The Affair of the Mysterious Letter

by Alexis Hall

In this charming, witty, and weird fantasy novel, Alexis Hall pays homage to Sherlock Holmes with a new twist on those renowned characters.

Upon returning to the city of Khelathra-Ven after five years fighting a war in another universe, Captain John Wyndham finds himself looking for somewhere to live, and expediency forces him to take lodgings at 221b Martyrs Walk. His new housemate is Ms. Shaharazad Haas, a consulting sorceress of mercurial temperament and dark reputation.

When Ms. Haas is enlisted to solve a case of blackmail against one of her former lovers, Miss Eirene Viola, Captain Wyndham is drawn into a mystery that leads him from the salons of the literary set to the drowned back-alleys of Ven and even to a prison cell in lost Carcosa. Along the way he is beset by criminals, menaced by pirates, molested by vampires, almost devoured by mad gods, and called upon to punch a shark.

But the further the companions go in pursuit of the elusive blackmailer, the more impossible the case appears. Then again, in Khelathra-Ven reality is flexible, and the impossible is Ms. Haas' stock-in-trade.

Genres: Fantasy, Mystery, LGBT, Queer, Fiction, Retellings, Historical Fiction

350 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 18, 2019

About the author

One of those intricate British queers.

Please note: I don’t read / reply to DMs. If you would like to get in touch, the best way is via email which you can find in the contact section on my website <3

Reviews

[chai (thelibrairie on tiktok) ♡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

A retelling of Sherlock Holmes featuring a pansexual lady Holmes and a trans Watson? *delighted pterodactyl noises*

[K.J. Charles]

Absolutely gleeful. A wildly enjoyable Holmes/Watson riff in a mad Lovecraftian fantasy world where reality is optional at best. Holmes is a drug-addled sorceress, while Watson is a buttoned up refugee from a terrifyingly puritanical country, and a large part of the fun is how he attempts to narrate a story of wild sex, appalling behaviour and a lot of swearing without actually putting any such shocking material on paper. It's very meta, as Wyndham comments on the goings-on from a distance of twenty years; I particularly liked his argument with his editor about whether it's possible to have a cliffhanger at the end of a chapter when he is writing this now which clearly means he isn't going to die.

It's bursting with invention, horrors, good jokes, and bonkers characters. Also, fantastically queer throughout. Wyndham is a gay trans man and there's some lovely hints of a future romance that I really want to read, Shaharazad is pansexual (and that's probably understating the matter), their client is hoping to save her forthcoming marriage to a woman despite a chequered history.

It's not a complete Holmes analogue (though there are lots of satisfying little riffs), more using the odd couple as a jumping off point, as the detective here works more by elimination than any great deductive powers. This is fine with me, as if I want to read about amazing deductive powers, there is actual Sherlock Holmes. The mystery here is far more an excuse to roam around a fantastic world with fantastic characters. I can't say this bothered me in the slightest: the book could have been twice as long with my goodwill.

Intensely readable and brilliant fun. I really hope there will be more of these.

[emma · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am going to sue the world.

At this point, I think it's my only option. Clearly, the epidemic of books that sound interesting turning out to be very boring is a top-to-bottom issue that cannot be reformed. Outright cancelation of us all is the only way.

Take this, for example. It has the words "affair," "mysterious," and "letter" in the title, all of which I find intriguing. It's a Sherlock Holmes retelling (cool) in a futuristic fantasy universe (attention piqued) with multiple dimensions and underwater cities and time travel and exclusively queer people (curiosity induced x 4).

And yet I did not like it and I had a really hard time paying attention. I kept tricking myself into reading it through strategies like Going To The Beach And Only Bringing This Book and Paltry Threats, and I still barely got through it.

The style didn't work for me, the narrative didn't feel cohesive, the narrator was a snooze and the other characters were too cartoonish to deal with.

There were cool parts with vampires that felt Dracula-y (I love Dracula) and trains (I love trains), but even those were unbearably short lived. Not to mention they were bracketed by encounters with old ladies who were actually witches and sky fights and brushes with death that all managed to put me to sleep like the tea with the sweet bear on it.

But I digress.

Bottom line: Deep sigh of disappointment!

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i cannot remember the last time i wanted to DNF a book so badly.

review to come / 2 or 2.5 stars

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hello gay magic female sherlock holmes

sorry you're an ARC that i'm reading 2 years late.

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reading all books with LGBTQ+ rep for pride this month!

book 1: the gravity of us
book 2: the great american whatever
book 3: wild beauty
book 4: the affair of the mysterious letter

[Jennifer ~ TarHeelReader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hands-down, I’m not sure if I’ve ever read a more quirky and original retelling, and I absolutely loved this! ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

The Affair of the Mysterious Letter is a fantasy retelling involving Sherlock Holmes characters.

Captain John Wyndham is returning to Khelathra-Ven after fighting a war elsewhere for five years. He is desperate for someone where to live and winds up with Ms. Shaharazad Haas as a housemate. She’s a moody one, Ms. Haas, and is known for darkness.

Ms. Haas is asked to solve a case of blackmail against a former lover, and Captain Wyndham becomes invested in the case and drawn into the rabbit hole where he meets all kinds of unsavory characters. The case begins to feel impossible to solve, but nothing is truly impossible when Ms. Haas is involved.

I loved this quirky, zany tribute to Holmes and Watson. What a trip! Alexis Hall’s writing is on point, and the pacing is so well-done, I just breezed through this fabulous story. I start to write something and back it back out because I don’t want to overshare the goodness within these pages. Just know: Alexis Hall is a born storyteller, this book is fresh and tons of fun, and I’m certain you’ve read nothing like it either. Cheers to Alexis Hall!

I received a complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.

My reviews can also be found on my blog: www.jennifertarheelreader.com

[Lois Bujold · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reads like a mashup of Sherlock Holmes re-imagined as Yuuko from xxxHolic crossed with Lovecraft and Dr. Who. The discursive Watsonian voice of the narrator, John Wyndham, is one of the draws. A useful sample, describing his pre-story military career in the existential war against the Empress of Nothing beyond the Unending Gate:

"Just as I was beginning to contemplate the opportunities my unexpected successes had placed before me, I was struck down by an extratemporal jezail, a fiendish weapon whose bullets displace themselves in time and space, meaning the injuries they cause recur unpredictably. Although I am quite well most of the time I shall, on occasion, be afflicted with a stabbing pain in my shoulder or leg or, most peculiarly, by the recollection of such a pain in the distant past, long before I had even thought of going to war."

