The Twentieth-Anniversary Edition of the First Novel of the Acclaimed Mary Russell Series by Edgar Award–Winning Author Laurie R. King. An Agatha Award Best Novel Nominee • Named One of the Century’s Best 100 Mysteries by the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association In 1915, Sherlock Holmes is retired and quietly engaged in the study of honeybees in Sussex when a young woman literally stumbles … in Sussex when a young woman literally stumbles onto 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. Under his reluctant tutelage, this very modern, twentieth-century woman proves a deft protégée and a fitting partner for the Victorian detective. They are soon called to Wales to help Scotland Yard find the kidnapped daughter of an American senator, a case of international significance with clues that dip deep into Holmes’s past. Full of brilliant deduction, disguises, and danger, The Beekeeper’s Apprentice, the first book of the Mary Russell–Sherlock Holmes mysteries, is “remarkably beguiling” (The Boston Globe).
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I started The Beekeeper’s Apprentice on audio, back when audiobooks still came on cassettes. The only cassette player I had at the time was in my car and I didn’t drive enough to “read” as much of the story as I liked. So halfway through I ditched the audio and got a physical copy, so that I could have more of it faster.
The series hold a special place in my heart because these books are what first inspired the thought in my head that perhaps someday I could write my own Sherlock Holmes adaptation.
This was an amazing book. As you read this, Russell’s and Holmes’s experiences make you think logically. All the time. You see Russell change from before the time she meets Holmes and then after. Especially concerning the Dream. I loved this book!
I started this series not that long ago – I’m in the middle of it, but so far the book is glorious and Mary Russell (a mini-me Holmes in the best possible way) is a marvelous addition to the genre. It’s written in segments that can almost be read as short stories (like most of the original canon) but they are all pieced together seamlessly into the novel. It doesn’t feel like short stories (which is good, I don’t often like stories because they like the character development I think is the hallmark of a truly great book), but it does allow you to set it aside and read it over time without worrying about losing most of what has happened before and needing to reread chapters and chapters before you can regain the thread…
Mary Russell is marvelous. It’s a very refreshing change to see a prominent, non-support-role and non-villainous woman in the series. Plus she’s just a great character – sassy and complicated and brilliant and multi-talented… She’s the perfect compatriot for Sherlock. It’s also nice to see Mrs. Hudson come into her own a bit more in these books. The Sherlock in these books is both what you expect and not quite so; it’s delightful because it feels like revisiting an old friend but not like reliving the old days. The game is all new and it is definitely afoot!
For my full commentary visit http://blog.jill-elizabeth.com/2016/08/23/not-quite-a-review-since-im-still-reading-it-the-beekeepers-apprentice-by-laurie-r-king/
Laurie King’s Mary Russell, young and intrepid wife to Sherlock Holmes, is one of my favorite heroines. I didn’t begin the series at this book and haven’t read it in any order, but this initial story of her coming of age and meeting her mentor and future husband is truly unique, beautifully written and enjoyable.
I just hated it when I finished the Sherlock Holmes stories years ago. I love having them back again, new ones, and from a slightly different point of view- from his wife, who is, of course, as much an original as Holmes himself
I’m very late in coming to this series (I didn’t even know it was a series, I’d only heard of the first book, long ago) but I’m glad I finally read it (audio). The relationship between Holmes and Mary is skillfully built over the course of their first few years of acquaintance, making me care very much how it it progresses. I want to read more!
This is one of my all-time favorite series. I never get tired of reading Mary Russell’s adventures.
To see the world of Sherlock Holmes through the eyes of a different companion is thrilling. Move over Dr. Watson, Ms. Mary Russell is coming through. A whole different spin on Conan Doyle’s detective will keep you coming back for more.
Best continuation of the Sherlock Holmes stories!
A friend of mine tried to get me to read this book for years. I could not get past the fact that it was very presumptive to write a book about Sherlock Holmes. I was hooked right from the first. I have read every book Laurie King has written and am waiting for more. I have thoroughly enjoyed this entire series of books as well as some of her other mysteries. There is more to Laurie King’s writing than just telling a story. There is much to think about after you have read them.
The first in a great pastiche series honoring the work of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The series covers the exploits of Sherlock Holmes after he retires from detecting and becomes a bee keeper. Told from the point of view of his wife! Although he does continue to take cases…
I wouldn’t have believed it had I not read it. A woman strong and intelligent enough, with her own sharp edges, but without Holmes’ general disgust and impatience with the mental slowness of the majority of the human race. Solid, very well written, believable stories for the time period. To make them even more pleasurable, she involves on going characters with whom I was familiar, e.g., Dr. Watson, Mrs. Hudson, and Mycroft Holmes. Laurie King’s ability with dialogue and just enough description brings them to the reader so much more vividly and sympathetically without turning them into “goody two shoes” stereotypes.
The Beekeeper’s Apprentice brings Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes together when she is fifteen and he has retired and is living in the Sussex Downs, keeping bees, as he had intended. He is sitting in a field, painting dots of one color or another on the abdomens of several bees when she trips over him. Dressed as a boy, her hair tucked under a cap, she was walking and reading at the same time and didn’t see him hunkered down in the grass. After an exchange of insults, Mary makes a comment that gives him to understand that she not only knows why he is dotting bees with different colors, but she also has the answer to the question his activity shows he is asking! He is, of course, astonished by her deductive abilities and they settle into a civil conversation with each other. She soon becomes his protege, and the novel builds from there as he teaches and she learns. This book covers the largest time period, about three or four years, from Mary at age fifteen to her acceptance at Oxford.
I “inhaled” this first novel of Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes and then turned right around and read it again. Whether or not you are a Holmes fan, I guarantee you a thoroughly enjoyable read.
This series is one of my absolute top favorites.
Mary Russell, a fifteen-year-old orphan literally stumbles across Sherlock Holmes as he watches his bees near his Sussex farm. The opening chapter of The Beekeeper’s Apprentice is one of the best pieces of writing you will ever read. The characters are erudite, rational, observant, incisive. The two, although separated by almost fifty years, are kindred souls who have brilliant minds. An unlikely friendship develops as Sherlock Holmes begins to train Mary Russell so that she will become as astute a detective as she. In this first book of the series, four years pass. Mary divides her time between Oxford, Holmes’ cottage, and the farm where she resides -unhappily- with her nefarious aunt. Laurie King is a masterful plotter, with incredible attention to detail. This novel is stunning.
I really enjoyed reading this book.
Wonderful continuation of the Sherlock Holmes stories with the great detective, now retired, mentoring a young, bright girl on deductive reasoning and problem solving.
This is a great series! I love the characters and how their relationship develops over time. Laurie King is one of my favorite authors. You can’t go wrong with any book she has written. Highly recommended.
Love this scenario and the stories in this sequence. Very entertaining.
If you don’t mind writers reimagining Sherlock Holmes, this is an entertaining book. This author does a pretty good job of staying true to Conan Doyle while furthering her aim of having Holmes team up with a young girl, which he probably would never do. She does make the mistake of underestimating Watson, as so many have done before.
It’s been awhile since I read it but I liked it so much I have read all her books about Mary Russell -Sherlock Holmes. It’s an exciting inventive take on the well-loved detective, and presents another side of him.