Reviews

L'Affaire Lady Alistair by Nancy Springer

hlflosser's review against another edition

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5.0

I am loving this series

crrrystal's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted fast-paced

4.5

annashiv's review against another edition

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5.0

Enola is such a great character. She's so strong and awesome. I recommend this series to anyone who likes great characters, sherlock holmes, and a good mystery.

thesimplereader's review against another edition

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4.0

4⭐️

Clever, surprising, and intriguing. Audiobook recommended.

blindlyadoringlymadly's review against another edition

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5.0

ohhhh enola we are really in it now..... she's so huge for lonely girls who hate the patriarchy and are left feeling isolated from all their peers because they're on a different intellectual or political or social wavelength with anyone they could possibly form a real connection with. the scene where she looked at lady cecily and saw some sense of kinship and sisterhood with her all while knowing that could never be possible was genuinely heartbreaking i feel like i'm going to throw up it's so serious :/ 
um and the story was good. yay mysteries... i'm normal about her btw

nina_bloodsworn's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted fast-paced

4.5

telemwill's review against another edition

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  • Loveable characters? No

3.0

lynsey23's review against another edition

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adventurous funny informative lighthearted tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

annettebooksofhopeanddreams's review against another edition

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4.0

Of course, since I watched the movie first, I compared the first book to the movie. I can assure you that the case is a lot more complicated and impressive in the movie. However, in this second book I wasn't sure what to expect, since the movie didn't capture this. And since I was expecting more of a Middle Grade than a Young Adult I was actually quite positively surprised by this second book. Because this was certainly a lot more serious than the first book!

This book shows very clearly the circumstances of women in the time of Sherlock Holmes. We get to see the women living on the streets, trying to survive another day without getting much help. We also get to see women in much better positions and although they might not struggle to survive, they do struggle to live. In a way this is one of the most raw portrayals of this time period I've read in a YA novel. It's not romantic. It's not pretty. It's only very very sad.

Just like the case of the Left-Handed Lady. Even though we only got to meet the girl near the end of the story, we got a heartbreaking image of her life. And therefore we also got a heartbreaking image of the life Enola would have if Mycroft would get what he wants. The contrast between the Enola we see and the life she knows she should have is huge. And therefore I'd say that this book is not so much about the case, but more a very well done history lesson.

And that history lesson works because we see the world through Enola's eyes. We live inside her head, we see how smart she is, how intelligent she is, how she has dreams and wishes and what she has to do to make them come true. Enola is only 14, but because she's quite resourceful and aware of her own flaws, she's easy to like and root for. And although I'm quite sure Sherlock will warm up to her, it might take him a few books to see her for who she is.

It's an amazing book for young girls to realize how far we've come, but also to realize that those prejudices are not entirely gone yet. However, the atmosphere and everything that's being said can be quite heavy. I'm curious to read the next books and to see where the story will end!

avl_book_girl's review against another edition

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lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

2.75