***Review posted on The Eater of Books! blog***

A Conspiracy in Belgravia by Sherry Thomas
Book Two of the Lady Sherlock series
Publisher: Berkley Books
Publication Date: September 5, 2017
Rating: 4 stars
Source: eARC from NetGalley

Summary (from Goodreads):

The game is afoot as Charlotte Holmes returns in the atmospheric second novel in New York Times bestseller Sherry Thomas's Victorian-set Lady Sherlock series.

Being shunned by Society gives Charlotte Holmes the time and freedom to put her extraordinary powers of deduction to good use. As “Sherlock Holmes, consulting detective,” aided by the capable Mrs. Watson, she’s had great success helping with all manner of inquiries, but she’s not prepared for the new client who arrives at her Upper Baker Street office.

Lady Ingram, wife of Charlotte’s dear friend and benefactor, wants Sherlock Holmes to find her first love, who failed to show up at their annual rendezvous. Matters of loyalty and discretion aside, the case becomes even more personal for Charlotte as the missing man is none other than Myron Finch, her illegitimate half brother.

In the meanwhile, Charlotte wrestles with a surprising proposal of marriage, a mysterious stranger woos her sister Livia, and an unidentified body that surfaces where least expected. Charlotte’s investigative prowess is challenged as never before: Can she find her brother in time—or will he, too, end up as a nameless corpse somewhere in the belly of London?

What I Liked:

This sequel novel was incredible, quite possibly even better than A Study in Scarlet Women. I don't read nearly enough mystery fiction novels, but I'm glad I started reading this one. Clearly Sherry Thomas can write anything, and I'd enjoy it!

In this second book, Charlotte Holmes has a new set of cases that are puzzling and strange. Lady Ingram has sent a request for Sherlock Holmes, to find her childhood love, who did not meet her at their annual rendezvous. There is something peculiar about this request, and Charlotte knows it's not just the case of a missing man - especially when Lady Ingram cites that the man is Myron Finch, Charlotte's half-brother. Throw in a dead man and some business from the previous novel, and it is clear that this is no ordinary situation. Charlotte and Mrs. Watson must find Myron Finch before any unpleasant business catches up to him - or them.

There are so many moving parts to this story, which was fantastic! Charlotte takes on several cases, and some of them intersect. The primary one is that of Lady Ingram, but there is also a woman who believes her housekeeper is trying to poison her. There is the matter of the dead man, whom Charlotte happens upon by chance, in some ways. In the end, all of these plots come together, except one. I thought it was so neat, how everything connected. As you're reading the story, you wonder about each individual case. But then as the climax draws near, it becomes obvious that many things are connected.

Thomas had me guessing about everything, right up until 98% of the book, when all is revealed. Don't get me wrong, the author drops information here and there, enough to make you think you understand what the mystery is. But the big reveal is nothing like I would have expected. I must applaud Thomas for how she set up the crime and the mystery!

Charlotte is so, so clever! I can't imagine writing such a clever character being easy! She is so perceptive and intelligent - nothing gets past her. She is so formidable when using her brain. Thomas did an amazing job of writing Charlotte.

The other characters were equally as well-developed and likable. I enjoyed reading scenes from Mrs. Watson's POV - she is a very kind and intelligent woman. Most of the book is written from Charlotte's POV, but all is from third-person, so the author had the freedom to have scenes from different characters' POVs. It was mostly Charlotte and Mrs. Watson. Mrs. Watson is a fantastic sidekick, and I liked seeing her friendship with Charlotte grow and solidify more.

Lord Ingram is a big part of this story, though he plays less of a big role as he did in the first book. His presence is always noticed, even though he is barely in the book (in terms of being in the same space as Charlotte). He is as honorable and clever as always, though of course not nearly as clever as Charlotte. He is a good man.

We also got to read from Livia's POV, and I liked that. Livia is a sweet girl, and her part of the story was fun to read. Fun, and sometimes a little wistful, but also hopeful. She has begun writing the tales of Sherlock Holmes and I think it's obvious that she loves it.

In terms of romance, there is even less of it than there was in book one, at least for Charlotte. She does get a proposal but not from who we as readers would want (that couldn't happen anyway). However, this proposal thing is dealt with by the end of the book. Fret not!

I won't say too much more, especially in terms of the mystery. Suffice it to say, Thomas has written a really good mystery that will be difficult for most readers to crack, until the end.

What I Did Not Like:

I would say the only thing I would complain about is the lack of romance. I understand why, but I want romance between Charlotte and her man! I think it'll be more possible in the next book, but still. The setup of the possible romance is so strange. But I guess it might move in a good direction in book three. Maybe? I don't know!

Would I Recommend It:

I highly recommend these books to fans of mystery novels. This is a historical fiction novel that is purely mystery-based. And if you hadn't noticed yet, it's a gender-swapped Sherlock Holmes story. It's great for adults or young adults, even though it is published under an adult imprint. I kept guessing at the mystery until the very end, which is the mark of a great mystery novel, to me!

Rating:

4 stars. I can't wait to see what is in store for Charlotte next! I do hope certain things proceed (you know what I'm talking about), but I also hope certain things are addressed and brought to light, in book three. Basically, I have a lot of expectations for book three!

Pardon how incoherent this review will come across as, but I’m trying to control my gushing enthusiasm and failing. I adored A Conspiracy in Belgravia, it was even better that A Study in Scarlet Women, and that’s a hard feat to accomplish.

