Review Detail

ENOLA HOLMES AND THE ELEGANT ESCAPADE is a delightful historical mystery featuring Sherlock Holmes's younger sister. Enola knows something is up when she pays a call on her best friend, Cecily, and the servant is unable to pass a message or let Enola see her. Enola hatches a plan to find out whether she is alright and soon is helping Cecily escape the cruelty of her father.

Not long after the escape, Enola finds that Sherlock Holmes is also on the case to find Cecily, but Cecily is too crafty to be caught. As Enola and Sherlock follow the clues to find her, they learn more about her father and his own dangerous dealings.

What I loved: This was a really quick and fun read that pulls the reader into Enola's charm once again. The case seems simple on the surface but is plenty delightful with ciphers and other twists that keep Enola on her toes. Cecily is a compelling character who has been subjected to much abuse at the hands of her father, leading her to develop dissociative identity disorder with two sides that are left or right handed.

The mystery is light and mostly around the missing persons case with a twist in terms of Cecily's father and his own misdeeds that help to bring the story to a mostly satisfying conclusion. While Sherlock is involved, it was great to see Enola besting him at this game, and their interactions throughout. This will work well for fans of Enola with this new and engaging mystery.

What left me wanting more: As a small thing, the portrayal of dissociative identity disorder felt very hollywood, in that it did not seem completely authentic.

Final verdict: A quick and engaging mystery, ENOLA HOLMES AND THE ELEGANT ESCAPADE is a charming read that will work well for older middle grade through YA readers.