You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.76 AVERAGE
3.76 AVERAGE
medium-paced
It could have been a much shorter book without the long interlude in the middle right after the murder where the author takes an unfortunate decision to travel back in time and tell the story of a man living in the Valley of Fear. Those chapters feel entirely separate from the main story which is about our detective investigating a mysterious death at a manor after finding a cryptic letter that hints at a big underworld society orchestrating the events. Some people may find the middle chapters interesting or boring, depending on how long they were willing to stray away from the main story. I thought they were well written but a little too long for my taste.
The story didn't end happily though! And I liked that because it shows that sometimes, evil will win and Sherlock Holmes isn't naive enough to think that he will save the day. The moment Moriarty gets his claws in some poor fool, that man is done for.
The story didn't end happily though! And I liked that because it shows that sometimes, evil will win and Sherlock Holmes isn't naive enough to think that he will save the day. The moment Moriarty gets his claws in some poor fool, that man is done for.
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Am I the only one who actually liked the book's second part more than the first? Birdy Edwards was, at least, an interesting character, while the first part simply concentrated on Sherlock solving a case without ever taking one sentence to characterize those main protagonists. It was my first and probably last Sherlock read, since Sherlock and Watson felt so poorly developed.
I never understood where this love story in the second part came from, but it eventually became a little more exciting than the first. That's still the only positive thing I can say about this book which was so filled with spelling mistakes I sometimes barely could even read on.
I never understood where this love story in the second part came from, but it eventually became a little more exciting than the first. That's still the only positive thing I can say about this book which was so filled with spelling mistakes I sometimes barely could even read on.
*Jack McMurdow appears*
Me: Wait, let me guess, this guy a murderer. Ha! I knew it. I'm a genius.
Me: Wait, let me guess, this guy a murderer. Ha! I knew it. I'm a genius.
slow-paced
Meh, I was expecting a twist that didn't happen because I'm super bad at remembering names...
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
According to some critics, this is Doyle's best story. Well, some critics are dolts. I don't know if people assume that a writer's last novel is always his/her best, or if the jump in narrative is seen as kooky or inventive. I'm not saying the book is bad--it's not. It's just not as good as other Holmes stories. It has some errors common to insufficiently edited material: Holmes names Moriarty as the ringleader, despite the fact that Moriarty is already dead according to the timeline of the series; Moriarty is never successfully connected to the story; the initial storyline seems like a flimsy excuse to expose the flashback storyline. So no, not Doyle's best.
My personal FAVOURITE of his four novels!! Now I'm on to the short stories :)