I really wanted to like this one because King's Mary Russell books are so extraordinarily good. This first Kate Martinelli book introduces several interesting characters. But it didn't hold my interest at all. I guess I just didn't care about the characters -- I was never totally drawn in. I kept setting the book down and picking up a different one. The climax was intense and exciting, as King's always are, but then there's a lengthy epilogue that made me want to fast-forward through it. I DID finally finish it, but the book was just too long. One of the hardest jobs of a writer is knowing what to leave out, and one of the hardest jobs of an editor is telling the writer that. I can't recommend the book unless you're a die-hard Laurie King fan. But DO pick up "The Beekeeper's Apprentice." That's one of the best of the genre.

I don't trust my reactions enough to express them right after reading a book. But, three weeks and a half-dozen more books read, and I still have the most vivid memories of this book. Absolutely haunting. It may not be a book for puzzle-lovers, but it has well drawn characters, almost unbearable suspense as it reaches its climax, and one of the most powerfully written last paragraphs (to the main story, not the epilogue) I've ever read. The last seven words still roll through my head from time to time and bring back the whole feeling of it each time they do. I read a library copy of this book, but ordered the hardback version afterwards from Amazon.

I'd read several of Ms. King's Mary Russell books and was very disappointed. "The Beekeeper's Apprentice" showed promise, but the next books in the series were real yawners. So I picked up "A Grave Talent" with very low expectations.

Was I ever surprised! This is an incredibly good mystery that never lets up on the suspense. I had a problem for a while with the obvious intelligence and education of Kate Martinelli and Al Hawkin, but soon realized that I'd simply been reading too many 87th Precinct stories and watching too much "NYPD Blue". I just thought all cops were like that, and it's a pleasure to find out that I was wrong.

The flow of the case was completely logical and totally believable. And the three main characters - Kate, Hawkin, and Lee - were also completely believable. I also appreciated the fact that King didn't even mention the nature of Kate's relationship with Lee until halfway through the story. It turned out to be important to the story, but still King never really made it the primary issue.

I have one wish and one complaint. The wish is that I'd like to see more of Vaun Adams. She's a very interesting character and she's someone I'd like to see and hear more of. The complaint? Without giving anything away, the fate of Lee Cooper is a shock and a real downer. I hope that's resolved positively in future installments in this series.

And I hope there are future installments. King should throw the Mary Russell series away (it's been going downhill since "Beekeeper") and concentrate on Kate Martinelli. If this is any indication she's got a great thing going.

"Naked Came the Phoenix" is a serial novel written by 13 top female mystery writers and it is a whole lot of fun! I was impressed at how well the chapters flowed together, and became totally absorbed in this soap opera-like mystery. "Naked Came the Phoenix" is not a serious murder mystery, and it's not supposed to be. What it is, is an immensely enjoyable tale filled with twists and turns and outlandish characters that was created for a very good cause.

The story revolves around Caroline Blessing, a congressman's wife and cellist, who has taken a trip with her very difficult and newly widowed mother, Hilda Finch, to the exclusive Phoenix Spa in Virginia. Caroline hopes that their time at Phoenix Spa will give her mother and herself a chance to heal after her father's death, and maybe even a chance to bond. Unfortunately, Caroline's dreams of a relaxing and healing vacation go up in smoke when the spa's owner, Claudia De Vries, is found murdered in one of her own mud baths!

Caroline realizes that everyone at the spa is a potential suspect and a potential victim. The spa's guests include a model-waif and her manager, an aging rock star, a short and stout grey-haired psychic, a dried-up Hollywood producer, and a beautiful and successful actress. They all have their own hidden connections to Claudia and secrets aplenty. Not to mention Claudia's own husband, the half-naked pool-boy, and the rest of the spa's staff. Everyone has something to hide, and these 13 talented authors take us along on a fast-paced and thrilling mystery filled with strange clues, red herrings, blackmail, and incest.

And when more people start turning up dead, the very likable police detective, Vince Toscana, goes into overdrive trying to find the culprit. Not only is Caroline overwhelmed by what's going on around her, but she also must deal with some crushing news about her supposedly devoted husband Douglas. Caroline resolves to take her life back into her own hands and find out what's really going on, but there is nothing that can prepare her for the staggering truth behind the murders!

"Naked Came the Phoenix" is an outrageous and exciting murder mystery that is sure to entertain. I found the first chapter, by Nevada Barr, a bit tough to wade through, but after that every other author was great. This book is just good clean fun, and if you read it with that in mind, I have no doubt that you will enjoy it enormously.

