In preparation for this review I reread my reviews of the previous three books in the series – I gave book one a B- and books two and three each a B+. The common thread running through all three reviews is the fact that I find these mysteries confusing. There are probably several reasons for this – one is that I’m not a regular mystery reader. Another, which I think just became clear to me with this book, is that there’s a very deliberate choice to withhold information from the reader, often by cutting away from a scene just as that vital information is to be revealed. Anyway, by this, the fourth book, I have come to expect that understanding everything that’s happening – or even that happened, in the end – may not be in the cards for me. The strength of the series lies in other directions.

For the uninitiated, a brief rundown: in the Lady Sherlock series, the nonexistent Sherlock Holmes is the front for Charlotte Holmes, a brilliant, eccentric young lady who fell into the role of solving mysteries after running away from home and being ruined. Other major players include: Charlotte’s neurotic but loving sister Livia, who is almost on the shelf and stuck at home with their unloving parents; Lord Ingram Ashburton, Charlotte’s childhood friend with whom she has unresolved romantic tension; and Charlotte’s own Watson, Mrs. Watson, who provides both a home for Charlotte and invaluable assistance on her cases.

The story kicks off when a woman comes to visit Sherlock Holmes, seeking help. Charlotte greets her with the conceit that she is Sherlock Holmes’ sister, and that her brother is physically incapacitated and unable to have visitors, but is observing the conversation from a private room via a camera obscura. Charlotte deduces that the woman is the Maharani of Ajmer, head of a delegation from India that has recently arrive in London. The maharani is extremely disappointed to realize that “Sherlock” will not be able to help with her task, which does not require his deductive powers as much as it does the services of a cat burglar, or someone else suited for retrieving things surreptitiously. The maharani departs, but not before sharing with Charlotte her suspicions that Charlotte herself is Sherlock.

Shortly after, Mrs. Watson returns from a trip to Paris, and finds herself with an unexpected caller – the maharani. It turns out the two knew each other years before, and were in fact lovers. The maharani does not appear to know about the connection between Charlotte and Mrs. Watson, and after a stilted conversation, she leaves. It’s Charlotte who, learning of the visit, informs Mrs. Watson that the maharani had been to see Sherlock Holmes, seeking help. Mrs. Watson is distraught at the idea that her old friend is in some sort of trouble, and wants to help her. Charlotte demurs at first – for one thing, it would require confirming the maharani’s suspicions that Charlotte is in fact Sherlock – but in the face of Mrs. Watson’s distress, she agrees.

The maharani is wary of accepting help, but after Charlotte adequately proves her skills, she relents. She tells them that there are some sensitive letters that, it’s implied, were stolen from her. She has been told the letters are hidden in the backing of a Van Dyck painting that has been shipped to a chateau in France for private auction.

That home, called Chateau Vaudrieu, hosts an annual Christmas ball that is famously extravagant. The ball is held in conjunction with the art sale. Charlotte’s sister Livia happens to be staying with her, and it’s determined that Charlotte, Livia, Lord Ingram (who also has a connection to Mrs. Watson) and Mrs. Watson will travel to Paris to try to implement a plan to steal the Van Dyck. Rounding out the party is Mr. Stephen Marbleton, who is Livia’s suitor. Stephen is related to the dastardly Holmesian villain Moriarty; he and his family have been in hiding and on the run for years from Moriarty.

The group travels to France and Charlotte meets up with an ally of Lord Ingram’s, Lieutenant Atwood, who Lord Ingram has recruited to help with the theft. The plan is almost halted by Mrs. Watson after a reconnaissance mission at Chateau Vaudrieu endangers the lives of Lord Ingram and Stephen Marbleton. A meeting between the maharani, Charlotte and Mrs. Watson leads to some revelations about the contents of the mysterious letters, and later all parties involved affirm that they wish to go forward with the plan despite the risks.

The mystery/caper plot took a while to get going. I like Mrs. Watson very much, but her fondness for the maharani wasn’t enough to make me care about the latter woman’s problems. The maharani herself is a bit of a cold fish, imperious (as one might expect) and rigid. More interesting was the developing relationship between Livia and Stephen Marbleton.

