Sherlock
Holmes comes to the aid of a mysterious French woman when
her distraught husband begs him to track her down. Mr Hardy
is a successful vintner and is at a loss as to why his wife
Marguerite has left him and is staying in Paris. Her flight
came after she received a letter, and thus begins a case which
might involve the Devil himself…
It might be better for your complete enjoyment to read this
series in order, as this entry contains spoilers for an earlier
book. Fortunately the author mentions this at the beginning,
and as I hadn’t read the book in question I found myself
wishing I had done on some occasions. It is a standalone story
albeit one with ties to other books and can be read in isolation,
but this is not the best idea. A story concerning devil worship
in fine de siecle Paris, an art thief, ties to a old murder
and a spooky old church sounds exciting, but this tale is
somewhat lacking in thrills. A bit more action and a bit less
talk and description would improve the book a lot, although
there are many good descriptive passages which bring the setting
to life. Having Dr Henry Vernier and his wife Michelle along
make the stories in this series somewhat different to those
with Watson, and is rather a neat idea. So too are the author’s
nods to various novels such as The Moonstone and Phantom of
the Opera. In this book the novel is a bit more obscure, Là-bas
by Huysmans which is a good idea as it covers less familiar
ground in its descriptions of Parisian satanic practices.
This is an imaginative and atmospheric tale of dark and decadent
doings that will appeal to fans of Sherlock Holmes keen for
something a bit different.
Reviews of other titles in this series
Moonstone
Curse #5
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