
What Child is This?
Book Five
It’s Christmastime in London, and Sherlock Holmes takes on two cases. The angelic three-year-old child of a wealthy couple is the target of a vicious kidnapper, and a country aristocrat worries that his handsome, favourite son has mysteriously vanished from his London pied à terre. Holmes and Watson, aided by the colourful Heffie O’Malley, slip slide in the ice to ensure a merry Christmas is had by nearly everybody…

Praise for WHAT CHILD IS THIS?
“What could be a better present this season than a new Christmas case for Sherlock Holmes? Bonnie MacBird’s worthy pastiche takes us back to 221B Baker Street in a snowy Victorian December.”
—The Wall Street Journal
“The brilliant MacBird manages to produce a tale which is both authentic and original, yet pays homage to the genius of Arthur Conan Doyle.”
—Dundee Courier
“Neatly emulates the style and tone of Arthur Conan Doyle’s original stories … If you’re in the mood for light seasonal entertainment, albeit with a serious underlay, look no further.”
—Michael Dirda, Washington Post
“Perfectly captures the essence of Conan Doyle’s fiction.”
—Independent
“No one can surpass Conan Doyle at his best, but a select few pastiche writers get close enough that they can almost reach out and touch the master. Bonnie MacBird is one of those writers that achieves this consistently. If you need a Holmes story for Christmas (and who doesn’t?) get hold of this immediately.”
—The Doyleockian
“As long as there are writers as skilful and observant as Bonnie MacBird to keep the Holmes flame alight, I will be warming myself in its glow.”
—David Prestige, Fully Booked
“Bonnie MacBird’s What Child is This? stimulates the mind while it warms the heart. It confirms what we long believed: Not only is Sherlock Holmes the Great Detective, he is a great man.”
—Leslie S. Klinger, The Annotated Sherlock Holmes, bestselling anthologist and Sherlockian author
“A mysterious and intriguing Christmas gift from a shining star in the Sherlock Holmes firmament! MacBird’s What Child is This? is a tender, beautifully fashioned homage to Holmes and Watson, and the power of love.”
—Nancy Holder, New York Times Bestselling Author of The Wicked Saga
“Bonnie MacBird, in What Child is This?, paints a perfect picture of a Victorian Christmas in London—decorated shops, scents of pine boughs and of treats baking, people buying gifts, and Sherlock Holmes grumping through it all. Until two cases arrive on his doorstep and he can ignore the sentiment of the season and get on with the ratiocination. I enjoyed this book from beginning to satisfying end.”
—SJ Rozan, bestselling author of Family Business
“Victorian London comes alive in this enthralling Christmas mystery, written with intelligence, style, and lovely period detail.”
—Mimi Matthews, USA Today bestselling author
“What Child Is This? is the most charming, entertaining Holmesian yarn I’ve read in years. True to the curmudgeonly character, this schmaltz-free Christmas novel also gives a fascinating look at the attitudes toward love and family in late Victorian England—while deftly weaving a suitably Sherlockian double mystery. A must read for Holmesians—and others!”
—Matt Witten, bestselling author of The Necklace