Mrs. Hudson and the Malabar Rose
In this second in the series, Sherlock Holmes’s housekeeper, Mrs. Hudson, finds herself once again helping that most logical of minds solve another mystery. Londoners are anticipating an amazing day that will see both the unveiling of the Malabar Rose, a rare ruby, and the first appearance in Britain of that magician and illusionist extraordinaire, the Great Salmanazar. When a representative of the Home Secretary appears at Baker Street to ask for Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson’s help in guarding the stone, Mrs. Hudson and her helper, Flotsam, find themselves drawn into the effort as well.
Inspired by his father wondering “what life must have been like for Sherlock Holmes’s housekeeper,” Davies gives readers a different vantage point from which to examine the much-visited Holmes and Watson. Using such a clever twist works well, as it feels like the reader gets two books in one – the first being a proper Holmesian mystery, the second being Mrs. Hudson and Flotsam ferreting out a seemingly unconnected missing husband. Fans of witty, well-written mysteries should devour this one!
