The Vanished Sister - Historical Mystery Review

Goodreads: The Vanished Sister (The Lady Sherlock Series #9) by Sherry Thomas

Rating: Really Liked It (4 Stars)
Source: Publisher

Description: It’s been three years since Charlotte Holmes struck a decisive blow against Moriarty's operations in Britain, three years of relative calm and benign developments. In a buoyant mood, everyone gathers at Lord Ingram's seaside cottage in North Devon for what promises to be a perfect summer holiday. Until Mrs. Watson receives an invitation from Mrs. Carstairs, her long-estranged sister, to attend a house party nearby.

Mrs. Carstairs has married spectacularly well. She is the mistress of a great manor, a doyen of all domestic arts, and still an unforgettable beauty. Now she clamors for a reconciliation with her sister. Mrs. Watson does not trust Mrs. Carstairs's motives. Yet she cannot help but feel tremors of the old admiration for this once-beloved sister.

Then Mrs. Carstairs disappears without a trace. The next day a woman is discovered floating on the waves, her build and coloring matching those of Mrs. Carstairs. But her husband insists that the corpse fished out of the Bristol Channel cannot be his wife. So where is the real Mrs. Carstairs? Would she have purposely dragged Mrs. Watson into a murder investigation? Or was it Sherlock Holmes's involvement that she needed from the very beginning?

Genre: Mystery - Historical

Why I Picked This Book: I've enjoyed other books in this series and this one sounded really fun.

My Impression: I really like this series.  The Lady Holmes concept with Charlotte occasionally having to dress up as the errant Holmes' brother is an entertaining one.  I like how the characters have developed and am glad to see more Livia and Penelope.  I really loved that this one focused on Mrs. Watson's past - and we got to meet her sister.  The flashbacks into Mrs. Watson's early life added a nice dash of character development.

I also really liked the mystery and was really not sure where that was going to go.  I enjoy Charlotte's investigative style and love how she and the others work together.  I also really enjoyed that this one focuses more on Mrs. Carstairs and the related mysteries and less on the Moriarty plots.  While I have read almost all of the series there is frequently some time in between books and it can be hard to remember all the characters involved in that.

This was a really enjoyable mystery with a clever detective and a great cast of supporting characters.  It has inspired me to go back and do a reread to refresh my memory on everything that's happened over the series.  

Would I Read More of this Series/Author? Of course!  I'm looking forward to more of this series and rereading the earlier books.

Would I Recommend this Book? I would definitely recommend this series but I would recommend starting at the beginning of the series.  

* I received this book in exchange for an honest review. As always my opinions and impressions are completely my own. *