The beekeepers apprentice might be slow at first but after a little bit it gets your heart pumping. This is an amazing book that is so much like all the other Sherlock Holmes you think it was written by Arthur Conan Doyle himself.

While you may think this is another ordinary Sherlock Holmes mystery with Dr. Watson and all those other guys. This is a completely new story with the main character being not Holmes but a modern (by our standards) 15 year old girl named Mary Russell. They meet by coincidence and quickly realize that they have a lot in common. Soon Mary becomes his protégé, learning about disguises and solving minor crimes. But after a little while a string of murders comes along and the two must bring a stop to the killer.

The setting of this murder mystery is 1915 London. World war one is still going on and the psyche of the characters really shows this. The buildings also show a degree of wear and tear. Holmes does not live in his usual Apartment but a small cottage. Soon after half way through the book the worn out villages of London give way to the upper class housing and universities.

If you ever want a solid read that will last you a while and keeps making you want to turn the page to find out what happens to the dynamic duo you should read this book. I give this book four and a half out of five stars.