A Beautiful and Terrible Murder (Irene Adler, 1)
The infamous Irene Adler lives a double life. As Isaac Holland, she dresses as a man and attends classes at All Souls College at Oxford University. This allows her to attend classes where women are not welcome. As a young woman growing up in Victorian England, she challenges herself to go up against the best. While in the All Souls cohort, she discovers the body of the pompous Bertram Elmstone, the son of an earl. When more murders happen with some regularity, Irene must work with her mysterious classmate, Sherlock Holmes, to solve the crimes. Will her cover be blown now that murders are occurring? What will happen between Irene and Sherlock?
Claire M. Andrews tells the story from Irene Adler’s perspective, in first person. This is a refreshing and compelling take on an oft-maligned character in the original Sherlock Holmes canon. There are some interesting twists in this retelling. Irene is the illegitimate daughter of Dean Moriarty, and the half-sister of Professor James Moriarty, the classic villain in the original canon. Moreover, in this story, we see a romance begin to form between Irene and Sherlock, something that I had a hard time believing. While I did not care for that thread in the plot, I thoroughly enjoyed how well Andrews depicted both characters. It was fun to see two great minds working together for a greater goal, the solving of a mystery. Andrews writes in a beautiful, engaging, and fun style that works perfectly for a young adult novel.
