The Beekeeper's Apprentice (Post 8)

Holmes and Russell find their cab burnt and demolished. Holmes has Scotland Yard look at the clues to try and find the whereabouts of the criminal. When Russell leaves the storage room she was in, she calls for a cab. She dismisses two of them and climbs into the third one. Little did she know, Holmes was actually the driver of this one and he made Russell pull the revolver on him. This reveals that Holmes does like to take advantage of people, but in this case he was doing it for a quick laugh. In addition, Russell is introduced to Lestrade and even Lestrade can't believe that Holmes has finally decided to work with a partner.

The book thrives on Holmes's change from the old Holmes into a new and refreshened Holmes. Holmes is now more considerate of females and even acts like a father figure sometimes. He looks out for Russell and gives her nourishment. He is the one who is also guiding her and nurturing her growth as his apprentice. When someone attempted to kill Russell through a window, Holmes immediately isolated her in a windowless room. A package was delivered to their whereabouts and Holmes immediately has the bomb squad examine it. All in all, Holmes wants to keep Russell safe and out of harm's way while in the meantime, he ensures that Russell learns his trade well.

However, there were times when there was a role-reversal. When Russell found more news about the package and didn't want to leave the country so quickly, she yelled at Holmes like a mother would to a young boy. She told Holmes to take a shower and to dress casually and to get some rest. She urges him to recharge because Holmes had been up for a few days. Furthermore, Holmes is beginning to slip. He isn't as sharp anymore and Russell has begun to find some errors in Holmes's reasoning. Russell found out that the criminal is a woman and Holmes overlooked it. Russell even linked the package to the people involved with Jessica Simpson's ransom. Holmes acknowledges all this and doesn't talk to Russell until they arrive in Palestine.

Because of the apprenticeship, we see that Holmes begins to be more relateable. Despite having an immense intuition, he still has human flaws. For example, he cannot win over old age. We see that his mind is starting to deteriorate. Holmes is becoming a totally different person because of his relationship with Russell. However, I think he knows that he's going to have to give up his trade sooner or later. He gave Russell the choice of picking where to go and she picked Palestine. Holmes also mentions making Russell assume mastery instead of staying as an apprentice. I wonder if Holmes will die in this book and maybe finally acknowledge Russell as someone better than him.