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Enola Holmes and the Black Barouche by Nancy Springer #BlogTour #BookReview #Excerpt #YAMystery #SherlockHolmes

Thank you to Wednesday Books for my spot on this blog tour.
On Sale August 31, 2021

“A young girl who is empowered, capable, and smart…the Enola Holmes book series convey an impactful message that you can do anything if you set your mind to it, and it does so in an exciting and adventurous way.”–Millie Bobby Brown

Enola Holmes is back! Nancy Springer’s nationally bestselling series and breakout Netflix sensation returns to beguile readers young and old in Enola Holmes and the Black Barouche.

Enola Holmes is the much younger sister of her more famous brothers, Sherlock and Mycroft. But she has all the wits, skills, and sleuthing inclinations of them both. At fifteen, she’s an independent young woman–after all, her name spelled backwards reads ‘alone’–and living on her own in London. When a young professional woman, Miss Letitia Glover, shows up on Sherlock’s doorstep, desperate to learn more about the fate of her twin sister, it is Enola who steps up. It seems her sister, the former Felicity Glover, married the Earl of Dunhench and per a curt note from the Earl, has died. But Letitia Glover is convinced this isn’t the truth, that she’d know–she’d feel–if her twin had died.

The Earl’s note is suspiciously vague and the death certificate is even more dubious, signed it seems by a John H. Watson, M.D. (who denies any knowledge of such). The only way forward is for Enola to go undercover–or so Enola decides at the vehement objection of her brother. And she soon finds out that this is not the first of the Earl’s wives to die suddenly and vaguely–and that the secret to the fate of the missing Felicity is tied to a mysterious black barouche that arrived at the Earl’s home in the middle of the night. To uncover the secrets held tightly within the Earl’s hall, Enola is going to require help–from Sherlock, from the twin sister of the missing woman, and from an old friend, the young Viscount Tewkesbury, Marquess of Basilwether!

Enola Holmes returns in her first adventure since the hit Netflix movie brought her back on the national bestseller lists, introducing a new generation to this beloved character and series.

Link to a buy-this-book page: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250822963 

What I Loved

I love how Enola Holmes grabs the case by the horns and makes it her own despite her famous brother’s involvement.  Enola is spunky, strong, ingenious, and positively fearless.  She carries the story to unexpected and thrilling places as she is much rasher than her always in control older brother Sherlock.  I adore her and would happily follow her from crazy antics to crazy antics as she seeks to solve the case at hand.

I also enjoyed that the writing style is very in line with Sherlock Holmes mysteries.  The Victorian formalities are always present, and there is a crispness to the language that flows in its unique manner.  I quickly read the book within a day as the pages just flew by because of the focus on the mystery, the short chapters, and the life that Enola breaths into the story.

The look at women and women’s issues during the Victorian age stayed true to the period. If looked at through today’s eyes, they can be pretty frustrating.  Misogyny was commonplace, yet Enola turns many of the Victorian sensibilities on their ear while maintaining others like the importance of the fashionable hat.

The Characters

Enola Holmes is my favorite character. I love her pluckiness.  But I’ve already described here under “What I Love.”  She does not work alone, though.  Her older brother Sherlock, always the genius at noticing what others overlook, is her partner. Tewky, Viscount Tewkesbury, Marquess of Basilwether, signs on, always willing to join Enola on adventures.  There is a fun banter between Enola and each of the men working with her, which brings a playfulness to the story you won’t find in a Sherlock Holmes mystery.  Dr. Watson even plays a small part as he is uniquely qualified to help with solving part of the mystery.

Reminds Me Of

 It reminds me of a Sherlock Holmes mystery but with all the unique aspects that Enola brings to the story to make it her own.

What I Wish

My only wish is that Enola continues to be the powerful female protagonist with each series installment.

Rating:

Rating: 5 out of 5.

To Read or Not to Read

Suppose the thought of a spirited, fun, and incorrigible female protagonist makes you smile. In that case, you need to pick up Enola Holmes and the Black Barouche today!

Trigger Warnings:

Mental Health Disorders / Asylum

NANCY SPRINGER is the author of the nationally bestselling Enola Holmes novels, including The Case of the Missing Marquess, which was made into the hit Netflix movie, Enola Holmes. She is the author of more than 50 other books for children and adults. She has won many awards, including two Edgar Awards, and has been published in more than thirty countries. She lives in Florida.

Twitter: @NancySpringer 

“Is she fainted?” 

