Pirate King: 04/22/12

Pirate King by Laurie R King is the eleventh of the Mary Russell / Sherlock Holmes series. After a two part, rather dark thriller involving the collision of Holmes's past and present, Pirate King takes a much lighter tone, combining mystery with farce.

Mary is shanghaied into working as an assistant on the current Fflytte Films extravaganza, a metafilm that celebrates the Pirates of Penzance operetta. Mary, having no interest in either the operetta or flicks, is less than thrilled at the prospects. But there's a missing young woman and a string of shady events that seem to follow the production company around.

For me, this was the perfect mixture of details. I have a masters in film theory (with an emphasis on early film history) and have seen The Pirates of Penzance on the stage more times than I can count. So putting the two together with Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes, and I was in my own personal cozy heaven. My husband can attest to my maniacal laughter produced while reading (and re-reading) favorites scenes in Pirate King.

Fans who enjoy the interaction between Russell and Holmes, might be disappointed. Holmes is really a minor character in this one. He's there but he appears late in the game and most of the adventure and heroism is Russell's.

Fans who want to read the book but aren't familiar with The Pirates of Penzance should probably at least listen to the song — or better — watch the operetta before reading the book. A basic knowledge of the play will help with the appreciation of the novel.

Five stars

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