Nancy Springer https://www.nancyspringer.com is the author of more than 50 novels. Enola Holmes and the Elegant Escapade was published in 2022 and is the second book in this series. This was the 89th book I completed in 2022.

Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own! I categorize this novel as G. As the title implies, Sherlock’s younger teen sister, Enola Holmes, is the primary character. She is now living on her own in London and has established herself as a scientific perditorian. She is the one to engage if you want persons or things found.

When she finds her good friend Lady Cecily Alastair is again in trouble, Enola acts to assist her. The poor young woman is dominated by her father. Even her mother is strictly kept under his control. While Cecily’s rescue is successful, the young woman soon leaves the safety of Enola’s office and disappears.

Being a young and relatively naive aristocrat, London is dangerous. Enola realizes the situation is more dire when she discovers that Cecily suffers from a split personality. Sometimes Cecily is confident and independent. At other times she is timid and naive.

Can Enola find her friend before she falls prey to the darker side of London?

I enjoyed the 4 hours I spent reading this 155-page young adult mystery. The book is short. More of a novella than a novel. I have read the first novel in the series, Enola Holmes and the Black Barouche. I actually thought that book was a little better than this one. Both books have a weak plot, most likely because they are targeted at young adults. The cover art is well chosen for this novel. I give this novel a rating of 3.3 (rounded down to a 3) out of 5.

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I am a major fan of Enola Holmes, and this one did not disappoint! Enola Holmes is still the spunky and genius protagonist as always! This novel still has charm and humor! I found the mystery to be very engaging. I like that Enola’s case includes the disappearance of her friend, Lady Cecily. The story itself is very well- written and makes Victorian England come alive. Enola Holmes and the Elegant Escapade is a short, fun, and light-hearted mystery! I recommend this for not only Sherlock Holmes fans but also fans of Nancy Drew, Myrtle Hardcastle Mysteries, and the Theodosia Mysteries!

Much of my review for Enola Holmes and the Elegant Escapade falls right in line with the last review I posted for this series. I knew I wanted to read the next book from Enola Holmes series after reading the previous one, and this one didn’t disappoint.

This book picks up with Enola living independently in London and working to find lost people and things in the city. This book focuses on the peril of Lady Cecily Alastair, one of Enola’s past cases turned friend. As Enola helps Lady Cecily keep her secrets and escape the grasp of her overbearing (and abusive) father, Enola also finds herself up against her brother, who’s been hired to find Cecily by Cecily’s mother.

The writing style of this book is just as easy to read as the previous one, and it’s easy to get lost in the story and enjoy the vivid world that’s been built. I still love Enola as a character, and I love that we get to see plenty of Sherlock in this book as well.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the advanced digital copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I have been a fan of the Enola Holmes books since before my own kids—now teens—were born. The original six audiobooks, narrated by the incomparable Katherine Kellgren, were nothing short of perfection. The original series ended on an upbeat note, but the development of the Netflix movies led to all new novels.
This book features the return of Lady Cecily, who has appeared in several of the earlier novels and become somewhat of a friend to Enola. Once again, Lady Cecily is trying to avoid her parents’ plans of marriage, and it’s up to Enola to help her friend achieve the independence she craves.
Enola employs her usual tricks of cunning disguises and finding patterns in what might appear to be disparate circumstances. She receives assistance in this endeavor by her brother Sherlock, although the latter is somewhat begrudging about the matter—or perhaps Enola has finally worn him down.
The mystery is satisfying, with a great deal of twists and turns. It reveals some of the more sordid elements of Victorian London, although it should be noted that they are not too sordid for the target audience of tween readers.
Enola, who is always quick to point out that her name is an anagram for the word “alone”, grows closer to those around her, although she would never admit to something so maudlin. She is a most delightful protagonist: loyal to a fault and always doggedly pursuing justice, even at the risk of her own safety.
I would absolutely recommend Enola Holmes and the Elegant Escapade. I do think that readers would benefit from reading the earlier books with Lady Cecily so that they can fully appreciate her backstory and the development of her character arc, although familiarity with the series through watching the movies would suffice. I hope there are a great deal more Enola Holmes books in the future.

I received a digital ARC of this book from St. Martins/NetGalley

Enola is back again in this next installment in the series. What I love: watching Enola grow up more and more. In this one, she's fiercely independent as always and still set up as a private eye. The scathing social commentary on women's roles in Victorian times is as biting as ever as Enola fights for her friend Lady Cecily to overcome the domineering presence of her father. Enola is on the case to help her best friend escape a confined existence. Of course, no caper would be complete without crossing paths with Sherlock several times. Shenanigans and witty exchanges ensue.

What I loved: the wittiness of Enola, the backhanded support of Sherlock, Lady Cecily's friendship, the scathing social commentary.

Always highly recommend this series.

I love reading about Enola’s adventures. Her wit and sarcasm is unmatched. I thoroughly enjoyed this story!

I’m in serious love with Enola Holmes. I really need to read the rest of the books. Luckily I have no problem envisioning the show characters into the book characters. It makes it so much more enjoyable.

I loved this book! It was a great addition to the series. It was also great to see old characters again. Can’t wait for the next book.

I think I may pursue reading the rest of the Enola Holmes books via audio. Enola Holmes And The Elegant Escapade by Nancy Springer is the eighth book in the series -- but the second one I've read. The series follows Enola who is sister to Sherlock. She is a detective in her own right, however, and very clever. This book follows Enola as one of her friends goes missing. She is on the case to ensure Lady Cecily isn't being screwed over by her father. You see, at this time, women are under the control of their male relatives and this has happened to Cecily before. Oh, and Cecily has two personalities -- one which is right handed and boring and the other which is left handed and bold.