Thus leading the demobbed narrator to become the roommate of Ms. Shaharazad Haas, sorceress extraordinaire, at 221b Martyrs Walk, in the strange and ancient city of Khelathra-Ven. The plot, when it finally arrives (I did say discursive) seems mainly a pretext to tour the inventive bizarro world-building, but it does get there eventually. Its episodic nature (Wyndham's memoirs are, after all, published in monthly parts in The Strait magazine) made the long book fairly easy to put down and pick up again.

Ta, L.

[Mir · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was fantastic and so much fun. Dense without being weighty, humorous without feeling frivolous. Full of Mythos references, witticisms and bad advice!

Here is an exemplary passage:

John Wyndham: "The guards were all devoured by a spectre in yellow."
Shaharazad Haas: "That'll be him. Best not to talk about it, or think about it, or remember it."
Wyndham: "And I do find myself talking about it, or thinking about it, or remembering it?"
Haas: "In all honesty, that's probably unavoidable."

And there are many clever lines, such as A sorceress is never lost. However, on occasion, her path will show her vistas unfamiliar to her conscious mind.

I hearted John and totally see why Augur Lawson felt the urge to choke him.

A couple things worth mentioning:

-- If you're familiar with Hall and expect romance, be aware that this is a zero-romance story, at least as far as the main characters are concerned.

-- The first few pages are in medias res and also a bit trippy so if you open the book and think, "Oh no, this is going to be really hard to follow, that quantum physics/bending reality stuff makes my head hurt," be reassured that this part doesn't continue and most of the rest is easy enough to follow even if you aren't familiar with the sort of fantasy tropes employed.

[Empress Reece (Hooked on Books) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is without a doubt my favorite book of the year so far and my favorite fantasy pastiche of all time! It would take one hell of a book to usurp The Affair of the Mysterious Letter's first place position. Even though this is a fantasy pastiche of Sherlock Holmes and Watson, the likeness to the characters and their peculiarities is absolutely remarkable. The writing is also phenomenal. I really, really, hope further adventures of Shaharazad Hass and Captain John Wyndham will be coming to us soon. I need more of these two immediately.

If you're a Sherlock Holmes fan and like the fantasy genre, then this is a must read right now. You won't be disappointed!

*I received this ARC from Penguin Random House and the First to Read program in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

[H (trying to keep up with GR friends) Balikov · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am speculating that author Hall likes jazz. Why? Because this is the most outlandish riff on the theme of Holmes and Watson who have been plunked down in a fantastical world of Hall’s creation. There is nothing conventional about this book which has Captain John Wyndham (J.W.) deciding to take up lodging with Ms. Shaharazad Haas (S.H.) who lives at (221b, not surprisingly). Urged by my GR friend, Fiona: “The Affair of the Mysterious Letter has everything I love, plenty of what I like, and was smart, entertaining, and just so much fun.” She filed it under “absolute-favorites” and I quickly obtained a copy.

Haas has all of Holmes idiosyncrasies magnified to an amazing order of magnitude. The early portion of the book is a deft balance between Wyndham trying to cope with his new situation, and Haas undertaking to determine the source of the “mysterious letter” that seeks to blackmail a former lover (but no friend), Miss Eirene Viola. Any further discussion of the plot would be unfair (and also irrelevant).

Be prepared for a world that extends in many dimensions including time and space. This is one of the rare books that is both so outrageous and funny that I was either laughing out loud or insisting on quoting passages to my companion. 4.5*

The following may entice you or be off-putting; I leave that for you to determine.


Quotes (but no spoilers):
“I am the sorceress, Shaharazad Haas. I have travelled to the deepest vaults of N’ruh. I have walked alone in the Writhing Halls, and I have whispered to the Gods Who Slumber. I am an anointed priestess of Thagn and Iqthelduroth. I have uttered the Dread Curse of Velrashtoa. Please don’t think I need a pointy stick to kill you.”

“There is always hope, Ms. Haas.”
“I have met Hope. It is a terrifying entity with altogether too many eyes.”

“What happened to you, Eirene? We used to do such extraordinary, remarkable terrible things together. And now you’re canoodling with a fishmonger in front of a magic pond moping about your lost homeland.”
“Because it’s so much more glamorous to live in a dingy set of rooms you rent from a swarm of sentient insects and share with a complete stranger because nobody who has known you for more than six months can stand your company, and to spend your days drugged out of your mind on a dirty sofa because you can’t bear to be alone with the cacophony of demons you call your thoughts?
“ A smile curled the corners of Ms. Haas’ lips. “I’m starting to remember why I liked you.”

“Before I proceed with the central thrust of my narrative, it behooves me to ensure that the reader has an adequate understanding of the history behind the lost and marvellous place to which we now journeyed. My editor is not in agreement with me on this matter and has requested on several occasions that I excise these elucidating passages in favour of scenes of a more sensational or salacious nature. For those amongst you who share my editor’s predilections, please rest assured that following this necessary digression there shall be a sequence in which we fight a shark, another in which we are suspected of murder, and a third in which we are drawn into intercourse with several members of the city’s vile underworld.”

“Over the entire course of our acquaintance I can recall two and a half occasions on which Ms. Haas allowed another person t have the last word in an argument. This was not one of them….”

“Are you absolutely certain,” I asked, “ that this is the most effective was to proceed?”
Ms. Haas stifled a yawn behind her hand. “It’s the least tedious way to proceed. And also the one that gives Mrs. Benamara the least room for evasion or deception.”
“And the risk of being arrested and hanged?”
“That’s precisely what makes it so much less tedious than the other options.”

“I don’t think I’m inclined to talk with you on that or any subject.”
Ms. Haas sighed with her usual air of exasperation at the world in general. “I assure you, matters will be resolved far more swiftly and far more to your satisfaction if you change your mind. I can be really quite irritating, and this is a very charming neighborhood. It would be such a shame were something eschatological happen to it.”


“So we could fly a storm to Vedunia?” I endeavoured not to sound too hopeful.
To which Mr. Ngoie answered “no” and Ms Haas, looking somewhat more engaged than she hitherto had, answered “possibly” at the same moment.
“Shaharazad,” Mr. Ngoie continued, “even you would not be foolish enough to try to reverse engineer stolen magic and put it to a purpose for which it was never intended.”
She gave him a haughty look. “I’m sorry, have we met? I’m exactly foolish enough to try to reverse engineer stolen magic and put it to a purpose for which is was never intended. And to think I didn’t want to come on this journey.”


