Tag: Sherlock Holmes

Book Review: The Beekeeper’s Apparentice by King (3.5 Stars)

The Beekeeper’s Apprentice by Laurie R. King

3.5 out of 5 stars

Read in August 2010

An enjoyable variation on the Holmes theme.  I discerned the major mystery and hidden mastermind behind it early (as I usually do), but missed the connection to the earlier mystery.

The characterization was better than most mystery novels I’ve read.  I especially enjoyed the fugue of an intelligent deductive teenage woman (Mary Russell) juxtaposed with a retired bored (and lonely) Sherlock Holmes.  The usual suspects cameoed:  Mrs. Hudson; Dr. Watson; Mycroft; and, even Lastrade (TNG version).

I may continue with the series, when I need a break from my normal heavier, layered reading.

Sherlock Returns, Adler Strikes

A Scandal in Belgravia

4 out of 5 stars

Masterpiece Mystery finally began airing the second season of Sherlock Sunday evening, May 6, 2012.   Based loosely on Doyle’s original story entitled “A Scandal in Bohemia“, and featuring the provactive Irene Adler, revamped and rewritten by Stephen Moffat (of recent Doctor Who fame). 

The scandal erupts in Belgravia, instead of Bohemia, and reaches as high as the British throne, and as far away as across the pond to involve the Americans (heavy handed ones .. poor Mrs. Hudson).  The episode begins, though, where we left off at the end of the first season.  Moriarity bookended the episode, but pulled the strings on many of the key characters. 

Sherlock and Mycroft are two peas from the same pod … no doubt about it.  They have quite the surreal conversation at one point, musing to each other if they are odd for their lack of emotional attachment to others. 

I’ll have to wait a couple of days to watch next week’s episode “The Hounds of the Baskerville” but the previews look thrilling.

Movie Review: Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011)

Four out of Five Stars

My husband and I braved the last-Sunday-before-Christmas-crowds at the Legends shopping center to watch this latest installment in the Sherlock Holmes universe.  Strangely, our theatre (the largest one at the Phoenix Theatre complex) was sparsely populated for the mid-afternoon matinee.  Be that as it may, we thoroughly enjoyed the film. The musical score grated less on the ears this time (more classical orchestration instead of the out-of-tune upright piano cacophony overused in the first movie). I can’t wait to re-watch this on DVD so I can pause it and examine certain scenes minutely. Even with my photographic memory, modern day editing gives viewers nanoseconds to absorb an incredible amount of relevant detail.  Despite the dreary gray British and French winter countryside, the cinematography was gorgeous, the highlight being the Swiss Alps.  The action frequently sported ultra-high-speed slow-motion sequences, punctuated with excellently choreographed audio.