First off, Charlotte. We get to know her even more in this book. What makes her tick, what are her fears, what does she loves and hates, and her ingrained sense of responsibility and protectiveness for her sisters. We also get to see her using disguises, to mask her appearance and demeanor and it was all expertly done and sometimes hilarious. Charlotte grows as a character due to her fall from society, what she went through before meeting Mrs. Watson and for her more independent lifestyle and professional investigation business. Charlotte adores food and sweets most of all and thus food is very prominent in the story in a very funny way.

Lord Ingram is Charlotte’s best friend. They’ve known each other since childhood and although there is romantic tension between them, nothing can happen since Lord Ingram is locked in an unhappy marriage. He’s protective of Charlotte and does what he can to help her. However, Charlotte appears to be so unfeeling and serious that it’s hard for others to tell what she’s thinking.

We get to visit with known characters and with a few new ones. Mrs. Watson, a former actress and wealthy widow is Charlotte’s friend and often a mother figure. She helps her to continue her business by providing an “office”, companionship, assistance with investigation and more. Penelope is Mrs. Watson’s nice and she’s a med student on vacation from school. She also becomes invested in the investigations and provides a big contrast to Charlotte’s innate seriousness and silent demeanor.

Besides from Lord Ingram, Mrs. Watson, and Charlotte, part of the story is also from Livia’s point of view (all in the third person). I liked to know Livia more, she’s very anxious of doing the wrong thing, of not finding a husband, of disappointing everyone. However, she starts writing a book based on Charlotte’s cases, but starting Sherlock Holmes. Inspector Treadles is not as prominent in this books, but still appears as he is very upset of learning Holmes’ identity in the previous book. His narrow-minded view of women’s roles in society is very common for the time, but I hope he grows out of it. Interestingly there is also mention of Moriarty, a criminal and dangerous mastermind and I’m sure we will learn a lot more about that in upcoming books. Oh, and Charlotte get’s proposed to again 🙂

There is more than one case in A Conspiracy in Belgravia. The main one comes from Lady Ingram who is looking for Mr. Myron Finch, a love interest before she got married. Mr. Finch happens to be Charlotte’s illegitimate half-brother and thus she takes the case. This case is like an octopus, with arms that take different paths that end up with death bodies, treason, coded messages and more.

Sherry Thomas is a master storyteller. Not only does she crafts an intricate set of stories that seamlessly fit together like puzzle pieces, but she does so without the reader ever guessing what that next piece is. I have no idea of what happened or why until we were shown and told. It’s an incredible gift that kept me enthralled and had me turning page after page.

I cannot recommend the series enough, especially for fans of Sherlock Holmes

A Conspiracy in Belgravia picks up one day after book one ends. Charlotte has discovered Mrs. Watson was hired by Lord Ingram to offer Charlotte support after she ruins herself and leaves home. Charlotte’s parents are humiliated by her actions and plotting ways to bring Charlotte to heel while she schemes to find a way to bring her other siblings into her home permanently. She has triumphantly solved her first case as Sherlock Holmes and is contacted by two new clients; one of which is a shock. Lady Ingram, the wife of Charlotte’s oldest friend and benefactor, has asked for help finding a missing person. This leads to a series of revelations that could not only affect the Ingram marriage and Charlotte’s relationship with Lord Ingram but also her future.

“Hello brother…”

Of course, Lady Ingram cannot know that Charlotte is the infamous Holmes so an elaborate ruse is concocted with the help of Penelope Redmayne, Mrs. Watson’s niece. As Charlotte digs deeper into the Ingram case, she finds a connection to another case and the criminal mastermind, Moriarty. To top it all off, Lord Bancroft has proposed again and this time, Charlotte is seriously considering it.

“It wasn’t easy to surprise Charlotte but Lord Bancroft was coming dangerously close to flabbergasting her.”

The various relationships we form in life all play a large role in Sherry Thomas’ latest historical adventure. This delightful concoction of mystery, intrigue, humor, and agency effortlessly engages as we follow our heroine, Charlotte Holmes, in her bid for independence and free will while she puts her analytical mind against some the city’s best. The potential for romance adds a sense of longevity while Thomas’s sharp and witty dialogue, inventive plotlines, and atypical characters rebuilds the world that offers readers a fresh feminist at an old legend.

“…there had been no Sherlock Holmes, ever, only a woman possessed of a brilliant mind. A woman who was never longer acceptable in polite society.”

While I am not intimate with Arthur Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes, I am familiar with the general premise and the main cast of characters. Thomas’ use of the Holmes canon as a starting point in which to create and fine tune her interpretation in an intriguing bridge for fans to form their own connections between the two worlds. Readers of Doyle’s Holmes may recognize the similarities in this story with A Scandal in Bohemia though it’s very faint and Thomas definitely takes liberties. Thomas also begins to draw comparisons between her’s and Doyle’s characters; creating her own version of Mycroft (Lord Bancroft), Inspector Lestrade (Inspector Treadles), and interestingly enough, Irene Adler and the King of Bohemia (I’ll let the reader discover who is the King and who is Irene).

