A Ruse of Shadows by Sherry Thomas

A Ruse of Shadows by Sherry Thomas

Sherry Thomas has dipped her toe into several different genres of novels. Fantasy, historical romance, and young adult for starters. She has won the Rita Award from Romance Writers of America not once, but twice. I was first introduced to her through her young adult fantasy series, the Elemental Trilogy, but my interest was snagged by her take on Sherlock Holmes with her Lady Sherlock series. A Ruse of Shadows is the eighth book in the series and there is another coming out in September 2026. It deals with kidnapping, murder, gun violence and death, classism, racism, and references to child abuse and pedophilia. That being said, it is a novel set in the Victorian era so everything is pretty easy to tolerate.

Sherlock Holmes, or rather, Charlotte Holmes' reclusive and non-existent brother has made quite a name for himself. In fact, after getting a measure of protection from an agent of the crown, Charlotte feels like she has room to breathe for a moment. But that moment is short lived when she gets a missive from Lord Bancroft Ashburton who needs her help finding his most loyal lackey, Underwood. While Charlotte has no interest in working with Lord Bancroft, whom she had previously helped put behind bars, Lord Bancroft makes sure that she knows that she has no choice in the matter. Her sister's life is held in the balance.

The Lady Sherlock series caught me right from the beginning. Sherry Thomas twists the Sherlock Holmes stories in a fun, gender bending way. I love all the characters in these books, from Charlotte herself to Lord Ingram to Detective Treadles. Over the course of the series they have each had to face their own shortcomings and have become incredibly likeable characters. The further we get into the series, the more nuanced the plot becomes. Each book focuses on its own storyline but manages to further the overarching plot as well. There are times when things get a little confusing, Charlotte Holmes' mind works much faster than mine, but overall I would say they are easy to follow and do not rely on twist endings to remain compelling. The writing is fun, witty, and fast paced. I can't wait for the next book to come out.

I'm giving A Ruse of Shadows by Sherry Thomas 4 stars out of 5. It was not my favorite of the Lady Sherlock series but it was very solid and I had a great time reading it.

For more from Sherry Thomas, check out her website at https://www.sherrythomas.com/

Pairs well with a slice of Charlotte Russe and being able to read a Caesar cipher.

My favorite quote: "'Perhaps that is the great tragedy of my life. Not that I'd encountered my share of terrible people, but that I hadn't known to put my faith in the good ones.'"