Livia is very enamored but hesitant to commit to Stephen for a couple of reasons. One is that a life with him will likely mean a life in hiding, avoiding Moriarty’s long and sinister reach. (For this reason, Charlotte disapproves of the connection, though only in her typically detached way.) Another is that Livia is damaged by her upbringing with a cold and critical mother, and in her insecurity she has trouble believing Stephen really wants her. Still, it’s a sweet romance to watch blossom; Stephen is young and exceptionally good-natured in spite of his difficult life.

The relationship between Charlotte and Lord Ashburton is more bittersweet. They consummated their relationship in the previous book, and Charlotte almost idly wonders here and there whether there will be a repeat. But most of Ash’s thoughts about Charlotte aren’t really excessively carnal in nature. There is a wistful romanticism in the way he views her, and in the way that his wishes and expectations are continually thwarted by Charlotte’s emotional limitations. It was an interesting and unusual relationship to read about, though it also made me a little sad.

Around two-thirds into the book, the mystery plot really started to ramp up, and I was briefly absorbed in it. I soon became frustrated. In spite of saying I’ve gotten used to not knowing what was going on, I found myself annoyed that, well, I didn’t know what was going on. There’s a reception at the chateau ahead of the ball and auction, and all of Charlotte’s crew (I should resist the impulse to call it her Scooby Gang, shouldn’t I?) are there in various disguises, except for Lord Ashburton, who is crawling through some tunnels. I felt, as I often do with this series, that I should be understanding the action better than I actually was. I had the sense that I was about two steps behind the characters, and it made me anxious.

A bit later, something else started to bug me; I don’t remember if I’ve had this experience with the previous books in the series or not. It’s that Charlotte comes to conclusions that seem…possible, but not necessarily something she could reasonably have figured out and be certain of, even given her cleverness. Maybe it goes back to the fact – I *have* mentioned this in reviews of previous books – that I really need to have things spelled out for me. Charlotte gets from point A to point L, and I have no idea how she got there or how she’s sure she’s right. (To be fair, there are times in this book when she’s not sure she’s right. On the other hand, she always does end up being right.)

I know we’re supposed see Charlotte as brilliant, but I think that would work better for me if I understood better *how* she’s brilliant.

There are some coincidences (at least I think they were coincidences?) that didn’t hold up under close scrutiny, either. What are the odds that the maharani’s visit to Sherlock Holmes would

Spoiler (spoiler): Show

I am probably not terribly consistent in being bothered by coincidences in fiction – I know sometimes I just accept them as the price of admission. Perhaps it’s just that in this sort of tightly plotted novel, they tend to stand out more?
While The Art of Theft advanced the overarching plot (at least in regard to the relationships between Livia and Marbleton and between Charlotte and Ash), the central plot wasn’t the strongest of the four books in the series. My grade for this one is a B-.

Nothing short of what you'd expect from Sherlock Holmes, or maybe something more - since this Sherlock is a woman, pretending to be her brother Sherlock. Deductive reasoning at its best, with ribbons of facts and characters woven along. Anyone versed with Sherlock Holmes stories is frozen with fear at the name of Moriarty, and that person is in this story as well. Deep plot with both the story and regular characters. It would be good to see this in a movie. Charlotte and her crew go under cover at a French mansion to pull off an impossible theft. A mansion complete with secret underground passages. Scary stuff!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher and NetGalley book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
#NetGalley #TheArtOfTheft

The text was so light in the e-galley that I ended up having to wait until the library got a copy. Charlotte Holmes is an extremely interesting character. While her relationships are interesting, my favorite parts are when she digs into the mysteries.

Review appears in GumshoeReview.com's December 2019 issue and is exclusive to that venue until January 2020.

