A Holmes mystery and it’s really good. A fascinating plot and great read. So well written and so enjoyable that I have already told a few fellow book lovers about it. I didn’t realise it was not a first book at first but am going to go back and read that

This series puts the housekeeping staff at 22 Baker Street firmly in the center of Sherlock Holmes' and John Watson's investigations. It is clear that Hudson, and the young housemaid Flotsam are the brains in the business.

I thoroughly enjoy Holmes world novels, and this is no exception. It's my second read from the series, and I look forward to filling in the gaps. It can easily be read as a standalone.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The synopsis of this book caught my eye and I’m so glad I’ve discovered a new series. I’ve read book one this month, then this one.

Lovely to see how Flotsam and Mrs Hudson are still assisting Mr Holmes and Dr Watson. Loved how all the elements of the story came together.

London is abuzz with the upcoming royal wedding of the exiled Duke of Krasnow and the Princess of Rovenia. But when the groom vanishes, Sherlock Holmes, with the help of Mrs. Hudson and Miss Flotsam, must unravel the mystery behind his disappearance.

This book is great fun. There are a lot of moving parts, but they all come together in the end. I really enjoyed the characterizations. The book is true to the original, but with a twist.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

My thanks to Net Galley and Allison and Busby for allowing me to review this arc.

I liked this book. It was an interesting perspective getting the pov s from Mrs Hudson and her assistant Flotsam. The author really captured the feel of Conan Doyle.

I liked the missing princess story . Only complaint...dragged a bit.

Anyone who is or has been a fan of anything pertaining to those characters who lives at 221B Baker Street both above & below stairs will enjoy this Book as they follow the various colourful characters trying to solve a mystery. #NetGalley, #GoodReads, #FB, #Instagram, #Amazon.co.uk, #<img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/8a5b541512e66ae64954bdaab137035a5b2a89d2" width="80" height="80" alt="200 Book Reviews" title="200 Book Reviews"/>, #<img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/ef856e6ce35e6d2d729539aa1808a5fb4326a415" width="80" height="80" alt="Reviews Published" title="Reviews Published"/>, #<img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/aa60c7e77cc330186f26ea1f647542df8af8326a" width="80" height="80" alt="Professional Reader" title="Professional Reader"/>. I have recommended this Book to various friends here in the UK & also Over Seas too.

A Sherlock Holmes mystery, Mrs Hudson and the Capricorn Incident (2025) by Martin Davies is a reimagining of the 221B Baker Street sleuthing case participants. Sherlock’s housekeeper, Mrs Hudson and Flottie, the housemaid, are central figures in solving the Capricorn Incident. A lethargic Holmes and Watson are recovering from their last case, when the Suffolk police approach them to investigate the vanishing of a woman, without a trace. Meanwhile, a regal London wedding is put in jeopardy, when the bride and then later, the groom disappear, potentially having international repercussions. Flottie and Mrs Hudson play major roles in investigating the missing bride-to-be and together with some assistance from Dr Watson, end up solving the mystery, much to Sherlock’s approval. A useful addition to the Holmesian tales and a truly enjoyable gentle crime read with a four star rating. As always, the opinions herein are totally my own and freely given. With thanks to Allison & Busby and the author, for an uncorrected advanced review copy for review purposes.

"It is spring in Baker Street, and London is preparing itself for the wedding of the year. It will be an international spectacle in which the young and popular Count Rudolph Absberg, a political exile from his native land, will take the hand of the beautiful and accomplished Princess Sophia Kubinova. A lot depends on the marriage, for it is hoped that the union will ensure the security and independence of their homeland.

When the princess subsequently disappears in dramatic circumstances, members of the British establishment are quick to call on Mr. Sherlock Holmes. He, in turn, needs the gifts of long-standing housekeeper Mrs. Hudson and her able assistant, housemaid Flotsam, to solve this puzzling case on which rests the fate of nations.

The continuation of the intricately crafted Holmes and Hudson series is a treat for fans of the great detective's original cases while they offer an inspired take on the rest of the famous Baker Street household."

I mean, I can never get enough Sherlock Holmes adjacent stories!

Book 7 of the Holmes & Hudson Series and whilst I was unaware of this series, so this was my first read, it read well as a standalone. In fact I really enjoyed it, a lot. The usual suspects are here - Sherlock Holmes, Dr Watson and Mrs Hudson and they are joined by housemaid Flotsam ‘Flottie’. I did think this was a rather unlikely name but she is a great character. Holmes and Watson do rather take a back seat this time as Mrs Hudson and Flotsam run their own investigation, at Holmes request and on their own behalf. Told from the POV of Flossie this is a well written and well plotted novel.

Briefly, it’s 1901 and a royal marriage is to take place, in England, between Count Rudolph and Princess Sophia in an attempt to ensure the safety of a small but strategically important European principality. But when both of them go missing Holmes is asked to help. Meanwhile Mrs Hudson and Flottie are looking into the mysterious Colonel Maltravers who has been blackmailing a friend of theirs.

