An everyday god on the road

By Laurie King / April 11, 2016 /

As you probably know, I’ve been on the road since last Tuesday, talking about The Murder of Mary Russell in a variety of bookstores, tea shops, and even an opera house. During that time, I’ve also been listening to the talk about it, in person and on Facebook, and I’m so very happy that you’ve…

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Yes, that sounds like him

By Laurie King / April 9, 2016 /

One of the fun parts of The Murder of Mary Russell is that we see a very young Sherlock Holmes.  Even then, he sounds very like himself… ** The Murder of Mary Russell can be 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    …

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Street Life of London

By Laurie King / April 8, 2016 /

Parts of The Murder of Mary Russell take place in 1925, but much of it goes back to the mid-nineteenth century. The Victorian era was a time of brilliant light, spectacular technological development, and enormous social development. For the wealthy. For the rest, it was a time of rotting teeth, foul diseases, hunger, cold, and the…

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Women’s dress: 1879 & 1925

By Laurie King / April 7, 2016 /

A key date in The Murder of Mary Russell is 1879, when Sherlock Holmes and his future landlady meet. The other date is, of course, 1925, when Mary Russell…well. One thing that fascinated me is the difference in clothing between those two periods. Yes, Russell tends to wear her father’s old suits, but she couldn’t…

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A landlady’s joy

By Laurie King / April 6, 2016 /

The Murder of Mary Russell: Mrs Hudson encounters the joys [sic] of the Baker Street house. ** The Murder of Mary Russell can be 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.

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Mr Holmes’ London

By Laurie King / April 5, 2016 /

Out today: The Murder of Mary Russell, in which we meet a young Holmes, and also see a much older version of the Great Detective remembering those far-off days.  I hope you enjoy it. Key to The Murder of Mary Russell is the past of Sherlock Holmes, and especially the Victorian city through which he…

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Obits & headstones & hope, oh my! (contest winners)

By Laurie King / April 4, 2016 /

Last month, I invited all Friends of Russell to speculate on that good woman’s death: was it in 1925, or recently—or in the future? How did her obituary in The Times of London read, or what did her headstone look like. (I really have to stop doing these contests: judging them just pulls me to…

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Murder in his eyes

By Laurie King / April 4, 2016 /

The Murder.  Of Mary Russell. ** The Murder of Mary Russell can be 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.

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Mr Holmes introduces himself

By Laurie King / April 4, 2016 /

  Tomorrow… ** The Murder of Mary Russell can be 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.

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London Entertainments: oh, the choices!

By Laurie King / April 3, 2016 /

A while ago I posted a blog about a gorgeous old book I came across during research, where Charles Dickens (Jr—not riding on his father’s coat-tails or anything) writes about the city, particularly the Ratcliffe Hwy and opium dens. (The post is here.) The Dickens guide offers such an endless variety of entertainments, one is frankly torn. A…

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