"Hurry up, Wyndham," she called out. "We're almost late "
"You left me to be arrested."
She smiled radiantly. "And look how well it went."
"I could have been indicted for murder."
"Oh, come now. Lawson and his ilk may be bumbling, flat-footed, addlepated, goose-witted, dunder-headed, bumbling nincompoops (the words may surprise my readers to learn that she did, in fact, use “goose-witted," "dunder-headed, "bumbling," "flat-footed," "addlepated," and "nincompoops") "but even they would conclude that... (the victim had been death for days), you were, on balance of probabilities, safe."

My feelings were becoming, frankly, less mixed, and not in the
positive sense. "And the necromantic ritual?"
"The secrets of necromancy are well guarded, and it should be
abundantly clear to anybody that you are not privy to them."
You understand that it is also an offence to assist in such an under-
taking."
"But you were no help at all." She adjusted the straps on the aviator
goggles she had donned during my incarceration. "On the contrary,
your tedious moralising is frequently quite the opposite."
Which you could have told the Augurs if you hadn't abandoned me."
"We were in a hurry…”

[laurel [the suspected bibliophile] · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars?

This was a really hard book to rate.

On the one hand—a gender-swapped (well, for the sorceress) and queer as hell retelling of Sherlock Holmes, set in a complex fantasy world? On the other hand—a Sherlock Holmes retelling written in the style of the original books.

After an unfortunate injury that prevented him from serving in the military, Captain John Wyndham, feeling adrift from his religiously conservative home (and not welcome in his father's house), returns to the city of his university days, gets a job as an alchemist in a hospital, and finds a housemate in the form of the infamous sorceress Shaharazad Haas, who is just as brilliant as she is drug addled (if you're wondering, she is very drug addled).

When Haas' ex-girlfriend shows up with a letter and demands that Haas figure out who is blackmailing her from marrying her fishmonger fiancée, Haas drags Wyndham all over the three cities of Khelathra-Ven to discover the culprit. Haas and Wyndham have a list—and they are going to use deduction, logic and a whole lot of luck to figure it out.

It's a good story, but I felt like it was lost in the mountains of exposition and Wyndham (bless his ooey, gooey soul he's so precious) choosing to tell us what happened versus showing us what happened. I kept reading, hoping it would get better and that the action sequences would be...actiony...but it did not.

At first, I was digging Wyndham's long-winded way of telling things, with the hope that eventually he'd cut it out and get to the story, but I was waiting for him to cut it out and get to the story for...the entire story. I felt like half the book was him going, "oh no dear reader, I cannot show you this," or "this person did not actually say that word," or accidentally spoiling what was to come by telling us what was to come and how it turned out before it happened. It's a schtick that gets old very quickly.

The summary promises drowned cities (okay, Ven was pretty cool), vampire seduction (much of it edited out by our favorite prude Wyndham), punching a shark (more like a graze, actually, because water drags a lot), and sky pirates (okay, that was pretty cool). Thanks to the mass amounts of exposition, it felt like each chapter draaaaaagged on, and despite how utterly fascinating the world was, I found myself reluctant to pick this up. It felt like it took me forever to read (forever being three days, which is forever based on how short this is).

Oh sweet pickles, I'm starting to write like the book!

Anywho. I really appreciate this book, despite my previous complaints. Dammit, still like the book!

Khelathra-Ven is a fascinating city, and the world was complex and deliciously weird.

There are really creepy vampires, bending reality, lots of oozing sores and ichor, and a landlady that is really just a hive of very annoyed bees (I mean, I'd be annoyed too if Shaharazad Haas was my tenant and she kept blowing holes into walls and destroying perfectly nice watercolor paintings) who possesses rotting dead bodies in order to have a single, solid form.

Shaharazad Haas was the perfect version of Sherlock Holmes—and by that I mean a general asshole, degenerate, self-interested, druggie genius with waaaaaay more confidence and firepower than any one person should possess (this is, surprisingly, a compliment).

John Wyndham, for all his narrative faults, was hilariously uptight but willing to just...go along with things, because—well, we never really got that explained. He just follows her around and is constantly changing his clothes (this was a gimmick that didn't get old, surprisingly) because what he is wearing is never fit for the occasion (I feel his pain). He's also loyal, brave and truthful to a fault (as the many interrogations reveal...poor Augur Lawson).

Finally, the LGBTQIA+ rep is off the charts. John is trans (and also gay? He mentions a husband but no other lovers?), and Shaharazad and much of the rest of the cast seem to be pansexual. There are so many queer characters and a lot of diverse representation all around.

I just wish that the narration had been a little more straight-forward.

However, if you loved the original Sherlock Holmes novels and are looking for an updated, queer as fuck, gender-swapped Sherlock Holmes in a weird fantasy world (or just more queer fantasy rep in general), this is the book for you.

I received this ARC from NetGalley for an honest review.

[Sam I AMNreader · Rating 5 out of 5]

So, I have mentioned how well Hall's romances work for me. How brilliant I think he is. Creative....

And now that's painfully obvious with the release of this full-fledged fantasy retelling. Most astounding though, is I've read three thoroughly different styles from Hall-and with the exception of pieces of this feeling slightly repetitive, probably with good reason and not that I minded. Because...

I've mentioned how well Boulton works for me as a narrator (though in this he isn't adopting his usual voice 90% of the time, which was a good choice for Wyndham's character).

This book put them together. So um-was there any doubt?

It's zany and fun and really really delightful. It spans monsters and sexuality and verses.....It's a huge ball of imagination wrapped in a tiny little book and PLEASE tell me there will be more.

Also, might be my favorite introduction scene for two characters.

[Liene · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded up
I’ve read so many books that want to play with being either historical or inspired by historical (usually Edwardian or Victorian) eras that completely and utterly fail - mostly because they confuse the more verbose writing styles of previous eras with nonsensically cramming it extra words because they seem to think that makes it “old timey” and often end up writing things that make no sense and wouldn’t have been said by anyone in any era, and certainly not in the eras they are attempting to evoke.
While the plot of this book is not all that great, I was so charmed and impressed by the prose, which managed to replicate that more verbose and antiquated style while being amusing, quippy, inventive, and easy to follow. If the plot/characters has impressed me more, this would be 5 stars.