I had fun listening to Enola Holmes and The Elegant Escapade. Was it life changing? No, absolutely not. This book still is a nice distracting romp. I felt accomplished after finishing it in a few hours. The audiobook is pleasant enough -- narrated by Tamaryn Payne. It is only 4 hours and 17 minutes long -- plus I listened to it sped up. I think this series is good to listen to for emerging readers as it isn't much of a time investment, Enola is fabulous, and the plot is interesting. Now this has me wanting to watch the second movie on Netflix.

Enola Holmes is always a delightful time whether it is a book or a movie, and this one was no exception. I have not read all the books, but I am starting to feel that some of the plots are repeating themselves, using the same characters and situations for basis of the mystery itself. But there are enough new characters and peeks into overlooked turn of the century London that make up for it. Enola Holmes books are wonderful fast reads that I will always recommend.

This was an enjoyable, quick read told from Enola's perspective as a highly intelligent, independent young woman in Victorian London. Although 8th in the series, it can easily be read and followed without having read previous books in the series.

Enola is once again on the case and this time she’s trying to save a young woman with a dual personality, Cecily. Cecily was kidnapped in a past case and Enola helped her then and will help her now by saving her from the tyrant of a father that has locked her up, neglected and abused her. Cecily doesn’t know she has a dual personality but Enola notices that when Cecily uses her right hand, she’s submissive and when using her left, she’s brave. Enola and Sherlock discuss Cecily’s situation and the mistreatment of her father toward her mother, siblings and herself. Enola discovers that the tyrant has been committing crimes and wants Cecily to bargain with him for better treatment for her family. Sherlock doesn’t want any part of blackmail but admires Enola’s bravery and intelligence. This is a thoroughly enjoyable and entertaining quick read with mystery and humor, 5 stars!

No swearing
Violence- description of crimes but no details of the actions.

Last year I was able to read Enola Holmes and the Black Barouche early and I loved it. This book was just as fun and fast-paced. Enola is quirky, adventurous, and a react first think later kind of girl. I think growing up as Sherlock & Mycroft's younger sister can do that to you. Speaking of Sherlock, I really love the relationship they have and their back and forth banter.

Her friend Lady Cecily who she's already helped twice comes to her for help again. This time though, she disappears right under Enola and Sherlock's noses. It's a quick read with loads of imagery so you can fully imagine Victorian England.

Another great Enola Holmes novel. This one has Enola searching for her friend and finding all the mysterious things that surround her. Will her friend be able to escape her father's hold on her? Read about Enola and her amazing disguises.

I am enthralled by Enola and the way she solves the mystery. The writing style is fast paced, great historical references and locations. All young women should read the books in this series as Enola stands up for herself, always figures out a resolution to a problem, and doesn’t feel the need to have a man make decisions for her. I look forward to more of Enola’s adventures and her famous brothers.

This is a great story. I love Enola. She befuddles Sherlock and is just as brilliant as he is. She wants to right wrongs and make the place better. She has helped Lady Cecily Alastair. She is in trouble again. Her father has locked her in her room without any clothes but her nightgown and nothing to pass the time except the thing she hates the most, embroidery. When Enola tries to see her, she is turned away. So she comes at night and instead of visiting with Lady Cecil, she helps her escape.

Sherlock has been asked to find the girl and Enola is doing all she can to help her. But even Enola does know where she is.

This is a fun series. It kept me on the edge of my seat. The mystery is great and very entertaining. This book is easy to read. I loved it!

I am so happy to be back with Enola, Cecily, and Sherlock for the newest installment in their elegant escapades. This book follows Lady Cecily once again being mistreated by her father. Enola, as Cecily’s good friend, must step in and help. Of course Sherlock gets involved in looking for the now “missing” Cecily. Which, plot twist, Cecily actually does go missing. I love the feminist themes throughout the book and the changes we see in Sherlock’s view of his sister throughout the series. These books are so easy to read with quick pacing and witty banter. The interactions between Enola and Sherlock continue to be my favorite part of these books. The writing is immersive and I love spending time in 19th century England. The characters are a fresh twist on classic profiles and I have throughly enjoyed my time with them. If Nancy Springer continues to write Enola books I will continue to read them.

Enola Holmes and the Elegant Escapade follows Enola Holmes and the Black Barouche in Nancy Springer's YA mystery series starring Sherlock Holmes' much younger sister.

Enola works hard to help her friend, Lady Cecily Alastair, whose awful father is trying to auction her off to marry the highest bidder.

Cecily is a very unusual young woman, with 2 personalities, associated with her use of her left or right hand. Right-handed, she is meek and compliant. Left-handed Cecily has her own plans.

Enjoy this series and don't miss the great Netflix movie Enola Holmes either!

While there are some callbacks to previous books this is one of those rare series where I don't feel that you have to read the series in numerical order to enjoy it, that said the series is always very interesting so I would recommend any of the books in the series. As always fearless females for the win! This was a fun quick read and is highly recommended!

My teenage daughter and I watched the Netflix movie based on these books, and we thoroughly enjoyed it, so that was part of the reason I was eager to read this book. I am already of fan of British history, so that was an additional appealing factor. The book did not disappoint! As I had previously watched the movie, I could easily picture the clothing, the surroundings, the and the sounds that complement the story, which made it even more enjoyable. Enola is crafty, resourceful, and wise beyond her years, and I relished the ways in which she nimbly outsmarted the villains. The clues given are clever and the "ah-ha!" moments when they are figured out are quite fun. I will be adding these books to my school library.