Indignant, I wanted to sit up and say I was not so easily killed and I never fainted, but to my surprise my body would not obey me. I merely stirred and murmured. 

“She’s moving.” 

I saw the clodhopper boots of common men surrounding me and smelled alcohol on the breath of those leaning over me. 

“Let’s get ’er inside.” 

“Somebody go fer the doctor.” 

Strong hands, not ungentle, seized me by the feet and shoulders. I could have kicked and yelled—I felt strong enough now—but my mind had started to function, realizing that I was about to be carried into a pub, for only in a public house, or pub, would workmen be drinking in the daytime. And normally no woman of good repute would enter a pub, or if she did, she would be jeered at until she retreated. But, my avid brain realized, fate in the form of Jezebel had given me opportunity to spend some time inside a pub—no, in the pub, most likely the only pub in Threefinches! So I closed my eyes and pretended to be rather more helpless than I was as the men hauled me inside and laid me down on a high-backed bench by the hearth. 

Someone brought something pungent in lieu of smelling salts, but I shook my head, pushed the malodourous hand away, opened my eyes, and sat up, acting as if it were a great effort for me to do so. A burly, bearded man in an apron, undoubtedly the publican who kept the place, came running with a pillow for my back, and I thanked him with a gracious smile. 

“Will ye have a nip of brandy, lydy?” 

“No, thank you. Water, please.” 

“Jack! Water for the lydy!” he bellowed to some underling, and he remained nearby as I managed, with hands that genuinely trembled, to remove my gloves. Their thin kidskin leather was ruined by the mauling it had taken from Jezebel’s reins, and my hands were red and sore; doubtless they would bruise. Grateful for the cool glass, I held it in both hands and sipped, looking around me. Half of the denizens of the place, like the owner, stood in a semicircle staring at me not unpleasantly, while the rest did the same from seats at the rustic tables—all but one. A tall man with beard stubble on his chin and quite a shock of coarse brownish-grey hair hiding his forehead had withdrawn to a table by the wall, where he devoted his attention to his mug of ale, or stout, or whatever noxious brew he might fancy. I said brightly to the tavern-keeper, “I believe I would like to stand up.” 

“Now, why not wait for the doctor, lydy—” 

But taking hold of his arm, as he stood within my reach, I got to my feet with reasonable steadiness. There were muted cheers from the onlookers. Nodding and simpering at the men all around me, I lilted, “Thank you so much. Do you suppose anyone could go out and fetch my bag, and my hat and parasol? I believe they fell along the—” 

Already half a dozen would-be heroes were stampeding towards the door. Yet, if I had walked in here under my own power, any request for help would have been met with deepest suspicion. Such is life: odd.

25 Replies to “Enola Holmes and the Black Barouche by Nancy Springer #BlogTour #BookReview #Excerpt #YAMystery #SherlockHolmes”

  1. Staci Troilo says:

    I’m picturing the actors from Netflix (I loved that movie) and want to snatch this one up and read it. Thanks for the review.

    Liked by 1 person

  3. Mae Clair says:

    I still haven’t caught the Netflix series, but I really want to dive into the book. I’m going to have to grab this one!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Lady Tessa says:

      You will have a lot of fun reading this one, Mae! And you will love the Netflix movie. You’re going to have to try to find time to watch it.

      Liked by 1 person

    1. Lady Tessa says:

      It is completely fun. You should definitely make time to watch it – it’s just a two hour movie, not too much of a time commitment 😊

      Liked by 1 person

    1. Lady Tessa says:

      It is so fun! It’s not fantasy but I still think you’d enjoy it. I know you’d love the character as much as I do. ❤️

      Like

  7. WendyW says:

    OH this does sound so good. I love a tough heroine, especially during that time period.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Lady Tessa says:

      She makes my heart sing with her rebellious nature at a time when restrictions on women were all sorts of ridiculous.

      Liked by 1 person

  8. Carla says:

    This is coming up for me next week and I am really looking forward to it, especially after reading your wonderful review.

    Liked by 1 person

  11. Grab the Lapels says:

    I enjoyed the Netflix movie. I hadn’t realized that actress Millie Bobby Brown is British! I’d only seen her in the first season of Stranger Things and assumed she was from the U.S. If I recall, in the movie Enola is able to figure out puzzles that her brother Sherlock does not, and I wondered if part of that is he was famously high on…what was it, opium? Cocaine?

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Lady Tessa says:

      Lol. He definitely has issues which is a nice foil to her brilliance and having it all together. She knows what she wants and goes out to get it. I majorly love that about her.

      Liked by 1 person

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