The Art of Theft by Sherry Thomas begins shortly after the previous book (The Hollow of Fear) ends. Charlotte Holmes' consulting detective business is just beginning to pick up after taking a break to solve Lord Ingram's case. She'd also taken steps to help her sisters (Olivia and Bernadine). While Mrs. Hudson is out, Charlotte decides to meet a potential client alone. The female client is disappointed when told that Sherlock Holmes is suffering from severe injuries and never leaves his home. The client leaves as there's nothing that can be done.

Sherry Thomas
Lady Sherlock Mysteries:
* A Study In Scarlet Women
* A Conspiracy in Belgravia
* The Hollow of Fear
* The Art of Theft

Later it turns out the client is from Mrs. Hudson's past and at one time was her dearest friend. Mrs. Hudson feels she must talk to her friend and convince her to let them help with whatever her problem is. The Maharani says she needs a painting stolen from a mansion near Paris because on the back of the painting is a packet of incriminating evidence that she needs to retrieve. Once convinced that Charlotte, Mrs. Holmes, and a few of their friends would be able to succeed, she agrees to tell them what they want to know.

It should surprise no one that the client hasn't told the whole truth about the job. Charlotte has to continually press the client for the truth as her research indicates that more is going on than what they'd been told. They need the full truth of the matter to finally develop a plan of action that might actually work – as long as there are no new surprises.

Knowing that they are working with an unreliable client to do something that is questionable at the least, readers are kept wondering what will happen next. Will they be caught? Will they find what they are looking for? Do they even know what they are looking for? Will they survive? The danger to their lives and reputations is very real if they are caught.

There's usually enough background given to bring new readers up to speed if they are a new reader. It's also sketchy enough to help those who have read the previous books to get back into the relationships of the various characters that continue from one book to another. However, new readers shouldn't be afraid to jump in with this book.

I'm enjoying this series since the characters continue to grow and change with each new addition to the series.

This was my first read from this series, and it did not disappoint. I love clever, strong, independent female sleuths, and Charlotte was all of these things and more. She was such an intelligently written character and I definitely want to catch up on the rest of this series.

I read lots of historical mysteries. I look for the characters and setting to be important in the book, but for the mystery element to still be solid and well plotted and not treated as an afterthought. This fit the bill!

I highly recommend for those who enjoy the Maisie Dobbs, Lady Darby, Verity Kent, or the Jane Austen series by Stephanie Barron. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for my complimentary copy.

Sherlock type of mystery book.
IT was not my favorite, although I loved the cover.
Somehow the story was just a story.
Not memorable enough.
It was just fine read but not something I would remember.
3 stars for me.

A solid installment of the Lady Sherlock series. I enjoyed that the mystery brought together a variety of the characters we've gotten to know in a new way. I was hoping for further development of Charlotte's relationship with Lord Ingram, but I guess I'll have to wait for the next book! Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the advance copy.

3.5 stars

Do you ever just come across a book that by all accounts you should absolutely love, and then you just don’t? Well that’s what happened to me with the Lady Sherlock series.

I picked up the first book fully ready to be hooked and in love with this series only to feel let down and disappointed. I don’t even think I finished the first book and I didn’t pick up any of the others in the series.

I was heart broken and as the years have gone on, I keep thinking I should pick this series up again because it should be a series that I love. Sassy heroines, Victorian England, murder mysteries. I should be all over this series. But I kept my distance, too fearful that I wouldn’t like it.

Then I was pitched the fourth book in the series and I was once again faced with the debate—-do I pass or not? I almost passed because I was too afraid I wouldn’t like it but again, it’s a series that I should love and I was frankly too upset about that to pass on this one. So I decided to give Lady Sherlock another try.

Summary
As “Sherlock Holmes, consulting detective,” Charlotte Holmes has solved murders and found missing individuals. But she has never stolen a priceless artwork—or rather, made away with the secrets hidden behind a much-coveted canvas.

But Mrs. Watson is desperate to help her old friend recover those secrets and Charlotte finds herself involved in a fever-paced scheme to infiltrate a glamorous Yuletide ball where the painting is one handshake away from being sold and the secrets a bare breath from exposure.

