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Portia Adams Adventures #3
No Matter How Improbable
Be careful what you wish for.
A certain amount of celebrity is inevitable when you're Sherlock Holmes's granddaughter, especially when you're also a consulting detective. But for Portia Adams, it’s getting to be a little much. She decides to escape the rabid London press by chasing a case all the way to Italy.
When she gets back, it seems that the media frenzy has finally run its course — but now she’s got bigger things to worry about. Sherlock Holmes is missing, his apartment burned to the ground. Her boyfriend, Gavin Whitaker, is acting strangely and spending too much time with unsavory people. And as if that weren’t enough, her best friend Brian isn’t speaking to her.
Can Portia right all that has happened in her brief absence or will she lose someone she loves to the gray London streets?
A certain amount of celebrity is inevitable when you're Sherlock Holmes's granddaughter, especially when you're also a consulting detective. But for Portia Adams, it’s getting to be a little much. She decides to escape the rabid London press by chasing a case all the way to Italy.
When she gets back, it seems that the media frenzy has finally run its course — but now she’s got bigger things to worry about. Sherlock Holmes is missing, his apartment burned to the ground. Her boyfriend, Gavin Whitaker, is acting strangely and spending too much time with unsavory people. And as if that weren’t enough, her best friend Brian isn’t speaking to her.
Can Portia right all that has happened in her brief absence or will she lose someone she loves to the gray London streets?
322 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 25, 2016
9 people are currently reading
172 people want to read
About the author
Angela Misri
11 books106 followersAngela Misri is an award-winning journalist, author and educator. Her detective series, called The Portia Adams Adventures, is set in the 1930s, and her first middle-grade series is called Tales from the Apocalypse. Pickles vs the Zombies, the first book in that series, won the 2021 Hackmatack award for fiction and the second is up for the 2022-23 Red Cedar Book Award.
Misri has an MA in journalism from the University of Western Ontario and has worked as a digital journalist for almost 20 years, including at the CBC and The Walrus. She also teaches in the journalism department at Toronto Metropolitan University.
Misri has an MA in journalism from the University of Western Ontario and has worked as a digital journalist for almost 20 years, including at the CBC and The Walrus. She also teaches in the journalism department at Toronto Metropolitan University.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
May 27, 2019
This episode is the third in the series and talks about three more of Portia's cases. Having announced herself to London, Portia has had to deal with a lot of interest in a young female private investigator which she finds very irritating. When a friend asks she to travel to Italy with her to solve a problem for her young friend who happens to be a princess, Portia leaps at the chance to get away from the unwanted publicity at home.
Hampered by the inability to speak Italian, Portia still finds herself deep in the case of who is blackmailing the young princess. She does solve the problem and makes a new friend in the princess.
Returning home, she gets involved investigating supposed suicides of young prostitutes. The case was brought to her by the sister of one of her young irregulars. She finds herself attending a church with a hellfire and brimstone preaching minister where supposed miracles are happening. Her scientific and rational nature helps her solve the case but not before she and Constable Brian Dawes are both attacked by assorted villains.
The next case has to do with the supposed suicide of one of her first mentors with Scotland Yard. In this one we see the way she deals with her grief and what she sees as abandonment by another person she cares about. She also has issues with her boyfriend Gavin Whitaker who has become even more secretive and who is hanging out with unsavory companions.
As she works on this case, she also becomes closer to Brian who is dating her best friend Annie. Portia thought the opportunity to have a relationship with Brian passed her by because of her lack of knowledge of relationships but it looks like Brian is also interested in her. This causes a problem for Portia because she doesn't want to hurt her friend Annie.
I liked that Portia finally gets a chance to know her grandfather Sherlock Holmes through this final case. With her grandmother Mrs. Jones away in New York, she is feeling a little lonely and more curious than ever about her famous grandfather.
This was a fun story and another interesting addition to the Sherlock Holmes saga.
Hampered by the inability to speak Italian, Portia still finds herself deep in the case of who is blackmailing the young princess. She does solve the problem and makes a new friend in the princess.
Returning home, she gets involved investigating supposed suicides of young prostitutes. The case was brought to her by the sister of one of her young irregulars. She finds herself attending a church with a hellfire and brimstone preaching minister where supposed miracles are happening. Her scientific and rational nature helps her solve the case but not before she and Constable Brian Dawes are both attacked by assorted villains.
