I think this was one of the really great used bookstore finds I had! I love finding good books at used bookstores, especially books I’ve read a lot of good reviews for. Also, it’s a coming of age story with Sherlock Holmes connections and a girl main character way ahead of her time! What’s not to like?
Since her parent’s death, Dora has been in on a deep family
secret: her real father is not the man who raised her, but instead the famous
detective: Sherlock Holmes. Growing up in the country, Dora learns everything a
woman should, while simultaneously reading Sherlock Holmes’ stories and
practicing her detective skills of course. When an opportunity arrives for Dora
to go to London with her cousin (for the season), she jumps at the opportunity.
And when Dora learns of her cousin’s problems with blackmail, she of course
suggests consulting Sherlock Holmes, himself.
The only problem though is that when they get to London, and
Dora runs to Sherlock Holmes’ home, she finds out that he has died too,
something about falling into a waterfall. Before breaking the bad news to her
cousin (who knows nothing of Dora’s true heritage) though, she bumps into a
different young detective’s assistant, Mr. Peter Cartwright, who offers his
services instead.
While Peter is helping with the case of Dora’s cousin’s
blackmail, he also gets put on the case of a missing heiress. And when it
becomes clear that the two cases are connected (or at least taking place on the
same estate), Dora lies, acts, and risks everything to be part of the
investigation, to put her coveted detectiving skills to good use. She ends up
pretending to be a scullery maid on the estate with the missing heiress and the
blackmailer. With staged flirtations, secret messages, snooping around rooms,
and befriending the house staff, Dora is able to find clues that Mr. Cartwright
can’t. The two work together, each equally bringing in what they can.
There’s guns, dancing, romance, bar scenes, lying,
subterfuge, and lots of Sherlock Holmes-type deductions. There are
conversations that Dora has with Mr. Cartwright that sound like they were taken
directly from Mr. Holmes’ lips. And the relationship between Mr. Cartwright and
Dora is filled with tension, rivalry, a little bit of animosity, and just the
perfect amount of romantic possibility.
There are a lot of moments where people just have to get
used to the fact that Dora doesn’t care too much for her reputation. She does
what she has to do to solve a case, including getting injured. I didn’t think
much of her injury because Dora kept choosing not to as well, but I was
forgetting how little people back then could do for injuries, and I’m glad the
author made the whole scenario more believable in regards to it getting
infected.
The book is worth reading just to read the conversations
between Mr. Cartwright and Dora. Dora is full of insight, intelligence, and
bravery. It’s hard not love her. And the more you learn about Mr. Cartwright,
it’s impossible not to love him as well. They both have had tough pasts and
things they cannot forget, however much they wish to. I liked how the two cases
combined. I found the missing girl story just as riveting as the blackmailing
story. And I loved how there were secret letters throughout all of the stories,
making the title justly put!
My problem with the book though lies in its believability.
For starters, Dora, while pretending to be a scullery maid, was able to leave
her jobs many times. She snuck out, investigated, left the estate on several
occasions, and outwardly flirted with a couple of men. She did this all without
being punished. Granted most of my knowledge of giant estates and the staff
that worked them is coming from the show, Downton Abbey…but there is no
possible way this could have happened. Even a smart, deductive, reasonable girl
like Dora could not have possibly accomplished what she did while also doing
all of her house responsibilities.
Clearly the author did her research when it comes to
manners, etiquette, maid responsibilities, etc; however, it was very
sugarcoated. All the times Dora was caught not being where she was supposed to
be would have most definitely resulted in much harsher circumstances for her.
There was a hierarchy in the house for sure and I love all the things Scheier
commented in regards to house politics, but the lack of harshness and
punishment made it too unbelievable for me. Also, it would be impossible for a
maid to do everything she was paid to do and solve two investigations –there
just isn’t enough time in the day.
I also didn’t really believe how easily Dora’s cousin took
to the lie Dora fed her about why she had to leave. I feel like Dora’s cousin,
while in the dark about certain issues, is close enough to Dora to know that
she was lying. She could also easily tell what her cousin wished she was doing,
and I don’t think her cousin was dumb enough to act the way she did.
Regardless though of some of its believability, this book
was nothing but charming. The writing was excellent, the mysteries were
intriguing, and the characters were great! I give it a 8/10. And I will be
hoping for a sequel because there was a little foreshadow of a possible sequel
to come. I of course need to read more about Mr. Cartwright!
Ha, this definitely is not the most believable book in the world, but wasn't it just so much fun? I wonder if there will be more. I would totally go for it!
ReplyDeleteDefinitely! I would be all set for a mystery series even.
Delete