Justice Hall

Format:	Paperback 346 pages

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Synopsis

The latest in Laurie R King's hugely popular Mary Russell mystery series: 'Beguiling variation on Sherlock Holmes sequels! civilized, ingenious and engrossing' -- Literary Review Hours after Holmes and Russell return from solving the murky riddle of The Moor, a bloodied but oddly familiar stranger pounds desperately on their front door, pleading for their help. When he recovers, he lays before them the story of the enigmatic Marsh Hughenfort, younger brother of the Duke of Beauville, returned to England upon his brother's death, determined to learn the truth about the untimely death of the hall's expected heir! a puzzle he is convinced only Holmes and Russell can solve. It's a mystery that begins during the Great War of 1918, when young Gabriel Hughenfort, the late Duke's only son, died amidst scandalous rumors that have haunted the family ever since. While Holmes heads to London to uncover the truth of Gabriel's war record, Russell joins an ill-fated shooting party. A missing diary, a purloined bundle of letters, and a trail of ominous clues comprise a mystery that will call for Holmes's cleverest disguises and Russell's most daring journeys into the unknown! from an English hamlet to the city of Paris to the wild prairie of the New World. The trap is set, the game is afoot, but can they catch an elusive villain in the act of murder before they become his next victims?

Book details

Published
01/12/2003

Publisher
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd

ISBN
9780007111381

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Jacket review

'Crime fiction's most unlikely but utterly credible romance! Laurie King is the most interesting writer to emerge on the American crime fiction front in recent years' Val McDermid (on THE BEEKEEPER'S APPRENTICE) 'A novel which challenges the cliches of history' Indpendent (on A MONSTROUS REGIMENT OF WOMEN) 'King's novel is civilized, ingenious and engrossing' Literary Review (of THE BEEKEEPER'S APPRENTICE)

UK Kirkus review

Sherlock Holmes and his one-time apprentice, now partner and wife, Mary Russell, have just returned home from their latest assignment when a stranger, badly injured yet oddly familiar, turns up on their doorstep late one evening. After the obligatory cup of hot, sweet tea, the stranger unveils himself as one-time Palestinian brigand, Ali, now seemingly transformed into a member of the English aristocracy and urging the sleuths to accompany him to his family seat where a mystery awaits. There they are met by Ali's comrade in arms, Mahmoud, himself now re-invented as Marsh Hughenfort, younger brother of the late Duke of Beauville, and, unless an heir can be found, destined to inherit the title and the beautiful Justice Hall. Only Holmes and Russell, it seems, will be able to save him from such an unwelcome fate, and the search begins for the rightful heir, unearthing many questions to be answered along the way. What really happened to the late Duke's only son, killed in mysterious circumstances in the Great War? Can the enigmatic Frenchwoman claiming to be the mother of his son be trusted? And who fired the stray shot that almost felled Marsh during a shooting party? Donning the requisite disguises, the pair set off on a trail which takes them from London to Paris to Canada, through tedious war records and heart-rending diaries and letters. It is an ancient chest in the family seat, however, which yields up the final clue to the mystery. In this the sixth of her series of Sherlock Holmes sequels, King succeeds in combining an intriguing and suspenseful plot with all the hallmarks and style of her predecessor. Add to that the narrative voice of the appealingly feisty, thoroughly modern, yet, when required, traditionally submissive Russell, and this makes for a most enjoyable read. (Kirkus UK)