Charlotte intrigues as an unconventional protagonist in a time when women normally went from childhood to marriage with very little else allowed. Her experiences have changed her, regardless of what she believes, and her growth is evident as she begins to form connections beyond her limited social sphere. Thomas continues to give voice to the prejudicial and judgemental attitude Charlotte and the other women of this story face on a daily basis. No matter how intelligent and clever they are, their gender will always be the deciding factor in how society deals with them. One glaring example of this is a conversation between Lord Ingram and Charlotte. Ingram feels some tension coming off his old friend, Inspector Treadles, and expresses shock when Charlotte explains it’s because of her.

“He respects women he deems worthy of respect—I am no longer one of those in his eyes. He is not pleased that he has helped and been helped by a woman he cannot respect. And he cannot think as highly of you as he had earlier, because my lack of respectability seems to have made no difference to you.”

“What kind of a friend would I be if I’d cut ties the moment you were no longer acceptable to the rest of Society? And why should he be offended that I didn’t do it?”

“…there are men like Inspector Treadles, an excellent person by almost all standards. But he admires the world as it is and he subscribes to the rules that uphold the world as it is. For him then it’s the principle of the thing. Anyone who breaks the rules endangers the order of the world and should be punished. He does not ask whether the rules are fair; he only cares that they are enforced. Someone like me, who has broken the rules blatantly without seeming to have suffered any consequences—I am an affront, a menace to the order that he holds dear. Worse, his opinion is immaterial to me and he cannot do anything about it. It must chafe at him. I only hope his wife fares better, if she ever breaks any rules he deems important.”

“But he loves her!”

“I’m sure he does. Let’s remember, however, that he also admired Sherlock Holmes, until he discovered Charlotte Holmes’s transgressions.”

A bonus of this series for me so far is that Thomas doesn’t attempt to insult or manipulate the reader into thinking that Charlotte is anything more than what she presents. She is intelligent, emotionally dense, and possesses a disconcerting ability to dissect people. She’s a young, unmarried, socially ruined woman who will eventually have to pay the piper for the things she has done. Society will demand its pound of flesh.

A varied well-defined cast of secondary characters all play a much necessary role in developing and maintaining the various while promoting their individualism. Charlotte’s sister Livia is a delight and I thoroughly enjoyed watching her attempts to pen Sherlock Holmes’ fanfic. Her love of fictional drama only endears her more to me and her fear of failure is second to her love for Charlotte and their sister Bernadine. Charlotte sums up Livia brilliantly here;

“Life is not easy for Livia – it has never been. She is an intelligent, discerning woman who believes her intelligence and discernment to be of no value.”

Lord Ingram and Lord Bancroft both want Charlotte but for different reasons, neither of which seem to offer any real long term benefits for her. Charlotte’s relationship with the older Watson fluctuates between a parental tone and one on which they are equals- creating one of the bonds I spoke of earlier. Lady Ingram, though not a friend, is strong antagonist whose choices and duplicity speaks further of women’s lack of agency. Charlotte and Lady Ingram are far more alike than originally thought as they each strove to do what they wanted, merely choosing a different route. Inspector Treadles holds a far smaller role in here though his relationship with his wife Alice is expounded on and relates back to the common theme running through here on marriage, ownership, women, and their perceived places. Interested in seeing what becomes of this subplot.

Thomas kept me on my toes with the dual investigations and I found myself almost giddy at the twists and turns Thomas injects. I love the inclusion of Moriarty into the storyline and the possible role he will be taking. I admit to missing a few clues and being forced to reread certain sections but once I figured it out, it was smooth sailing. To my delight, Charlotte takes a far more active role in here and the ending wraps up the main conflict while setting the stage for more to come.

A Conspiracy in Belgravia has an excellent follow up to A Study in Scarlet Women and I find myself excited to see what Thomas have in store for Holmes and Watson in the future.

Grade: B+

Thanks Berkley Publishing Group and netgalley for this ARC.

Sherry Thomas has a winner with this series. She can't write them fast enough to satisfy my craving for this next book. Intriguing, sly, witty, and full of danger and passion. What more can you ask for?

Stevie‘s review of A Conspiracy in Belgravia (Lady Sherlock, Book 2) by Sherry Thomas
Historical Mystery published by Berkley 05 Sep 17

I was very taken with the first novel in the Lady Sherlock series and keen to see where Charlotte Holmes’ detective skills would lead her and her companions next. We pick up the story a short while after ‘Sherlock’ Holmes’ first notable case, although we soon learn that ‘he’ has also been solving more mundane and domestic mysteries in the interim. It’s one of these seemingly ordinary cases, however, that soon leads Charlotte and her companion, Mrs. Watson, deeper than ever into the world of conspiracy and international crime that they encountered on their last great adventure.

Charlotte is estranged from her family and shunned by most of society, though her childhood friend, Lord Ingram, still calls on her – as does his brother, Lord Bancroft: and it is the latter who surprises Charlotte with a proposal of marriage. Meanwhile, Lady Ingram requests a consultation with Sherlock, throwing the lady detectives into a twin quandary; whatever her ladyship wants investigating is almost certainly a secret she’s been keeping from her husband, so should they betray him by helping her? And how can they keep up the pretence of an invalid brother performing the real feats of deduction, when Lady Ingram is likely to recognise both Charlotte and Mrs. Watson, no matter how well disguised?

