Mycroft and Sherlock: The Empty Birdcage

Jabber has written a ok that keeps one on the move. The interaction by the characters and the amazing knowledge of cultures and relationships, both good and not — all in all a terrific read with thoughts cause one to think about such like the actions and behaviors so present In today’s world.

Mycroft & Sherlock: The Empty Birdcage is the 3rd book by Kareem Abdul Jabbar and Anna Waterhouse, following the adventures of Mycroft Holmes, his little brother Sherlock, his best friend Cyrus Douglas, and his carriage driver Huan.  This newest episode follows two separate but connected cases, this time pursued by 2 pairs of sleuths: Mycroft and Cyrus help out the Lin family from the second book while Sherlock and Huan pursue a serial killer.  I loved this latest offering, more than the second, and hope there is much more to come.It's easy to fall into these books and forget the man who Mycroft Holmes becomes.  Arthur Conan Doyle's Mycroft Holmes is described as a better deductionist than his brother, a portly bachelor, an antisocial who helped found the Diogenes Club where no one talks, and someone who walks the same route to work every day.  Abdul-Jabbar and Waterhouse's Mycroft began as a sociable and fit young man, optimistic to the extent that he was engaged to be married, and one who pursues his work with enthusiasm and positivity. And it is in remembering Doyle's Mycroft and watching the tragedies, disappointments, and challenges that young Mycroft faces, we see, painful by painful step, how he becomes Doyle's Mycroft. We get to see him develop his hard shell and how that affects his loved ones and his behavior towards them, we see him become more disillusioned. If you're paying attention to all that, it's pretty depressing.I'd love to dive into how Mycroft becomes more Sherlock-ish, on how he manages his relationship with his brother, on how he mismanages his friendship with Cyrus, but I want you to enjoy it for yourself.  As with so many writers who have taken Doyle's work and built on it, Abdul-Jabbar and Waterhouse do justice to Doyle's books and characters, especially with regard to Sherlock's case, but take it one step further by including all the emotions that Doyle shied away from,  The telling of these tales also reflects Doyle's practice of ending books when the case ends, not lingering on what happens afterwards to the characters we care for, as the case was never about them.If you're reading this review, you probably read the first two books.  If you enjoyed those, you'll enjoy this. Two  final thoughts: (1) Huan was Sherlock's first Watson.  And I love that.  (2) Cyrus is a black man living in a white man's world, a notable success in his original career, seeking success in a new field where success is not so easily defined, a thoughtful humanitarian, a firm believer in justice, and well-trained in martial arts.  That's Kareem!

The third entry in this series finds Mycroft Holmes and his Trinidadian friend Cyrus Douglas investigating a kidnapping while assigning most of the responsibility for tracking down a serial killer to neophyte sleuth Sherlock. The parallel plots develop at a fast pace and keep the reader engaged. As usual in this series, the authors seamlessly fold Victorian Era historical information into the narrative. A European financial crisis, the shady world of arms dealing and Chinese culture are all explored in this novel. As they have in previous books, the authors slip real historical figures into the story as well as fictional characters closely based on real people. Ruthless arms dealer Visily Zaharoff, for instance, is clearly a fictionalized version of real-life arms dealer Basil Zaharoff, who by many accounts was almost as villainous as his imaginary counterpart. As usual in this series characterization is strong, especially as we learn more about the backstories that led Mycroft and Sherlock to become the men we know from the Conan Doyle stories. My only disappointment with this novel was the relatively small part played by Cyrus. If there are further books in this series, I hope Cyrus resumes his role as a real partner to Mycroft, not the mere sidekick he seemed to be reduced to this time around. Nevertheless, this was an enjoyable novel that should please both fans of historical mysteries and Holmesians.

Each new book about the brothers Holmes provides more insight into Mycroft and Sherlock evolved into the characters written about by Arthur Conan Doyle. Kareem Abdul Jabbar & Anna Waterhouse have crafted stories about two iconic characters that not only make a great deal of sense, but offer some true hindsight that fits perfectly with the canon.There were several passages in MYCROFT AND SHERLOCK: THE EMPTY BIRDCASE that were 'aha' moments when relating them to the works of Doyle. Jabbar and Waterhouse make it very clear that their books revolve mainly around Mycroft, the elder brother to Sherlock. It is Mycroft that has status, and Sherlock, although far from bumbling, has a lot to learn.It is interesting to read the way that Mycroft and his friend Cyrus Douglas deal with the somewhat blatant bigotry of Victorian London. It is comforting to me to read that the Holmes brothers do not base their friendships on the status conferred upon being white and English.I am definitely looking forward to a next book in this series that I sincerely hope this dynamic writing dup is writing.

Nicely written. The character interactions were great. Suspense.Shadows.Hope and ??Gues you will to read and enjoy it yourself. This was a part of a very entertaining set of 3 and it did not disappoint..👍🕵😎🤹

What a fun novel! I don’t believe this is the first in the series, but I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it.Two unrelated mysteries confront the Holmes brothers. A serial killer on the loose in England piques the interest of Sherlock, while the disappearance of his friend (and secret unrequited love) Ai Lin, has been abducted and returned to China. The Queen seeks Mycroft’s assistance in stopping the serial killer, but his priority is to assist Ai Lin, even if it means losing her forever., which works exceptionally well with Sherlock’s desire to perfect his sleuthing skills.Other great characters have string roles in the story as well. I can’t wait to get to know them better as I read the other books in this series.

My husband has ready the 3 book series and absolutely loved them.

Loved the book and it’s slant on Holmes and Mycroft! Have read all the books in the series but STILlL waiting for further additions.

Love these books, almost more than the originals. The ending in this one was somewhat abrupt but hopefully an epilogue will be picked up at the beginning of the next.