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The Lantern's Dance: 04/06/24

The Lantern's Dance

The Lantern's Dance by Laurie R. King (2024) is the eighteenth book in the Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes series. Sherlock and Mary are in France to visit Damian Adler, his girl friend, and his daughter from a previous marriage. When they arrive, the family isn't there, scared off by an intruder of Indian descent. Sherlock and Mary decide they must do everything they can to make sure the Adler family is safe.

Like so many of the book in this series, the novel splits into two points of view: Mary's and Sherlock's. Mary, who is laid up with a sprained ankle, does her research from the Adler home. Sherlock, meanwhile, flies off half cocked to rescue his son and grand-daughter before even assessing the level of threat.

And, unfortunately, like The Murder of Mary Russell (2016) we have Mary's scenes replaced with extended flashbacks told from a third point of view. This time the story comes in the form of a coded memoir Mary has translated. Ultimately it explains a great deal as to why a man from India broke in.

There are two problems with this journal. The first is that it's filler. It takes away from the present day threat. It's unnecessary because Mary ends up summarizing everything she reads anyway. The second is that it explains a "noodle incident" and these things rarely need to be explained. They are best left vague and to the creativity of the reader.

So why only one star off? The book has a strong beginning and a satisfying ending. The middle could have been so much better with tighter editing and less reliance on the coded journal.

Four stars

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