Fortunately, the pair have a young visitor in the form of Mrs. Watson’s niece, whom they reluctantly ask to help, and who enthusiastically accepts their offer. When Lady Ingram visits ‘Sherlock,’ the detectives’ fears are realised: she has been harbouring feelings for another man since long before her marriage to Lord Ingram. Not only that, the man in question might very well be the illegitimate brother Charlotte has long been aware of, but has never met. Fearing that a dreadful fate might have overcome him after he failed to make his annual rendezvous with Lady Ingram, Charlotte takes on the search for the missing man, and in doing so finds herself investigating other, possibly related, dastardly crimes.

I loved the way all the convoluted strands of this story were slowly pulled together, with a veritable shoal of red herrings being encountered along the way. I was also delighted to learn that Charlotte’s younger sisters are still very much involved in the stories, with the middle sister, Livia, attempting to pen fictional accounts of Sherlock’s adventures, and becoming involved in (romantic) intrigues of her own. Meanwhile, the youngest of the Holmes girls is pining greatly for Charlotte, a major factor in her turmoil over whether to accept Lord Bancroft’s proposal. That plot was wound up very much to my satisfaction, as were several other minor conundrums, and I’m very keen to see where all the unfinished loose ends lead our heroines, including Mrs. Watson’s niece and her friends, next.

Grade: A

A Study in Scarlet Women, the first in the Lady Sherlock series, came highly recommended to me. I love socially awkward geniuses solving crimes and falling in love, especially if said geniuses are women. Needless to say, I fell in love with Charlotte Holmes and the particular way she sees the world around herself, the way she cares about the women around her, or the way she is around her dear friend Lord Ingram. When the sequel, A Conspiracy in Belgravia, promised to go deeper, I was overjoyed.

When Lady Ingram comes begging for help from Sherlock Holmes, Charlotte finds herself torn between her loyalty to Lord Ingram and the need to help people. As Lady Ingram’s problem turns out to be her ex-lover Myron Finch, coincidentally Charlotte’s illegitimate half-brother, she starts feeling there’s more at play. Throw in unidentifiable bodies, mysterious murderers and possible poisoners, Charlotte realises she shouldn’t try to go into this battle alone. The story twists and turns in unpredictable ways and there were more than few shocked gasps from yours truly.

Charlotte continues to be absolutely delightful. It’s so wonderful to have a female genius protagonist who is allowed to embrace femininity. It’s also wonderful to have a chubby female character whose main passion is eating and not being mocked for it. Her primary motivation is still the need to provide for her beloved sisters. She loves and uplifts the women in her life and her relationships with them are some of the strongest.

Her relationship with Lord Ingram only grows throughout this book. The way these two are devoted to each other as well as some of the glimpses into their shared past made my heart and soul ache for them. There is so much confused trust and loyalty tangled up in pain and desperate longing.

Lady Ingram gets somewhat humanizing moments without erasing her horrible bigoted views of her husband. Inspector Treadle sadly only grows in his confused sexism and frankly, whenever he appeared in the story, I groaned, which is a long shot from my joy at seeing him interact with his wife in the first book, but by now, his behavior is irredeemable to me. Olivia gets some wonderful character development and becomes slightly more confident. Miss Watson and Miss Redmayne continue to be the best characters.

Books in this series have a tendency to pull together a series of seemingly unconnected cases that are revealed in the grand finale to be neatly tied together, giving the reader a glorious “aha!” moment. Unfortunately, I repeatedly caught myself thinking “wait, so what is the plot here?” which was a bit jarring. Additionally, even after finishing the book, there were some plot threads I was unsure I actually understood and I still can’t figure out if I should chalk it up to the plot being clunky or I’m just not smart enough. One thing I will definitely not excuse is the high number of povs. Six povs is frankly a bit excessive.

A Conspiracy in Belgravia has issues, but none of them took away from my enjoyment of the book. I’m honestly quite desperately hoping for the next book in the series and Charlotte and Lord Ingram have been occupying my thoughts for days now.

A new mystery of Charlotte Holmes and a new set of characters walk through the series. It turns out Lord Ingram's wife is up to more than anyone knows. At the same time Charlotte has a marriage proposal - one that would make her more acceptable to society. I am enjoying this series and all of the ends and outs that are part of the plot. I am not that much of a Sherlock Holmes fan so I don't really know or care how it follows or deviates from the original stories. I just like the mystery and suspense that kept me guessing throughout the story.

I received a free copy of the book in return for an honest review.

I had some issues with the first book. It took awhile to get things setup and Charlotte isn't the easiest character to connect to. I had hoped that these would not be problems with the second book and I was right! This book hits the ground running and while Charlotte is still Charlotte I was thrilled to see her again. As well, the end of the first book had raised an issue that could become a problem for Charlotte and Mrs. Watson's relationship and that had me very concerned. However, I loved the way it was handled. It seemed fitting to both characters and I was very relieved.

If you like your mysteries to focus on the main mystery this is probably not the book for you. There is a LOT going on in this mystery. There are several different cases, some connected and some not, as well as personal issues for several characters. However, the story never felt cluttered and I was caught up in wanting to see how all the different issues worked out. While a few threads are left open ended most are resolved by the end of the book and I was thoroughly satisfied at the end.

This is a complex and enjoyable historical mystery. Things are not easy for Charlotte despite being able to have the career that she wants to have. She feels an obligation to her sisters and to a lesser degree her parents to make their lives better. As well not everyone in Charlotte's life is able to get past her scandalous past and it colors their opinion of her and her supporters. I thought that added a more realistic element to the book and really enjoyed it. Conspiracy in Belgravia lived up to all my expectations and hopes from the previous book and my only real complaint is that I have to wait a year for the next book! This is a fascinating historical mystery with interesting characters and all kinds of juicy problems!

