the Adventure of Burning Portrait

THE ADVENTURE OF THE BURNING PORTRAITA Sherlock Holmes Mystery - by Mark CollinsAt the stroke of midnight, a two-hundred-year-old portrait bursts into flame - and by morning, its master is dead.For generations, the Ravensworth family has lived beneath the shadow of an ancient curse: a witch's dying promise that when the portrait of Sir Josiah Ravensworth burns, a Ravensworth will not live to see the dawn. When young Edmund Ravensworth watches the legend fulfill itself before his own eyes - and finds his uncle dead the very next morning, his face frozen in inexplicable terror - he turns to the one man in England who refuses to believe in curses: Sherlock Holmes.Summoned to the fog-bound halls of Ravensworth Hall, Holmes and Dr. Watson uncover a chemical residue where no fire should leave a trace, a mysterious restorer with a hidden trade, and a family solicitor whose smooth reassurances conceal a very modern, very human greed. As the household's grief curdles into suspicion, and the heir to Ravensworth Hall finds himself marked as the curse's next victim, Holmes must race against a killer who has turned two centuries of superstition into the perfect murder weapon.From the gaslit streets of Baker Street to a moonlit vigil in a portrait gallery where the past itself seems to watch and wait, THE ADVENTURE OF THE BURNING PORTRAIT is a classic tale of Victorian mystery - where every ghost has a motive, every flame has a cause, and the coldest logic proves more powerful than any curse.Perfect for readers who love: - Classic Sherlock Holmes mysteries featuring the canonical Holmes and Watson- Atmospheric Victorian London and English country house settings- Gothic mystery with a rational, scientific solution- Family secrets, old curses, and clever detective work- Cozy mystery readers who enjoy a touch of the supernatural, fully explainedStep into the gallery. Watch the flames rise. And trust that Sherlock Holmes will find the truth burning beneath them.