Author: Brittany Cavallaro
Publisher: Katherine Tegen
Publication Date: March 1, 2016
Pages: 321
Format: Paperback/Own
The last thing Jamie Watson wants is a rugby scholarship to Sherringford, a Connecticut prep school just an hour away from his estranged father. But that’s not the only complication: Sherringford is also home to Charlotte Holmes, the famous detective’s great-great-great-granddaughter, who has inherited not only Sherlock’s genius but also his volatile temperament. From everything Jamie has heard about Charlotte, it seems safer to admire her from afar.
From the moment they meet, there’s a tense energy between them, and they seem more destined to be rivals than anything else. But when a Sherringford student dies under suspicious circumstances, ripped straight from the most terrifying of the Sherlock Holmes stories, Jamie can no longer afford to keep his distance. Jamie and Charlotte are being framed for murder, and only Charlotte can clear their names. But danger is mounting and nowhere is safe—and the only people they can trust are each other.
Review: I really enjoyed this! I wasn't expecting a whole lot at first. Despite watching some Sherlock Holmes shows and movies, I've yet to read a book of it or based on it. But I really enjoyed this. I thought it was great. I loved how it follows Sherlock's and Watson's descendants. It so fun to think of all this stuff as staying in the family through the generations.
I really enjoyed Jamie Watson. He's obviously a Watson but he's not super into the whole Holmes & Watson thing as the previous generations. I mean, he's very interested in Charlotte and wants to get to know her, but not for like the investigative partnership idea. But that's exactly what happens when they end up getting framed for murder and they have to work together to figure out who the real killer is. You could tell at the beginning he was definitely not like his ancestors. He's not that good of observing, questioning, anything. He pretty much has to have Charlotte train him in practically everything he needs to know so he can actually be of use and help figure out the case. He also has a pretty estranged relationship with his father in this book, which ends up front and center when he's accused of murder. I also liked that Jamie tried to look out for and help Charlotte, even when she wasn't being willing to take that help/looking out for.
I actually liked Charlotte. I mean, in a sense, she was written to be unlikable. She's not super friendly or open about things like a normal main character would be. But I think justice was done to the fact she is a Holmes. She genuinely acted like a Holmes. And that included the not being super friendly bit. She was knew very well how to investigate and collect evidence/clues, question people, pick out lies from the truth, etc. She definitely had the Holmes essence. There is no denying what family she comes from. But she also has a past she feels pretty guilty about and that makes it hard for her to be more friendly with Jamie. He keeps asking questions about or accusing the person from her past of the murders. And it really wrecks Charlotte because she feels a bit guilty. So not only is her upbringing part of the reason she's so unfriendly but there's the fact she holds guilt about what she did and it eats at her and she doesn't want anyone to get close to her to find out. Plus when we meet her brother at the end and see how he treats her... No wonder the girl has issues. Oy.
I found the murders and attacks so interesting. I mean, they were all based off of Sherlock Holmes stories! I've never read any, but I thought that was so neat. I do however think it was a bit silly that they kept looking at Holmes and Watson as the suspects, especially after the second attack. They found the poor girl and got help. Why would they attack her and then act like they didn't? I mean some people are that demented, but Charlotte and Jamie? Not one bit. Plus why would they use stories about their ancestors to do crimes? That makes no sense. But whatever. Jamie and Charlotte were much smarter than the detective and actually found out who was doing everything. They followed the evidence, the potential suspects. They did everything like they should. And they found the murderer. Though I have to say I was surprised at the relationship to someone else mentioned that the murderer had. Did not actually see that one coming. I was also shocked at all the shady side stuff going on too. Like with Jamie's roommate Tom and his teacher. Camera's and bugs hidden in his dorm. His teacher shadily trying to use Jamie's stories for his own self gain. Just wow!
I was also pleasantly surprised by the ending with Jamie and his dad. He went from hating his dad and wanting nothing to do with him, to actually wanting to spend more time with him. It was beautiful. He came to realize his dad's new family wasn't too bad and that his dad just genuinely wanted to work on things between them. I also thought it was cool how his dad had this handy dandy book with helpful hints for a Watson trying to take care of/look out for a Holmes. Haha. You know the families have been working together for generations when there's a book like that around. But I was really happy seeing them actually have a father/son relationship again.