Thomas' second foray into the world of Sherlock Holmes is less successful than the first book. The plot was plodding and jumbled together until the last 50 pages. The ending shone! But getting there was difficult.

A Conspiracy in Belgravia is the second installment in author Sherry Thomas' Lady Sherlock series. This is a series that features a "ruined" Lady Sherlock. It is a story that appeals to both historical mystery and romance readers. If you have read any of Sherry Thomas's previous novels, you know that she is a highly creative and imaginative writer. Her characters are as creative and imaginative as the writer herself. Thomas is one of the better historical writers of this generation, which means you get a story that weaves plots, characters, and romances into an entertaining story.

A Conspiracy of Belgravia picks up right where A Study in Scarlet Women left off. Charlotte Holmes, along with Lord Ingram and Inspector Treadles of Scotland Yard, solved the Sackville murder case. In doing so, Charlotte now has a reputation as one who is able to get to the bread and butter of the mystery. Doesn't mean that she is a likable character to all the people she's met. Just means that her brain sees things in a different sort of light. So, it is a curious twist of fate that brings Lord Ingram's wife to Sherlock Holmes to solve the case of a missing lover who seems to have disappeared. 

Charlotte's partner in the Sherlock Holmes endeavor is Mrs Watson. Watson is concerned about accepting the lady as a client given Charlotte's close relationship with Lord Ingram. A relationship that could be severely affected by what they discover. Penelope Redmayne joins Charlotte and Watson in this endeavor because Lady Ingram knows who Charlotte is, and if she discovers Charlotte is really Sherlock, the jib would be up. Lady Ingram claims that she fell in love with a man named Myron Finch, who, we learn, just happens to be Charlotte's illegitimate half brother. Charlotte agrees to help.

While Charlotte is working on Lady Ingram's case, she is once again approached by Lord Bancroft Ashburton, Ingram's older brother. Bancroft is determined to give Charlotte so twisted of a case to try to solve, that he gives her little room to say no to his proposal of marriage. If you've read the first installment, you know that Bancroft has had his eye on Charlotte for sometime, but she has never desired the status of a married woman. After her fall from grace, marriage to Bancroft could be exactly what brings her a new lease on life from the snobs of the so called polite English society. 

Aside from the fact that Bancroft refuses to be told no, he does recognize the skill that Charlotte has at hand. He gives her pieces of a strange puzzle to solve which leads Charlotte to using the very real Vigenère cipher. After days of trying, Charlotte and Lord Ingram are lead to an address in North West of London where a body is discovered. Could the murdered man be Lady's Ingram's Mr. Finch? Or, could the man have somehow gotten caught up in Moriarty's machinations and therefore was murdered before he could reveal what he was dong in Hounslow?

Charlotte, who is no longer acceptable to polite society after the events of the first novel, chose to not only become Sherlock Holmes, but to solve the most innocent of cases while trying to keep a low public profile. Her relationship with Mrs. John Watson has grown from the point where Watson was pushed into helping Charlotte after she was dumped out on the streets by her parents after her very public fall from grace. Charlotte is a helluva a character. 

She is a person who knows that she could take care of Olivia and her disabled sister Bernadette if she made a real name for herself, and was able to take care of them monetarily without being threatened by her father to immediately return home. Should mention that Charlotte is a character who loves to eat? She even checks out the number of acceptable chins she is allowed to have before grabbing for another serving. 

After working with Charlotte, one could now call out Inspector Treadles for being more than a little misogynistic when it comes to female detectives, and their place in society. More on him later. What we know from traveling along with Charlotte on her first real adventure, is that there is a criminal mastermind named Moriarty who apparently has his fingers into a whole cross section of English society. Moriarty hasn't been revealed yet, but I am hopeful any sequel will take care of that issue.

I loved how twisty and turny this book was! An excellent mystery, with lots of loose threads coming together to build a satisfying conclusion. Charlotte Holmes is a fascinating character, who may be obsessed with sweets and how many chins she can gain, but with a brilliant mind for deduction. In another writer's hand, she may come across as one note, but Sherry Thomas breathes life into her and makes her seem human. The other characters are also great: Livia, Charlotte's high strung sister, Inspector Treadles, who sees his wife's growing interest in her family's business as a personal threat, and Lord Ingram, who is Charlotte's match in almost every way, although his loyalty to his wife keeps them apart. Plus, former actresses, female doctors and spies all make appearances. I am seriously looking forward to the next book in this incredible series!

In late Victorian England, it's not always easy to be an independently minded woman. Charlotte Holmes has managed thanks to her good friend Mrs. Watson and Charlotte's alter ego, "Sherlock" Holmes, invalid consulting detective. But things become complicated when Lady Ingram, wife of her good friend Lord Ingram, comes to "Sherlock" asking for help finding her first love: Charlotte's illegitimate half-brother. Mysterious coded messages, dead bodies turning up where least expected, and a woman who is convinced her father's housekeeper is trying to poison her all help to muddy the already murky waters. Can Charlotte sort out this tangled web before getting caught in it herself?

