From Publishers Weekly
BBC producer Davies draws many details from Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes adventures for his first novel, a lightweight pastiche narrated by Flotsam (aka Flottie), a 12-year-old orphan girl, and starring Mrs. Hudson, housekeeper extraordinaire, who becomes an unlikely crime solver after rescuing Flottie from the streets. Highly agitated Nathaniel Moran appears at 221b Baker Street seeking protection from unknown assassins who have pursued him from Sumatra, where he and his partners ran a trading business until five members of the firm were mysteriously slain. Despite their bankruptcy, Moran and his fellow survivors are able to afford fine London hotels and apartments. Holmes, Dr. Watson, Scotland Yard, Mrs. Hudson and Flottie all look into the possibility that the Pagi, or spirits' curse imposed by tribal priests, is the cause of these misfortunes. Soon associates of Moran are found dead of such causes as bites from exotic poisonous snakes and tarantulas, and Watson goes on "a tramp across the moors" to interview Moran's father. Some confusing shifts of speaker and repetitive descriptions of foggy London may disturb some readers, but most should be won over by this affectionate homage. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Book Description
Entering into service as housekeeper for the distinguished investigator Sherlock Holmes and his associate Dr. Watson, Mrs. Hudson expands her duties beyond keeping things tidy.
The great detective's latest client is a traveler recently returned from the Far East-and nearly killed under mysterious circumstances. He says he's under a Sumatran curse that will end his life.
While Holmes and Watson seek a less superstitious solution to the man's dilemma, Mrs. Hudson and Flottie, the orphan girl in her care, take it upon themselves to investigate the case. They are determined to solve the mystery-even if it entails pointing Mrs. Hudson's employers in the right direction.
About the Author
Martin Davies lives in London and works for the BBC as a producer ad editor. Mrs. Hudson and the Case of the Spirit's Curse is his first novel. It was written as a birthday present for his father, who had often wondered "what life must have been like for Sherlock Holmes' housekeeper."
Mrs. Hudson and the Case of the Spirit's Curse: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery FROM OUR EDITORS
The Barnes & Noble Review
British writer Martin Davies has come up with a fascinating premise for his first novel -- an exciting new perspective on the life of Sherlock Holmes, as seen by a servant girl working for his redoubtable housekeeper, Mrs. Hudson. It's pleasantly ironic that, thanks to a failed venture into a life of crime (a pitiful attempt to steal a cabbage to fend off starvation), the orphaned Flottie (it's short for Flotsam) gains her introduction to crime solving. Perceptive and protective Mrs. Hudson takes the girl under her wing and makes sure that she takes advantage of the educational and social opportunities that come her way in Mr. Holmes's unorthodox householdﾽboth above and below stairs.
Mrs. Hudson and Flottie have vital roles to play in this first grand adventure, as Holmes and Watson are engaged by a desperate man, recently returned from Sumatra, who claims to be at risk from a deadly curse. Certainly, their client is at the center of a series of terrifying circumstancesﾽbut the stalwart investigators suspect there's nothing supernatural about the cause of his troubles. Mrs. Hudson and the Case of the Spirit's Curse introduces a captivating cast of characters, from street urchins and servants to scholars and aristocrats, as one of the literature's most famous detectives -- and some unexpected allies -- matches wits with uncommon criminals, among them one of the most elusive and dangerous villains in Victorian London. Sue Stone
FROM THE PUBLISHER
"Newly employed as housekeeper to the eminent detective Sherlock Homes and the ever-present Dr. Watson, the stalwart Mrs. Hudson tends to mind her own affairs as long as others mind theirs. But when a terrified young man shows up pleading for help from Holmes, she finds herself a bit more involved than usual. It seems that the young man, recently returned from the Far East, claims to be living in mortal fear of a Sumatran curse he's fallen under, which has already caused him to experience a narrow escape from death. Holmes, of course, doesn't believe in such rubbish, and goes about searching for a more earthbound explanation, with Watson's help." Mrs. Hudson doesn't believe in curses either, but she does know that there's more than one way to catch a killers. So, using her own inimitable common sense and somewhat formidable personality, she sets out to solve the case with the assistance of the loyal Flottie - an orphan girl she rescued from a wretched fate. Even as she finds herself one step ahead of her own employer at times, Mrs. Hudson soon realizes that in this game of lethal cat-and-mouse, catching a killer is one thing - but keeping a killer from catching you is quite another.
FROM THE CRITICS
Publishers Weekly
BBC producer Davies draws many details from Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes adventures for his first novel, a lightweight pastiche narrated by Flotsam (aka Flottie), a 12-year-old orphan girl, and starring Mrs. Hudson, housekeeper extraordinaire, who becomes an unlikely crime solver after rescuing Flottie from the streets. Highly agitated Nathaniel Moran appears at 221b Baker Street seeking protection from unknown assassins who have pursued him from Sumatra, where he and his partners ran a trading business until five members of the firm were mysteriously slain. Despite their bankruptcy, Moran and his fellow survivors are able to afford fine London hotels and apartments. Holmes, Dr. Watson, Scotland Yard, Mrs. Hudson and Flottie all look into the possibility that the Pagi, or spirits' curse imposed by tribal priests, is the cause of these misfortunes. Soon associates of Moran are found dead of such causes as bites from exotic poisonous snakes and tarantulas, and Watson goes on "a tramp across the moors" to interview Moran's father. Some confusing shifts of speaker and repetitive descriptions of foggy London may disturb some readers, but most should be won over by this affectionate homage. Agent, Patty Moosbrugger. (Dec. 7) Forecast: This will appeal more to fans of feminist historical mysteries than to traditional Sherlockians, who may not care to see Holmes and Watson play secondary roles. Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.
Kirkus Reviews
Now that Inspector Lestrade, Irene Adler and Mycroft Holmes have all enjoyed adventures of their own, it's Sherlock's housekeeper's turn. Nathaniel Moran, late of the Sumatra and Nassau Trading Company, appears at Baker Street to tell a wild tale. He and his partners, who had the temerity to display a totemic rat they killed on the flagpole of their little outpost, were cursed by a native priest with catastrophic results: some two dozen natives dead and a sense of terror that pursued them back to England. Holmes finds the curse hard to credit, but Moran and his two surviving partners are clearly terrified of something that soon begins to claim their lives. While Holmes is busy making brilliant but trivial inferences about the case, Mrs. Hudson-assisted by her own Watson, the waiflike scullery maid Flotsam-ventures a series of quiet, shrewd deductions of her own. BBC producer/editor Davies's first novel delicately negotiates the rivalry between Holmes and Hudson by rooting her detective work in domestic details (the state of the larder, the excellence of a souffle) beneath the notice of a male detective who comes off as arrogant and condescending but still intelligent and generous in his limited way. An unbelievable master criminal aside, the case itself, as the great man might say-and as Mrs. Hudson may well say herself one of these days-has distinct points of interest all its own.
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