The next case has to do with the supposed suicide of one of her first mentors with Scotland Yard. In this one we see the way she deals with her grief and what she sees as abandonment by another person she cares about. She also has issues with her boyfriend Gavin Whitaker who has become even more secretive and who is hanging out with unsavory companions.
As she works on this case, she also becomes closer to Brian who is dating her best friend Annie. Portia thought the opportunity to have a relationship with Brian passed her by because of her lack of knowledge of relationships but it looks like Brian is also interested in her. This causes a problem for Portia because she doesn't want to hurt her friend Annie.
I liked that Portia finally gets a chance to know her grandfather Sherlock Holmes through this final case. With her grandmother Mrs. Jones away in New York, she is feeling a little lonely and more curious than ever about her famous grandfather.
This was a fun story and another interesting addition to the Sherlock Holmes saga.
July 21, 2017
I enjoyed this third entry in the series. It features many of the same group of Portia's friends although the dynamics between them are changing. There's also one interesting newcomer who I hope will continue in the series.
I found the actual mysteries less compelling than in the past but still can recommend this
I found the actual mysteries less compelling than in the past but still can recommend this
March 8, 2017
This is the third book in the Portia Adams Adventure. Portia has three cases to solve and throughout the book we see many changes taking place within Portia and her friends. She truly displays the logical mind of her grandfather (Sherlock Holmes) and is still trying to find her way living in London. In this book, she spends a large majority of time at Scotland Yard and studying to be a barrister. Portia is having trouble keeping up with her friends and their expectation of her.
August 2, 2016
Another excellent book in the Portia Adams series. I am very grateful to the author for sending me a copy.
As is usual with the Adams books, it is divided into three sections, each with its own case, though there is an overarching story line. I think I enjoyed the first case, taking place in Italy and dealing with Italian royalty, the most. I love seeing Portia surrounded by women, and her friendship with Elaine Barclay is a treasure.
I believe I would have enjoyed the second case more (given its references to one of my favourite Sherlock Holmes stories) if it hadn't been interspersed with romantic relationship drama. But that is the preference of this reader, and should not deter others- if you enjoy romance and the like in your stories, you will certainly enjoy the bits and bobs that appear. But it was not for me, and largely I just worried about Annie and Portia and their friendship (which is incredibly important to me, and I hope to see more of). The case itself was engaging, though sometimes a bit scattered, imo. Nonetheless, thoroughly enjoyable.
I loved the third case, particularly for the way it explored how Portia deals with grief, and some of her biases that impact her ability to work with others. Again, it was sometimes a bit scattered, interspersed with short little stories of other cases Portia was working on that didn't seem to have any clear connection to the main story, and I felt it could have been tighter. But I loved it, nonetheless, and appreciated the emotional resonances.
I adore the Portia Adams series, and am looking forward to seeing what the author puts in the fourth book. I am hoping we'll receive more details about some of the things left unanswered: Gavin? Bruiser Jenkins? a potential master mind? I am not worried, however; Ms. Misri truly makes this a series where knowledge of the previous books isn't just handy, but necessary. Threads from all the books are interwoven, and I think it's useful to view the series as less of a string of single mysteries with certain ongoing themes, and more as a single, continuous story broken apart by different book covers.
Such a treat of a book, and I am so happy that I was able to read it.
As is usual with the Adams books, it is divided into three sections, each with its own case, though there is an overarching story line. I think I enjoyed the first case, taking place in Italy and dealing with Italian royalty, the most. I love seeing Portia surrounded by women, and her friendship with Elaine Barclay is a treasure.
I believe I would have enjoyed the second case more (given its references to one of my favourite Sherlock Holmes stories) if it hadn't been interspersed with romantic relationship drama. But that is the preference of this reader, and should not deter others- if you enjoy romance and the like in your stories, you will certainly enjoy the bits and bobs that appear. But it was not for me, and largely I just worried about Annie and Portia and their friendship (which is incredibly important to me, and I hope to see more of). The case itself was engaging, though sometimes a bit scattered, imo. Nonetheless, thoroughly enjoyable.
I loved the third case, particularly for the way it explored how Portia deals with grief, and some of her biases that impact her ability to work with others. Again, it was sometimes a bit scattered, interspersed with short little stories of other cases Portia was working on that didn't seem to have any clear connection to the main story, and I felt it could have been tighter. But I loved it, nonetheless, and appreciated the emotional resonances.