This sequel to A Study in Scarlet Women picks up right where the first book left off. Readers who haven't read Study first (or who read it only when it came out last year) will have a little trouble catching up, as Sherry Thomas doesn't remind us of anything specific that happened in Study while alluding to it often. I would definitely recommend reading (or re-reading) Study before starting Conspiracy. That said, Conspiracy is both a good mystery and a very complex one- and clearly a bridge book to what will come next. Conspiracy involves plenty of codes, deceit, and impersonations to ensure the reader understands that the shadowy figure of Moriarty is directing an endless number of minions for sinister purposes we can only guess at- but that Charlotte will no doubt soon face. There are times when these confused me as much as they were supposed to confuse the police and I actually re-read the book as soon as I'd first finished it to try and make more sense out of some of it. (It helped that the second time I read it nearly in one sitting, where the first time had been more piecemeal).

I enjoyed Thomas' continued ability to weave multiple stories together. A seemingly unconnected case of poisoning becomes as integral to the story as the main case of Charlotte's missing brother, Myron Finch, and not just tossed into the book to show that "Sherlock" had multiple cases at once. Both Mrs Watson and Charlotte remain strong characters and I loved that Mrs Watson is still an integral part of the team and clearly important to Charlotte, instead of being taken for granted as her male counterpart in Doyles' books often seemed. I was disappointed at the brief role given to Inspector Treadles in Conspiracy. His role (investigating several murders that connect back to Moriarty) seemed forced, the few scenes with him both jarring to the rest of the narrative and making him a rather unlikeable and shallow person. His scenes came across more as the author not wanting readers to forget about him completely while not really having anything useful for him to do. Hopefully he'll come across better later in the series.

Overall, Conspiracy is not as good as Thomas' first Lady Sherlock book, but it keeps you drawn into the world and the characters. While the extra obscurity surrounding much of the main mystery mean its sometimes hard to follow, I get the feeling Conspiracy is setting the reader up for a major conflict with the mysterious Moriarty revealing him(her?)self very soon.

The first book in this series introduced the world to Charlotte Holmes, the woman behind the myth of Sherlock Holmes. In this book, her life starts to get more complicated. First, the wife of Charlotte's one-true-love (or at least one of the people she cares most deeply for), comes to Sherlock Holmes for help. She wants to find her childhood crush, a man who supposedly met her every year on the Sunday before his birthday. Never meeting or talking, just a distant nod. This year, he didn't show. And it turns out this man has a mysterious tie to Charlotte.
Charlotte also has to contend with a marriage proposal from a man who courts her with puzzles. She has another mystery of a woman who thinks her father is poisoning her. And she has to figure out how to get back her sisters.
The strength of Thomas in this book is her ability to paint her characters. We get more of the inscrutable Charlotte, seeing that she is not completely unfeeling, just rarely does she feel it deeply enough to express it. We learn more about Inspector Treadles, about how deeply he loves his wife but how much that love may be tested against his notions of how men and women should act. We meet the inspiration for Mycroft: Lord Bancroft, Lord Ingram's brother.
I think I may have rated this book higher except that I was judging it against the first. Three and a half stars is still pretty high.

Follows A Study in Scarlet Women

I actually read this book a couple of weeks ago, when the Sherlock Holmes book I was planning to read kind of fell through, but I still had a taste for Holmes. So I dove through the towering TBR pile and emerged with A Conspiracy in Belgravia, the second Lady Sherlock book after last fall’s fascinating A Study in Scarlet Women.

While I am familiar enough with the Holmes canon to play spot the analog between a pastiche series like Lady Sherlock and the original, I certainly don’t have it memorized. So as obvious as it was that A Study in Scarlet Women was a play on the first Holmes story, A Study in Scarlet, the derivation of the title of A Conspiracy in Belgravia was much less obvious. As much as it sounds to the ear like A Scandal in Bohemia, the stories are not related. Although, now that I think about it, A Conspiracy in Belgravia does contain hints of The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans.

So a puzzle for another time. Meanwhile, we have the conundrums that Charlotte Holmes and her associates have run across within the rather tony and well-to-do precincts of Belgravia. And, while Charlotte investigates not one but two separate mysteries, she is also mulling over a tempting marriage proposal from Lord Bancroft. The proposal is not tempting because of the man himself, but rather for the sheer number of problems that marriage to him will solve.

None of which resolve the largest dilemma that this proposal creates – that Charlotte Holmes is in love, if that phrase can be used for someone who is usually much more brain than emotion, with the man’s brother Lord Ingram. To add to the difficulties involved, Lord Ingram finally figured out that he is in love with Charlotte. Unfortunately for both of them, this discovery occurred well after his marriage to someone else. That it has become obvious over time that Lady Ingram only married him for his money makes the situation all that much more melodramatic and tragic.

Especially when Lady Ingram calls upon “Sherlock Holmes” so that the detective may discover the whereabouts of her former lover – a man who also happens to be Charlotte Holmes’ illegitimate half-brother.

When the puzzles that Lord Bancroft (who is definitely the analog to Mycroft in this pastiche) run into Charlotte’s commission from Lady Ingram, the intertwining conundrums begin to test even the mettle of Sherlock Holmes. Can she remain free, save her sisters and get to the bottom of all the conspiracies before it is too late?

Only Sherlock Holmes has the capacity to reveal the depths of this conspiracy. But can she? And, in the end, should she?