[Fiona Knight · Rating 5 out of 5]

Co-tenant required. Rent reasonable to the point of arousing suspicion. Tolerance for blasphemies against nature an advantage. No laundry service. Enquire S. Haas, 221b Martyrs Walk.

This was great! The Affair of the Mysterious Letter has everything I love, plenty of what I like, and was smart, entertaining, and just so much fun.

This is one of those kitchen sink books, but there's a feeling of delighting in all it's assorted wonders that kept it from being messy. It may be a steampunk-meets-Weird take on a gender-swapped Sherlock Holmes, but it also contains: sky pirates, a tripartite municipality with one part time-lost, ALL the inclusivity, necromancy, submersibles, blackmail, witch hunters, Mrs Hive... that's barely scraping the surface, and somehow it all just works together into beautiful harmony.

Sadly, this appears to be a one and done (so far at least), so I'll have to content myself with rereads when I want to get back into this gorgeous world. But I am so glad to have read this!

[Cathy · Rating 2 out of 5]

A book trying very hard to present a magical Holmes & Watson and using all the right cues. An overly amusing and mocking first person narration by Dr. Watson Captain John Wyndham. A Scandal in Bohemia lurks somewhere in the background.

The amusing tone got old pretty fast. About two hours into the audio narration I started to seriously loose interest. The microscopically small plot barely managed to hold the story together. It was a slog. I only continued, because I wanted to find out who was the culprit.

Actually, on second thought, the plot wasn‘t bad. There was just too much fluff in between.

And really annoying? „Oh, she used a bad, bad word, but my publisher told me not to repeat it!“ Funny the first three times. After that, not so much!

Nice resolution at the end and there was something truly well written just before it that caught my interest.

In summation too much amusing vapor, too little actual story. A lot of talk, trying to create a Sherlock-Holmes-apropriate atmosphere. Some great ideas, smothered in the overly quaint narration. Kudos regarding the cameos of various gothic horror novels. Pretty nice Dracula rendition.

Best part of this novel: The excellent audiobook narrator, Nicholas Boulton. His tone of voice reminded me a bit of Stephen Fry.

The author has written some romance novels that look like they could be fun.... Other than that I will definitely not continue with this, if there should be a sequel. I will look up the audiobook narrator though.

The author on Sherlock Holmes: https://crimereads.com/sherlock-holme...

[Emma Newman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was lucky enough to get a galley from my editor and OMG I loved this book so much. It was a sheer delight to read and has dragged me out of a massive reading slump that lasted for months. Honestly, do yourself a favour and get it as soon as it comes out. It's like the joy of reading Gail Carriger's Soulless all over again, but wrapped in a gleeful love affair with Sherlock Holmes.

Read it. READ. IT.

[Moony Eliver]

I won a GR giveaway for this one, but it pains me to say it was not for me. I DNFed it really early because it was just not holding my interest. There was a lot of exposition that was pretty dry, and I wasn't hooked enough to plow through it. :(

[Caz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review from 2019

I've given this an A+ for narration and an A- for content at AudioGals

The Affair of the Mysterious Letter is one of those books that defies categorisation. Part sci-fi/fantasy, part paranormal, part mystery, it’s what might have resulted had Sir Arthur Conan Doyle got drunk one night in company with Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett – slightly bonkers, devastatingly witty and wholly entertaining – and I was utterly captivated by all ten-and-a-half hours of it. Alexis Hall is a supremely talented wordsmith, and if I were to give examples of all the turns of phrase that had me grinning like an idiot – hand-curated whelks, anyone? – laughing out loud or simply marvelling at the elegance of the prose or the precision of the well-aimed barbs, I’d be here all day. So to spare you that, I’ll do my best to encapsulate this wonderfully weird story in a thousand words or thereabouts. (I can hear my esteemed editor now – “only a thousand? That’ll be the day!”)

The book is a queered homage to Sherlock Holmes in which our consulting detective is a pansexual sorceress who is every bit as mercurial, self-absorbed, obnoxiously confident and fiercely intelligent as the original, and our chronicler and Watson stand-in is a trans gay man from an ultra-conservative (one might say puritanical) society whose buttoned-up nature provides a stark contrast to his far more outrageous companion. When the story begins, Captain John Wyndham, recently demobbed after fighting in a war in another universe, has got a job as an alchemist at the hospital in the city of Khelathra-Ven and needs somewhere to live. He answers an advertisement:

Co-tenant required. Rent reasonable to the point of suspicion. Tolerance for blasphemies against nature an advantage. No laundry service. Apply S. Haas, 221b Martyrs Walk.

– and ends up as the house-mate of the audacious, drug-addled and brilliant sorceress, Ms. Shaharazad Haas.

Wyndham has been living at 221b for only a few weeks when Miss Eirene Viola, a former lover of Ms. Hass’, pays a call and asks for her help. The pair obviously had a tempestuous relationship and Miss Viola is a woman with a colourful past (to say the least!), which is being used to blackmail her into ending her engagement with Miss Cora Beck, a warden of the Ubiquitous Company of Fishers (to whom Shararazad usually refers dismissively as “the fishmonger”). With the appearance of the eponymous Mysterious Letter begins a rollicking adventure that sees our intrepid duo encountering sky-pirates, vampires, witches and shape-shifters as they search for the blackmailer, travelling through time and to far off lands, such the underwater city of Ven, the People’s Republic of Carcosa and the picturesque city of Vedunia, to name but a few.

This inventive romp is narrated by the very prim-and-proper Wyndham, whose dry asides and comments to his editor provide much of the humour in the novel as he struggles to relate a tale full of swearing, sexual situations and inappropriate behaviour without actually using any naughty words or putting to paper anything that may shock the tender sensibilities of his audience. He’s reserved, unfailingly polite and utterly endearing; frequently bewildered and sometimes a little out of his depth, he’s always completely up for whatever is thrown at him, proving himself to be braver and more resourceful than he ever thought he could be. And even though he’s completely taken aback by Shaharazad’s lifestyle, her larger-than-life personality and her lack of conventional morality, these two opposites forge a strong friendship that is going to last for over two decades.

