Lock & Mori (Lock & Mori Series #1)

This took me longer than I realized to finish. I had taken a break from this and forgot about it. Then finally got around to finishing this. A good start to this series. What drew me in was the story and of course that cover. Near the end it did get intense and will read the next one.

Lock & Mori by Heather W. Petty is told in Mori's point of view. She's the daughter of a police officer, Moriarty. Mori's given name is James Moriarty and that is why she goes by the name Mori. Mori's family is struggling after the death of their mother. Since then, her father drinks a lot and has become verbally and physically abusive to her and her younger brothers. Mori is a very logical person and she meets Sherlock and finds they have more in common than she cares to admit. A man is murdered and Sherlock wants to make a game of solving the mystery with Mori. Everything involving the mystery becomes too personal and it's a race against time to stop the murderer. The story brings friendships, suspense, cleverness and romance together for a wonderful read - 5 stars!

CONTENT - for anyone who checks out teen books for content before allowing certain ages to read them - Sexual Content: The book has no explicit sexual content, however there is definitely a lot of kissing, and characters sneaking into bedrooms at night, making out til they fall asleep, then allusion to having to find clothes to put on when they get out of bed the next morning. Violence: Domestic violence is a big theme throughout the book. Right off the bat, we learn Mori's father is an alcoholic and often beats the children. There are a couple of pretty descriptive scenes of physical child abuse throughout (hitting, shoving, pushing, slamming into walls, punching, etc) Without spoiling any of the plot, there is also at least one very descriptive scene of a planned/attempted murder. It's not graphic, but it's the who and the why that may be a bit much for tweens who read books above their grade level, just a cautionary. Now for the good stuff! Let me just start by saying that was one wild ride! This is a fast-paced murder mystery with some crazy twists. It's nested under Teens-Romance and Teens-Mystery-Romance on Amazon, and even though the building of their relationship is a big part of the story, the focus is definitely on the mystery. The characters are kind of different - first of all they're high schoolers. Mori reminds me a little of the Joan Watson character on the TV show Elementary. As for Sherlock, there are a set of characteristics common across most Sherlock stories, namely that he's insanely smart, anti-social, in fact doesn't know how to properly socialize, and even eschews they need for social relationships. This Sherlock is insanely smart, and is lacking in normal social skills, but he almost comes across as being eager to learn (at least when it comes to a girl), and takes readily to interacting with Mori, upon realizing she is also very smart. The murder plot is very good. The action and pace are never lagging, and the twists keep you turning pages. The book is labeled first in a series, and while there is a resolution to the most immediate issues, the last line of the book just gave me chills and left me wishing I knew when the sequel would be out! There's room for things to get really intense going forward...

Explosive Chemistry + Teenage Geniuses = Perfect Balance. When I saw this book, I knew the author was gutsy. Sherlock’s fan base has without a doubt, exponentially increased in the past couple years (a la BBC) but the truth is, Sherlock is one of the most iconic fictional characters of all time. People write about him all the time, and each one tries to reinvent him as something more peculiar. We’ve seen a sociopathic Sherlock, a drug addict Sherlock, We’ve seen him as a middle aged man, a young man, and in some cases, we even see Sherlock as a kid. We’ll even get to see him as an old man in Ian McKellen’s “Mr. Holmes.” We’ve seen Watson evolve as well. We’ve seen him as a fuddy duddy sidekick, we’ve seen him as a soldier and we’ve seen Watson as a woman. We’ve even seen Moriarty’s identity change. In this series, we see Sherlock & Moriarty as a teenager, at first as enemies, then as friends. Given the critical reception of other daring changes to this iconic cast of characters, I was intrigued. Could heather really pull off two teenage geniuses of the opposite sex? Would they have chemistry, or would it seem like it’s trying to hard? It totally worked. Stay with me on this, at first, it totally wasn’t giving me good vibes. I thought it was wordy, and pretentious. I thought Mori was arrogant and had a superiority complex. But, after a third of the book had passed, the narrative changed. I can’t quite isolate why it changed, and why it changed so drastically (and smoothly,) but it was a totally different novel. And this new novel, was AMAZING. Of course, there is mystery behind it, so I have to be careful that I don’t give away too much. Lock and Mori are both teens who struggle with their identities. They would never admit it, but if you read between the lines, you can see it. They know who they are, they know what they need to be. But I think both of them struggle with what they want to be. I ended up loving the novel, because it drove home the idea, that a teenage can be extremely intelligent. It portrayed that even intelligent teens can struggle with the same problems and emotions that ordinary kids do. It showed that intelligent teens, don’t always come off as intelligent, and some times don’t do intelligent things. The ending was dynamic. That last sentence was powerful, and perfectly worded. Ultimately, the middle and the end of the novel were strong enough, that I had no option other than giving it five stars. Seriously, way to go Heather! Different versions seem to take Sherlock into the extremes. Either he’s drug addled and extremely emotional….or he’s detached and emotionless. But Lock & Mori portrays a Sherlock that guards himself from others, separates to protect himself. This Sherlock also has an incredibly tender heart. Something that in my heart, I know that a real Sherlock Holmes would have. This Lock is undeniably my favorite Sherlock to date. His passion, heart and intelligence are unmatched. Some things he did and said, just made my heart melt. I recommend this to anyone that can stick through the rough beginning. Especially to people that are uncaring about sticking to classical portrayals. I CAN’T WAIT to see what’s next for Lock & Mori (or Heather for that matter!) This ARC was provided to me for free in exchange for an honest review.

