London, 1889: As the much younger sister of Sherlock and Mycroft Holmes, Enola Holmes is no stranger to deductive reasoning. Enola’s investigative skills served her well while dodging Sherlock’s attempts to find her in the wake of her mother’s disappearance.
Now, at fifteen, Enola lives happily alone at her club in London and is prepared to take on clients of her own. If only anyone would go to a girl for an investigative assistance. Lacking cases of her own, Enola is free to assist Miss Letitia Glover when Sherlock’s melancholia prevents him from doing so.
When Miss Glover receives news of her twin sister Felicity’s death, she knows immediately that something is terribly wrong. Letitia is certain that she would sense–would know–if her sister was dead. She does not. Furthermore, the Earl of Dunhench’s note about his wife’s demise is curt to the point of being suspicious. Then there’s the matter of the death certificate being signed by none other than Dr. John H. Watson–who Enola has on authority has no knowledge of Felicity, alive or dead.
Looking into the the Earl soon reveals that Felicity is not his first dead wife. As Enola learns more about the Earl’s household and a mysterious black barouche, Enola will need all of her wits (and some of Sherlock’s besides) to solve the case and uncover the Earl’s secrets in Enola Holmes and the Black Barouche (2021) by Nancy Springer.
Enola Holmes and the Black Barouche starts a new cycle for Enola Holmes–a character who recently gained popularity and renewed interest thanks to the 2020 Netflix film starring Millie Bobby Brown as Enola and Henry Cavill as Sherlock. Enola Holmes and the Black Barouche is the seventh volume in this series but can also serve as an entry point for new readers. The events of books one through six are succintly explained to readers in a prologue narrated by Sherlock (he returns for an epilogue to wrap the story) before shifting to Enola’s narration. Recurring characters like Viscount Tewkesbury, Marquess of Basilwether who played a major role in previous installments are also introduced with quick recaps. All characters are presumed white.
Fans of audiobooks will be well served by this title, as narrated by Tamaryn Payne and Christopher Bonwell, which brings Enola’s Victorian England vividly to life.
Enola is a sharply intelligent and capable main character who is pleasantly aware of her own capabilities. Enola’s penchant for investigation translates to a fast-paced and richly detailed narrative as Springer describes everything from Enola’s surroundings to the clues key to unraveling the case. Unlike her brother, Enola enjoys the finer things in life and is happy to regale readers with details of her wardrobe and her meals carefully woven into the narrative. These touches lend a unique flavor to Enola’s mysteries even with her similarities to Sherlock (and appearances by the great detective and Dr. Watson).
Enola Holmes and the Black Barouche is a welcome return for a literary sibling now famous in her own right; a must read for fans of Sherlock Holmes retellings and reinterpretations as well as readers of historical mysteries.
Possible Pairings: Sherlock, Lupin and Me: The Dark Lady Book by Irene Adler, Death Cloud by Andrew Lane, The Case of the Missing Moonstone by Jordan Stratford, The Mysterious Howling by Maryrose Wood
*An advance audio listening copy of this title was provided by the publisher through Libro.fm*
Miss Print 