The novel is episodic in nature as our two protagonists track down the five people on Ms. Haas’ list of potential blackmailers, each of them located in a different land or city. This necessitates a lot of worldbuilding, which could have perhaps come across as rather dry, but it works thanks to Wyndham’s wide-eyed, innocent attitude; he’s the listeners’ way in to these weird and whacky places and we accept what’s going on because he accepts it. And while there’s a lot of humour in the book – and eagle-eared listeners will note riffs on several other well-known fictional characters and stories, from Snow White to Cinderella to Dracula (Bram Stoker’s version) and Agatha Christie – there’s one particular episode late on that is distinctly unnerving and sent shivers down my spine.

I have only a couple of criticisms of the story. One is that it did get a little bit repetitive in places, and the other is that while I really loved the characters, they were sort of ‘static’ in that they don’t really change much over the course of the novel. That may be the case in Conan Doyle’s stories – and it’s problematic for me there, too – so may have been the author’s intention, but even so, I’d like have liked there to have been a little more emotional depth overall.

It’s been a while since I’ve listened to Nicholas Boulton, so The Affair of the Mysterious Letter was a wonderful reminder of how stupendously good a performer he is. The star turn is, of course, his portrayal of Wyndham, in which he captures every facet of the character perfectly through the adoption of a posh accent and the sort of clipped delivery favoured by those stiff-upper-lip types so often found in British films of the 1930s and 40s. There are quite a few secondary characters in the story, but each of them is voiced distinctly and appropriately, from the gruff but exasperated Second Augur Lawson – the myrmidon officer who arrests Wyndham a few times (and who, I suspect, may be a little bit sweet on him!) – to the brilliant (and hilarious) characterisation of the pompous literary critic Mr. Percy Lutrel, for which I am sure Mr. Boulton was channelling the late Brian Sewell, the well-known British art-critic. I’ve read reviews of the book in which readers have said that they found Wyndham’s frequent, “and here they said things modesty forbids me to relate” or word substitutions to be irritating or repetitive, but fortunately, the audio scores over print in that respect, because in Mr. Boulton’s extremely capable hands, Wyndham’s already engaging personality comes through even more strongly, making those pronouncements more bashful than overly prudish.

To sum up – The Affair of the Mysterious Letter is a unique listening experience and one I recommend highly. The narration is flawless, the writing is funny, vibrant and imaginative, and the whole thing is, quite simply, a rollicking good yarn.

[Kathrin Passig · Rating 5 out of 5]

Das war noch ein bisschen großartiger als "Mortal Follies", und es hat einen noch besseren Erzähler, einen puritanischen John Watson, aber es hat auch sonst einfach alles, Vampire, Zeitreisen, einen Sherlock Holmes namens the sorceress Shaharazad Haas, Piraten, Tentakel, you name it. Hat jemand Kontakte zu einem Verlag, am besten zum Lyx Verlag (eine Abteilung von Lübbe), weil dort schon Bücher von Alexis Hall erschienen sind? Ich würde so gern dieses Buch übersetzen. Ich glaube, ich wäre genau die Richtige für den umständlich-altmodischen Stil, ich habe alle relevante Vorbildliteratur im Original und in Übersetzungen gelesen und ich würde es für diesen Zweck noch mal tun, um mir noch viel mehr umständlich-altmodische Wendungen anzueignen. Bihittekatze! Es würde mich sehr froh machen und den deutschen Markt hoffentlich auch.

[Trio · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Alexis Hall steampunk and The Affair of the Mysterious Letter is my favorite so far. Definitely the best premise with the spin on Holmes and Watson, because you know Hall is going to just kill that. Plus with Hall's imagination, the adventure these two go on is beyond spectacular.

Great characters, a bunch of clever twists and turns, plus a really fun ending, The Affair of the Mysterious Letter was truly enjoyable.

I listened to the audiobook and I was blown away by narrator Nicholas Bolton. His performance is amazing, between the zillion different voices and accents... seriously wow!

a copy of The Affair of the Mysterious Letter was provided by NetGalley for the purpose of my review

[Tijana]

Mhm. Nekad uzmete lako štivo za razbibrigu a ono omane.
Slučaj tajanstvenog pisma na papiru deluje kao sjajno lako štivo za razbibrigu. U vrlo šarolikom fantastičnom svetu koji dosta duguje Lavkraftu ali još mnogo više raznim stimpank-plus-Lavkraft zezancijama, pratimo avanture Holmsa i Votsona, pardon, čarobnice Šeherezade Has i Džona Vindama, u formatu Vindamovih prisećanja koja izlaze u mesečnim nastavcima pa se on često raspravlja s urednikom koji ga tera na klifhengere. I e da, sve je vrlo kvir, ovako napamet ne mogu da se setim nekog strejt para osim Vindamovih roditelja.
U praksi, avaj, knjiga nekako ne zaživi. Najbolji aspekt romana svakako je zamišljeni svet koji me je na svakoj strani vraćao u svet igre Fallen London; odmah posle toga su razne domišljate intertekstualne igre i aluzije, u rasponu od jelte Šerloka Holmsa i Drakule pa preko Pepeljuge, Nosferatua i Orijent Ekspresa do Princeze neveste i Dečko dama kralj špijun (!).
Nažalost, likovi koji bi trebalo da nose knjigu, tj. Šeherezada i Vindam, traljavo su ocrtani, bez šarma i bez međusobne hemije (ne seksualne nego ikakve). I Vindamov pripovedački glas je tragično lišen duhovitosti iako ni Vindam ni Aleksis Hol ne misle tako (iz različitih razloga doduše, ali rezultat je isti, trzate se na svaku nesmešnu šalu).
E da je ovo igra, ili strip, ili crtani, ili TV serija!... lepo bi se prozujalo kroz priču i tražilo još. Ovako, sumnjam da ću se upuštati s nastavcima, kad i ako ih bude.

[☕️Kimberly (Caffeinated Reviewer) · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a fun tale. This is a Sherlockian based tale set off planet and filled with magic, vampires, gods and limitless worlds. Come travel with John and Shaharzad Haas as they try to uncover a blackmailer.

Witches, underwater cities, shape-shifting, flying and more await you in this clever tale. I loved this female version of Sherlock. John Wyndham comes from a deeply religious planet and found after college he couldn’t quite move home. When he looks for housing on Khelathra-Ven, and answers an ad for a flatmate he finds himself at 221b Martyrs Walk.

The owner of the dwelling is a hoard of bees and lives in the attic. I will let you discover more, but as John will tell you, “Don’t drink the tea.” Shaharazad Haas is over the top. A female sorcerer who uses prohibited magic when it suits her, annoys everyone and yet it seems everyone owes her a favor. Why John agrees to live with her, you must discover for yourself.