A senator's wife and her mother go to an exclusive spa to try to relax. They meet several celebrities, which include a model, a movie star and an aging rock star. The spa owner is found murdered in one of the center's mud baths grasping in her dead hands a white thong. Every body in the spa is a suspect and each one has a secret to hide. Nobody came to the spa to relax. They all came because the owner had summoned them and has also been blackmailing some of her clients. Everyone has a motive but it is now time to find out who the murderer (murderers?) are.

I was attracted to this book by two selling points. One, all the proceeds from this book goes to help breast cancer charities; second, except for two of the authors, I had read previous works from the participants and have enjoyed every one. Each author contributes a chapter and then passes it to another author to continue the story. They all did a great job and made it interesting to see how they reacted to some outrageous plot threads put in the story. The story is definitely farfetched but it was fun. I applaud Laurie King for writing a decent final chapter to the mess provided by the other authors. All threads were tied and everybody could breath a sound of relief. I am not claiming this to be great literature but I thought the concept was a good idea and it all goes to a worthy cause.

With the recent death of her father Hamlin Finch from throat cancer, Caroline Blessing decides to help her mother Hilda deal with her grief. Though she knows that reconciling their differences will be impossible because the only way to accomplish that is unconditional surrender. Still Caroline, a cellist and wife of less than one year to a first term Tennessee Congressman, takes her mother to the exclusive Phoenix Spa.

At the spa, Caroline's mother remains her usual obnoxious manipulative self though perhaps acting a bit more bizarre than usual. The owner of the spa Claudia de Vries, her mother's college roommate, behaves even weirder than Hilda does. However, Claudia's behavior becomes moot, as someone murders her. The police and Caroline conduct separate inquiries even while other patrons die.

NAKED CAME THE PHOENIX is an entertaining collaboration from thirteen of the leading female mystery writers on the market today. The story line is fun though the line up of superstars tend to void pronouncements from the previous chapters. Still, the plot seems fresh due to Caroline who is the one consistency throughout the who-done-it. For the most part the authors provided strong entries that help make NAKED CAME THE PHOENIX a likable story. What else would you expect from a who's who consisting of Nevada Barr, J.D. Robb, Nancy Pickard, Lisa Scottoline, Perri O'Shaugnessy, J.A. Jance, Faye Kellerman, Mary Jane Clark, Marcia Talley, Anne Perry, Diana Gabaldon, Val McDermid, and Laurie King.

Harriet Klausner

When I read the Beekeeper's Apprentice, I found King's writing and plotting to be ingenious and compelling. I've read each subsequent novel with high hopes, but have become more and more disappointed. This latest addition contains little appeal of the first two books--sharply drawn and interesting characters, a clever, edge-of-your-seat pacing, and clever plotting and detection. While King is still a stellar writer, Justice Hall dragged from beginning to end, with Mary and Holmes trudging through the leg work of present-day police procedurals, relying upon luck rather than their characteristic keen insight to make sleuthing headway. Some authors sacrifice fast pacing for meaningful character development, but that is not the case here. Needless scenes have been inserted to buoy the thin plot, while Russell and Holmes behave out of character at several key points. What draws readers like me to this series are Russell and Holmes' powers of detection and their unusual and fascinating relationship. I hope King gets back on track and offer readers the wonderful plotting and characters that have made many of us her fans.

After finishing O Jerusalem I was ready to pick up the next book in the series. Unfortunately I did not realize how long I would have to wait. Luckily, in the end it was everything I had hoped for. I am a big fan of the Russell/Holmes series and I feel that this was a wonderful episode in their advenutres together. We meet a great variety of new characters (perhaps we will see Iris again soon?) and spend a lot of time with Mary. One reviewer was somewhat upset by the lack of direct time spent with Holmes but considering that these are "Mary Russell Novel"s I can't see how that could be terribly surprising, although while reading the book I personally never found Holmes conspicuously absent from the story. There is still plenty of collaboration between our heroine and her partner we just get to see a lot of Mary's perspective rather that Holmes's perspective reflected through her. I found Gabriel's mystery heartwrenching and I thought that the entire plot was well developed. I think this is an excellent continuation of the series and I hope the next book will be as equally well written! If Ms. King happens upon this, I am waiting anxiously!

Wonderful! The return of the Hazr brothers! I have waited two years for this book, and it was worth every second of the wait!
A reluctant, yet dutiful, heir. A loyal and desperate cousin. A surprise wife. A murdered and righteous man. A secret. And, of course, the remarkable pair of Holmes and Russell.
This was a great read. I would have to rank it right up there with "O Jerusalem," just behind "The Beekeeper's Apprentice" and "A Monstrous Regiment of Women." I absolutely devoured every page of this great book!