I read Lock and Mori after a friend reccomended it and fell in love. The mystery is interesting, the charcters are loveable, and the plot was so twisty and fast-paced I couldn't put the book down! This is by far my favorite book I've read this school year. Definitly worth givng it a shot.

2.5/5 Stars Lock and Mori is a Sherlock Holmes re-telling that re-imagines the story of Moriarty and Sherlock as two high school students. When a string of serial homicides goes unsolved, Lock challenges Mori to see which one of them can discover the identity of the murderer first—though neither of them knows how much solving this mystery will affect their lives. My favorite part of this book was definitely reading from Mori’s perspective. She is an interesting main character who is not your typical young-adult heroine. Even though she doesn't have a likeable personality, her back-story makes her both sympathetic and intriguing. Other than that, I found this re-telling to be lacking in many aspects, such as the relationships between the characters (both friendly and romantic), inconsistent pacing, and even the mystery itself. The romance was forced and sudden, and it developed way too quickly. Although the writing was pretty good and it kept me guessing about who the culprit was for around the first half of the book, the author revealed who the killer was too far from the end. From that point on, it was hard to take the "mystery" seriously because Mori kept the big revelation to herself and lied about it for no apparent reason. Overall, I wouldn’t recommend this book, although if you're a big fan of anything related to Sherlock Holmes, you might enjoy this. Full review: http://www.bookrambles.com/2015/08/lock-mori-by-heather-w-petty-arc-review.html

If you’re a big fan of Sherlock Holmes or twisted tales with its basis in the Holmes realm then you are going to find Lock & Mori a breath of fresh air. This teen story brings together the young, Miss James Mori Moriarty and Mr. Sherlock Holmes. Neighbors and schoolmates, these two characters might live close by but their lives are worlds apart. Brought together by tragedy, they use their superior intellect to uncover the murders that are plaguing London’s Regent’s Park. Romantic interest does blossom between Mori and Holmes but this is more a mystery thriller than romantic suspense. Dark, absolutely gritty and at times the story takes on a historical feel, this contemporary telling was something utterly original. Just the pairing of these mortal enemies, of course that is original, but it was Petty’s slowly introducing Mori’s willingness to bend the rules and Lock’s single mindedness toward right and wrong that gives us tons of possibilities. It is those possibilities and an amazing premise that make me look forward to what direction the story will take next. Lock & Mori was absolutely written for a teen reader. Although the gruesomeness and situations lean toward darker reading, the overall feel is still teen and young adult reading. I received this copy of Lock & Mori from Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers in exchange for a honest review.

Modern London can be a strange and dangerous place. For Miss James "Mori" Moriarty it can also be decidedly dull. Between school, where she knows all of the answers, and home, where life with her father can feel like stepping into a mine field, Mori's only refuge is solitude. After one especially bad day, Mori meets Sherlock "Lock" Holmes. That night they meet again in Regent's Park at the scene of a murder. When Lock challenges Mori to solve the murder before him, she has no intention of participating in his game--particularly with the only rule being that they share all information. She has no intention of having anything to do with Lock at all. Mori's intentions quickly change when she is drawn into the investigation and realizes the truth might be closer than she could possibly imagine. Mori begins keeping secrets even as she finds herself drawn closer to Lock and to a revelation about the case that could change her life forever in Lock & Mori (2015) by Heather W. Petty. Lock & Mori is Petty's first novel and the start to a Lock and Mori trilogy. Almost everyone knows what happens to these characters in the original Sherlock Holmes stories--it's impossible not to when the struggle between Sherlock and Moriarty has become part of the public consciousness over the years. Lock & Mori is an admirable homage to one of literature's best villains and arguably the greatest of fictional detectives. It is also, thanks to a solid plot and some unique reinterpretations on Petty's part, an excellent mystery in its own right. By imagining Moriarty as a girl, Petty complicates and adds new dimensions to Moriarty's relationship with Holmes. Lock and Mori are, of course, smart characters. Readers familiar with their inspirations would expect nothing less. Although both Mori and Lock are analytical in the extreme, they are never cold. Mori struggles with affection (both receiving and giving) while Lock is often mystified by basic human interaction. Even with those limitations, both characters have obvious moments of empathy and sincerity without any of the aloofness so often associated with a sharply deductive mind. It is also fascinating to see these two characters when they are younger and less sure. Sherlock, so often beyond reproach, is still learning here. Mori, although the hero of this story, remains a mystery as readers wonder what path will unfold for her in future installments. Lock & Mori is a fantastic series starter. A great read for mystery fans in general and Sherlock fans in particular. Highly recommended.