Her dear friend Lord Ingram, her sister Livia, Livia’s admirer Stephen Marbleton—everyone pitches in to help and everyone has a grand time. But nothing about this adventure is what it seems and disaster is biding time on the grounds of a glittering French chateau, waiting only for Charlotte to make a single mistake (summary from Goodreads)

Review
So I tried to in to this one with my mind open. This is a ‘gender bender’ type book where Sherlock Holmes is actually a woman, and I thought that was an exciting twist right off the bat. Though I did know that from my first attempt with the first book, but I think it’s worth noting for new readers. Having Sherlock Holmes actually be a woman rather than a man right away puts readers in a familiar yet different position with this detective.

I haven’t gone back and read the other books, mostly because I felt like my opinion of this book was already clouded by my attempt at the first book and I didn’t want to complicate it further. I did feel slightly confused by all the characters and how they knew each other and what sort of history they had, but that confusion only happened at the beginning. Not that the author clarified anything necessarily, it was more that the central mystery part took over and I became wrapped up in that rather than some of the character relations. So reading the other books will certainly help and would have made the beginning a little easier to follow, but in the end the mystery was the focus and I didn’t feel terribly lost in this one as the story went on.

As with many historical mysteries, there is often a secondary romantic plot line and this book does include a little romance and I rather enjoyed that part of the book. I know that Thomas has written romance novels as well and that reflects in this romantic plot line as Charlotte and Lord Ingram as they have great chemistry, however I was hoping their romantic plot would advance a little more in this one but perhaps there have been leaps and bounds in the previous books and this one was meant to slow it down? I am not sure since I haven’t read the others, but for me there was undeniable chemistry between them but I kept hoping for more by the end.

This book series seems to be one that people either love or just don’t. I was firmly in the ‘don’t’ camp, but after this book, I have warmed to the idea of picking it up again. There are plenty of people who loved this one and while I might not have loved it, I did like it and enjoyed picking up this series again to give it another try. Would I read the other books in the series or future books? Absolutely! I am actually going to go back and read the first one and see if I like it better this time around!

Book Info and Rating
Paperback, 297 pages
Published October 15th 2019 by Berkley
ISBN 0451492471 (ISBN13: 9780451492470)
Free review copy provided by publisher, Berkley Publishing, in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and in no way influenced.
Rating: 3.5 stars
Genre: historical fiction, mystery

The Art of Theft by Sherry Thomas is a take on the Sherlock Holmes tale. Charlotte, our protagonist is a woman who has solved murders and finding missing people. Mrs. Watson Charlotte's friend has asked Charlotte to help her with friends the Maharani's request, to steal some letters that are hidden behind a priceless artwork. The Maharani is being blackmailed so she needs the maintain her secrets. To do this, Charlotte along with Lord Ingram, Leighton Atwoood Lord Ingrams assistant, her sister Livia and Stephan Marbleton, Livia's admirer they must infiltrate the Yuletide Ball, at a French chateau.

The Art of Theft is the fourth book in the Lady Sherlock historical series and I have to say that I had not read any of the previous books in the series, that said, I had no problem following the characters. I wish I knew more about the relationship between Charlotte and Lord Ingram though. I know that there had been some intimacy between the two at some point. It did not detract though from my enjoyment of the book. That is what happens when you don't read the beginning of the series. No matter, I enjoyed the story, even though I am not a fan of Victorian type stories.

I liked the cast of characters, I think that I liked Lord Ingram the best, I would like to learn more about his situation. There is definitely a story there, his wife leaving him for example so I need to go back and read the previous books. Charlotte, even though she is a strong woman, she seems to be very aloof and does not want anyone to get close to her.

I liked the storyline, the writing was very good, there is some suspense when Lord Ingram and Mr. Marbleton attempt to get into the compound of the chateau. Then when the group gets into the chateau on the night of the ball and attempt to steal the painting. Things are not as they seem as to what is going on in the chateau.

