I've been sitting on this review for a couple days, because I'm really struggling with what to say...

I absolutely adore Mary Russell, and was so incredibly excited to receive this ARC from NetGalley and Random House but I was pretty disappointed in this one.

My two biggest issues - I was initially intrigued by the Transylvania-ish setting, but the supernatural elements woven through the story were too obviously fake/false for logic-driven Russell and Holmes, and just ended up feeling unnecessary. I also thought the ending was fairly predictable, which was even more disappointing because of the number of interesting characters in the book. There were just so many other directions the story could have gone to match my expectations - which are, admittedly, very high for #laurierking books.

I feel very disloyal admitting to not enjoying this one, but I also want to give an honest review. I fully recommend this series to anyone, just don't start with this one.

Another excellent installment of the Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes series by Laurie R. King. This time, the duo is in Romania, chasing whispers of a vampire in Transylvania's Castle Bran. While I loved the tale, it feels like an intermediary book, alluding to bigger conversations teed up in previous volumes that are never explored or discussed. It lends tension to the book which I didn't necessarily mind, but it did make Castle Shade feel like an in-between, rather than a book that could be enjoyed standing on its own.

On the whole, I am hugely enthusiastic about Laurie R. King's Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes series, but I haven't enjoyed the last few novels as much as previous ones. Maybe it's the lack of Russell and Holmes working together. Maybe the settings just haven't been places I'd want to be transported to. But Castle Shade is up there with the best of the series.

Castle Shade juggles some classic horror tropes with a keen-eyed examination of European politics post-WWI European politics. We get concerns about vampires, about the disappearances of young women. We also get Queen Marie of Romania, a politically astute grandchild of both Queen Victoria and Tsar Alexander II of Russia. These two worlds collide at Castle Bran—Marie's favorite retreat located on the border of Romania and the recently reannexed Transylvania. Is this mystery paranormal or political? Not even Russell and Holmes are sure.

If you love the Russell-Holmes series, you'll be reading this novel regardless of my review, but if it's a series that is new to you or it's one that you haven't kept up with, Castle Shade offers an excellent opportunity to bring yourself back into the fold.

I received a free electronic review copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley; the opinions are my own.

A Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes story always has two things to immediately recommend it: catching up with Russell and Holmes and the SETTING. The setting this time is amazing: Castle Bran in Romania. After reading this book, I feel like I've actually traveled there and seen it and tramped all over its hills. Another wonderful book in the series!

Another great episode from the chronicles of Mary Russell and her husband, Sherlock Holmes. As this series progresses, Mary has become more confident in her abilities and her modern feminist worldview is slowly affecting Sherlock's. In the canon, Sherlock often seemed unprepared for dealing with women, most notably with that woman, Irene Adler, and with Mary by his side, he's become more aware of his limitations.. As this series has evolved, it is more Mary's story with Sherlock cloaked in the shadows.

Castle Shade weaves together threads of Count Dracula and Europe between the two world wars to create an engaging mystery (and made me aware that I really need to understand more about the history of that period!). Another must-read from Laurie King!

Thanks to Random House Publishing for access to a digital ARC via NetGalley.

An excellent entry into the Russell/Holmes series, this adventure finds us diving in immediately following their Riviera trip with the author taking the bare bones of the Dracula legend and deftly twisting it to her purpose. The story we are then given is based equally in fiction and fact as it is written across the historical landscape of pre Communist Roumania when Queen Marie (another of Victoria's grandchildren) requests Holmes' help after a threat to Marie's youngest daughter.

We're given quite a lot of background on Queen Marie and I admit that when I finished I wanted to learn more about her (and readers will be happy to hear that not only is the background given factual but most of the castle's more interesting features are similarly legitimate.). While I enjoy the whole series, this is a particularly strong entry and I feel like the author is breathing new life into our familiar and comfortable friend.

I've been sorely disappointed in King's more recent Russell books, so I was wary of this newest installment. While at least Holmes and Russell are together in this one, they're at an apparently rough patch in their still-young marriage, and we're once again lacking the wit and fun of the first several books in the series. However, at least the plot works, more or less, and the supporting characters are pretty well written. But Russell and Holmes being on tiptoes with one another makes the book uncomfortable to read, especially if you've read others in the series. In addition, I know King has a mandate not to let Holmes get too old, but the timeline for all of the books is getting crowded to the point of absurdity, even if it is a fictional world.

