Locked Rooms

By: Laurie R. King

Narrated by: Jenny Sterlin

Length: 13 hrs and 57 mins

Publisher's summary

New York Times best-selling author Laurie R. King has won sweeping critical acclaim and an impressive collection of awards for her writing. Although other writers have tried, no one has matched King's ability to capture the allure of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's legendary sleuth, Sherlock Holmes.

Haunted by her dreams, Mary Russell arrives in San Francisco in 1924 to settle her parents' estate. But she quickly encounters a few surprises and learns there may be a great deal more to her childhood in this city than she ever knew. As Mary tries to cobble the pieces of her shadowy past together, her husband Holmes wonders if she may be repressing vital memories. And one thing seems certain; someone wants Mary's remembrances to stay buried.

King is at the top of her game with Locked Rooms, a wonderfully intricate and marvelously evocative mystery rich with unexpected twists and turns.

©2005 Laurie R. King (P)2005 Recorded Books, LLC

Critic reviews

"A highlight in an altogether outstanding series." (Booklist)
"Richly imagined....The narrative has real momentum, the characters are engaging, and the prose, as always, is intelligent, evocative, and graceful." (Publishers Weekly)
"A humdinger of a plot that deepens with each retelling of the dreams, plus pulsating descriptions of San Francisco's tent cities, looters, and flattened Chinatown in the 1906 quake's aftermath." (Kirkus Reviews)

Laurie King's

This another worthy addition to the series, extending and deepening the characters of Russell and Holmes. The reader does a really excellent job of capturing King's characters. Thoroughly enjoyable!

Wonderful Entry

This installment takes the reader down a darker path in the life of Mary Russell. This glimpse into her past to discover what happened to her family built on the characters well and introduced a surprise for the reader. If you have enjoyed the series to this point, this installment will not disappoint.

Superb storytelling and plot

I love this series, and I believe this is the best work Laurie R. King has written! Not to be missed—the psychological elements of Mary untangling her childhood, the fascinating, young city of San Fran, the brilliance of Holmes, the fun addition of Dashell Hammett, and gratifying relationships with the Asian community.

Abrupt Ending

As with all the Mary Russell mysteries, the character development and plot were well developed. The introduction of actual celebrities from the period, such as Dashiell Hammitt delightful, and the history of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake/fire informative. The only reason I am rating the novel a 4 is because I thought it abruptly ended without the resolution of some issues. For example, Mary Russell had developed a close relationship with Flo Greenfield, and the reader is left wondering how Mary handled the aftermath. Also, there was the introduction of a missing trunk from the cruise ship that belong to Mary Russell and was never resolved - who took it, why was it taken, was it ever recovered?

I love this series of novels and it all that it exposes the reader to. Just wished Locked Rooms hadn’t ended so abruptly.

Riveting change of pace

The setting of this book, in San Francisco, with many flashbacks to the time of the great earthquake and fire, was fascinating. The author also used a different style of narration, alternating between Mary Russell, telling the story in her usual first person, narrative, and an omniscient, third person narrator, telling parts of the story from the perspective of Holmes . Not confusing at all, very smoothly and deftly interwoven. Great addition to the series!

Best of the series.

This telling of Mary’s ’ inward journey of understanding alongside of the physical and dangerous pursuit of those who would do her harm against the backdrop of San Francisco’s fire was deeply engrossing. The narrator was perfect. Ie recommend this book

Great All Around

I enjoy how the author weaves an accounting of history into the tale, quite unobtrusively. That history being about the 1906 Earthquake and subsequent fires that destroyed much of San Francisco. And how they used Van Ness as a fire break to stop the spread of the fires, if that was true. It was neat to hear the streets being named along with the neighborhoods of San Francisco because I know pretty well where all those are located. I felt like I was traveling those streets with the characters. The narrator performer is quickly rising near the top of my list too. Highly recommend.

The Best Installment So Far

To be honest, I have finished this story before its predecessor. In the previous story, which I have floundered in finishing, there was considerable action, but it was seemingly long and somewhat extraneous; and Holmes had become a mere foil for Russell. I was despairing of finishing the series.

This story has renewed my interest in the series. An interesting story that continues what becomes their world circling journey - recalling previous installments and linking the series together. A psychological mystery, we learn quite a bit about Russell's past and, to my pleasure, Holmes is featured as more than just a shadow. The relationship between Holmes and Russell is deepened, Holmes returning to the role of wise and resourceful detective, but with a more genuine expression of care and even frustration in his relating to Russell. For her part, Russell is depicted well as a woman with psychological demons arising from her childhood during the San Fransisco earthquake of 1906. Behind it all is a wonderfully entertaining back story of confused intrigue, misdirection, and surprises - that connect the story lines of previous installments, adding to the weight of the character and relationship development.

Recommended.

entertaining addition

this is a very entertaining addition to this series. i liked the twist of two fictional detectives working "on the case". the narration is excellent.

Another awesome story

Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes in San Francisco traveling back to Russell's past, who did that to her family? Feng shui? No less beautiful background speaks volumes of author's relationship with the land