Dr. Watson carefully chose his stories so as to showcase the best of Holmes' efforts. It's a pity that Mary Russell does not show the same discretion. The book is one large red herring, from the theological discovery at the beginning that proves to have little to do with the case, down to Mary Russell's own investigations, which prove tangential to the solution. Meanwhile, Holmes -- who of all four of the individuals "detecting" on the case, is the only one on the right track -- is working offstage; we only see the results, and then only by implication. Ms. King has forgotten the first rule of a Holmes story: show us the Master in action, and then explain his methods and the steps he took to arrive at the solution. The Beekeeper's Apprentice worked precisely because the reader was fully and completely a part of the investigative process (A Monstrous Regiment of Women failed miserably because there was no investigation, but that's another story entirely). What we have in Ms. King's attempts is a third-person narrative of all the events in a case except for those events that involve Sherlock Holmes. I agree with another reviewer: Ms. King, either produce a decent Holmes pastiche, or stop teasing us with these poor substitutes!

With A Letter of Mary, Laurie King continues the ever-intriguing Mary Russell series. Again, she didn't quite live up to the first book, The Beekeeper's Apprentice, but there were those moments where everything was just right, and those moments to make this a wonderfully entertaining read.

The plot of this novel begins with Russell and Holmes' married life. Their tranquil life in Sussex is interrupted by a visit from a friend they knew from their days in the Holy Land, Dorothy Ruskin. After the visit, Ms Ruskin is murdered, and of course, Holmes and Russell set out to find the facts behind the crime. There are a lot of plot twists and red herrings thrown in to complicate the process.

The previous two novels in the series have contained and interesting mixture of elaborate character sketches, suspenceful plots, and the delightful relationship between Sherlock Holmes and Mary Russell. In The Beekeeper's Apprentice, King found just the right balance between the three aspects. In A Monstrous Regiment of Women, she leaned too heavily on Mary Russell's development, almost ignoring the plot and Holmes. In A Letter of Mary, King develops the plot more thoroughly, but again, does not have enough of that repartee between Holmes and Russell. Despite that problem, the novel, as did A Monstrous Regiment of Women, does have those moments of brilliance when the intriguing and insightful characters of Russell and Holmes are together and the plot is moving along. Chapters 11 and 19 both have some of these wonderful, somewhat subtle moments. These beautiful scenes alone would make the novel worth reading. Overall, the novel is an extremely entertaining (if slightly flawed) read, and I will be rushing out to read the next in the series.

In this third book featuring Sherlock Holmes and Mary Russell, the pair have become partners, in matrimony and sleuthing.
After the death of a friend, Holmes and Russell follow several red herrings before, inevitably, finding the culprit.
As usual, London provides the appropriate background for disguise and detection. But, it is the interaction between Holmes and Russell that keeps me coming back for more.
Like Peter and Harriet Wimsey, another pair of detectives endowed with great minds, Holmes and Russell are so pleased to have found intellectual soul mates that the text hums with their discusions.
I like the juxtapostion of the familiar Holmsian elements with the more modern views of Russell.
Appearances by Mycroft, Mrs. Hudson and the Baker Street Irregulars (even Lestrade, Jr.)anchor me to the story as the thoroughly modern Mary Russell livens the previously misogynistic formula. I recommend all lovers of Dorothy L. Sayers and Doyle to dive into Laurie King. You are in for a delightful surprise.

This book was a bit disappointing. After all, Laurie King's Mary Russell series is a humdinger. Those are real page-turners. This one was not. OK, OK, there were places where the pages couldn't turn fast enough, but really very few. The main character was very well drawn, but it kind of slumped into the realm of romance novel, which it really needn't have done. I suppose it's my own fault for having read so much about cults -- this one just didn't have the ring of truth. And it didn't seem scary enough for all the concern. The ending seemed implausible. Ah, well, it won't keep me from reading the others in my Laurie King library. But try it out for yourself: This one came highly recommended, so obviously somebody out there loved it.

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Laurie R. King is a wonderful storyteller. She has taken a disturbing premise and woven a story that keeps your interest. The story gives one new insight into the world of "religious cults" and also into the world of those who seek to understand them. As always, Ms. King has created characters who draw the reader and yet never reveals too much too soon about what makes them who they are.

The story is one of woman who has the ability to infiltrate a religious body to try to stop a supposed mass distruction. Along the way the reader finds out why she became an expert on such organizations. The reader gains new insight to this type of group while still being moved along in a story for which the ending is dubious.

I was disturbed by the book, but I was swept away in the reading of it. All in all, I enjoyed the book very much and have recommended it to others to read.

