Enola Holmes et la barouche noire

I actually never read the previous books in this series but had fun watching the movie. So when I got the email if I was interested in this book, I immediately took the chance. And this turned out to be fun.

If you checkout my earliest posts on this blog a few years ago, you'll know that I'm a huge Sherlock fan. So even if this is the story of his sister, just having him tangentially in the story is enough of a draw for me. Firstly, I have to appreciate the author for giving a good recap of everything that's happened before, I so wish all authors would do that for their sequels. And this was such a quick read - I finished it in just a couple of hours and was quite entertained throughout, though I have to say that I found some of the vocabulary tough to follow. But that's probably because I don't read a lot of historical fiction.

The mystery was interesting but a tad bit predictable - it wasn't at all hard to guess what had happened to the missing young woman. But I think it was the characters who made up for any shortcomings in the plot. Enola is a fun, eccentric and impulsive young girl who is way too different and independent for her times. But she didn't lack courage or creative ideas on how to solve the questions troubling her. I thought she got great company in Tish who was quite ready to go along with these crazy ideas, if only to save her sister. It was nice to see some female bonding. Sherlock seemed like a reluctant participant in his sister's activities, but he can never let a mystery go unsolved and I loved how supportive he was of the girl's plans.

To conclude, I'm glad I got to read this book. It probably fills a hole in my heart left by all the Sherlock books I've read many many times. However, it wasn't too special and I think my enjoyment was very much related to the nostalgia factor. But I probably will continue the series because why not.

This is the seventh in Nancy Springer's Enola Holmes series, but the first that I've read. I watched and enjoyed the Netflix show before I even knew there were Enola Holmes books, so I was delighted at the chance to take part in the blog tour for this one. This book reads just fine as a stand-alone – there's enough of an intro at the beginning to give you a sense of the backstory, and I didn't feel like I'd missed out on anything vital to a proper understanding of this story.

Enola is a headstrong, independent delight of a protagonist, and often a trial to her older brother Sherlock (in no small part because she seems to often be one step ahead of him!). She shares his investigative mindset, and when Miss Letitia Glover comes to ask for Sherlock's assistance in finding out what has happened to her twin sister Felicity, it is Enola who springs to her aid.

Felicity was married to the Earl of Dunhench. Letitia has been informed, apparently after the fact, that her sister has died unexpectedly and that her body has already been cremated. As cremation wasn't the usual practice in Victorian times, Letitia feels that something doesn't ring true. She also feels certain that she would know if her twin were dead. When Enola learns that the Earl's previous wife also allegedly died suddenly and was also cremated, nothing will do but that she go to the Earl's estate, undercover, to try to find out what really happened and what the arrival of a mysterious black barouche had to do with Felicity's disappearance.

As she unravels the clues, Enola proves herself quite capable at a number of things – quick thinking, disguise, surviving what appear to be most dire circumstances. She doesn't let the constraints that society places on women keep her from doing what she feels needs to be done. When Enola asks for her assistance in unveiling the truth of what happened to Felicity, Letitia also shows herself willing to move beyond societal expectations in order to make things right. They were both wonderfully written.

The mystery wasn't incredibly complicated, but that doesn't make it any less of an engaging read. The historical details, the setting, the characters both good and bad, the dialogue – all combine to form a literary treat.

Now I've got to go read the rest of the series.

Disclaimer: I received an advance reader copy of this book from Netgalley and St. Martin's Press – Wednesday Books. All opinions here are mine, and I don't say nice things about books that I don't actually like.

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