Brilliant “Sherlock” Descendants—The Master Detective Lives On!

Sherry Thomas, 2016

This is simply the most brilliant reincarnation of Sherlock Holmes yet. Charlotte Holmes is an amazing, on-the-spectrum (like all true Sherlocks), intricate character whose unsentimental views of love, sex, family and a “woman’s place in the world” are refreshing and highly amusing. The mysteries are complex and intriguing, the dangers are real, and the fraught sexual tension between Charlotte and Lord Ashton (a friend since childhood) gives an extra frisson to their interactions. And then there’s Mrs. Watson—a formidable and compassionate former actress who bonds with Charlotte to form the unbeatable detecting duo. The first book A Study in Scarlet Women is a stunning introduction to the eight-book series.

Frank Tallis, 2015

Dr. Max Liebermann is a young doctor in early 20th century Vienna, a colleague of Sigmund Freud (who has cameo appearances, always trying out ‘jokes’ on his friends as he studies the psychology of humor!). Max joins up with his “Watson” figure, Detective Oskar Rheinhardt, on psychologically puzzling murders that occur in vibrant, restless Vienna before the Great War, redolent of art by Klimt and music by Mahler. Both men, however, are astute and thoughtful, although the detective, an older man, is compassionate and empathetic, traits that the young, intellectual Max has yet to learn. The mysteries are intricate (and frightfully bizarre at times), the interior lives of the two men slowly unveil, and they become fast friends over murder and deliciously described Viennese coffee and pastries, so well written you want to eat the page! The first book A Death in Vienna finds Max practicing the controversial new “science” that treats mental illness, and he assists Oskar in solving a classic locked-room murder.

Gyles Daubeney Brandreth, 2008

The inimitable Oscar Wilde is the “Sherlock” of this series, aided and supported by none other than Arthur Conan Doyle himself in the role of Dr. Watson. Taking on various horrendous and unspeakable crimes (including Jack the Ripper), Oscar and Arthur float through Victorian high-, middle- and low-class societies in search of clues and killers. Continual and apt references and quotes from Oscar’s witty writings and bon mots liven up the text and give the stories a humorously intellectual flair. There is a good deal of true-to-life treatment of Oscar’s famous and infamous life, for good and ill, along with many cameos of historical personages that add to the realistic, historical flavor. The first book of six is Oscar Wilde and a Death of No Importance.

Stephanie Barron, 2009

It is a truth universally acknowledged that an aspiring authoress must possess the keen powers of observation, judgement and detection—and Jane has it all, plus romance! Austen’s characters turn up time and again as real people she meets at country houses and estates, in town or on the train, and who eventually come alive on the pages of her novels as Emma, Mr. Darcy, or Elinor Dashwood, for example. Like a much younger but still mostly overlooked Miss Marple, Jane is a “spinster” who dares to write and publish her work, and she finds that her rigorous mind and honest common sense are often very attractive to certain members of the opposite sex—like the “king’s man” secret agent who falls for Jane in a big way. But writing is her primary love, and she earns her way as an author as she solves mysteries and prevents murder and mayhem in the country houses of England. Fourteen books and counting! The first one is Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor.

Vicki Delany, 2017

For a much more modern Sherlock, we have a true but intelligent cozy village series starring Gemma Doyle (yes, that Doyle) who is British but has moved to Cape Cod in the US to manage her great-uncle Arthur’s detective-themed bookstore. Holmes-related names and characters abound—there is even a cat named Moriarty! Gemma is the Sherlock, but her investigations into village murders are often stymied by her on-again/off-again real detective boyfriend, and assorted friends and neighbors who both help and hinder solving the mystery. There are eight books in the series so far, they’re quick but very satisfying reads, light and funny, but serious about the murders. The characters are well-developed and interesting. Contemporary enough to have Benedict Cumberbatch as a guest at the bookstore in one of the series! The first in the series is Elementary, She Read: A Sherlock Holmes Bookstore Mystery.