russell family. The denouement--when Russell realizes the meaning of the locked rooms of her dreams--is exciting, a typical Laurie King action-packed resolution of the plot line.
Mary Russell fans will eat this book up. Highly recommended.
Sailing from Bombay to San Francisco in order to take care of pressing business concerning the estate she inherited from her American father, Russell begins to have a series of three dreams so disturbing that she can not sleep. Holmes convinces her
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that one of the dreams, in which flying objects seem to be aimed at her, comes from her experience of the San Francisco earthquake and devastating fire of 1906; her parents had a home in the city. Russell insists that she was not in San Francisco during the earthquake, but at her grandparents place in Boston. Yet that dream no longer recurs after she discusses it with Holmes. The other two--one of a faceless man and the main one, of Russell showing her house to a group of people but one which has a locked door to which she has the key in her pocket--continue.In San Francisco, Russell discovers a puzzling codicil to her father’s will. She also finds out that her psychiatrist, who helped her through the worst months after the car accident 1914 that killed her father, mother and younger brother--was murdered shortly after Russell left for England to live with her aunt and to have her fateful meeting with Holmes. Holmes is convinced that there is something mysterious and dangerous going on, but Russell scoffs, claiming that Holmes is bored and needs something to occupy his time.
This is a most unusual installment in the series, focusing as it does on Russell’s past to which other books have alluded but which has always remained unclear. It takes place in 1925 San Francisco, and explores the events of the tragic earthquake and the devastating fire of 1906. In between, it looks at the lives of Chinese immigrants to the city during that period of time through the eyes of a family whose husband worked for the Russells and who had a critical, mysterious connection with the aftermath of the fire on the Russell family. The denouement--when Russell realizes the meaning of the locked rooms of her dreams--is exciting, a typical Laurie King action-packed resolution of the plot line.
Mary Russell fans will eat this book up. Highly recommended.
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LibraryThing member GJbean
nice holmes and female detective details. typically british superior. stupid error her father makes during san francisco fire by trusting a friend leads to murder.
LibraryThing member nocto
I think this takes me back up to date in the Mary Russell series. I'll be waiting for a new book. (Though I'm also very pleased to find that King's latest gives her other sleuth, modern day Kate Martinelli, an overdue outing.)
I didn't find this as all consuming as the last couple of books, but
I didn't find this as all consuming as the last couple of books, but
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enjoyed the foray to 1920s San Francisco. Sherlock Holmes meeting up with Dasheill Hammett was a lovely touch and the sort of thing that's made this series worth reading. King has breathed new life into Holmes for me. Show Less
LibraryThing member bearette24
This is one of the better entries in the Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes series. Russell and Holmes make their way to San Francisco, after a trip to India, to unearth secrets about Russell's past and find out why she is having mysterious dreams about "locked rooms". The rooms in question turn out not
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to be literal, but rather symbols of repressed memories. The narrative takes interesting detours into San Francisco history and feng shui. Show Less
LibraryThing member benjclark
One of the most enjoyable of the Mary Russell series. Good supporting cast, very Sherlockian in the important ways. A keeper.
LibraryThing member crystalcarroll
The thing about Laurie King’s series is that she really makes it work. She imbues (great word imbue) each book with an incredible sense of time and period. As to the setting, well, I live here; I’m bound to enjoy a mystery set along familiar streets and ways.
This book was a bit of a departure
It’s always particularly enjoyable when a new book enables you to go back to older books in the series and see events in a new way. As soon as I finished Locked Room, I went back to Beekeeper’s Apprentice with a new eye for old well loved details.
This book was a bit of a departure
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in that King split the narrative point of view between Mary Russell first person and Holmes third person. This allowed the book to play with perspective and Mary as an unreliable narrator in way that wasn’t really possible in previous books. With the idea of locked rooms both real and in our heads. Discussing ideas that we will not allow ourselves to face.It’s always particularly enjoyable when a new book enables you to go back to older books in the series and see events in a new way. As soon as I finished Locked Room, I went back to Beekeeper’s Apprentice with a new eye for old well loved details.
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Language
Original publication date
2005
ISBN
0553583417 / 9780553583410
Local notes
Mary Russell, 8
DDC/MDS
| Fic Mystery King |