[YFI]∎ PDF The Art of Detection Kate Martinelli Mysteries Laurie R King 9780553804539 Books

The Art of Detection Kate Martinelli Mysteries Laurie R King 9780553804539 Books

Download As PDF : The Art of Detection Kate Martinelli Mysteries Laurie R King 9780553804539 Books

The Art of Detection Kate Martinelli Mysteries Laurie R King 9780553804539 Books

This is the last of the Kate Martinelli series, or at least I assume so as it was written about 10 years ago. It's also been several years since I read the book before this in the series and I was worried that I had forgotten some of the details. Fortunately, I remembered all the important items that carried from the last book.

I've thoroughly enjoyed this series. Each book focuses on something a bit unusual. In this case, the focus was a murder of a Sherlock Holmes aficionado, a early 20th century manuscript which may or may not have been written by Arthur Conan Doyle and the Societies/Groups formed based a love of Sherlock Holmes.

The mystery kept my attention and interest throughout. I also liked seeing how Kate Martinelli's life had grown through the years. Art of Detection would not qualify as a romance - the mystery is the main focus, but seeing how Kate's life has grown through the years to include a larger circle of people, including her lover, daughter, friends and extended family. Seeing the personal aspects of her life added richness to the story and if this was the end of the series, it's a good, satisfying ending.


Tags : The Art of Detection (Kate Martinelli Mysteries) [Laurie R. King] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. In this thrilling new crime novel that ingeniously bridges Laurie R. King’s Edgar and Creasey Awards—winning Kate Martinelli series and her bestselling series starring Mary Russell,Laurie R. King,The Art of Detection (Kate Martinelli Mysteries),Bantam,0553804537,1000273534,Thrillers - Suspense,Martinelli, Kate (Fictitious character);Fiction.,Policewomen;California;San Francisco;Fiction.,San Francisco (Calif.);Fiction.,California,FICTION Thrillers Suspense,Fiction,Fiction - Mystery Detective,Fiction Mystery & Detective Women Sleuths,Fiction-Mystery & Detective,GENERAL,General Adult,KING, LAURIE, R. - PROSE & CRITICISM,Martinelli, Kate (Fictitious character),Mystery & Detective - Police Procedural,Mystery & Detective - Women Sleuths,MysterySuspense,Policewomen,San Francisco,United States

The Art of Detection Kate Martinelli Mysteries Laurie R King 9780553804539 Books Reviews

I first found Laurie King through her Kate Martinelli series. I loved how real the characters and situations were, and having worked in juvenile and family courts, I found her portrayals of dysfunctional and dangerous domestic crime all too believable.

When I first heard of the Mary Russell series, I was highly skeptical. I read the complete Sherlock Holmes when I was 11 years old and have revisited it many times over the years-- it was the first "grown-up" mystery series (after Nancy Drew) that I ever read and I always considered Holmes the standard for other mysteries. I've read several pastiches over the years and rarely found one that I liked. Once I read The Beekeeper's Apprentice, however, I knew that Holmes was in good hands-- expert hands who could continue his adventures without doing damage to the originals. In this book, the way Ms. King brings her Holmesian expertise to this modern mystery is delightful, and having just read Locked Rooms, which takes place in 1920s San Francisco, this was a highly entertaining follow-up. The Holmes story-within-the-story picks up where Locked Rooms left off, with Holmes still in San Francisco, biding his time while his wife finishes up some family business and settles her affairs. The idea of Holmes in rollicking Gilded Age SF is a wonderful image, and both the modern story and the Holmes story hold their own independently. She has a real talent for creating memorable characters with realistic behavior and very human motives, as well as telling ripping good tales!

Good work! I look forward to more adventures in both series, or any other path that this gifted writer may choose to pursue!
This book is an engrossing mystery within itself, with an added bonus - an entire Sherlock Holmes pastiche short story with its own mystery..