Escape Rating B: I’m a bit on the fence about this one, and for some of the same issues that were raised by the first book, A Study in Scarlet Women. One of the issues with historical fiction is where the author draws the line between making the female protagonist relatable to a 21st century reader and making sure that the character fits plausibly within her time period. If she’s not relatable enough, readers lose interest. If she’s too much a part of her time, the odds are unfortunately all too likely that her activities will be too restricted to make her the heroine of her own story.

With a Holmes pastiche, even one that plays as much havoc with the original characters as this one, taking Holmes too far away from the character we know and love, creates a third crevasse into which the story can fall.

One of the things that the author has done with this series has been to make Charlotte an unconventional creature of her times. While she may have a singular genius, the world treats her the way all women are treated – her movements are often restricted, she must hide behind her fictitious brother, the police inspector she assists resents her assistance because she is a woman, and her parents have the right to kidnap her off the streets, while the establishment will consider that a job well done.

The dilemma of Lord Bancroft’s marriage proposal is very real. She would regain respectability, her parents would leave her alone, and she can rescue both of her sisters, who very much do need rescuing. But marriage would give Lord Bancroft the right to control her movements and her activities. He has already said that he would not allow her to continue practicing as Sherlock Holmes. While his position as this world’s Mycroft means that he does have fascinating puzzles for her to solve, she knows that marriage sacrifices her happiness and merely her right to be her own person and make her own decisions for a safety that can be restricted or removed at any turn.

Charlotte’s relationship with Lord Ingram also gives me pause. With the notable exception of Laurie R. King’s utterly marvelous Holmes/Russell series, Holmes’ name and the word romance are seldom mentioned in the same breath. Or even in the same paragraph. For someone who so singularly knows her own mind, and gives it precedence over every other facet of her existence, Charlotte’s confused feelings about Lord Ingram don’t quite ring true for Charlotte as Holmes. If it is an attempt to make her seem, at least in this one aspect, more typically feminine, it falls a bit flat for this reader.

None of the above is to say that I did not enjoy A Conspiracy in Belgravia and this alternate vision of Sherlock Holmes, because the intricacies of the mystery were quite entertaining. The revelation of the mastermind behind events was both a surprise and not, as this personage could be expected to appear in some form in this series. But the way that events maneuvered around to the revelation were a pleasant surprise for the reader, and an unpleasant surprise for the characters.

As it should be.

This sequel was pretty amazing. I'm so glad that I decided to read these books. But also so unhappy, because I need another one, and I want it now. How rude. Fingers crossed there will be more books, because this one did not have an ending, and there is still so much that could happen. I need more books so badly.

I don't know what I wish to share about this book yet. I think I enjoyed book one a little bit more, simply because there was a tiny bit more of the small romance in that one, lol. But I really enjoyed this sequel as well, because it was exciting and very mysterious and I adore the characters. Four stars for this one.

Most of this book is from the point of view of Mrs. Watson and Charlotte. And a few others included as well. I felt like there was a lot less of Charlotte, and that made me a little sad, because I want more and more about this beautiful person. She's amazing to read about. And I wish to know everything about her. Livia as well. There was so little of her in this book, aw, but even so, the scenes with Livia were so awesome. She's amazing, and I loved how great she was in this book. I cannot wait to read even more about her and how she is doing. This second book is mostly about a big mystery, involving Charlotte's half brother. Whom is missing. He was involved with Lady Ingram before, the wife of Lord Ingram, the man who is in love with Charlotte. Ahh.

Everything was so complicated in this book. It was difficult at times to understand everything that had happened, and almost impossible to guess at what would happen next. Which was why it was so exciting as well. I loved the mystery of it all. I loved how amazing Charlotte was at figuring things out. She's the best. And I simply loved her even more in this second book. She's so clever and kind and just awesome. But, well, I didn't like that she kept that secret from him for so long. It was a bit rude and heartbreaking.

I just really enjoyed reading this book. I wish there had been more of the romance, and a bit more about all of the characters, but even so, this book was so great. I loved how exciting it all was. I must admit to having peeked at the ending, so I knew a couple of things, but still didn't really get it while reading all of it. Which was awesome. My favorite part of the book was reading about the different characters. Charlotte and Lord Ingram and Livia and Mrs. Watson and her niece. They were fantastically written. Loved them.

Only thing that bothered me about this book was the very much lack of romance. Ahh. I had hoped there would be more in this, instead there was less. Sobs. But this ending made me feel so much more hope about the romance, so I'm pleased with that. Just hate waiting. Hmph. I want Charlotte and Lord Ingram aka Ash to happen to badly. They are perfect together. And them not being together is breaking my heart. I need more. I need kissing. And spending time together. They were apart so much in this book. Sad face.

But I'm dealing with it, lol. Because this book was still amazing, even without the romance. And though there wasn't any physical romance, aw, it is still so obvious that they both love each other and want to be together. Sniffs. But so complicated. I do have hope, though. I am only hoping that when they finally do happen, that there will be a lot of scenes with them together. I need that. His brother is also in this book a lot. And he's proposing to Charlotte for a second time. Hmph. No triangle at all, though. Just complicated.

This time there wasn't much point of view from inspector Treadles. And I didn't really mind that. Ack. I sort of adored this man in book one. But gosh, in this one we truly learned to know him better. And I cannot stand the way he sees the world in some cases. Not okay. I hope he will be better in book three. Fingers crossed. His wife deserves better than who he is at the moment. Hmph. But even so, I did enjoy reading from his view. Because it was always interesting to know what he was doing; who he was interviewing.

