Book Review: Mrs. Hudson and the Christmas Canary by Martin Davies

About the Book

December in London, and Maximilian Cortado, the world famous violinist, has disappeared, the only clue being the unexpected delivery to his townhouse of a basket containing a live hen.

When it emerges that a number of other notable members of society have been receiving similarly unexplained fowl, the deliveries begin to appear more sinister.

Sherlock Holmes, however, seems more intrigued by a trivial incident in Sussex, where someone has been damaging Christmas trees intended for a local stately home. So when he is asked by the wife of a famous artist to investigate a robbery carried out twenty-three years before, Mrs Hudson sees an opportunity to assist.

At the centre of that mystery is the Christmas Canary, a solid gold decoration of mesmerising beauty, hand-crafted for the fifth Lord Empingham. For years it had graced the top of the Christmas tree at Frawling Hall – until its mystifying disappearance broke the seventh Lord’s heart. Fowl deeds are afoot, but can Mrs Hudson restore the canary to its perch before it’s too late?

My Review

This is such a cute series. I love the spin on the Sherlock Holmes canon, as well as the introduction of people like Mr Raffles as a nod to British Mysteries more broadly speaking. I’m really enjoying the development of Flotsam’s character, as well as the development of her relationships with the other characters. I must confess I found the underlying mystery in this one to be slightly less interesting than those in most of the earlier books in the series, but it was still a sweet holiday sentiment and I did enjoy how everything wrapped up in the end. It was a lovely story and a solid addition to the series.