The Beekeeper's Apprentice is the first book in the Mary Russell series by Laurie R. King

Laurie R. King

Laurie R. King is an American author best known for her detective fiction. Among her books are the Mary Russell series of historical mysteries, featuring Sherlock Holmes as her mentor and later partner, and a series featuring Kate Martinelli, a fictional lesbian San Francisco, California, police...

. It was nominated for the Agatha best novel award

Agatha Award

The Agatha Awards are literary awards for mystery and crime writers who write via the same method as Agatha Christie...

 and was deemed a Notable Young Adult book by the American Library Association

American Library Association

The American Library Association is a non-profit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with more than 62,000 members....

.

In this novel, King presents the first meeting between fifteen-year-old Mary Russell, the young Jewish-American protagonist of King's series by that name, and Sherlock Holmes

Sherlock Holmes

Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...

. Their meeting leads to a collaboration between the two, though this first novel focuses primarily on the detective training that Holmes gives to Russell. The series that this novel begins currently stands at ten novels.

Plot

After losing her family in a tragic motor accident, fifteen-year-old Mary Russell goes to live with her aunt. Wandering the Sussex Downs in April of 1915, she comes across fifty-four-year-old Sherlock Holmes, who has retired from his London practice and keeps bees. They become friends, and Holmes trains Russell in detecting.

Reception

Feminist scholar Lillian Doherty calls The Beekeeper's Apprentice "vivid and highly entertaining", saying her strong identification with the character of Mary Russell produced a temporary enhancement of her own sense of competence.