John narrates the entire story as he recounts the first case he works with her. His explanations and direct conversations with us, the reader were delightful and more than once I laughed aloud. This is pure fantasy at its best.

Because John is speaking to us, the story had a nice flow with pauses, to share information about the planet, place or city we are visiting. I thought this was rather clever. John’s mannerisms and upbringing offered humor as he relayed the outlandish behavior of the brilliant, opinionated and troublesome Haas.

Fans of diversity and LGBT storylines will appreciate the refreshing acceptance and characters found within. This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Reviewer

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is just ridiculously fun, a delightfully over-the-top mashup of the Sherlock Holmes archetype with a fantasy world full of 1930s-style pulp adventure and Lovecraftian horror - and in which the Sherlockian figure is the brilliant and outrageous sorceress Shaherazad Haas. I found it utterly delicious, hilarious, and hugely enjoyable. I was only a third of the way in before I'd started buying copies for other people, and as I read it on my e-reader, I kept on highlighting passages I found especially fun - but I'm also aware that this book's writing style may be a love-it-or-hate-it situation, so do check out my highlights to see if that style appeals to you! I absolutely loved it.

[Kaa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is basically the thoroughly entertaining, very queer, and awesomely tentacled offspring of Sherlock Holmes and Lovecraft. The plot/mystery is really only an excuse for these two wonderfully different characters to go on wild adventures across several fantastical universes, but it's a whole lot of fun. John's prim voice contrasts perfectly with the horrifying things happening around him, resulting in a darkly humorous ramble that takes somewhat familiar characters and places and adds a whole heap of cosmic weirdness.

[Mogsy · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 of 5 stars at The BiblioSanctum https://bibliosanctum.com/2019/07/29/...

I’m a big fan of Sherlock Holmes retellings, and to my joy, I found The Affair of the Mysterious Letter to be very similar to the Warlock Holmes series that I love in terms of its quirky light tone and cheeky style of humor, though it also possesses a lot of its own unique charms. For example, this retelling takes a queer friendly approach to our characters, where Sherlock Holmes is Ms. Shaharazad Haas, a “consulting sorceress,” and Watson is John Wyndham, our trans narrator who has spent the last five years fighting a war in another universe. Recently returned to the city of Khelathra-Ven, it was his search for a place to live which had first landed him on Ms. Haas’ doorstep at 221b Martyrs Walk.

Needless to say, it doesn’t take long for Wyndham to find out just what it means to be Shaharazad Haas’ new housemate. For one thing, they get a lot of interesting guests. The book begins with a visit from Miss Eirene Viola, who has sought out her former lover Ms. Haas with a plea to help her solve a dastardly case of blackmail. Drawn into the investigation, Wyndham joins his new partner on her hunt to identify the mysterious extortionist, accompanying Haas to all kinds of shady and magical places in the underbelly of the city that he never knew existed, from dingy alleyways to gaudy art houses where you’ll meet all sorts of fantastical creatures and bizarre characters.

What a delight this book was, and I guarantee you’ve never read a Sherlock Holmes retelling quite like this one. It’s jam packed with imagination and twists on the classic that were absolutely fun to discover, and not just on the diversity front. In addition to our wonderfully drawn characters and genderqueer cast, we are also treated to world steeped in fantasy and practically overflowing with magical elements. We have sorcerers and demons, multiple universes, and, believe it or not, even a touch of cosmic horror. At the same time though, I’m pleased to report that the framework of the Sherlock Holmes tradition remains strong, a familiarity which also allows readers to form an immediate connection to our protagonists Haas and Wyndham.

And then there’s the humor. Wyndham is an engaging narrator, and very entertaining in that completely lovable and incognizant way of his. Prim and proper, he’s completely taken aback by Haas and her sorceress lifestyle, not to mention her very candid and audacious personality. Nothing seems to faze her, while on the other hand, we frequently find poor flustered Wyndham struggling to find the politest ways to describe all the shocking scandal and debauchery they witness while on the investigation. Obviously the two of them are complete opposites, but in spite of that they manage to mesh well on the page, creating a wonderfully powerful and energetic dynamic that was never boring.

But for a few hiccups, I probably would have given this novel a higher rating. I thought there was plenty of material to keep the plot interesting, unpredictable, and chugging along at a good pace, but some of the repeated jokes started to wear on my nerves after a while, like Wyndham’s stubborn refusal to say naughty words, instead coming up with all kinds euphemisms for cursing or to describe sexual acts. Yup, I think I got the gist of it after the first 257 times, thanks. There were definitely moments where I felt the book was trying too hard, tripping up and falling from clever and witty into downright cheesy territory, and at times like this I did feel that the humor got to be a bit too much for me. Fortunately, there weren’t too many of these instances, and always the author pulled things back before they got too out of hand.

So all in all, I would say The Affair of the Mysterious Letter was a good read. Wildly entertaining and charismatic, this novel features a cast of captivating characters, utterly fascinating world-building, and a punchy storyline that zipped along at an exciting pace. Fans of inventive retellings and readers interested in broadening their horizons with something diverse and completely unique will certainly want to check this one out.

[Ellie · Rating 5 out of 5]

30 June 2019
What a glorious, utterly mesmerizing story!

18 June 2019
This book is out today and I am slowing going through my ARC and savouring every word. It's fabulous and fun and I highly recommend it!!!

My most awaited release of the year!
Here we go :)

I have read almost everything Alexis Hall has published/shared in his newsletter. I was really excited for his latest release even though it's not romance. I rarely step out of my comfort genre but I'm always ready to do it with my faviourite authors.

This queer SFF take on Sherlock Holmes was just brilliant. It was such a glorious adventure story with some dark elements, wildly imaginative and the beautiful, moving writing I have come to expect from the author.

I won’t go into details of the plot, suffice it to say it’s a Sherlock Holmes type of investigation led by the sorceress Shaharazad Hass and her reluctant assistant John Wyndham. They go on solving the mystery in an exquisitely built fantasy world.

It’s a queer story with a pansexual heroine and a gay trans hero featuring a side f/f romance. There is some flirting and romance vibes the focus of the story is the friendship between Shaharazad and John, built of mutual respect and caring for the other. Shaharazad is real and honest, with a bunch of character flaws, unapologetic, confident and self-indulgent. She doesn’t grow or change, she is what she is and is comfortable in her skin, owning her good and bad sides.