I ended up enjoying A Conspiracy in Belgravia a whole lot. The story was pretty mysterious and very exciting at times. The characters were all lovely to read about. And I can't help but adore the time these books take place in. So interesting to learn more about this time, but also heartbreaking, because of all the rules for women. I do not approve of the past in those cases. But anyway. This book was awesome. You must read it. Thank you so much to Berkley Books for letting me read this one early via Netgalley.

I do this thing where, even if I wasn't a fan of the first book in a series, my curiosity about the sequel gets the better of me so I read it, hoping that it's better than the first. Rarely is that actually the case. This was not one of those times. 

A Conspiracy in Belgravia starts the reader off by throwing you in the thick of things without even a "good luck" to send you off. This is also not a sequel you can read out of order and you'll be even more lost if you try. Add a mystery that just didn't work and I found a book that was terribly disappointing. 

As I mentioned in my review of A Study in Scarlet Women, these aren't the first books I've read by Thomas and I adored her young adult fantasy books. Her mysteries (these specifically)? I can't say the same. For starters, this book suffered much like the first from a mystery that made no sense. As a reader, I would hope that the author would lead me in SOME direction to make conclusions or guesses at the very least but I couldn't made head or tail of this plot. 

This became increasingly problematic as the character development present in the first book took a step back as they were established and now going through the motions of the story. I do love Charlotte and her view of the world. She's an intriguing young woman who reminds me a bit of Irene from The Invisible Library. And while she is the Holmes of this pair, her Watson is fabulous. Despite my thoughts on the book, Charlotte Holmes and Mrs. Watson are likely one of my favorite pairs of women in fiction. 

Despite the confusion of a mystery that was all over the place, the world was just as rich and vibrant as before. You're put right in Victorian London with everything from the description of a room to how the characters interact to the society in which they function. Thomas excels at bringing her world to life. I can't speak to the accuracy of this historical world, mind you, but as someone who loves reading novels set in this time period, I can't say any of it stuck out as odd. 

As a sequel, I have mixed feelings because I love the characters and the world but the story just didn't do it for me. Maybe it's because I'm not a huge mystery reader. So there you go. If you couldn't care less about the plot and are here for characters with plenty of vibrancy and depth, then you'll probably love this book. If you want a mystery to pick apart and piece back together, I'd say keep moving. An average read for me with some amazing (and not-so-amazing) elements.

A CONSPIRACY IN BELGRAVIA continues right where A Study of Scarlet Women left off. Here, seemingly random events coalesced into a surprising twist of events at a grand finale that left me reeling.

I'm not sure why, but this book for me is a bit boring when compared to the first book. There was a lack of emotions from Charlotte, but then she isn't really a woman given to emotions, or if she does feel them, it's not very...intense. Or perhaps we haven't seen it yet. She sees things very clearly--like for example how Inspector Treadles views women like her--and I believe it could be rather disconcerting to a normal, average individual like myself. One thing I like about her though is her love for her sisters Livia and Bernardine, and how she sought to protect them.

One thing I have to say is that the secondary characters here are interesting in their flawed and human ways. One example is Inspector Treadles. I'm very interested to see how his character arc plays out. Livia's situation also seems to be looking up, and that she's the author of the Sherlock Holmes novels? Fascinating!

Re the secondary villain in the story (the ultimate being Moriarty), the one who was "caught" by the end of the book, I have to say I was surprised. Or maybe I shouldn't be? But when Lord Ingram mentioned 3 agents being killed because of this villain's actions, I was disoriented. Where did it say that agents were killed? I was thinking that perhaps this could be mentioned somewhere in Charlotte's conversations with either Ingram or Bancroft earlier in the book, but then on second thought, there was really no way either could mention this because it was Crown's business and Charlotte wasn't an agent and she shouldn't be privy to such information. Still... it could serve as a foreshadow, so maybe she could've heard it unintentionally or while eavesdropping?

That said, I'm excited to read the next books, hoping still for a change in the romantic situation of Charlotte and Lord Ingram. Not that there was any romance here in this book, because it wasn't appropriate. Still, there was that kiss in book #1, so I'm hopeful.

The second book in Sherry Thomas's Lady Sherlock series is a satisfying mystery that doesn't require extensive knowledge of the source material to enjoy the story. Even casual Sherlockians will find that they are able to spot many of the included references. Charlotte Holmes makes an excellent Sherlock, and the author has cleverly found ways to be true to the constraints a female "detective" would have encountered in the time period and still allow Charlotte to operate. Character and setting are equally well developed, and I appreciated the reveal at the very end that I didn't see coming.
I've read some other subverted Sherlock retellings lately that while entertaining haven't worked quite as well for me as this series, and think that Sherry Thomas has excelled with her version.

I couldn't wait to read Sherry Thomas's latest entry in her Lady Sherlock series. A Conspiracy in Belgravia does not disappoint! Charlotte Sherlock is back as are all the supporting characters in this fast-paced story that doesn't stint on the development of relationships that began in book #1.

I love everything about this book, and readers who enjoyed the first installment in this series will absolutely adore this one. I wish Sherry Thomas could write faster, because I would love to have a Lady Sherlock book to read every day for the rest of my life.