Blog Tour: ‘The Three Locks’ by Bonnie MacBird

Welcome to my stop on this blog tour for ‘The Three Locks’, a Sherlock Holmes adventure, by Bonnie MacBird.

This tour is organised by Random Things Tours. The novel was published on 18th March, 2021, by Collins Crime Club.

From the Publisher:

“A captivating three-card monte of murder, mystery and magic”

A brand-new Sherlock Holmes novel by award-winning Hollywood screenwriter Bonnie MacBird.

The Three Locks – a gripping new Sherlock Holmes adventure by Bonnie MacBird – is published by Collins Crime Club, an imprint of HarperCollins, on 18 March 2021.  It is the fourth in her acclaimed series.

The year is 1887 and an Indian Summer broils London and Cambridge. A mysterious impregnable box arrives for Watson, locked and with a secret from his past. Then a famous escape artist/conjurer fails to unlock his “cauldron” and burns to a crisp during a performance at Wilton’s Music Hall.  And in Cambridge, three suitors including a priest, an aristocrat and a young physicist vie for the love of a spiteful beauty, who vanishes after her lookalike doll is found dismembered in the Jesus Lock on the River Cam. The cases convolve as Holmes and Watson tangle with clergy, police, academics and scheming siblings, risking life and limb to solve the murders and to keep the innocent from the gallows.

MacBird’s stylish updates to Conan Doyle’s canon bring all the wit, camaraderie and deductions one expects from Holmes and Watson, but with the extended arc of a novel allowing not only more character development but also action, which carries them far beyond the locked room mystery and into danger.

Each of MacBird’s four Holmes books explores a theme. Just as Art in the Blood revealed the perils and gifts of the artistic temperament, Unquiet Spirits uncovered the danger of letting ghosts of the past lie unresolved, and The Devil’s Due touched upon the cost of corruption, The Three Locks examines the risk of keeping dark secrets locked away. 

Meticulous research and attention to period detail enrich the reading experience. The Three Locks is a must-read for fans of the original Sherlock Holmes adventures and for readers new to the genre.

“The parade of Sherlockian pastiches testifies to the potent and lasting genius of Conan Doyle’s creation. Yet few such homages offer the twenty-first-century reader Victorian atmosphere and drama like Bonnie MacBird’s. The rivalry and frustrations that colour the partnership of Holmes and Watson, their James Bond adventures and escapes, the great man’s ego and eccentricities, Watson’s catty wit—all are here, in the vivid atmosphere of an unusually hot London summer. MacBird’s sly plot and admirable sense of pacing keeps the story twisting and turning in a way that would have kept Doyle himself turning pages.”
           
Michael Sims, author of Edgar finalist ‘Arthur and Sherlock: Conan Doyle and the Creation of Holmes‘

“Bonnie MacBird’s The Three Locks satisfies a hunger for more adventures of Holmes and Watson on so many levels: Not only does she perfectly capture their voices, she captures that most critical element—their humanity. Brava!”
 
Leslie S. Klinger, editor, ‘New Annotated Sherlock Holmes‘

My Review:

I love crime fiction. I love anything set in the Victorian period. I love Sherlock Holmes. This was a pretty pleasing fit for me all round!

With eternal thanks to the blog tour organiser, the publisher and author for my gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.

Right, I’ll admit I was expecting a good book – some period details, a bit of Sherlockery, a clever crime story. I’ve read Sherlock Holmes as written by lots of different modern authors – with variable results – so I figured I knew what was coming.

This wasn’t just a good book – it was a fabulous book.

From the moment the story opened, I’ll admit I breathed a sigh of relief. Here was a Dr John Watson who seemed credible, a Sherlock Holmes who fitted with my understanding of the character and a pacing which actually improved on the originals (yeah, I know – they are classics and Arthur Conan Doyle a genius, but they can also be a bit slow in places. Just saying.) Everything you expect is there…as well as everything you could hope for!

The plot is – as you would want – multi-layered and complex and difficult for me to do justice to without giving spoilers. Suffice it to say that it features some great elements – the one-up showmanship of Victorian magic acts, a missing young woman, links to the prestigious Cambridge University, some fancy science, a dysfunctional wealthy family, a locked box…the list goes on and I absolutely adored it all.

At the heart of this novel is the relationship between Watson and Holmes, something I thought to be beautifully portrayed. There is a genuine companionship between these two characters and it is heartening that Watson was so much more than a sidekick – he is written by MacBird as a respected figure and someone that Holmes cares about. I liked the fact that Watson’s personal history was a key part of this book and that he had his own moments of action independent of Holmes.

What did come as another pleasant surprise was the humour. Always gentle and appropriate, there were some lovely lines in the book that genuinely made me smile.

I’ll admit that I didn’t realise that this book was actually the fourth in a series. However, it works perfectly well as a standalone and I don’t think gives spoilers about any of the other books. In fact, I’ve since bought all the other books in the series and told everyone who would listen about them!

In case you hadn’t guessed, this was definitely a five star read for me. If you love Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson, this is a sympathetic, warm and respectful pastiche by an author who seems to love them very much. Even if you haven’t read the originals, there is lots for you to enjoy here and I urge you to dive in. Highly recommended!

About the Author:

Bonnie MacBird was born and raised in San Francisco and fell in love with Sherlock Holmes by reading the canon at age ten. She now lives in London and Lost Angeles. Her long Hollywood career includes feature film development at Universal, the original screenplay for the movie TRON, three Emmy Awards for documentary writing and producing, numerous produced plays and musicals, and theatre credits as an actor and director. In addition to her work in entertainment, Bonnie teaches writing at UCLA Extension, as well as being an accomplished watercolourist.

She is active in the Sherlockian community in both the UK and the US, and lectures regularly on Sherlock Holmes, writing, and creativity.

Bonnie’s previous three Sherlock Holmes adventures are: Art in the Blood; Unquiet Spirits and The Devil’s Due. Her books are now available in 17 languages worldwide.

For further information about Bonnie MacBird visit: http://www.macbird.com 

Twitter:@macbird / Instagram: bmacbird

Facebook: SherlockHolmesAdventureSeries