Mrs Hudson and the Blue Daisy Affair (Book Review)

 

 

Mrs Hudson and the Blue Daisy Affair
(A Holmes and Hudson Mystery, book 5)
by Martin Davies

I've read and reviewed the previous books in this series back in 2016 (1-3) and 2020 (4). By now I've got quite used to, and even fond of, Davies' version of Sherlock Holmes - where mysteries are solved not only "upstairs" but also "downstairs" at Baker Street. While in the original stories Mrs Hudson was Holmes' and Watson's landlady, in these stories she is their housekeeper, who also has help from a maid, Flotsam (Flottie), whom originally she took in as an orphan. With time, Flottie has matured and has become almost as much of a sleuth as Mrs Hudson. They are by now both often taken into the confidence of both Holmes and Watson - and Flottie is even gaining a reputation on her own as trustworthy, by certain clients. 

In this book, Holmes and Watson have more work going than they can handle.  Things get complicated when on top of other urgent cases they are asked to both protect a radical politician, George Dashing, against a suspected plot by Russian assassins; and investigate a murder for which Dashing's political rival Sir Henry Catanache is suspected. In the midst of it all, Holmes also suddenly seems to be getting competition from a mysterious new detective in town, whose name is beginning to turn up more and more frequently in the London newspapers: Laurence Martin. Flottie starts out helping Holmes and Watson to look for suspicious ads in the newspapers (that may contain coded messages) - and her own involvement in things escalates from there... 

It all gets rather entangled, and the reader can expect some surprising twists and turns before things finally get sorted out.

I'm rather looking forward to another installment in the series coming up in November.

 

Goodbye, September

 I'm struggling to come up with post titles now, as lately I've literally just been walking round in circles, watching nature slowly changing colours...  

But here some more photos from the end of September - before I say "Hello, October!" 

The ones with blue sky are from Thursday. A bit of sunshine really works wonders!

 

September Leaves & Skies

 

These are the last of my photos from last weekend (Saturday). This week has been rainier. I've been able to continue my daily walks (sometimes with, sometimes without camera),  without getting drenched; but I haven't been going far from home. 

Indoors, in between everyday chores (and reading, internet and TV etc), I've been digging into a bit of my own family history again. If you're interested in that, keep an eye on my other blog, Greetings from the Past. Since last autumn I've been posting fairly regularly there most weekends, linking to Sepia Saturday. (There's a permanent link in the sidebar of this blog, if you're reading the website layout.)

The Colours of Autumn, continued...

  Continuing my Saturday walk; to a little park by a dam and waterfall in the river.

Rowan berries

 

 

 OK, now I want to know if anyone else sees what I see in the next picture (below)?

A gentle green giant sitting down to rest on a park bench...
(Once seen, I can't un-see it!)

Views from up on the bridge, looking south vs north.

 

 

 

Keep Walkin' ...

 If anyone is wondering, I'm still fever-free and haven't developed any cold symptoms. So I suppose I can count "whatever-it-was" over with. (Cf the two previous posts.) But I'll probably be staying home most of the week to come anyway - as it seems we're now headed for a more rainy period. And it's also my regular home-delivery shopping week.

Yesterday (Saturday) was still a quite pleasant autumn day, though - mild and still, even if the sky mostly overcast. I took advantage of that to sweep and remove my plastic floor mats from the balcony - a job which is preferably done in dry weather. And we're now well past the "barefoot" season... I still have a chair out there that I can use if the sun pops out on an afternoon, though.

I also went for another walk in the neighbourhood - with my proper camera, to catch some more autumn colours. As I'm not sure what the week to come will be like, I think I'll save some of the photos "for later"... (like the Queen and Paddington Bear with their marmalade sandwiches)... But here are some to start with - from a modern block of apartment buildings by the river.