I love this Mrs Hudson, she is a clever and resourceful woman with friends at all levels of society, she also loves to clean, make jam and generally look after people! Flottie has been trained well and is just as intelligent and has learned much from Mrs Hudson and Holmes. I liked the writing which does have a taste of Conan Doyle in style. There are plenty of red herrings to fool even the best of detectives, and I loved how the various events came together so seamlessly. A very entertaining cosy mystery. 4.5⭐️

I enjoy this author's books. The mystery kept me guessing. I liked the setting and the characters. I look forward to more in this series.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for my eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Martin Davies does it again with the seventh in his Holmes and Hudson mystery series. What a delight to be whisked away to another world and get caught up in a missing royalty case with Balkan and Bohemian connections, politics and shenanigans. But what clinched it for me is the motley crew of characters, especially those of Mrs. Hudson and the homeless girl she took under her tutelage, Flotsam. Flottie is a quick learner, observant, keen listener, inately clever and and trained in many mental and physical skills. The two make an excellent team along with Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson.

Holmes and Watson are between cases and growing restless. Finally, thankfully (!) a princess goes missing and their client is sufficiently interesting to grab their attention. Red herrings and twists abound. The writing is refreshing and does remind me of Doyle in ways, yet I like the author's personal takes and perspectives. For rabid Sherlock Holmes fans like myself that may sound almost outrageous but I enjoyed it for what it is. The historical bits drew me in, too.

My sincere thank you to Allison & Busby and NetGalley for providing me with an early digital copy of this entrancing novel.

In *Mrs. Hudson and the Capricorn Incident*, the beloved housekeeper of 221B Baker Street steps into the spotlight in this thrilling new mystery. With the wedding of the young Duke of Krasnow and Princess of Rovenia about to captivate London, a high-profile disappearance sends shockwaves through the British establishment. Sherlock Holmes turns to his trusted housekeeper, Mrs. Hudson, and the ever-resourceful housemaid Flotsam to help solve the case.

Set against the backdrop of royal intrigue and political tensions, this intriguing whodunit allows Mrs. Hudson to showcase her sharp wit and keen eye for detail. Fans of Sherlock Holmes will love seeing this familiar universe through Mrs. Hudson’s eyes. A delightful blend of mystery, charm, and clever twists, this novel will keep readers captivated from start to finish.

MRS HUDSON AND THE CAPRICORN INCIDENT by Martin Davies is Book 7 in the series; Others include Mrs Hudson and the Malabar Rose and Mrs Hudson and the Christmas Canary. Davies follows a similar pattern with Mrs. Hudson and the housemaid, Flotsam, integral to solving a case while righting other wrongs along the way. In this case, there is to be a royal wedding, but both bride and groom have gone missing, and an international crisis is brewing. Simultaneously, the amusing socialite Miss Peters is upset about people who are being swindled and she, too, contributes to a solution by leveraging her many connections. Flotsam's quiet bravery and Mrs. Hudson's clever, careful thinking are very much on display. As Flotsam says, "It seemed utterly impossible that Mrs Hudson should know so much ... when everyone else knew so little, but of course Mrs Hudson did have a habit of knowing things that no one else knew, so although I was bewildered, I wasn't perhaps as astonished as you might expect." Enjoy this light, entertaining mystery.

I’m always into some detective work and I think it’s a blast revisiting Sherlock Holmes’ world with other characters at the forefront!

This mystery did not disappoint and was both light, entertaining and kept me truly wondering about the outcomes, most of which came as a complete surprise to me!

Flotsam is a great character and I enjoyed the adventures she seemed to get dragged into (and didn’t seem to mind one bit!) and seeing the mystery behind the whereabouts of our princess unfold with her help.

There are so many different takes and resurrections of Sherlock Holmes in print and on TV, so I wasn’t surprised to see yet another author doing something similar. Some have changed the gender of Holmes, some the period he was in, while some make Dr. Watson the brain behind the detective work, pushing Holmes into the shadows. What makes this one different is the oft hidden, forgotten character takes the center stage and solves the crime, with Holmes floating in and out of the scenes.

Martin Davies’s Mrs. Hudson is still the housekeeper of Holmes & Watson, but that is where the similarity ends. Mrs. Hudson is portrayed as a highly intelligent, observant, sharp woman with a penchant for cleaning and for solving mysteries. She leads an active life, making raspberry jams and liaising with hawkers and street urchins to gather intelligence. The book is written in first POV of Flotsam, who is the Watson to Mrs. Hudson. I wonder why Davies chose this character as the narrator, but deviate from the original Holmes series and make Mrs. Hudson herself the narrator.