In this book, we learn about Mrs.Watson and her relationship with the Maharani and why the Maharani needs Mrs.Watson and Charlotte's help. I found that her passion for sweets showed her vulnerability and the fun side of her. The other characters in this story were very well fleshed out, her sister Olivia wanting to be like her sister and free to do as she wanted. But she is still underage so still obligated to her parents. Mr.Marbleton is so in love with Livia that he would do whatever was needed to help Charlotte in this adventure.

I definitely enjoyed this book and my goal is to read the first book and continue on so I can understand the story better.

I recommend it highly!

Charlotte Holmes, Lady Sherlock, is back solving new cases in the Victorian-set mystery series. An enjoyable series.

I enjoyed this mystery quite a bit but I think I would have followed the various threads more if I had started with book one and read through the series in order. I really enjoyed the mystery of this book and I also felt a connection to the characters and cared about them by the end. I love a mystery that can keep the reader guessing but also make them invested in the characters. The book was well written and easy to read, making it hard to put down. All in all I definitely recommend the series, though its best to start with book one.

I discovered Lady Sherlock (aka Charlotte Holmes) by accident and now I'm obsessed. It was spring 2019 and I had been reading historical fiction featuring smart, intrepid women who were defying societal expectations and I happened to pick up A Study in Scarlet Women (the first of the Lady Sherlock series by Sherry Thomas).

A Study in Scarlet Women introduced me to Charlotte Holmes. The thing about Charlotte is that she's not who you expect her to be and her personality and perspective are refreshing because problems in her life and society in general don't get washed away or magically fixed. I personally love that Charlotte is atypical for her time and her gender and that she's found a family of unique individuals who support and appreciate her.

The Art of Theft is the 4th book in the Lady Sherlock series and in it we learn more about Mrs. Watson's past as Charlotte and her crew figure out how to become international cat burglars and rescue an old flame from blackmail. The things that I loved about this book is that readers learn more about the sinister Moriarty, we see Charlotte interacting with her sister Olivia more, Olivia and Mr. Marbleton enjoy time together and we see Charlotte and Lord Ingram struggle for balance in their changing dynamic.

This is a delightful series and I love the character development within The Art of Theft as well as a mystery that's a little bit of a puzzle, following the action and piecing those elements together is tremendous fun.

Charlotte Holmes spends her days solving crime under the guise of her fictitious brother Sherlock. Murders are cracked and missing persons are found without batting an eye, but Charlotte’s latest case is like none she has ever encountered before: stealing a priceless piece of art and destroying the secret letters hidden under the canvas.

Unfortunately, I feel this review will be fairly short and to the point: I nearly abandoned The Art of Theft very early on once I realized this is a series that heavily relies on the reader having already read the previous novels. Because I hadn’t, I was left floundering for a good portion of the early chapters until I found my footing. Previous cases are referred to and the characters’ relationships to one another are all expected to be understood.

Once the thievery came in, however, my focus returned and I thoroughly enjoyed the plot. A French chateau, a ball that serves as an art auction (mostly legit), a secret hallway with hidden peepholes in bedrooms (all the better to blackmail you with, my dear), this was the story I had been looking forward to, not the seemingly endless talk of Charlotte’s garish wardrobe, her taste for desserts, or her “maximum chin tolerance.” Judging from early reviews, this isn’t the first book to discuss Charlotte’s weight or diets – the woman on the cover was not how I pictured Charlotte from her descriptions.

There are a few romance storylines here that held my interest, but I believe I would feel far more for these characters had I read the previous three books.

While I wouldn’t say The Art of Theft is a bad read, it’s certainly not newbie-friendly. Lady Sherlock is a series that all but demands the reader have an intimate knowledge of the events and characters introduced in the previous novels as there’s little to no recaps or explanations. It’s because of this that I had a hard time getting into the book, though the actual mystery kept me entertained. Fans already familiar with the series are sure to find much more pleasure in this one than I did.

Another delightful outing from the lady Sherlock. Gayness, intrigue, secret parentage, barely breakable codes, sexual tension, lurid gowns, and cream puffs abound. There is a frisson of darkness around the nature of empire and the limits of love. I will recommend this book to fans of Anthony Horowitz and Victoria Thompson.

