The Blue Diamond: A Daughter of Sherlock Holmes Mystery

Set in 1917, Goldberg’s sluggish sixth Daughter of Sherlock Holmes Mystery (after 2021’s The Abduction of Pretty Penny) opens with the arrival of Inspector Lestrade at 221B Baker Street, the home of Joanna, the daughter of Sherlock Holmes and Irene Adler, and her husband, John Watson, Dr. Watson’s son. Lestrade needs Joanna’s help in investigating a series of robberies from the penthouse suites of upscale London hotels. The most recent netted the criminals the famed Blue Diamond, the second largest such stone ever found. It was stolen from the governor-general of South Africa and was to be presented to George V. The first two robberies were carried out quietly, leaving no clues as to the perpetrator. This time, however, the hotel doorman suffered a severe skull fracture, and there’s little hope of his survival. Joanna, trailed by John, who serves as her faithful amanuensis, soon realizes that the robberies are just cogs in a far more sinister and dangerous affair. A series of brain teasers fails to compensate for the lack of character development and any clever repartee. Sherlockians will be disappointed. Agent: Scott Mendel, Mendel Media Group. (June)