It’s December in London and Sherlock Holmes, the World’s Greatest Detective, has two puzzles before him:  A missing clerk, and the arrival of the Malabar Rose, a rare gem gifted to London by the most recent Maharajah of India.  With the gem due to be displayed to the public per the Maharajah’s request, and knowing that such a prize will attract the attention of the greatest thieves in the country, the government has asked Holmes to ensure that the gem is safe and secure until such time as it is taken off display and locked in Her Majesty’s treasury. 

The arrival of the gem coincides, however, with the arrival in the city of the Great Salamanazar, a magician who has dazzled the world with his feats of magic and prestidigitation.  He has also left a trail of unexplainable thefts in his wake. 

With Salamanazar in town, Holmes knows that he will have to use every whit of his incredible intellect to keep the gem safe.  So he is both baffled and defeated when, on the night the gem is to be displayed in public for the first time, it turns up missing.  From a locked and guarded room, no less.

The game is afoot, and Holmes and Watson are at their wits’ end.  But they’re about to receive some help from the unlikeliest source of all:  the housekeeper, Mrs. Hudson, who has some very specific ideas about the location of the gem and exactly who is behind the theft!

A fine novel that spotlights one of the least illuminated characters in all of fiction, Holmes’ redoubtable housekeeper Mrs. Hudson.  With eloquent prose and a deft and humorous style, Davies has crafted a fine tale in the best tradition of Arthur Conan Doyle.  Everything rings true, and the story is as satisfying as anything I’ve read recently.  Highly recommended!