Sherlock Holmes and the Persian Slipper by Linda Stratmann

Arthur Stamford is pressurized by his cousin Lily to visit an old friend of hers who has written letters which indicate that allwas not well in her very hurried marriage. Arthur arrives at Coldwell to find he is a bit too late. John Clark is dead shot with his own pistol found lying by his bed. No forced entry, neither wife nor housekeeper heard the shots, no strangers loitering around and the first suspicion falls on the wife once the police get their hands on the letters she wrote to Lily. Stamford persuades Sherlock Holmes to come to Coldwell and pursue the case. It is not the usual Holmes classic. John Clark is really not Jihn Clark, but several characters rolled into one. The reveals come slowly and the actual murderer was a total surprise. How it was done was quite convoluted too. A Holmes and Watson is good and in this case Holmes and Stamford was an equally good combo. Sent by Sapere Books for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.