We get the story from John’s POV and I loved how consistently puritanical it was, I loved the formality of his POV, his rigidity and strong sense of right and wrong coming through all the text. john and Shaharazad were opposites in almost all aspects and it was pure joy seeing them work together, starting from being reluctant roommates, becoming partners-in-crime and building a tentative friendship that becomes something really important for both of them.

I liked the adventure and fantasy elements a lot – they were engaging and in some ways too real in their reflection of the cruelties of the present days. The chapters in Carcosa were really hard to read for me as they were a poignant presentation of what a totalitarian regime looks like.

Overall, I enjoyed this book a lot. It's a delightful, whimsical SFF multi-layered story. The meta commentary on writing and storytelling brought me pure joy. The book made me think and feel and laugh and cringe in horror and left a lasting impression in my mind.

[Jamie (TheRebelliousReader) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Second Read: March 3, 2025
Updated rating: from 4 to 5 stars

5 stars. Another Alexis Hall reread for the win! I adored this book the first time I read it but I loved it even more the second time around. It’s just my type of weird and offbeat and I love these characters so much. Shaharazad is my favorite. I love her so much. She’s kinda an asshole and she’s such a chaotic little gremlin but she’s MY chaotic little gremlin. She’s also badass and intelligent and hilarious. I love that the first time she and John meet she pulls a pistol on him. An icon. John, my little precious bean. He’s always getting himself into trouble because he just wants to help and he’s too honest for his own good. I love him so and I love getting the story from his eyes. Also, Eirene Viola! What a woman!

This book is just so much fun. It’s comforting and funny and addictive. I already know that this will be one that I will read again. It's such a good time.

Original review:
4 stars. This was such a weird read and I loved it. I’ve been really enjoying Hall’s work lately. There were a few duds there in the beginning as I had to get used to his writing style but now I really appreciate it and I’m a fan.

This is a queer fantasy historical Sherlock retelling. Female Sherlock (Shaharazad Haas) and trans John Watson (John Wyndham) and they both were such fascinating and likable characters. They are both incredibly intelligent and I loved their dynamics with one another. This is from Wyndham’s point of view and I loved his humor and the running joke of how he would omit whenever other characters would curse or say something vulgar that Wyndham ‘didn’t find suitable for the readers’. I had such a good time reading this. It’s a fun adventure and it’s so bizarre and quirky and really well written. I’ve got nothing really negative to say about this and I could definitely see myself reading it again.

[Yara · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Affair or the Mysterious Letter by Alexis Hall is a strange and original reimagining of Sherlock Holmes. Told from the perspective of John Watson or in this case John Wyndham as he recounts his first adventure with Sherlock Holmes, aka the sorcerous Ms. Shaharazad Haas; the story is written as a memoir. Part sci-fi, part fantasy, part paranormal, part steampunk, and part mystery it’s hard to categorize the genre. It’s certainly and original creation.

The mystery here is a letter blackmailing a frenemy of Ms. Haas and so Mrs. Wyndham who has just recently become the roommate to Ms. Hass is roped into the investigation. The two travel to distant places back in time, forward in time and a bunch of other wacky, crazy escapades that puts their lives in danger more than once.

Once you get use to the weirdness of quirkiness of the story and the world-building it’s very enjoyable. Clever and smartly written it weaves its tale and mystery beautifully. Though, I would say the mystery was huge, its resolution was inventive and unexpected. You start to warm up to the characters the more you get to know them.

One of the things I did found annoying was how the author chose to do omissions and how they were explained away. There was a lot of, “I won’t waste the readers time by going into such trifling matters” (paraphrasing). And it happens a fair amount throughout the book. A few times here and there is okay, but it happened far too often for my taste. And by the way the book is told in first-person, so FYI.

The narration is done by Nicholas Boulton, who is one of my favorite narrators. He does a phenomenal job and really brings the characters and the world to life with his performances.

Overall, I enjoyed it a great deal and I can’t wait for their next adventure together.

[Pam Faste aka Peejakers · Rating 5 out of 5]

6/24/19

OmG, that was good! Whew! What an utter tour-de-force!

This book is full of squee! 😊

But, okay, now let me try to compose myself and I'll (hopefully) be back with a full review in a day or so! ❤❤❤❤❤


***************************************************
6/29/19

Okay, well, not sure how composed I am, but I'm finally back with my review!

So, as you will have gathered, and to my complete lack of surprise, The Affair of The Mysterious Letter is an unqualified delight and charming as all get out. What a wildly happy ride!

Opening this book is like opening the gates to the most amazing and immersive adventure park ever, a gloriously queer-normative and mind-boggling Wonderland full of magic, fantastical beings, extraordinary places, fascinating (if not bizarre) characters, and many other delights.

The writing is witty, adroit, and gorgeous, and rendered in charmingly wordy Victorian-ish style amusingly peppered with seemingly anachronistic modern slang – a thing I super-adore. I loved the narrative style so much that . . . well, you know that thing where you watch a show or a movie set in 1880’s London or whatever, and end up talking like an upper class British Victorian for the rest of the day? (Or is that just me?) Anyway, it’s kinda like that. So if at any point I sound like I’m writing this in John Wyndham’s voice, please forgive me!

The story itself is a captivating fantasy twist on the Sherlock Holmes mysteries, set in an alternate, notably Lovecraftian, universe wherein “Sherlock Holmes” becomes “Shaharazad Haas”, an extravagantly eccentric, pansexual sorceress, and “Doctor John Watson” gives way to “Captain John Wyndham”, a shyly puritanical and compulsively polite, gay, trans man with a heart of gold.

Staggeringly original and imaginative, the book is also liberally strewn with the loveliest literary and pop culture Easter eggs, paying loving homage first and foremost to Holmes and Watson, and to the Lovecraftian style of surreal, dread-filled fantasy/horror. But scattered throughout are also hints of steampunk, adventure story, fractured fairy tales, screwball comedy, even a nod to classic Agatha Christie, and probably more that I’ve missed, all tumbled together, cheek-by-jowl, in the most delightfully chaotic way.

The book is also richly veined with humor and frequently hilarious. I especially loved how enchantingly absurd it was. This is possibly my favorite kind of humor and one this author excels in. I spent a significant portion of this book snortling with glee! To paraphrase more than one other reviewer, this book is utterly, joyfully bonkers!

