Becoming Mrs Hudson
The Mrs Hudson we know and love, first in Conan Doyle’s Baker Street and later in Russell’s life, may not be quite the same young woman we meet in The Murder of Mary Russell. (One week from today!) Don’t worry, I don’t intend to say anything about the process of transformation, because that would be […spoiler…], but we know how it turned out: a grey-haired lady bringing trays of tea and scones.
Lots of us grey-haired ladies start off as other than we are, and meet some interesting people along the way.
But in case you’re worried that a nice young lady like Miss Hudson isn’t exactly qualified to be a housekeeper, you have to remember that this is an age of self-help,
that kitchens are filled with labor-saving devices
and Mrs Beeton has books to consult for those puzzled about those large machines in the kitchen.
So if you’re worried about Mrs Hudson, don’t be. I’m sure she’ll have a lot of help from her two tenants. I know I did.
***
The Murder of Mary Russell, which publishes April 5, may be pre-ordered as:
A signed US hardback from Bookshop Santa Cruz or Poisoned Pen Books
An unsigned hardback or ebook from B&N/Nook or Amazon/Kindle
A UK hardback from Waterstones, or hard/ebook from Amazon UK.
Having had the immense pleasure of reading an ARC of “The Murder of Mary Russell,” (and I plan to read it again when the “real” book comes out, not to mention listen to the audio book), I can assure your fans that the Mrs. Hudson they will meet in the book is NOT anyone they will have imagined. The special thrill for me, though, was encountering a young Sherlock Holmes, who is like a juvenile eagle, still developing his feathers but recognizably the man we will come to know and love. What a terrific book!!!!
I can hardly wait to read The Murder of Mary Russell. In the meantime I began The Beekeeper’s Apprentice again. I raced through it years ago because the story was so fascinating. Now that I am savoring every paragraph, I appreciate your facility with words and your wonderful ability to write so well even more, Laurie. Your detail and descriptions put me directly at the scene. I have such satisfaction in reading your books and am grateful to inhabit the worlds you have created. Thank you!
May I humbly suggest that when reading The Beekeeper’s Apprentice you stop when they leave England to read O Jerusalem!, and the finish the first book to both extend the experience and to get a better feeling of Russell and Holmes experience of the adventure. It’s a delightful way to take the journey!
I wholeheartedly agree! I can understand why they were published as two books, and am glad my initial reading was in the order published, But for re-reading, I think it is helpful to have O Jerusalem! read in its chronological place — before the Monstrous Regiment of Women. I confess to a particular fondness for O Jerusalem! — as a seminary student in the early 1980s I lived for a semester in the Old City of Jerusalem in the Arab Quarter, studying archaeology and historical geography (as well as biblical Hebrew). Living there for a semester’s length gave a chance to poke around in obscure corners and meet weavers in the area described in the text, etc. I enjoy the book for its own sake, and for its place in the Russell canon, but also for the way its narrative dovetails with my own time there, and the recurring dreams (after more than 30 years!) of being back on the stone pavement and twisting streets of the Old City. ‘If I forget thee…”
How wonderful to have had that experience. I admit to some envy!
It’s killing me! I will be driving driving driving this weekend and my pre-order will (hopefully ) be waiting at home, while I can’t get an audiobook until next week. Oh the pain!
Laurie – did you photo shop (or whatever) your face onto Mrs. Hudson in the pictures above? You’re certainly not an ‘old lady’, but they resemble you so much!! LOL Can’t wait til the book comes – pre-ordered it ages ago!!
Oh, I noticed that as well! So amusing! Such a clever classy lady.
Oh good – thought I might have just been seeing things! LOL
Love the pictures and looking forward to the book
How’d you do that, Mrs. Hudson … er, Ms King??? Cannot wait for what you have in store for us!
Would love to get my hands on a volume of Mrs Beeton’s fabulous go-to books. I’ll bet it would be rather like reading the original “Emily Post” book, as my friend and I did one memorable evening. As single parents of young children, on (ahem) assistance and trying to go to school full-time while maintaining some sort of order and cleanliness in our very humble homes, that tome (plus a bottle of Two-Buck Chuck) had us literally writhing on the floor. When to choose kid gloves vs silk…selecting one’s calling cards…How does this apply to coaxing a couple of gallons of gas in the junker to last until the 3rd of the month?
I noticed that Mrs Hudson is referred to as a single lady in “nice young lady like Miss Hudson” AND as a married woman “worried about Mrs Hudson”. I am sure that Mary Russell’s biographer and literary agent Laurie R King did not make a typographical error.
Also, Miss Mary Russell was alive and well when ” The Beekeepers Apprentice ” was first published in 1994, cling to the belief that our dear Mary survives ” The Murder of Mary Russell “.
Lastly – I read ” The Marriage of Mary Russell ” last Wednesday while I waited for outpatient surgery to begin. Yes I loved it and it was the perfect distraction.
I absolutely love this Sherlockian (sp?) world that Laurie R King has created. I’m chomping at the bit for the next book. Read the Marriage of Mary Russell last weekend and will read it again a little slower.
Laurie R King, I Can hardly wait to meet you in Denver.