The Devil At Prayers

by Ellora Lawhorn

Emily ha sedici anni e vive con la gemella e il patrigno in una dimora isolata. Il mondo ruota per lei intorno alla biblioteca, dove coltiva sui libri la sua vocazione per l’avventura. Nella vita quotidiana l’attività più eccitante è leggere sui giornali le notizie di cronaca nera. Per ragioni misteriose è infatti proibito alle due ragazze di allontanarsi da casa oltre una precisa distanza, in qualsiasi direzione. Questa bizzarra routine viene sconvolta dall’improvvisa comparsa tra le mura domestiche di un personaggio alquanto sinistro. Legato al patrigno da rapporti poco chiari, costui risulta essere un ex professore cacciato da un’università scozzese in seguito al furto di un quadro. E sembra conoscere segreti inconfessabili della famiglia, tanto da divenire ben presto una presenza minacciosa. Ma i sospetti non basteranno a scongiurare un omicidio e il rapimento della sorella, che spingeranno Emily a precipitarsi a Londra per chiedere assistenza a qualcuno il cui cognome è strettamente, e sorprendentemente, connesso al suo. L’indirizzo della persona che potrà forse aiutarla contro un nemico dai poteri quasi sovrumani è Baker Street, 221B.

175 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 8, 2024

Reviews

[MeltingPenguins · Rating 1 out of 5]

EDIT: Actually let me give this an actual rating, because of the framing device used:
The book starts off with another fictional character informing us that they found this story in their deceased grandmothers things and all and goes on about how awesome the women of her family are/were and how special and everything. So yeah, 1 star starting of with telling the reader how amazing the story they are going to read will totally be and how they're a bad person if they'd disagree.

DNF at sample.
There's just something about the lead that has my hairs stand on end. There's a verbose nature to the prose paired with all the signs of a lead who will turn out to be Oh-So-Much-Smarter than everyone else, completely unearned.

Those kinds of stories, especially in historical (mystery) fiction are a dime a dozen. And with the warning signs up and glowing right from the start I shall skip this one.

The search for a female lead who doesn't tick off an onslaught of pseudo-feminist NotLikeOtherGirls boxes continues.

Please, authors, just write women as human beings ffs.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely LOVED this book from start to finish.

[Kris Schmidgall · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book and wish the next was available. It is written the point of a 16 year old girl, but she seems much more like Holmes than Watson. There is at least one cliff-hanger, so be warned. I thought this was very clever and hope there are more very soon! The narration by Jacqueline de Boer was great.

[Shelby Fallin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story does not disappoint. At first, I was unsure about delving into the world of Sherlock Holmes, as a person who never read the Holmes stories, but I was pleased as soon as I began reading.

Emily is an amazing main character and extremely intelligent who fits perfectly in the Holmes cannon. I cannot believe this is Ellora Lawhorn’s debut novel, as the story telling and world building is so acutely done. Lawhorn gives enough backstory about Sherlock Holmes and people such as Watson and Moriarty without feeling like you’re being spoon-fed. I enjoyed every moment of this novel.

The writing is intriguing, fast paced, and a perfect blend of a new voice and incorporating well-known facts from the world of Sherlock himself.

I highly suggest this book for anyone getting into reading as it’s an easy read and entertaining. This got me through my reading slump as I finished the whole thing in under two hours.

I cannot do more than rave about this debut novel. I’m looking forward to reading every one of Lawhorn’s books and am excited for the next installment in this series.

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very exciting read from someone obviously well-versed in the world of Sherlock Holmes. Great beginning to a series!

[Paul Bishop · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sherlockian pastiches appear to be multiplying like tribbles across today's publishing landscape. Without a reliable recommendation, trying to discover which of the tales rise above the mediocre can be challenging. The Devil At Prayers, is definitely a gem. Many continuation writers focus on the Holmesian family tree by devising sisters, daughters, wives, granddaughters, and nieces of the great detective to drive their storyline with varying degrees of success. Author Ellora Lawhorn (whose name sounds as if it should be bestowed upon a character in her own book) takes an imaginatively different spin on this literary device by telling her story through the eyes of Emily Watson, the younger sister of Holmes' chronicler, the eponymous Dr. John Watson. Lawhorn does an excellent job in this relatively short novel of making the reader care about this character and the circumstances spinning her into the orbit of the Victorian detective's investigations. By turns clever, amusing, and suspenseful, The Devil At Prayers is a fine addition to the Sherlockian adjacent universe...

[Ellora Lawhorn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wrote this!

[Tony Ciak · Rating 5 out of 5]

enjoyably and waiting for the next one.