I love this series and really it just keeps getting better with each new book as the series develops and we get to know the characters just a bit better. Charlotte isn't the most open and easy get to know character so the more time I spend with the her the more I feel like I know her and the more I like her. I really liked that we saw a bit more of Livia then we've seen in previous books. She's unique and weird and completely different from Charlotte and I was so glad to be able to spend more time with her.



I was really impressed with just how different each of the mysteries in this series feel. This isn't one of those books where the main character is continuously tripping over a body (not that I have a problem with those but this is a nice change) but instead Charlotte is drawn into a wide variety of mysteries connected to either her job as Sherlock Holmes or through her friends and acquaintances. While I love this it does tend to make the books in this series start slow. I thoroughly enjoy the setup and getting to revisit the characters but if you like your mysteries to start with a bang then you may get a bit frustrated.



This is a interesting, unique, and well done mystery series with characters unlike any other. I look forward to seeing what happens for Mrs. Watson, Charlotte, and Livia next! Because this series has such strong characters this is a series best read in order.

I really loved reading this book. Sherry Thomas is the BEST at the yearning, and there is a lot of yearning in this book, but not so much that it distracts from the mystery. I was worried by certain events that take place at the beginning of this book that might interfere with the romantic underpinnings, but I my worries were unfounded, which for me is a bonus. I love how she creates characters whose stories feel real. You can understand why people make the choices they make. Their actions make sense. I look forward to reading more books in this series.

Another wonderful installment in Sherry Thomas' Lady Sherlock series. Each one I read leaves me wishing I could read the next one immediately. There's been a recent influx of Sherlock Holmes inspired books and this series has been my favorite by far.

The Art of Theft, by author Sherry Thomas, is the fourth installment in the author's Lady Sherlock series. This series revolves around Lady Charlotte Holmes who, along with Mrs Watson, have created a fictional crime fighting brother called Sherlock Holmes. There are only a handful of people who know the real truth. Charlotte and Mrs Watson are a brilliant team. One has life's lessons to import on Charlotte, while Charlotte has a brilliant and cunning mind which is often at odds with how many sweets she can eat before gaining another unwanted chin.

Olivia Holmes has become a staple in this series as well. Olivia is the third oldest daughter and the one who isn't all that confidant about being around other women, or men for that matter. While Charlotte intentionally ruined her reputation in Victorian England, Olivia is still stuck under the thumb of her father. Liv has also been penning a manuscript featuring Sherlock Holmes while also being somewhat courted by the secretive Stephen Marbleton who has his own story to tell.

In this episode, while Charlotte is resettling her older sister Bernadette into a new living arrangement away from her parents, Olivia is meeting Stephen's parents, Mrs Watson is returning home from visiting her daughter, and Lord Ingram has filed for divorce from his wife putting much of his focus on ensuring his children are well taken care of and not Charlotte. Soon thereafter, Charlotte is visited by the Maharani of Ajmer who needs Sherlock's help in retrieving important from a wealthy collector in Paris.

The client is being blackmailed by someone who is holding letters that could cause her and her small kingdom a lot of trouble and embarrassment. The letters are hidden behind a Van Dyck painting in the French chateau, Vaudrieu. It seems that the Maharani needs a cat burglar rather than a mystery solver. Part of the story surrounds Mrs. Watson and a romantic affair she had with the Maharani of Ajmer years before she was someone. The maharani has come to London hoping to hire Sherlock Holmes to steal some incriminating letters back from the blackmailer who holds them.

Mrs. Watson convinces Charlotte to take the case and Charlotte recruits her friend Lord Ingram to help. Her sister Olivia and her sweetheart Mr. Marbleton are also recruited marking the first time that Liv has joined Charlotte and Mrs Watson in an investigation. Lieutenant Leighton Atwood, Lord Ingram’s cousin and a fellow operative for the crown, add his expertise as well. I will say that this is the first book where so many characters have joined to together in solving a situation where life and death is on the line, and a budding romance between Liv and Stephan may be tested severely.

