“A Study in Charlotte” by Brittany Cavallaro has been on my TBR for too long, so when I had the opportunity to grab a copy of this book the other day, I didn’t hesitate. It’s book one of a trilogy featuring the teenage descendents of the infamous Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. A young adult novel, author Cavallaro brings to life with great flair Charlotte Holmes and Jamie (just call me Watson) Watson.
While there’s been several re-imagining of the Holmes/Watson dynamic for decades — from movies to television and books, Brittany Cavallaro manages to give it a fresh twist while maintaining the essence of the classics. Readers are introduced to Jamie Watson who’s been sent to Sherringford, a Connecticut prep school, on a rugby scholarship. Here he meets Charlotte Holmes, the great-great-great granddaughter of Sherlock Holmes. They quickly find themselves thrown together trying to solve a campus murder before the real murderer manages to frame them for the deed.
The development of both the teen Holmes and Watson characters is solid, Cavallaro manages to bring each to life without creating caricatures that fall flat. Charlotte Holmes is a bit hard to like at times, as she should be — she’s very much like her great-great-great grandfather in that respect, thoroughly frustrating and angering Watson along the way. I loved Jamie Watson. He’s intelligent, loyal, and with just enough volatile temper that I’d definitely want him in my corner. And did I mention there’s Moriaritys involved?
I definitely recommend “A Study in Charlotte” to anyone who enjoys a well-thought mystery, YA drama, and strong characters that grow throughout the story. The pace is good, the dialogue witty, and the supporting characters add dimension.
Book 2 in the trilogy is “The Last of August” and it releases February 14, 2017. To discover more about author Brittany Cavallaro and her books, please check out her website here.
Writer and reader by day, reader and writer by night. I freelance full-time, have finished the first book of my YA trilogy, and am working on several other projects.
Barb Hopkins 
[…] are descendants of the infamous duo Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. While book one in the trilogy (A Study in Charlotte) takes place at their boarding school in the United States, book two has the duo in Europe during […]
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[…] Charlotte” and YA mystery is your thing — go grab a copy now and read it. You can read my review here. As for the second book, I’m about 100 pages in and it has my attention. Keep an eye for my […]
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