Not only has Laurie R. King created two amazing original series, the Kate Martinelli and Mary Russell books, but she has written this riveting book as well. She is a master at creating suspense, not in a cheesy John Grisham way, but deliberately leaving you hanging at the end of the chapter so you can't wait to turn the page and find out what happens. This book has a lot of interesting psychological discussions of people involved in cults and shows the mentality of the leaders, and the followers. I think King is a very fair and balanced leader and doesn't make the mistake some writers would make with this subject by showing all cult leaders as amoral, or all cults as harmful. The book keeps you hanging until the ending, which is concise bordering on abrupt. I could see how some people were dissapointed with the ending because it was so curt, but in a way, that's more interesting than books with a long drawn out conclusion and typical "happy ending." King leaves it ambiguous and more up to the reader's imagination (or maybe open to a sequel, I'm not sure). Once again, Laurie R. King shines in the world of shallow popular fiction, outstanding among her peers.

Ms. King's Mary Russell series started out with a bang when she revived Sherlock Holmes in THE BEEKEEPER'S APPRENTICE. Sadly, it's been downhill ever since, with only her third effort, A LETTER OF MARY, showing some spark of the first. THE MOOR isn't likely to win many new fans, either, with it's limp plotting that takes an ice age to get rolling. Basically, King has concocted a lame sequel to Doyle's masterwork, THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES, but without the characters, pace, or sense of danger which bind the original into such a ripping yarn. Example: You know King is in trouble when her biggest clue - presented to us half-way through the book - is Tiggy the Wounded Hedgehog. Mary Russell - the series heroine and Holmes' much, much younger bride (a development which I still find ridiculous) has become a sulky, hot headed shrew. Worse is the way that King has turned Holmes - when she bothers to include him - into a whimp, to the point that one can imagine her have him gleefully changing nappies when the inevitible Sherlock, Jr.(or Little Mary Russell Holmes) comes along. Holmes fans looking for the real thrill of adventure would be better off with Lary Millett's gripping Watson pastiches - SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE RED DEMON and SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE ICE PALACE MURDERS - than slogging through this uninspired MOOR.

.. bowled over by the first book, "The Beekeeper's Apprentice," but found this one, "The Moor," somewhat of a disapointment. The author explains everything in TO MUCH detail, and spends too much time telling everything that Mary is reading; it, quite frankly, gets boring, and the only reason I read on was to find out what the coach was really made of, and because I like Holmes, and anything to do with him I read.

The plot would have been good, but there was not enough action and too much wanderings on the Moor. I almost found myself skipping over paragraphs in order to find something exciting. The ending was good and well-written, but the story moved along too slowly.

If this would have been my first reading of this series instead of my second, I doubt I would get the next book. I also find the fact that Holmes married absolutely inconcievable, especially to a woman less than half his age; Conan Doyle, I'm sure, would have had something to say about that. Holmes thought marriage was a rather stupid thing to do and said so more than once ("Watson has deserted me for a wife" . .).

Plus, the language in this was rather shocking as well. In the first novel there was only a few bad words; in this work, they are abundent and shocking. So if you want to read a good Sherlock Holmes novel by someone other than the great Doyle himself, read "The Beekeeper's Apprentice."

While "The Moor" is not up to "Beekeeper's Apprentice"'s promise, I still pity Ms. King. It's the crowning irony of her career that when an author writes a book this good, she will inevitably not please everyone. Fans of the Holmes-Russell detecting duo will cry foul over this mystery's lukewarm punch. Fans of the emotionally satisfying Holmes-Russell courtship and marriage will sift "The Moor" for bodice-ripping scenes--in vain. And fans of the Sherlock Holmes Canon will yell automatically, but we who love her books them anyway.

Still, it's one of her best, and for the same reasons all her Mary Russell books--even the weak ones--are good. Dartmoor unfolds before us as a kind of moral proving ground, a Presence. We are introduced to Sabine Baring-Gould in the winter of his prolific life, and to his house, which is another Presence--ramshackle, book-lined, with the smell of dinner wafting through to the dusty library. Ms. King knows what she likes, and delivers: innumerable fires in the grate, banked up against the storm outside, and chairs drawn up to the fire-irons, and the tea-things close to hand. She knows Holmes looks must fetching slumped in a fireside chair at 2 a.m., his fingers steepled as he ruminates a difficult case with Mary.

And she knows that what her fans really want is not merely a cold-blooded mystery nor an incongruous bodice-ripper, but for her characters to be true to the real adult people they so obviously are, and to love each other. Which they do, in spades. Holmes' unspoken devotion to Baring-Gould was nicely understated. And King's most romantic scene in the Beekeeper books occurs as Mary, in slightly over her head while sleuthing, paces the floor for Holmes' return. A deftly written moment, and one that makes me wonder how some readers could have so completely misunderstood what Laurie King was trying to say about the integrity of erotic love and emotional bonds.

Alas, "The Moor" was over too soon, and I was left immersed in an atmosphere of old books, old hymns, the power of the moor, and the passing of something grand and beautiful. Not bad, for a historical mystery.