Without spoiling the story, the book deals with multiple incidents which Holmes is approached to solve. What seem like disconnected incidents turn out to be tightly woven together. Mrs. Hudson connects the dots, relying on her intelligence and her network of hotel cleaning staff and men from her past.

Why I like to read mystery books is to play a detective temporarily and try to solve it before it is actually revealed in the book. For this to happen, the author should sprinkle enough clues or at least not hide clues from the reader. Another reason is of course to understand how the detective actually solves it and what clues I missed. But when the mystery gets solved or conclusions are drawn somehow, without an explanation about how, I feel let down. And this is what happened with this book. The ending of the book is so hurried and frenzied, I was left high and dry, scratching my head, wondering how the well conclusions were made.

In an attempt to make Mrs. Hudson shine, Holmes and Watson characters get sidetracked, which is reasonable but they still deserve a stronger portrayal and more page-time than what they get in this book.

I haven’t read the earlier books in this series, but going by the reviews, these seem to be good. I will pick one of these up to give this another chance.

We have all read lots of spin off stories about Holmes and Watson, now Martin Davies takes us below stairs to the realm of Mrs. Hudson. The bastion of common sense at Baker Street. Hudson has saved a homeless girl, she has named Flotsam or Flottie for short. Flottie is a very intelligent young lady and lucky for her Holmes and Mrs. Hudson make sure she is given a good education while she works.

Flottie is the narrator here. Getting to run errands is the highlight of her day and she puts together clues from the information she receives. When a prince and princess go missing in separate incidents and foreign powers are swirling to stop the wedding of the two, Holmes is called in by the Queen to find the missing young people safely. While a friend of Flottie wants Mrs. Hudson to help find a blackmailer. Flottie is pulled in both directions. Can she get her chores done and help solve the crimes?

Waaaay back in 2015, I read the fist book in this series by Martin Davies, Mrs. Hudson and the Spirits' Curse. I enjoyed it, but wasn't sure whether it was a series I'd want to put on my BOLO list. Having read the second volume in the series, I can say that I will definitely be on the lookout for more.

What I like about this series is that it's a bit gentle (cozy, even), but the minds of the characters in it—at least Mrs. Hudson; her assistant, the maid Flotsam; and Holmes himself—are very sharp. As a reader, I enjoyed trying to keep pace with them. Holmes really does take a back seat here. He is, of course, off detecting and digging up clues, but readers are getting this story via Flotsam's memories—and for Flotsam, Mrs. Hudson is a remarkable knower-of-things-unknown-to-most and Mrs. Hudson also has devoted friends and acquaintances at every level of society.

In this volume there's a risk of an international conflict if the wedding of the heir to the throne of Capricorn doesn't marry a particular princess by a particular date. Then both the heir and the princess disappear, creating panic among diplomats. At the same time, a seemingly omniscient blackmailer is is draining the coffers of Londons from social levels both high and, well not low, but definitely mid-level.

If you're looking for a mystery novel with characters you'll enjoy spending time with that offers puzzles requiring a good bit of work, you'll be delighted with Mrs. Hudson and the Capricorn Incident.

I received a free electronic review copy of this book from the publsher via NetGalley; the opinions are my own.

This is the seventh book in the Holmes and Hudson mystery series wherein housemaid, Flotsam, at 221B, Baker Street, is key to the mystery-solving. It’s 1901 and there’s a ruckus growing in a small European principality, hinging on the imminent marriage of Count Rudolph and Princess Sophia. Rudolph goes missing and his companion falls to a terrible sickness which prevents him from divulging Rudolph’s whereabouts. Then Sophia disappears and ransom notes are received. Meanwhile in Wales a woman disappears without trace from a train leaving her belongings behind. This may or not be connected to the blackmail which has been perpetrated on several people. Flotsam puts it all together with the help of the astute Mrs Hudson, and Dr Watson is there to help, while Holmes mostly absents himself.

This is a very enjoyable, fast read in a popular series which retains the Holmesian feel while utilising other members of the household to put together the key clues. Lots going on here which interconnects in complex ways, as in the traditional Sherlock mysteries. Readers also get more than a glimpse into the inner workings of the renowned Baker Street house. Recommended to Holmes fans or anyone who enjoys non-graphic early 20th-century mysteries melding fictional characters with historical ones.

I was disappointed that it wasn't TTS enabled (the robot and I usually manage 50/50) so I will have to find earlier books in the series to fully appreciate book 7.
I did enjoy the parts that I was able to read and thought it a good bit of fun from an unusual perspective.
I requested and received a temporary uncorrected digital galley from Allison & Busby Books via NetGalley. Pub Date Feb 20, 2025
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A fun book 7 in this creative series featuring Sherlock Holmes' housekeeper, Mrs. Hudson, and her exceedingly smart housemaid assistant, Flotsam, as sleuths more capable than Sherlock himself. Always love to see gutsy female characters succeed in traditional male endeavors. Can be read solo but Holmes' fans, especially, will want to devour the whole series.