The Beekeeper's Apprentice by Laurie R. King

In 1915, Sherlock Holmes is retired and quietly engaged in the study of honeybees when a young woman literally stumbles into him on the Sussex Downs. Fifteen years old, gawky, egotistical, and recently orphaned, the young Mary Russell displays an intellect to impress even Sherlock Holmes--and match him wit for wit. Under his reluctant tutelage, this very modern twentieth-century woman proves a deft protégée and a fitting partner for the Victorian detective. But even in their first case together, the pair face a truly cunning adversary who will stop at nothing to put an end to their partnership.

Yeah. So, I feel bad not liking this, because I borrowed it from a friend who really likes it, but I spent most of my time wanting to slowly walk away.

People are mad about the character assassination of Dr. John Watson – and don't get me wrong, me too – but the fatal flaw is the character assassination of Sherlock Holmes. Perhaps all the more pernicious because King actually does get Holmes' voice pretty dead-on. But his actions... The very idea that it's OK for any 50-something year old man to carry on flirtatious conversations with a 15 year old is already pretty obnoxious; the idea that a 19 year old referring to her 58 year old “surrogate father” as her “near-lover” in literally the same sentence is egregious. But at the idea of this middle-aged Romeo being Sherlock Holmes causes words to fail me. Yes, I realize that the author herself married a man 30 years her senior when she was in her early 20's and therefore might mistake grooming for romance, but there's no excuse for it to have been published that way.

One star for a semi-decent mystery when I ignored that drivel, but the pacing was poor and there were multiple details lacking (especially the Hebrew: Mary “translates” Armageddon as “Ar Megido” as...I don't know, evidence of her Hebraic superiority. It's “Har Megido.” “Har” means mountain.) But it's not worth nitpicking something that has a glaring flaw. Wikipedia tells me Mary grows up and marries Holmes: I'm out.

The Beekeeper's Apprentice (and its sequels) were recommended to me after I started reading [b:The Complete Sherlock Holmes, Volume I 10147 The Complete Sherlock Holmes, Volume I (Barnes & Noble Classics Series) Arthur Conan Doyle http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1166126820s/10147.jpg 6658462]. I am most definitely grateful for that recommendation as it pointed me in the direction of a very charming and entertaining book. Mary Russell is a wonderful character and narrator, and I look forward to reading more in this series.

My God, it's awful.

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(The heroine is rude, obnoxious, insufferable, self-good marysue and I hate her.
Also, she's 15 and he's 50±3 when they first meet, and within 10 years they are married.)

3.5* rounded up to 4 because I have a little literary crush on Russell. She's the perfect partner for King's version of Holmes.

There's exotic travels, masterful disguises and real threats to life. Familiar characters were rounded out nicely and new ones fitted in well. However, I wasn't surprised by the villain and found the ending slightly humdrum after the previous fun and games.

I'm quite surprised that so many of these have been written. I'll definitely read at least another one or two to see if King can keep this up.