I adore the Portia Adams series, and am looking forward to seeing what the author puts in the fourth book. I am hoping we'll receive more details about some of the things left unanswered: Gavin? Bruiser Jenkins? a potential master mind? I am not worried, however; Ms. Misri truly makes this a series where knowledge of the previous books isn't just handy, but necessary. Threads from all the books are interwoven, and I think it's useful to view the series as less of a string of single mysteries with certain ongoing themes, and more as a single, continuous story broken apart by different book covers.
Such a treat of a book, and I am so happy that I was able to read it.
March 1, 2016
Indubitably entertaining!
Angela Misri's No Matter How Improbable is the third book in the engaging Portia Adams adventure series. Set in 1930s London, the brilliant granddaughter of Sherlock Holmes shares three more casebooks with the reader. Portia continues navigating through mystery and intrigue with skill and style, while handling romance with charming honesty. Can't wait for book IV!
Andreas Oertel, author of The Shenanigans Series.
Angela Misri's No Matter How Improbable is the third book in the engaging Portia Adams adventure series. Set in 1930s London, the brilliant granddaughter of Sherlock Holmes shares three more casebooks with the reader. Portia continues navigating through mystery and intrigue with skill and style, while handling romance with charming honesty. Can't wait for book IV!
Andreas Oertel, author of The Shenanigans Series.
December 30, 2017
This was actually my least favourite in the series so far. While I liked the first case file, it seemed drawn out and long. I liked the developments in relationships but it also seemed slow and drawn out only to not really amount to anything. I guess she is saving it for future books in this series but it made me disappointed.
December 30, 2019
So I still like the series, but it's feeling a bit contrived about how Portia is related to people that just show up out of nowhere. I really like the mysteries, but her personal affairs are beginning to be all over the place. If a fourth book comes out I would definitely still read it though.
May 16, 2021
Very enjoyable book 3
This is book 3 of the Portia Adams adventures-to be read in order. Again, I enjoyed the stories and would have liked for each ‘case’ to have been longer. I want to read the next book in the series, but $12.99 for a kindle edition is a bit much.
This is book 3 of the Portia Adams adventures-to be read in order. Again, I enjoyed the stories and would have liked for each ‘case’ to have been longer. I want to read the next book in the series, but $12.99 for a kindle edition is a bit much.
May 17, 2021
The Stories Keep Getting Better
One of the joys of this series is the growth of Portia and the movement through the 1930’s time period
One of the joys of this series is the growth of Portia and the movement through the 1930’s time period
August 22, 2016
This is the 3rd Portia Adams book. For some reason I thought it was the last so I expected things to wrap up a lot more quickly - particularly her relationships, whether family or friends - but unfortunately, I have to wait for more books!
I really enjoyed it! Portia is so smart and a bit quirky, but she does change and grow in this book, particularly because she has become a more public figure. I like reading about London (and in this book, Italy) in the 1930s because it's like reading historical fiction and a mystery at the same time. I don't even usually read mysteries, but I like Portia. I also like the way Misri writes. It's sometimes funny, and sometimes very mysterious and suspenseful. For instance, there are parts where Portia knows what is happening, but despite it being told from her point of view, the reader is left in the dust just like her friends until the end, when she explains what she was doing. Once in a while we get to see her strong emotions, because her relationships go through a lot of changes.
I recommend it for anyone who likes Sherlock Holmes or mysteries with a smart female lead, as well as anyone who likes historical fiction set in the 30s. Misri writes a lot of strong female characters who are pushing to show their worth as women to society, which is very interesting.
I really enjoyed it! Portia is so smart and a bit quirky, but she does change and grow in this book, particularly because she has become a more public figure. I like reading about London (and in this book, Italy) in the 1930s because it's like reading historical fiction and a mystery at the same time. I don't even usually read mysteries, but I like Portia. I also like the way Misri writes. It's sometimes funny, and sometimes very mysterious and suspenseful. For instance, there are parts where Portia knows what is happening, but despite it being told from her point of view, the reader is left in the dust just like her friends until the end, when she explains what she was doing. Once in a while we get to see her strong emotions, because her relationships go through a lot of changes.
I recommend it for anyone who likes Sherlock Holmes or mysteries with a smart female lead, as well as anyone who likes historical fiction set in the 30s. Misri writes a lot of strong female characters who are pushing to show their worth as women to society, which is very interesting.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews