Tuesday, June 23, 2015

O Jerusalem by Laurie R. King


First Line: During the final week of December 1918, shortly before my nineteenth birthday, I vanished into British-occupied Palestine in the company of my friend and mentor Sherlock Holmes.

At the close of 1918, Sherlock Holmes and nineteen-year-old Mary Russell find themselves in Palestine, thanks to Holmes' brother, Mycroft. Authorities there have been baffled by a series of unsolved murders that appear to be unrelated to the growing tensions among the Jewish, Moslem, and Christian factions.

When Holmes insists on reconstructing the latest homicide, the information he gleans leads them straight into danger in the city of Jerusalem. It is in Jerusalem that Holmes and Mary will meet the adversary who will stop at nothing to gain the most seductive thing of all: Power.

Since I'm reading these books in order, I remember Mary Russell telling readers that she and Holmes had spent an extended period of time in Palestine, and O Jerusalem fills in the details. This fifth book in the series did a lot more than advance the story of Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes. For me, it helped to fill a large historical gap from the time of the Romans until 1948-- and it did so with style. In fact I didn't realize that the mystery didn't really begin until about halfway through the book because I was enjoying the trek Mary and Sherlock were undertaking.

King's subtle humor is sublime as she takes this intrepid duo through the desert with Ali and Mahmoud, two guides who aren't all that enthused about their charges (especially Mary). Life as a nomad is thirsty, blister-inducing, filthy work, and the author tells her tale so well that I often felt like taking a shower and burying my head in a bucket of ice water when I had to set the book aside.

Readers are treated to the sights, sounds, and smells of Jerusalem, as well as bazaars and cliff-hugging monasteries as they watch Ali and Mahmoud's slowly changing opinions of their English companions. The mystery is a good one that keeps the little grey cells chugging away even as I cringed while being taken deep into ancient Jerusalem. 

O Jerusalem is filled with what I love so much about this series: marvelous characterizations, an intriguing mystery to solve, a wonderful dry wit, and a setting that I can really sink my teeth into. Bring on the next one!
 

O Jerusalem by Laurie R. King
ISBN: 9780553383249
Bantam Books © 2009
Paperback, 448 pages

Historical Mystery, #5 Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes mystery
Rating: A
Source: Paperback Swap 


9 comments:

  1. I'm glad you enjoyed this so well, Cathy. Sometimes, those 'fill in the time gap' books don't work as well; they feel 'shoehorned in' or in some other way contrived. I'm happy to hear that this one wasn't like that.

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    1. Yes, with some authors the fill-in-the-gap books feel like they were searching for some sort of idea, any sort of idea. Not so with King. It feels as though she purposely leaves in those gaps. Perhaps it's so she can travel to those particular locations to do her research and scouting first.

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  2. This is one of my favorite books of all time, Cathy. I reread it any time I'm in the mood for high adventure.(I even have it on audio.) Love Ali and Mahmoud, The city of Jerusalem simply comes alive as do its environs, I really do believe that next to THE BEEKEEPER'S APPRENTICE, this is King's other masterpiece,

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    1. That whole trek... and then the city of Jerusalem? Marvelous!

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  3. Hmmm. Have to bookmark this on my TBR list (sigh).

    Interesting history. Do you think King researched this well and that she is objective?

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  4. Definitely enjoyed this one. And you will see Ali and Mahmoud again.

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