Meanwhile, what may have been a romantic future for Ash and Charlotte, has been put on the back burner until Ash takes care of his personal issues. However, this is the point in the series where I ask, where the heck is Moriarty? Moriarty is the dark cloud hanging over every thing just off stage waiting to make his grand entrance. Could the fifth installment be the time for him and Charlotte to go head to head? Also, how far does one have to go to actually trust Lady Ingram after all she's done?

There is a sort of cliffhanger ending to this book which I believe is the first of its kind in this series. As I said, perhaps it is time for the mysterious Moriarty to finally challenge Charlotte in ways that she hasn't been so far. Also, yet another character who knows Sherlock isn't real, may play a pivotal role in what happens next. Sorry, no spoilers but if you have read this series, and this book, it's easy to guess who I am talking about.

Stevie‘s review of The Art of Theft (Lady Sherlock, Book 4) by Sherry Thomas
Historical Mystery published by Berkley 15 Oct 19

This series has been really getting into its stride with the previous novel, and now this book, showcasing Charlotte Holmes and her friends very much in their own world, with only a few subtle nods to their origins as pastiches of the Sherlock Holmes novels. Sherlock himself gets nary a mention this time around, as Charlotte’s latest client discounts the possibility of hiring a bedridden and mostly non-communicative detective. The job on offer requires an able-bodied operative, who is capable of breaking into a highly guarded French château and stealing one of the larger paintings about to be auctioned off at a prestigious gathering of the great and good. Fortunately, Charlotte and her friends are able to persuade the reluctant lady to take them on their own merits, helped to a great extent by Mrs Watson’s past connections to their new client.


Mrs Watson, too, really comes into her own in this story. Early on, we learn of her holiday in Paris with her ‘niece,’ in which she has entertained admirers both male and female. Then, on her return to London, we discover that she was once the lover of a visiting Indian maharani – ruling her state as regent to her young son at that time – and this dignitary, now retired from office, is the one requiring Charlotte’s help in retrieving letters over whose content she is being blackmailed.

The blackmailers have issued an unusual demand. Rather than a specified sum of money, they require the theft of a particular painting by Van Dyke, which is soon to be auctioned at an invitation-only event in France. Charlotte and Mrs Watson recruit a selection of their friends and relatives to help with the case, and soon learn that they are not the only would-be thieves intending to attend the auction. Nor is their client the only notable person being blackmailed by the same gang.

Of course Moriarty and his associates – past and present – turn out to be at the bottom of any number of interconnected plots uncovered by Charlotte and her companions in the course of the case. The group’s path also crosses several times with that of Lady Ingram, the estranged wife of Charlotte’s friend, and one-time lover, the dashing adventurer Lord Ingram. That man’s domestic complications also feature heavily in the story as he receives a prospective proposal of marriage (anticipating his divorce being granted) from an unlikely source, and has to decide on the best course of action at each stage of the plot with regard to his children as well as his friends and co-conspirators.

And just as all the loose ends appear to be wrapped up, Charlotte and her friends receive two separate pieces of distressing news, leading to a rash action by one of them, as well as to a new case for Charlotte, no doubt to be revealed in more detail in the next book. I can’t wait.

Grade: A

I am an absolute sucker for Sherlock Holmes pastiches, so I’ve been reading the Lady Sherlock series as each book comes out, beginning with A Study in Scarlet Women three years ago.

The twist in the Lady Sherlock series is, on the one hand, the change that is made obvious by the series title. In this series, Sherlock Holmes is the fictitious, invalid brother used by Charlotte Holmes to mask the fact that she is the deductive genius who finds missing objects and solves crimes – as well as, in the case of this story – committing them.

But Holmes isn’t the only gender-swapped character in the series. There is no Dr. Watson. Instead, there is the former actress Mrs. Watson. Her husband was the military doctor who served in the Afghan War, as the Dr. Watson of the original canon did.

Mrs. Watson is not, however, the chronicler of “Sherlock” Holmes’ adventures. That duty has been left to Olivia Holmes. Charlotte’s younger sister.

