Mycroft seems to care a bit more about stuff than was previously thought. Oh, and he knows about flowers!

Enola shows herself to be an intelligent, rational, resourceful, and brave protagonist. Readers will look forward to hearing this heroine's unique voice again. -- Publishers Weekly, starred review Oh, and Enola tells a story of a women who was put away into an insane asylum because she sat down on the ground in her dress and her husband thought it was less embarrassing than divorce. Um….. okay. This author really wants to portray these times as just a living hell, doesn’t she? Enola surprises me everytime with her resourcefulness and her clever mind. I love how she always analyses and thinks everything through before acting on it. Which doesn't discount of her being able to think on her feet at moments of distress. I am still in awe how she always manages to outsmart her brothers who for reason still discredit and look upon as a child. Even though she suffers from moments of loneliness, her determination for independence is truly remarkable. This is book three so I would suggest reading the previous two books to understand some of the references and the characters used but that's not totally necessary. It doesn't take long to get to know the characters, especially Enola, with a lot of her first-person dialogue. Secret messages through flowers are one of my favourite tropes. Do people still read things into bouquets like that?For when Enola visits the grieving Mrs. Watson, she discovers a decidedly bizarre bouquet among the standard bunches of flowers signifying condolences. Composed of an odd and sinister assortment of flowers, the bizarre bouquet seems to have been sent by someone who wanted revenge on Dr and/or Mrs Watson, and who is very happy the Doctor is missing. Perhaps the sender of the bouquet is also the one responsible for Dr. Watson's disappearance..! Nancy Springer tinggal di Pennsylvania selama empat puluh enam tahun. Ia memiliki dua anak, yakni Jonathan Paul (lahir tahun 1974) dan Nora Lynn (lahir tahun 1978), dari suami pertamanya Joel Springer, seorang menteri dan fotografer seni rupa. Nancy Springer dan Joel Springer bercerai pada tahun 1996. Tak lama setelah itu, pada tahun 1999, Nancy bertemu dengan suami keduanya, Jaime Fernando Pinto, ketika dia bekerja di penampungan hewan. Pada tahun 2007, Nancy dan keluarganya pindah ke Bonifay, salah satu daerah terpencil di Florida. Daerah itu adalah tempat yang kondusif untuk menjalankan hobinya, yakni mengamati burung, menunggang kuda, memancing, dan kecintaannya pada penerbangan. And this book was amazingly cool from start to finish! Mostly because this time Enola's full focus was on the case she was dealing with. And not without reason, because James Watson is missing and she did specialize in finding lost people, didn't she? And therefore this book contains a lot of scheming, planning, going undercover, asking the right and wrong questions and some action where our Enola comes very close to a dangerous enemy. Vor allem auch Enolas Wille, ihren Weg zu gehen, alles zu tun, um das durchzusetzen, was ihr wichtig ist und selbst wenn sie sich alleine fühlt, nach vorne zu schauen und nicht aufzugeben, rührt mich jedes Mal wieder sehr!

Del primero me gustó sobre todo la primera mitad, la segunda fue muy diferente a lo que yo esperaba en base a la peli, y fue más infantil de lo que tenía en mente. Vor allem die Atmosphäre ist wieder grandios eingefangen von einem düsteren London, der Armut, der Kulisse und mit vielen Details, die das Leben damals sehr lebendig einfangen. Dabei streut die Autorin auch immer wieder Wörter und interessante Infos ein, ohne den Erklär-Bär zu spielen, sondern lässt es direkt in die Handlung einfließen. Da die Reihe für jüngere Leser gedacht ist finde ich das super, um Wissen zu vermitteln, das in eine fesselnde Handlung integriert ist. Das ist mir auch schon in den vorherigen Bänden aufgefallen und ist definitiv ein großer Pluspunkt. Genauso wie die doch anspruchsvolle Schreibweise, die sicher auch ihre Freunde findet bei der jungen Generation und eben auch für Erwachsene ein absolutes Lesevergnügen ist!

Enola Holmes mengetahui bahwa bukan kebetulan jika namanya dieja terbalik, akan menjadi “Alone” yang berarti sendirian. Ibunya adalah seorang feminis berjiwa bebas yang menyukai kode dan sandi, tetapi tak pernah terlalu memperhatikan putrinya. Saat ibunya menghilang pada ulang tahun Enola yang ke-14 dalam The Case of the Missing Marquess, Enola tak terkejut saat menemukan ibunya meninggalkannya demi kehendak bebasnya sendiri. Enola is seriously becoming my favorite Holmes, the way her mind works yet she still shows her youthful self, her vulnerability and her wishing for a family. Enola shows herself to be an intelligent, rational, resourceful, and brave protagonist. Readers will look forward to hearing this heroine’s unique voice again.”— Publishers Weekly, starred review

The above example is the only reason Enola ever gives for her not wanting to marry ever. That’s the only reason. Once again, if women are so cool, why is matrimony such a bad thing?

Sweet god, how I love these books! Sorry. That’s not something a professional reviewer should start off by saying is it? I should probably be coy about my opinions. I should couch my language with faint praise saying sniffy little things like, “It seems that Ms. Springer has truly found an oeuvre that will suit some out there”. My review would nod its head at her other books and series and then end with constructive criticism along the lines of, “Certainly children in search of mysteries will have no problems with Ms. Springer’s popular choices.” Well, forget it. I can’t be all detached and restrained when I’m talking about Enola Holmes. The fact of the matter is that I can’t get enough of her. From the minute I read her first story The Case of the Missing Marquess, I was hooked. Now we’re on Enola’s third caper, The Case of the Bizarre Bouquets, and things are heating up. Whether you’ve been reading these books faithfully from the start, or have just dropped into this series without seeing its predecessors, this is one Enola Holmes mystery that is bound to mystify, confound, and delight. With precise characterization, fast pacing and keen observation, readers will be eager to learn what Enola will encounter next. Enola es un personaje entrañable que aquí va ganando más seguridad en sí misma y que debe decidir si vale la pena hacer peligrar su libertad para salvar a otra persona. Vemos cómo sigue queriendo aprender a ser totalmente independiente y cómo, al mismo tiempo, añora que se preocupen por ella, algo que no resulta molesto porque la humaniza y hace que sea un personaje creíble dadas sus circunstancias y su edad. A pesar de todo, la he notado más madura que en los libros anteriores. Empowered, capable, and smart . . . [with] an impactful message that you can do anything if you set your mind to it.” –Millie Bobby Brown, Stranger Things