MMGM: Unlocking Secrets at Sinclairs: The Clockwork Sparrow

 

As I continue my mystery read-a-thon for the fall, I pulled out one I discovered a few years ago, but I wanted to revisit. If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you know I love a good historical mystery like The Wollstonecraft Detective Agency series or Aggie Morton, Mystery Queen.

Today I’m featuring The Clockwork Sparrow, the first novel in the four book Sinclair Mysteries.

If you like the Edwardian period, heroes and heroines with a lot of pluck, dastardly villains, and ciphers and codes, you will love this book!

The Synopsis:

In The Mystery of the Clockwork Sparrow, just as recently orphaned fourteen-year-old Sophie is settling into her new life as a shop girl at the newly opened Sinclair's Department Store in London, a priceless object is stolen, a young man is attacked and Sophie is implicated in the crime. An absolute joy of a book combining mystery, adventure and friendship with a sumptuous Edwardian setting, transporting the reader to a world of heady glamour offset by a murky criminal underground. It's Nancy Drew with a PBS twist, and readers of all ages will adore the cast of exceptionally likeable characters. (from Amazon)

Highlights of Clockwork Sparrow:

1.    An incredible setting! I loved reading about this incredible department store with its strict rules for staff and sumptuous décor. Because Woodfine used omniscient narration, we get more of a cinematic view of this incredible place, which was based on famous London stores of the time like Selfridges.

Illustration from page 2 

 2.    Incredible characters! Each character brought something to the team. Sophie was level-headed, newly adjusting to being working class, and Lil, lit up the room with her exuberant personality and acting skills. Billy, the porter, knows codes from reading about detective stories, and Joe, who recently escaped from the villain’s gang, understands how criminals think.

3.    Endearing friendships! I really enjoy when authors show the strength of same sex friendships, as it seems so rare in middle grade. I loved that although all four got along and the boys each had a crush, that their emotional bond between the two girls and the two boys was exceptionally strong.  

4.    Interesting tidbits of newspapers and clues throughout. Woodfine starts each section with a description of a hat from the time, which contributes to the atmosphere. There are also newspapers giving important information and a copy of letters or clues, which allows the reader to participate in the mystery and not just read a summary of how it was solved.

p.16: Newspaper article about the Clockwork Sparrow

5.    An interesting villain! You can’t have a good mystery without a good villain. The Baron is evil, exceptionally intelligent, and able to blend right in to high society. Sophie catches a glimpse of him near the end, and although The Clockwork Sparrow's mystery is solved, there’s a lot left open for the rest of the series.

What I learned a writer: 

Often writers are told to avoid omniscient point of view because it’s too old-fashioned or hard to pull off. Woodfine used it beautifully, however, in this series. It allowed her to tell the story from all the main characters’ points of view and dip into minor characters’ heads when it suited the story. She used it to good effect to allow the reader to see things that none of the characters noticed, which added suspense.

Max, the Reading Dog*

 

 

 

Max’s take (on a five bone scale):

There was one dug: Lucky, the pug, the dog of Miss Atwood, Mr. Sinclair’s secretary. He played a small part, but maybe he’ll do more in the other books. I also liked Blackie, the cat. And Joe seems like a dog person. 
🦴🦴🦴🦴

Your turn:

Do you like historical mysteries? Yay or nay on omniscient narrators?