Skip to main content

Review | Every Breath by Ellie Marney

Teenage Sherlock Holmes, Watson is a girl, and the story is told from her perspective. This is essentially all the information I needed in order to make the decision to dive into Every Breath at the earliest opportunity. But in case you're wavering, it's also fun to know that this is Australian author Ellie Marney's debut novel, that it is a YA contemporary mystery, and the first in a series to boot. Next up, I think we should just take a moment to talk covers. I have yet to purchase my own copy (that's earmarked for the next paycheck), but both the US (seen here) and Aussie covers have a lot going for them. The Aussie one gets tons of points for having Watts actually on the cover, for one thing. But in a very rare move, I'm leaning US if only because it's not a photo of actual people (never works out well for me) and because, well, his throat. Also his hair and his entire posture. But his throat. That's Mycroft. I love him this cover.

Rachel Watts' friendship with her neighbor James Mycroft is something of a full time job. Newly (and unwillingly) arrived from the countryside, Rachel struggles to find a place for herself in Melbourne. Unused to navigating city life after the loss of the family farm, she and her older brother and parents find themselves acting almost like strangers as they adjust to their new home and environment. But then Mycroft enters her life, with his jittery brilliance, his obsession with forensics, and his ongoing allergy to school. And soon her days are not quite as numb, filled as they are with contributing her powers of observation (and cooking skills) to the latest in a long line of Mycroft's investigations. But this most recent involves a murder. And not just any stranger, but that of Homeless Dave—a man they both knew. Unable to accept the official police verdict, Mycroft and Watts set themselves to the task of tracking down the truth behind Dave's violent death and bringing the mysterious killer to justice.

I'll admit, I was a little nervous at first. I was nervous the high school setting, and possibly the nature of the relationship between Watts and Mycroft, would pall too quickly or somehow not resonate with me in just the right way. As nerves go, basically your run of the mill stuff. But I've read one fantastic Sherlock Holmes adaptation and I was so keen to find another. Happily, Rachel herself was the first to set me at ease. Her transition to the city has been a particularly difficult one, and the dry but upfront way in which she expressed that difficulty struck a chord of sympathy within me:
I like it in his room—the starry lights, the feeling of sanctuary. I'm still not used to dealing with a lot of other people. I've known Mycroft, and Mai and her boyfriend, Gus, since last November, and they still feel like "a lot of other people." Actually, Mycroft alone could probably qualify as seeming like "a lot of other people." He does so much crazy stuff you could imagine more than a single offender.
That passage could just as easily been an entry from one of my high school journals. Other people, man. Not for the faint of heart. I love that the story is told from Watts' perspective. She has very honed powers of observation, though she herself might decry that claim. But it means that not only is she vital to Mycroft's ongoing efforts, she also does an incredibly effective job of introducing the reader to her singular friend. And if her focus is more frequently drawn to to Mycroft than it is anyone else in the room, it isn't any wonder as his magnetism and zaniness and pain fairly claw their way off the page. Gratefully, his presence never overshadows Watts. Not even a little bit, as we are firmly grounded inside her viewpoint and know just how hard she works to keep everyone in her life afloat and not lose track of her own needs, even if she is reticent about voicing them aloud. The mystery itself makes for a fun, often dark ride, and I enjoyed sitting back and accompanying them in their rounds. But the heart of Every Breath is, without question, the chemistry between Watts and Mycroft. Ms. Marney quite simply nails their need on the head. The pacing and development of Watts-and-Mycroft is one long and delicious thread running alongside the unfolding of the murder investigation. As the precarious hold they each have on their lives begins to unravel against the backdrop of Watts' uncertainty and Mycroft's desperation, the solace they take in being together, the rightness of their fit, is so soothing it is tangible. I currently have the sequel on order from Australia and am sitting here feeling antsy just thinking about what these two might be getting up to without me.


Buy

Linkage
Bookish Antics - "Those who love BBC’s Sherlock should definitely check out Every Breath."
Cuddlebuggery - "T
he quippy dialogue is fantastic."
Love is Not a Triangle - "
This book is a winner."

The Midnight Garden - "This book is a wonderful swirl of atmospheric, gritty mystery and Aussie contemporary and SHIPPY SHIP."
My Friends are Fiction - "The real driving force for me in this book was the relationship between Mycroft and Watts."
There Were Books Involved - "I ship it so hard."

