Editorial Content for The Lantern's Dance: A Novel of Suspense Featuring Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes
Contributors
Reviewer (text)
Whether you are new to Laurie R. King's Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes mysteries or are a regular, you will be in for a treat with her latest effort. Over the course of this series, King has created her own Holmes universe building on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s original stories. THE LANTERN’S DANCE is special in that it is full of Holmes’ history, and we learn much more about this iconic sleuth by the end of the book.
Mary Russell is on crutches from a badly sprained ankle during a prior adventure. She and Holmes are off to France to visit his son, world-renowned artist Damian Adler. Newcomers to this series surely will be asking themselves, Holmes has a son? Stay tuned for more on that!
"THE LANTERN’S DANCE is special in that it is full of Holmes’ history, and we learn much more about this iconic sleuth by the end of the book."
Russell and Holmes are met by a man wielding a shotgun who accompanies them to the house. But Damian and his family are not there. Apparently, they were forced to flee unexpectedly due to a personal threat. Thus we have our mystery, and Holmes goes off in search of Damian. Meanwhile, Russell and her bad foot remain at Damian's place. While exploring the empty house, she comes across crates of memorabilia in Damian's studio marked for Holmes' great-uncle, artist Horace Vernet. Much of this stuff is random, but Russell picks up a journal that will become quite eye-opening as she dives into it.
Let's take a step back for a moment. Fans of Holmes most certainly will remember his old paramour and sometime adversary, Irene Adler, who he met in the story "A Scandal in Bohemia." It turns out she carried a child belonging to Holmes and kept that fact hidden for many years. After her passing, Holmes connected with Damian, with whom he has a tenuous relationship at best. Still, family is family, and Holmes is worried about the safety of his son and grandchild.
The journal that Russell is poring over was written many decades ago by a young woman named Lakshmi, who is half-Indian. She was being raised by a new family in a small village in India, but her story is full of mystery and secrets that, upon solving, will begin to reveal information about her and her connection to the Holmes legacy. One item in particular that is being referenced constantly is a spinning lantern. When a candle is placed inside it and it’s spun around, various silhouettes are shown that each add a piece to Lakshmi's personal history and story.
Meanwhile, Holmes locates Damian safely and (after much prodding) learns of the facts behind the threat that drove him away. I will not reveal any details here as they most assuredly will connect to the revelations that Russell is simultaneously discovering in Lakshmi's journal. When Lakshmi's fate is revealed to Russell, she realizes exactly where this story fits into the Holmes legacy. And it's a whopper!
Though not your traditional Russell/Holmes mystery, THE LANTERN'S DANCE becomes a can’t-miss read for any Sherlock Holmes fan.
Teaser
Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes look forward to spending time with Holmes’ son, the famous artist Damian Adler, and his family. But when they arrive at Damian’s house, they learn that the Adlers have fled from a mysterious threat. Holmes rushes after Damian, while Russell stays behind to search the empty house. In Damian’s studio, she discovers four crates packed with memorabilia related to Holmes’ grand-uncle, the artist Horace Vernet. There’s also an old journal written in a nearly impenetrable code. She slowly realizes that each entry is built around an image --- the first of which is a child, bundled into a carriage by an abductor, watching her mother recede from view. Who is the young Indian woman who created this elaborate puzzle? What does she have to do with Damian, or the Vernets --- or the threat hovering over the house?
Promo
Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes look forward to spending time with Holmes’ son, the famous artist Damian Adler, and his family. But when they arrive at Damian’s house, they learn that the Adlers have fled from a mysterious threat. Holmes rushes after Damian, while Russell stays behind to search the empty house. In Damian’s studio, she discovers four crates packed with memorabilia related to Holmes’ grand-uncle, the artist Horace Vernet. There’s also an old journal written in a nearly impenetrable code. She slowly realizes that each entry is built around an image --- the first of which is a child, bundled into a carriage by an abductor, watching her mother recede from view. Who is the young Indian woman who created this elaborate puzzle? What does she have to do with Damian, or the Vernets --- or the threat hovering over the house?
About the Book
Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes, hoping for a respite in the French countryside, are instead caught up in a case that turns both bewildering and intensely personal.
After their recent adventures in Transylvania, Russell and Holmes look forward to spending time with Holmes’ son, the famous artist Damian Adler, and his family. But when they arrive at Damian’s house, they discover that the Adlers have fled from a mysterious threat.
Holmes rushes after Damian while Russell, slowed down by a recent injury, stays behind to search the empty house. In Damian’s studio, she discovers four crates packed with memorabilia related to Holmes’ granduncle, the artist Horace Vernet. It’s an odd mix of treasures and clutter, including a tarnished silver lamp with a rotating shade: an antique yet sophisticated form of zoetrope, fitted with strips of paper whose images dance with the lantern’s spin.
In the same crate is an old journal written in a nearly impenetrable code. Intrigued, Russell sets about deciphering the intricate cryptograph, slowly realizing that each entry is built around an image --- the first of which is a child, bundled into a carriage by an abductor, watching her mother recede from view.
Russell is troubled, then entranced, but each entry she decodes brings more questions. Who is the young Indian woman who created this elaborate puzzle? What does she have to do with Damian, or the Vernets --- or the threat hovering over the house?
The secrets of the past appear to be reaching into the present. And it seems increasingly urgent that Russell figure out how the journal and lantern are related to Damian --- and possibly to Sherlock Holmes himself.
Could there be things about his own history that even the master detective does not perceive?
Audiobook available, read by Amy Scanlon