I really enjoyed this latest Holmes/Russel story. It begins on a train with the two of them discussing a possible supernatural threat to Qeens Marie of Roumania. Those of us who are fans of the original Sherlock Holmes stories will recognize this as an homage to "Hound of the Baskervilles". The story is quite different but the mood is similar. Holmes and Russel investigate this threat as fully fledged partners and while they are in the same location - as opposed to previous stories that have them each doing much of their work in separate locales. The story is the better for it, as it allows for a more complete illustration of this odd couple's relationship. A real fun read.

Castle Shade
Laurie R. King
A Review by J. R. Stefanie

(Full Disclosure: I have been an active Sherlockian for more than sixty years, having published and reviewed pastiches and written critical articles for various journals and Sherlockian societies. This review, therefore, is written within that context.)

I came to read Castle Shade not without some trepidation. The premise that Sherlock Holmes would have taken on a fifteen year old girl while in his retirement and over the course of a decade (1) made him a partner in his ‘Agency’ and (2) made her his wife. If you accept, as I do, this series is not an attempt to embrace the Sherlockian world, but offered as an alternative Sherlockian universe, then it is a palatable offering, much like Sherlock Holmes in Space; not according to the Canon, but an experiment in fiction.

The publisher’s description of the book: “A queen, a castle, a dark and ageless threat—all await Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes in this chilling new adventure” on completion of the book is found to be misleading. Holmes and Russell, after their sojourn in the Riviera, are found on a train heading for Roumania. Holmes had previously visited the country at the behest of Queen Marie who has requested his assistance in defining and thwarting a shadowy threat.

The location of the action, Castle Bran, is located on the border of Roumania and Transylvania, giving rise, at various points in the story, to allusions to vampires, witches, hexes, and all other manner of supernatural mischief. The shadowy threat involves the Queen’s daughter. The nature of the threat is undisclosed and the reason the young woman, Ileana, is under threat. It is the Holmes/Russell team that must sort this all out.
Again, from the publisher’s description:

“Shadowy figures, vague whispers, the fears of girls, dangers that may be only accidents. But this is a land of long memory and hidden corners, a land that had known Vlad the Impaler, a land from whose churchyards the shades creep.”

The general thrust of the full description is to raise the reader’s expectation of a horror mystery with an historical bent trading the familiarity and salability of vampirism in novels with the brand awareness of Sherlock Holmes.

Unfortunately, even as a story within the ‘alternative Sherlockian universe’, there are issues.
First, the Sherlock Holmes character is a cipher, that is a blank slate with so little personality that the reader can impress upon him their own values and ideals. Holmes drifts through the story as a shade, contributing little of substance (with a few more interesting moments nearing the end of the book) and therefore cast, in my mind, as a secondary character, as is the witch-like person who identifies hexes. Even in an alternative universe, Holmes should be more strongly portrayed. If it is assumed that readers of these (or other Holmes-centric fiction) do not need to have the character fully developed because ‘everybody knows who Sherlock Holmes is so no more need be said’ is a false assumption. The ‘historical’ or ‘our universe’ Sherlock Holmes was defined, in broad strokes, but Conan Doyle, leaving us with the opportunity to color within the lines and draw out an increasingly complex individual. This was not done in this case.

Second, the book is overly long. The core plot itself is thin; the number of interacting characters relatively few for a work of such length, and the important actions of the prime characters ‘clumped’ into sections of the book. One is not drawn along the investigation; one is dropped into points of it. The greater part of the story is actually a series of history lessons and vast descriptions of the countryside, the castle, and anything else that does not require thirty words to describe wheretwo will do. While credit must be given for the depth of historical knowledge, most of it is erudition, not story telling. As S.S. VanDyne, in his 20 Rules for Writing Detective Stories quite properly writes (in Rule 16) “The detective "novel" must be just that, no side issues of "literary dallying" or "atmospheric preoccupations." These devices interfere with the purpose of detective fiction, "which is to state a problem, analyze it" and solve it.” I fully concur with the Rule as the detective novel is designed to drive a story forward with the reader engaged in the solution of a crime, or potential crime.
Third, there are two ‘voices’ in the book; Mary Russell is the narrator for most of the book, but there are three or so chapters where Holmes is off on a mission. These activities are seen through the eyes of an ‘off-screen narrator’. Since Mary Russell is, for all intents and purposes, the narrator of the story, the activities of Sherlock on his own are hidden from her. It is the author’s task to bring Holmes’ hidden activities into the narrative, by the narrator (Russell), without resorting to the off-screen (God) narrator.

Fourth, the language is not consistent with the mid-1920s. I had begun recording anachronisms, expressions, and writing styles which did not accord with the Roaring Twenties, but gave up as the number was legion. By mid-book, any effort at linguistically locating the characters in the 1920s was abandoned. At this point Mary Russell’s expressions and voice are little different from that of Kinsey Milhone.

