The book A Study In Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro is a fictional, action-packed story about the teen descendants of Sherlock Holmes and his partner John Watson, Charlotte Holmes and Jamie Watson. In the story, they both “coincidentally” end up going to the same school in Connecticut, and after they are framed for a murder they both can only trust each other. Although this may seem like the average murder mystery story, Charlotte having the same deductive skills and some of the same enemies as Sherlock, creates a unique and gripping storyline which the reader will enjoy.
The book itself takes place for the most part at Sherringford which is a prep school that both the kids attend in Connecticut. At the school, Jamie meets Charlotte after they both get into a scuffle with the same boy. In the book the main characters are Charlotte and Jamie, however, there are many other integral characters such as Jamie’s father who hasn’t seen his son in many years after he got divorced, the detective, and Charlotte’s influential brother who all contribute to the storyline. The main conflict in this story arises when the boy with who they both had a scuffle, ends up dead. Since they both had a scuffle with him the two prime suspects are Holmes and Watson, and the chase to find the killer that ensues is chaotic, dangerous, and engrossing. The book also utilizes Jamie Watsons’ perspective keeping in tradition from the Sherlock Holmes books where John Watson was the narrator.
Altogether, A Study In Charlotte is both a unique and enjoyable book to read. This is a book that I would recommend to those who enjoy mystery and action. An example of the action-packed and mysterious passages is, “I had questions for her. Questions I didn’t really want an answer to. Questions I’d have to ask later, because as we stood there, the police were kicking down doors all up and down the hall. In a minute, they’d find us” (128, Cavallaro). This is just a snippet of the carefully crafted passages that Cavallaro has written. It should be acknowledged here that the book does touch on some sensitive topics such as drug abuse, and does include strong language on a few pages in the book. For this reason, people who may not be comfortable with either of those two things may want to not read this book at the moment.
Overall, the book is entertaining and is a book that the majority of high schoolers will enjoy. It carefully weaves some of the classic Sherlock Holmes books in this book and utilizes twists and turns to keep the reader, reading. It’s a book that will keep readers on edge and not prepared for its surprises. It’s a book that anyone who has some free time, should pick up and enjoy.
Review by Adi, Teen Reviewer
Awesome review!!! 😀 This book seems cool.