But it’s also so much more. There were moments of haunting disquiet, even of horror, that were somehow, also eerily beautiful. And there were scattered moments that surprised me with a tug on my heartstrings, including the final sentence of the book which brought an unexpected rush of tears to my eyes. And there’s plenty of insightful human commentary tucked in there among the other treasures.

Now a little more about the main characters.

John Wyndham, it must be said, is simply the best: Endearingly prim and fastidiously courteous, kindhearted and honorable to a fault, a bit naïve and pedestrian in his thinking (at least in the beginning), he’s also admirably open-minded given (or perhaps because of) his upbringing. And though frequently bewildered and more than a little out of his depth hanging out with the likes of Ms. S. Haas, what I loved was how he’s always absolutely up for it. He’s also admirably resourceful, braver than he gives himself credit for and, on occasion, pretty darn dashingly heroic. Not to mention genuinely humble and self-effacing! Aaand I’ve probably made him sound like an insufferable Mary Sue now, but he’s not in the least. He’s the loveliest; a good friend, the perfect foil for his more glamorously drawn partner in crime-solving, and I adored him.

And then we have the inimitable Ms. Haas, or “The Sorceress Shaharazad Haas”! as she is fond of announcing herself. A strange woman with a number of strange habits, among which a proclivity for drugging herself to the gills when not more entertainingly or profitably engaged is perhaps the least remarkable. Whose penchant for joyfully flouting the rules forms the perfect counterpoint (and possible antidote?) to John Wyndham’s ingrained habit of upholding them. And, as we quickly discover, a woman also as formidable as she is outrageous, with zero patience for fools, and altogether magnificent. On the more human side, we also get the feeling that behind that rather grandiose exterior she’s probably a lonely and not terribly happy person (I mean, the drugs alone/ . . .), but she’s a bit of a fortress, only giving brief glimpses of her more vulnerable side before slamming the door.

For fans of the author's other work who may be wondering how this stacks up, it’s important to note this is not a romance but does contain romantic elements, including some adorable flirtations, with a sly hint of more to come should there be more books about these characters. I’d also say this contains the best adventure, fantasy, and humor elements of the author’s Prosperity (sans dialect) and his Kate Kane series (sans detective noir tone). It also reminded me at times of the completely bananas “Squamous with a Chance of Rain” (a personal favorite from the Prosperity follow-up “Liberty & Other Stories”). Especially in its zanier moments, and with its similar theme of a sensible Victorian (ish) protagonist thrown suddenly into outlandish circumstances and gamely making the best of them with a kind of bemused aplomb. Something about the absurdity of that juxtaposition delights and amuses me to no end, both in that book and this one, though I think this book is a little more serious and a little less intensely Lovecraft-on-acid. All in all, I think if you read and enjoyed any of those books you will probably like this one too, and if you’ve read this one and not the others, you might want to check them out! 😊

Now, before I go, here is but a small sampling of my favorites among the riches to be found in this book:

This book contains the most fantastic swordplay sequence, of sorts, given our hero is armed only with a walking stick and his wits against the serrated blade of his antagonist - but that only makes it better!), played out against a thrillingly dramatic background and narrated by the protagonist in such excitingly detailed play-by-play that I could see the whole thing as if it was playing out before my eyes. So awesomely cinematic!

And then we have Chapters 50 and 51, wherein things get mega-bizarre and mega-serious: A standout not to be missed, like, whoa! Equally spellbinding and disturbing, the action building to a nightmarish crescendo, these 2 chapters were a hallucinatory, heart-pounding masterpiece. I read this part at a full gallop, with a death grip on my Kindle and finished literally breathless. Damn!

Finally, here, have a lovely, haunting quote: "The sky began to fall. I appreciate that this phenomenon may prove difficult for some readers to visualise, but I fear that, since I mean it literally, it is hard for me to explain it in any other terms. Flakes of what I can only call firmament descended from above and settled upon the crowd like pieces of blue-tinged, star-dusted eggshell. It was oddly beautiful in the way that only ruination can be."

Okay, I could go on and on some more, but I guess I should probably stop.

I love this book; it made me supremely happy and I didn't want it to end (which is why I’m currently re-reading it)! I really, really hope there will be more stories about these characters and their world, because already I can't wait for them!

❤❤❤❤❤

[Lindsay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Captain John Wyndham has arrived in Khelathra-Ven after suffering an injury in an eternal war on a different plane of existence. His meager funds leave him lodging with the peculiar sorceress Shaharazad Haas, and just like the Holmes stories this is based on, soon finds himself involved in her investigations.

The setting is cleverly Lovecraftian, and very queer (Wyndham is trans and likely gay or bi and the case that is the focus of the book is about blackmailing one of two women who wish to marry who is also a former lover of Haas). It's also extremely funny, with Wyndham writing from a very prim and proper point of view that almost no-one else in the book shares.

It's a little overlong for what it is, and some of the jokes are taken a bit far (the word substitution for swearing got a bit old), but overall it was a fun romp through a very weird world from an almost familiar perspective.

[Susy · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars
I enjoyed the Holmes - Watson comparison, the POV, the humour, the magic/fantasy elements, the references to other works like Stoker’s Dracula, Snow White, Cinderella and yet I often had a hard time keeping focused. This was so especially during the first half of the book where the little action that took place was often interrupted by world-building and descriptions, apparently in a manner that could not hold my attention. Fortunately this improved in the second half of the book where I even grew attached to the main characters and even felt sorry to have to say goodbye to them. The ending was no surprise but had a nice twist. Though I think 4 stars would be too high a rating, I definitely feel a 3 star rating wouldn’t do it justice. Unfortunately GR still doesn’t allow for 3.5 star ratings; I will therefore round it up to 4.

Edit:
Though I quite liked the story I can’t say it’s one of my favourites. Therefore I’ve chosen to round my rating down to 3 stars.

Edit:
Hmm, on the other hand I do seem to miss Captain Wyndham and Ms. Haas. So I will round it up to 4.
I think.... (will probably change it again in a couple of months lol)

[Trisha · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was pretty cute. An interesting start very similar to the original stories - it was a brief history and re-telling. I liked how the gender was very easily slid into the beginning and something I would have missed if I hadn't known beforehand. Loved it.

The rest of the story took a moment to get the hang of. The magic and the change in world were different and not quite what I had expected. But I did end up really enjoying it and instantly fell into the world and the story. It's a very good re-telling and I loved most of the changes. I hope this is a first of many.