Fifth, the VanDyne rule “The reader should have the same opportunity as the detective to solve the crime.” is violated. When we come to the resolution of the story (Chapter 46!), it isall laid out for us. From there on it is a chase scene.

If I were to rate this story, I would give it 2 and 1/2 stars, mostly for the historical depth, the extensive and excellent vocabulary, not for the plot or the structure of the novel. IMHO, the book’s editor (unless s/he were responsible for Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series) would have urged paring its page count down, expanding the underlying driving narrative, and reducing literary flourishes to a minimum.

#CastleShade #NetGalley

When weird things are happening at Dracula's castle, who you gonna call?

Mary Russell and her husband, Sherlock Holmes.

Laurie King sets her latest in this Holmes pastiche in Romania. The country's queen calls Holmes in to investigate threats to her youngest daughter. Holmes asks Russell along in hopes his considerably younger wife can strike up a friendship with the princess.

It is such a joy to have a new Mary Russell mystery in the midst of the pandemic that readers can forgive King for her long descriptions of castle architecture. And if the story arc seems haphazard, don't forget the Holmeses had no break after solving a case in Monaco.

Write on, Laurie King!

This latest installment of the Holmes and Russell series proved to be my favorite in a while. It regained some of the humor and affection between the two that has been missing lately. It was also good to see a mystery not steeped in international intrigue and free of Mycroft's machinations. Vampires, garlic, and sharpened stakes in Transylvania make for a compelling and entertaining read.

Mary Russell is amazing. She's been one of my favorite protagonists for a while now. She has all the smarts of Sherlock Holmes, and even he has started to realize her worth. Plus, who doesn't love a setting of Transylvania.

Holmes is summoned back to Bran Castle, Roumania by Queen Marie as new mischief has surfaced. There have been unsettling events in the village in recent times when Marie is in residence. A letter threatening Princess Ileana is the impetus for this latest call for help. Marie is intelligent and charismatic, teasing Holmes a bit for gossip surrounding his old case written up by Dr. Watson as "A Scandal in Bohemia." However she is deadly serious about finding and eliminating the threat to her daughter. Russell is less than thrilled to leave the Riviera but quickly resolves to find out the truth to help this royal family. It is a joy to follow the investigation Holmes and Russell conduct. Russell is obviously Holmes's Achilles heel; his reactions when Russell is in peril prove his love for her beyond any doubt.

This 17th entry into the Mary Russell series takes place immediately after Russell and Holmes adventures in "Riviera Gold". Russell and Holmes take an arduous train journey to the small village of Bran in the Transylvania region of Roumania. The center of the town and the story is Castle Bran, now owned by the popular Queen Marie of Roumania who received it as a gift from the town. The Queen loves the castle and spends as much time as possible there. A vague but persistent threat against the Queen's young daughter Princess Ileana leads her to hire Holmes and Russell to determine the cause of the threat--is it political? Personal? Vampires? As they go about their investigations they encounter a variety of characters and adventures and work to unravel the clever mystery.

This novel is particularly evocative and descriptive. The opening takes place on the train with Russell suffering from a terrible head cold she caught from children in Riviera Gold. It was so well described I felt that I too was suffering from one--fortunately she recovered quickly! The descriptions of the castle are equally vivid, as is the political situation concerning the Queen and they set the stage for the story. I found myself looking up Queen Marie, the princess and Castle Bran as well as other characters as I went along and that was great fun. There is also a side story concerning Mycroft Holmes which is entertaining and I'm sure will continue in subsequent volumes.

This is an excellent addition to the Mary Russell series and a fun read. Highly recommended.

Another excellent installment in the Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes series. I always enjoy how the author weaves real people and places into her novels. In this book it is Queen Marie of Roumania and her family and Castle Bran in Transylvania. As always the characters and descriptions are well-written and interesting. However, I didn't find the mystery in this installment as compelling as in some of the other books in the series. .

Castle Shade is another installment in the Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes series. This book starts up where they left, on a train to Romania. Queen Marie of Romania reached out to Holmes for help when she received a threatening letter about her daughter. Along with the threatening letter, there has been mysterious sighting and dangerous situations happening around the Queen's favorite place, Castle Bran. Russell and Holmes team up to investigate all the mysterious and spooky things going on surrounding the Queen's stay in Bran.

This book was a little slower to start, but once I got a third of the way through I was hooked. I enjoyed the history and story behind Queen Marie which was very interesting and something not typically found in historical fiction. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Castle Shade is a wonderful new addition to the Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes series. It takes place in Romania in 1925 at Bran Castle, made famous as Dracula’s castle. The castle has been gifted to Queen Marie but occult incidents have been happening in the village: a witches hex bag found near poisoned hens, an abduction of a girl with fang-like puncture marks, etc. Several centuries earlier a Transylvanian queen was know for her bloodbaths, a precursor to the Dracula tales. These new chilling events point superstitious villagers to the current queen. Sherlock and Mary must discover what is happening before more people are hurt and the queen destroyed.
The action is less about Sherlock making lightning, stunningly insightful discoveries - though those do happen- and more about them working together. The perpetrator is identified rather easily but the detection is the story here. It was wonderful getting back into the world of Sherlock and Mary.
I would recommend this book to my patrons.

I was given a free e-copy of this novel by NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

I have read the entire Sherlock Holmes and Mary Russell series by Laurie R King, and was so thrilled to be allowed to read this one. I can honestly say that this is one of, if not the primary, favorites of mine.

Queen Marie of Romania is considered to be much loved by her adoptive country. So loved that the country fathers gifted her the Castle Bran, and it has become a much loved location of Queen Marie's and her daughter Princess Ileana. Unfortunately, someone or something is causing mischief. Shadow figures, whispers in the night, and accidents to young girls who work in the castle. While these main just be rumors and accidents, this is a land steeped with mythic suspicions. So when Queen Marie reaches out to Sherlock Holmes and Mary Russell, they are at first uncertain of going. However, a young girl has become involved and the danger does not appear to be simply the work of a strigoi. Or is it?

First of all, Bram Stoker's Dracula and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes are two of my favorite novels of all time. I have re-read both stories multiple times and own multiple copies. I have also read Sherlock Holmes pastiches that combine with Dracula. I have not, however, read one that imbues so many historical facts, and I do feel that is why this novel will be a new favorite of mine. Not many people know that in Romania's history, there was also a female Count Dracula, Countess Erzabet Bathory, so it was really exciting to see her referenced here. I also enjoyed Russell's implication of a "witchhunt" against a female during Bathory's time. It gives one pause to consider other such atrocities.

Second, I have to admire the way Laurie R King, or Mary Russell whichever author you prefer, shows character development and growth. For example, everyone knows that Sherlock Holmes has a tendency to turn a blind eye against women. However, in this novel he openly admits to this flaw and encourages Russell to assist him in correcting it. He does not, though, change in the "dramatics" of his character which we have come to rely on Holmes. Russell, on the other hand, still carries a grudge against Mycroft and it is seen in her reluctance to assist a Queen. At least until others are affected. But I also like how she keeps to her "roots". Mainly her academia as well as her Hebrew roots throughout the series. They may be small mentions but they are still mentions that remind us of her background.

Finally, the writing is just as elaborate as the first novel. The scenes are described to make the reader feel as if they are actually inside Castle Bran or on the road to the local village. I can imagine the shooting-brake car that the doctor drives, and picture the scene at Father Constantin's home. I always look up the geography with King's novels just so I can have an idea of what part of the world I am in. I can also safely say that I related to Mary and her language predicament because I, too, know a little Romanian. It was not hard to imagine catching bits and pieces of the conversations around her.

Overall I rate this novel 5 out of 5 stars.

A tale of Mary Russel and Sherlock Holmes is always captivating from page one of their adventurous sleuthing.
Laurie King delves into time, people and places of historical events, sometimes known and often surprisingly little known.
Castle Shade takes you deep into the history of Roumania, a neutral country, ravaged in WWI, and the story of Marie, Queen of Roumania, the product of Russian empire, British throne, and German nobility. Married off to King Ferdinand, she had fallen in love with her people, and the ancient, secretive Castle Bran in the area of Transylvania.
Ritualistic signs of a vampire-like Strigoi in the village bring Russel and Holmes to the Castle at the bequest of the Queen, concerned for her young daughter Ileana and the youth of her age.
As the sleuths, royals, the household, and villagers encounter unknown, inexplicable danger, the descriptive passages breathe life into the secrets of the village, Castle Bran, and the landscapes themselves with an uncanny awareness.
This is wonderfully thrilling storytelling.
It is a also a reminder of how over decades and centuries, threats of danger and evil doing have been and can so easily be repeated.

I am an admirer of Laurie King’s Sherlock Holmes and Mary Russell novels, but found this particular adventure less enjoyable than previous books.

The vampire lore failed to interest or entertain me, and instead, became tedious. Despite that, I admire what Ms. King has achieved with the characters and the series and will look forward to future books in the series.