The short story in question functions as part of the overall mystery in the book but it is well worth reading for its own sake. Of course, this book is written by Laurie R King, author of the wonderful Mary Russell stories, who is more than qualified to write a Sherlock Holmes pastiche. (If you are not familiar with the Mary Russell stories, and are in any way interested in Sherlock Holmes influenced novels, then I recommend you look up the books in the series. For that matter, even if you are not interested in Sherlock Holmes influenced novels - they are very good.)

The plotline of the book is relatively simple - a young woman police detective and her older male partner investigate the murder of a man who was a Sherlock Holmes enthusiast. A particularly enthusiastic enthusiast as his home is a recreation of Sherlock's rooms and a house of the period, where he occasionally holds dinners for a Sherlock club. And just to let us know he takes the whole thing seriously, he deals in collectibles and memorabilia specialising in Donald Duck. I'm kidding! He specialises in Sherlock Holmes manuscripts, early editions etc - what else?

But running parallel to this plotline is another storyline, this one dealing with homophobia, homosexuality, and social conceptions concerning homosexuality (or to be more accurate, social misconceptions).

In the short story - which within the book may or may not be an original Doyle story - the mystery involves homosexuality and crossdressing, specifically male to female crossdressing. In the book itself, our young detective is a lesbian woman in contemporary San Francisco, the very city in which the short story is set. Inevitably the novel and the short story mirror each other and give rise to questions as to just how much social attitudes about homosexuality have changed in the intervening years - and how much they have not. It sounds preachy when boiled down to its essence, but this is far from the case. Most of the questions will rise in the reader's mind, rather than being belaboured within the text. The text gets the reader to think, rather than telling the reader what to think.

The tone of the book overall is sympathetic to the plight of homosexuals, so homophobes and other bigots should look elsewhere for a read. Unless they are looking for an excuse to be outraged, as so many people these days seem determined on doing.

I worked out the motive for the killing before the book's detective but not the details - but not much before the detective and I have a knack for "spoilering" books and films for myself by doing so. I didn't work out the solution to the mystery within the short story and had to wait for the detective within the short story to tell me. Both mysteries are well done, with a good build up of clues that leads to the solutoin without being tediously obvious. But then, once again, both the book and the short story were written by Laurie R King, who is justifiably credited with writing very good mysteries.

For me, the ending was particulary satisfying. Not only was the mystery wrapped up, but events in the young detective's life added the perfect final touch. No spoilers - but I got a little misty eyed.

Good mystery, great characterisations, a mystery within the mystery, and something of value to say about society - I definitely recommend this book.
Another outstanding novel by Laurie King. For those who are familiar with her novels about Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes - be alert that this is placed in the-21st century and features an entirely different detective and setting. The setting is San Francisco. Ms. King builds on her knowledge of the Sherlockian world, but from a very different perspective. She also writes sensitively of the world of lesbians who are professionals, living in a world which accepts gay & straight people equally. Most of all she writes about real and interesting people -- police examining evidence of what is most likely a murder, an intelligent 4 year old daughter who both perplexes and delights one parent, who relies on her partner to lead her through the shoals of motherhood. Well developed characters; and interesting plot; handled lightly and firmly. Highly recommended.
This is the last of the Kate Martinelli series, or at least I assume so as it was written about 10 years ago. It's also been several years since I read the book before this in the series and I was worried that I had forgotten some of the details. Fortunately, I remembered all the important items that carried from the last book.

I've thoroughly enjoyed this series. Each book focuses on something a bit unusual. In this case, the focus was a murder of a Sherlock Holmes aficionado, a early 20th century manuscript which may or may not have been written by Arthur Conan Doyle and the Societies/Groups formed based a love of Sherlock Holmes.

The mystery kept my attention and interest throughout. I also liked seeing how Kate Martinelli's life had grown through the years. Art of Detection would not qualify as a romance - the mystery is the main focus, but seeing how Kate's life has grown through the years to include a larger circle of people, including her lover, daughter, friends and extended family. Seeing the personal aspects of her life added richness to the story and if this was the end of the series, it's a good, satisfying ending.