Death Cloud

If you’ve visited my blog in the past, I’ve mentioned my love of all things Sherlock Holmes and this middle grade/young adult novel does not disappoint.  Death Cloud: Sherlock Holmes, The Legend Begins written by Andrew Lane is approved by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s estate and his surviving relatives, which made me even more excited to read this story.

It is the summer of 1868 and rather than spending the holiday with his brother, Mycroft, in exciting London, Sherlock is sent to his aunt and uncle’s country home in Hampshire.  Sherlock is a mere fourteen years old when he solves his first murders with the help of a street urchin named Mattie, an American tutor by the name of Amyus Crowe, and his daughter, Virginia.  The author is very descriptive with the setting and characters, but that adds to the reality of Sherlock Holmes and his affinity for details.  The mystery was exciting to follow and was well-paced and suspenseful.  This is only the first in the series and I’ll definitely be adding the second one, Rebel Fire, which was just published in April of this year.

The author also provides information about the character Sherlock Holmes, as well as the original author, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in a few pages of notes at end of the book along with a bibliography of sources that were used to recreate 19th century London.  Visit Andrew Lane’s website for more information and check out the book trailer – it’s pretty awesome!

Title: Death Cloud
Author: Andrew Lane
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Publication Date: 2011
Page Number: 320 pgs.