One of the things that makes this series stand out from many other variations on the Holmes theme is not just that many of the roles have been gender-swapped, but that the series does not ignore the many ways that life as a middle or upper-class woman in Victorian England was restricted.

Charlotte’s ruse about her bedridden brother is part and parcel of those restrictions, as is her choice to become a “scarlet woman” in the first book so as to get herself disowned and out from under her parents’ disapproving thumb. A thumb that has all the force of law to hem her life into a tiny straight-jacket of propriety and misery.

Mrs. Watson, as a former actress, was already a scarlet woman when this series began. The case that Holmes and Watson take up in this entry in the series has its roots in her past. Once upon a time, when she was younger and perhaps a bit more foolish, Mrs. Watson fell in love with another woman. A woman who is now the Dowager Maharani of Ajmer. A woman who comes to London to engage Sherlock Holmes’ services in order to thwart her blackmailer – only to discover that there is no Sherlock, only her former lover and a woman who may be a towering genius of deduction but has no experience in breaking and entering.

Because that’s what the job seems to require. Breaking into an invitation-only house party and art auction, with the sole purpose of stealing a valuable painting and the explosive secrets that are concealed within its frame.

But nothing about this case is as it seems. As Charlotte and her team of friends and confidants investigate the mess that the Maharani has gotten herself into, the more that Charlotte realizes that very little about this case is what it seems.

There is much more going on than meets the eye – whether the eye is quicker than the hand or not. This case contains plenty of misdirection – and more than a few magic tricks – on every side. But at its heart there’s danger that none of them ever expected to face – at least not again.

Escape Rating B+: Like the previous entries in this series, I have mixed feelings about The Art of Theft. I’m almost feeling as if there are two books combined into one slightly uneasy combination.

The first part of this one is wrapped up in all of the restrictions faced by genteel women in Victorian England. Even though Charlotte and her sister Olivia are both in their late 20s, both definitely adults, legally they are the property of their father until they marry and become the property of their husbands.

That Charlotte was bloody-minded enough to find a way out of the trap does not mean that she is not affected by the solution she chose – as is Olivia. Their parents have forbidden the sisters to see each other, and while Charlotte is out from under their thumb, Olivia is not. She has no way of making a living for herself, and no freedom except through subterfuge.

It is ironic that Charlotte, Olivia and Mrs. Watson do read as women of their time, but their very necessity of kowtowing to the restrictions of being a woman in their time makes this reader grit her teeth and want the story to just get on with it.

Once they have the bit of the case between their teeth, in spite of all of the insanity that is wrapped around that particular endeavor, the story moves much more quickly, to the point where the reader can’t turn pages fast enough because there’s so much going on. And so much of it seems like “out of the frying pan and into the fire”.

It’s also that once the case gets going, Charlotte’s constant worry about “Maximum Tolerable Chins” gives way to her cold-blooded analytical ability to take what few facts they have and wrestle those facts into a theory that allows them to proceed – and succeed – in their endeavor.

(It seems in this series that the original Sherlock’s drug addiction has been converted to Charlotte’s addiction to rich pastries. It is notable that Sherlock never worried one-tenth as much about his seven-percent solution as Charlotte does her cream buns.)

Back to the case. There were plenty of examples of cases solved by the original Holmes where it takes Holmes’ uncanny ability to pull together disparate and obscure facts with painstaking observations to learn that the case the detective was hired for is not the game that is actually afoot.

And so it proves here. The way that Charlotte Holmes puts together the bits and pieces of what they are hired to do in order to discover what actually needs to be done is what keeps this reader glued to this series in spite of my frustrations with the maneuvering that Charlotte and company often have to do in order to get to the point.

In the end, this case is nothing like it appeared to be. Their client covered up their truths, and the blackmailer used the entire thing as a way to misdirect every single person at the auction.

That Moriarty emerges from the shadows at the end is more than enough to make me anticipate the next story in this series. There will be a solution to The Final Problem that is Moriarty. But hopefully not yet.