Book Review #4 - The Final Problem

I received this advance copy of The Final Problem from NetGalley with the expectation by them that I would provide my honest review.

What a delightful story! An aging actor known for his portrayal of Sherlock Holmes finds himself the center of a real-life mystery while stranded by a storm on a Greek island.  

With elements of Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None sprinkled throughout the setting, Ormond Basil finds himself reprising his role as Sherlock Holmes, with a fellow strandee crime fiction author serving as Watson, to solve not one but two locked room murders, with third murder tossed in for good measure.  The cast consisted of twelve - the hotel proprietress and three staff members; Mr. Basil; two female traveling companions; a German couple; Mr. Basil's television producer friend and his opera diva companion; and the crime fiction author Mr. Foxa.  

A massive storm preventing the authorities from being able to reach the island after the first death, the group looks to Mr. Basil to determine what had happened.  Knowing he is, as he continually reminds the group, only an actor, he tries to retreat into the background but his life's work of embodying the great detective has given him a certain overlay, art imitating life, and they all look to his "expertise" to answer the questions.  

As other deaths occur, Mr. Basil is forced into the position of having to solve the crimes, which he ultimately does.  And even though I marked every clue, I was still wrong in my determination of the murderer and was surprised by the ending.  

Each scene is set with references to certain real Sherlock Holmes mysteries, and the dialogue between the characters is often filled with quotes from the books.  Books I wish to check into now to round out my knowledge.  

Overall, an excellent short book, highly enjoyable with a "can't put it down" quality to it, and a 4-star review from me.

Book Review #3 - The Keeper of Lost Art

 I received this advance copy of The Keeper of Lost Art from NetGalley with the expectation by them that I would provide my honest review.

I loved this book!  I am truly a fan of historical fiction, and I enjoy stories that present a side not usually explored.  In this case, Italian art masterpieces moved from the Uffizi and other museums to protect them from the invading German armies in World War II.  But of course, that also presented dangers to the protectors of the art.  That is the crux of the story - the lives lived with the most precious of cultural treasurers hidden under their roof and the most dangerous of enemies all around.

The story is beautifully told, with incredibly rich descriptions. With some books, it seems the authors will empty their thesauruses out trying to find yet another descriptive turn of phrase for something.  This author made it seem effortless.  I could see in my mind's eye the olive groves, the cypresses, the fields of red poppies, the rooms of the villa, and the view from the villa's tower.  All extremely well done.  

The author did a very nice job leading into each chapter with quotes from Botticelli, as the creator of the art, and Captain Foster as the ultimate officer in charge of returning the works to Florence.   The feelings of one as the producer and the other as the recipient.  I enjoyed reading those statements that mirrored each other hundreds of years apart.

The story revolves around Stella, a young girl at the start whose mother sends her from their home in an Italian city to live in the country with her mother's brother and wife and their children.  Believing she'd be safer there.  There are undercurrents at the home that take Stella a while to understand, but she ultimately does.  The aunt that seems to not want her there at first ends up being her best mentor and role model, and protector.  While there, Stella befriends Sandro, a boy just older than her that, for all intents and purposes, believes himself to be orphaned.  His brothers are fighting in the war, and he has no one else to care for him.  He arrives at the villa with many other refugees seeking shelter in the large wine cellar. Stella and Sandro teach each other when school is stopped for the fighting - Stella helps Sandro with his reading and Sandro helps Stella learn to draw.  Sandro is one of the few people that is allowed to see the Treasure Room, as Stella calls it, and he wastes no time mimicking the great works.  

My only critique of the story that isn't positive is that I felt a little editing could have been done in the middle.  I guess like in war, there was a repetition to the days and the middle section felt a little repetitive as well, without advancing the story much.  

The ending was bittersweet, in several of the storylines, but they felt true to the story.  It was a telling of real life, not a fairy tale, so we didn't get the fairy tale ending that I'm sure some readers would expect.  

Overall, a really enjoyable story and I highly recommend it to those who enjoy this genre.