The Beekeeper's Apprentice

Holmes begins to teach Mary the arts of observation, deduction, disguise and chemistry, and over the next few years their partnership grows into a deep friendship between equals. Mary narrates the story looking back, with a dry humour and a sharp eye for Holmes's habits. As she grows older and goes to study at Oxford, she begins to join him on real cases, including the kidnapping of an American senator's young daughter in Wales.

The last part of the novel brings a much more personal threat: someone clever and ruthless is targeting both Holmes and Mary, and their partnership is put to the test. Laurie R. King creates a believable older Holmes and a heroine strong enough to stand beside him, without making either a copy of Conan Doyle's style. The pace is leisurely at first, and some readers find the early chapters slow, but the tension builds well. There is some danger, but no graphic violence.

Intelligent, witty and atmospheric, the first of a long series of Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes adventures. Readers who enjoy it can follow the partnership through many more cases, beginning with A Monstrous Regiment of Women. About 384 pages in the Picador paperback.