Comments

  1. I'm so happy you liked this book. I adored it! Watts and Mycroft are so good. I also loved Watts’ family and the fact that even though things are a bit rough, they stick together. ha ha... I could go on and on about this book. I have already read the second one (also ordered from Australia) and I loved it too. The third book is published in AU in March, I think and it's one of my most anticipated this year. After book 2, I NEED to know how things will turn out. :) ha ha... If you can't tell I'm a huge fangirl of all things Sherlock and this series is a great addition.
    What other Sherlock(ish) books should I be reading?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yay! I'm so happy I did, too. The tensions in her family were very well done. And just everything between him and her . . . :) I'm seriously on pins and needles until my copy of Every Word comes. So glad to hear it's just as good!


    The other series I read and loved is Laurie R. King's Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes series. *Very* different from this one, but just so good. It's set in the years after Holmes as "retired" from investigative work and is told from the point of view of a young woman who stumbles across him and winds up being his apprentice.

    ReplyDelete
  3. This sounds pretty amazing!


    But Australian... arrrghhh! Why is it so difficult to get Australian books...

    ReplyDelete
  4. I know! It's maddening.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Sounds great. I read Jackaby by William Ritter. This is another young Sherlock Holmes type. But that book is more of a period piece.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I had a feeling about those two from the beginning when she's trying to patch him up. So good! I have read the first Mary Russell book but it was some years ago. I'll have to look at that series again. I remember liking it. There's just never enough time...

    ReplyDelete
  7. Yes! Jackaby was great.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I have this one on my TBR pile! Another Aussie YA author I've been meaning to read.

    ReplyDelete
  9. It's lots of fun, Chachic. Think you'd enjoy it.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I have it and I keep saying that I will read it next. Well, next I hope to read it :D

    ReplyDelete
  11. I hope so, too! But I know how it goes. Seems I bend whichever the wind blows these days.

    ReplyDelete
  12. That's right, same here. And there are so many great stories I want to read, I might spend more time thinking about which book to read, rather than actually reading one, LOL

    ReplyDelete
  13. So, instead of having Sherlock and Mycroft, the author uses Mycroft for both purposes? Interesting choice. This book sounds really fascinating; thanks for the recommendation!

    ReplyDelete
  14. My pleasure, Hannah! And yes, they even make a humorous reference to Holmes having a Watson and Mycroft having a Watts. :)

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

You Might Also Like

The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker by Leanna Renee Hieber

This book has made the rounds and no mistake. I started seeing early reviews awhile back and read a few delightful interviews with Leanna Renee Hieber and found myself intrigued to read her first novel-- The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker . I was, therefore, tickled to receive a copy for review from Ms. Hieber and quickly set about settling in. I knew it was a Gothic paranormal mystery of sorts, featuring (among other things) a group of loyal comrades, a private London academy, a bit of magic, an albino, and a swoon-worthy broody professor a la Richard Armitage in North & South . *moment of silence for the awesomeness of The Armitage* And that was the extent of my pre-reading knowledge. That and the fact that I loved the cover with its simple yet moody, midnight blue and its slightly off-kilter, scripty title. Miss Percy Parker is about to embark on an adventure, albeit a much larger one than she imagines. Leaving the convent--the only home she's ever known--a...

Bibliocrack Review | You Should Be So Lucky by Cat Sebastian

If I'm being perfectly honest with myself, I've done a shamefully poor job of addressing my love for Cat Sebastian 's books around these parts. I've certainly noted each time her beautiful stories have appeared on my end-of-the-year best of lists, see:  The Perfect Crimes of Marian Hayes ,  basically every book in  The Cabots series , and of course  We Could Be So Good .  And the pull is, quite simply, this: nobody is as kind and gentle with their characters and with their hearts than Cat Sebastian. Nobody. I haven't always been one for the gentler stories, but I cannot overstate the absolute gift it is sinking into one of Sebastian's exquisitely crafted historicals knowing that I get to spend the next however many pages watching two idiots pine and deny that feelings exist and just  take care of each other  as they fall in love. I wouldn't trade that experience for the world. Not this one or any other.  Only two things in the world people count b...

Review | The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion, Vols. 1 & 2 by Beth Brower

I feel a bit giddy finally talking to you all about this series. If you'll remember, I fell madly in love with The Q  when it came out a few years ago. Now, Beth Brower is writing The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion — a series of novellas set in London in 1883. Each volume is an excerpt from the incorrigible Emma's journals, and the first two volumes are already available with the third on the way soon. I think they'd make rather perfect pandemic reading. Humorous and charming down to their bones, they're just what the doctor ordered to lift your spirits in this uncertain time that just proves to be too much some days. If you're experiencing one of those days, I suggest giving Volume 1   a go (it's only 99 cents on Kindle, $4.99 for a trade paperback copy). It will surprise exactly none of you that I own print and digital editions of both volumes.  Miss Emma M. Lion has waited long enough. Come hell or high water (and really, given her track record,  both a...