Lane,
Andrew. Black
Ice. (series:
The Sherlock Holmes Legend Begins) Macmillan/Farrar Strauss
2011
278p
$17.99 ISBN 978-0-374-38769-3 ms/hs Mystery/Detective VG-BNS
In 1868, teenaged Sherlock Holmes faces
danger in a train station for the dead, a museum of curiosities, and downtown
Moscow as he helps his brother, Mycroft, who has been framed for murder. Third in the series (Sherlock Holmes: The Legend
Begins), Black Ice follows the adventures of teenaged Sherlock
Holmes as he tracks clues to solve a locked-room murder/mystery with diplomatic
impact as far away from London as Moscow and which frames his brother,
Mycroft. With the help of his tutor,
Amyus Crowe, Sherlock is able to clear Mycroft’s name, cleverly determining
that Mycroft was drugged and the murder charge is a set-up. But Mycroft buys into a conspiracy theory
involving a vast American land purchase and takes Sherlock with him to Moscow
to sort out matters.
Mystery lovers will enjoy fourteen-year-old Sherlock’s brilliant insights and evolving philosophy as circumstances mold him into the man he will become in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s tales. Those who have read the previous installments in this series may miss characters featured in the other volumes (Matty, Virginia, Crowe). Instead, Lane focuses on Sherlock’s relationship with Mycroft and introduces a new villain mastermind who is a worthy opponent for Sherlock’s developing skills. (There is no mention of Moriarty.)
Lane weaves elements of Victorian history and science into the story. Teen readers will be fascinated by descriptions of the Necropolis Railway, which carried dead bodies from London to the country. The museum in which Sherlock is attacked by a bird of prey is based on the author’s memories of the Passmore Edwards Museum in East London. Artistic license must be granted the descriptions of mid-19th-century Moscow, as there is little in the way of documentation, according to Lane. Still, several of the powerful personages Mycroft and Sherlock interact with in that setting are true historical figures, and contribute to an intriguing glimpse of a mysterious country and time period.
Even readers who are not fond of mysteries will be swept along by the fast-paced plot. This is an exciting and entertaining story.
Mystery lovers will enjoy fourteen-year-old Sherlock’s brilliant insights and evolving philosophy as circumstances mold him into the man he will become in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s tales. Those who have read the previous installments in this series may miss characters featured in the other volumes (Matty, Virginia, Crowe). Instead, Lane focuses on Sherlock’s relationship with Mycroft and introduces a new villain mastermind who is a worthy opponent for Sherlock’s developing skills. (There is no mention of Moriarty.)
Lane weaves elements of Victorian history and science into the story. Teen readers will be fascinated by descriptions of the Necropolis Railway, which carried dead bodies from London to the country. The museum in which Sherlock is attacked by a bird of prey is based on the author’s memories of the Passmore Edwards Museum in East London. Artistic license must be granted the descriptions of mid-19th-century Moscow, as there is little in the way of documentation, according to Lane. Still, several of the powerful personages Mycroft and Sherlock interact with in that setting are true historical figures, and contribute to an intriguing glimpse of a mysterious country and time period.
Even readers who are not fond of mysteries will be swept along by the fast-paced plot. This is an exciting and entertaining story.
Sherlock Holmes, Murder-Fiction, Russia-Fiction --Hilary Welliver
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