Review: A Study in Charlotte

Title: A Study in Charlotte
Author: Brittany Cavallaro
Series: Charlotte Holmes
Volume: 1
Genre: Mystery
Goodreads

A Quick Introduction: When Jamie Watson ends at Sherringford prep school, the only thing he's looking forward to is meeting Charlotte Holmes, hoping that they'll get along as well as their great-great-great grandfathers, the famous John Watson and Sherlock Holmes. When a student who both Jamie and Charlotte have reason to want hurt dies under mysterious circumstances, they agree to team up and figure out who really is to blame.

Out of Ten: 7/10

Review at a Glance: An enjoyable Sherlock Holmes tribute debut featuring some interesting and complicated characters.

Review: At this point, reading various Sherlock Holmes retellings, tributes, and spin-offs has just become a thing I do, with very mixed results. This one surprised me by falling more toward the "I liked it" end of the spectrum than the "well that wasted hours of my life" end. Which was nice.

This is a really quick read. Once I got invested, I flew through it. The story itself is a fast-paced mystery, set at a boarding school. While components were a little unbelievable, at times, the overall plot was still enjoyable.

Jamie and Charlotte have an interesting dynamic - they both expect a lot from each other when they first meet based on their legacies, and they have to get to know each beyond those. They definitely have an immediate connection, as well as a dynamic one that changes over time. I'm interested in seeing what their dynamic settles into.

This novel does touch on some more serious concepts (sexual assault and substance abuse), which I am assuming will be touched on in the next two books in the trilogy, and I'm hoping they'll be handled alright. Overall, I'm quite looking forward to the sequel.

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If you're looking for other YA mysteries featuring teens solving crimes, using their talents of observations.