NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Laurie R. King’s Mary Russell–Sherlock Holmes series weaves rich historical detail and provocative themes with intriguing characters and enthralling suspense. Russell and Holmes have become one of modern literature’s most beloved teams. But does this adventure end it all? Mary Russell is used to dark secrets—her own, and those of her famous partner and husband, … partner and husband, Sherlock Holmes. Trust is a thing slowly given, but over the course of a decade together, the two have forged an indissoluble bond.
And what of the other person to whom Mary Russell has opened her heart: the couple’s longtime housekeeper, Mrs. Hudson? Russell’s faith and affection are suddenly shattered when a man arrives on the doorstep claiming to be Mrs. Hudson’s son.
What Samuel Hudson tells Russell cannot possibly be true, yet she believes him—as surely as she believes the threat of the gun in his hand. In a devastating instant, everything changes. And when the scene is discovered—a pool of blood on the floor, the smell of gunpowder in the air—the most shocking revelation of all is that the grim clues point directly to Clara Hudson.
Or rather to Clarissa, the woman she was before Baker Street.
The key to Russell’s sacrifice lies in Mrs. Hudson’s past. To uncover the truth, a frantic Sherlock Holmes must put aside his anguish and push deep into his housekeeper’s secrets—to a time before her disguise was assumed, before her crimes were buried away.
There is death here, and murder, and trust betrayed.
And nothing will ever be the same.
Praise for The Murder of Mary Russell
“Leaping narrative energy has always been a hallmark of this series, and it reaches something of a peak in this latest volume. . . . The lean momentum of the story never falters. . . . It’s a stunning prolonged feat of storytelling, and it succeeds in making The Murder of Mary Russell the best installment so far in an excellent series.”—The Christian Science Monitor
“[A] sharp, inventive and rewarding series.”—The Seattle Times
“Delightful . . . a triumph of plotting . . . Fans, always hungry to know more personal details about King’s iteration of Sherlock Holmes and his world, will get a few more delicious tidbits this time around.”—Booklist (starred review)
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Lauri King is the best of any writer who has tried to continue the Sherlock Holmes stories. In my opinion, she outdid herself in this one. Weaving her new story into one of Conan Doyle’s was a masterstroke. Her back story and development of a couple of Holmes characters was brilliant.
Interesting to hear the back story on Mrs. Hudson.
Great further development of these loved characters.
Love this book, hard for me to put it down.
Love her characters! This was real page turner. Didn’t sleep until I finished the book.
Very entertaining with unique characters.
If you like Sherlock you need to read this.
Too slow. Hard to get through.
Mary and Sherlock make a great team, Really enjoy the vocabulary, plot, solving the crimes. Fun.
She weaves a great story line. Always interesting.
This presents an interesting and surprising back story for Mrs. Hudson.
I love Laurie King