Scan barcode
Reviews
In the Company of Sherlock Holmes: Stories Inspired by the Holmes Canon by Leslie S. Klinger
krisrid's review against another edition
4.0
This is a short story collection. In the general way of things, I'm not a particular fan of short stories, because if I like the story, it feels too short, and if I don't, I feel like I've wasted limited reading time. But, I'm also a big Sherlock Holmes fan, and have liked "Holmes-esque" full-length stories I've read before, so I decided to give this a try. I liked it overall.
I would say that I enjoyed most of the stories. The ones I liked the best were: The Crooked Man, Dr. Watson's Casebook, The Adventure of the Laughing Fisherman, the Adventure of my Ignoble Ancestress, and the Problem of the Empty Slipper. The ones I liked least: Dunkirk, The Thinking Machine, Memoirs of Silver Blaze. The rest were somewhere in the middle.
As with any collection, there is a range of perspectives, lengths and writing styles. The editors, who have some pretty solid Holmes street-cred to stand on, did a great job of finding a selection of authors and getting a variety of stories from them.
I feel like the book does a respectable homage to the Holmes character and canon. Even thought many of the stories do not feature Holmes himself, he is mentioned or reflected in an appropriate way in each story. I don't feel any of the stories should embarass or disturb real Holmes fans, as long as they are willing to entertain "ish" as an approach to Holmes. I enjoyed the book. Especially because I listened to it in audiobook format, the shorter stories were nice and bite-sized for stopping and starting on my daily commute.
I would say that I enjoyed most of the stories. The ones I liked the best were: The Crooked Man, Dr. Watson's Casebook, The Adventure of the Laughing Fisherman, the Adventure of my Ignoble Ancestress, and the Problem of the Empty Slipper. The ones I liked least: Dunkirk, The Thinking Machine, Memoirs of Silver Blaze. The rest were somewhere in the middle.
As with any collection, there is a range of perspectives, lengths and writing styles. The editors, who have some pretty solid Holmes street-cred to stand on, did a great job of finding a selection of authors and getting a variety of stories from them.
I feel like the book does a respectable homage to the Holmes character and canon. Even thought many of the stories do not feature Holmes himself, he is mentioned or reflected in an appropriate way in each story. I don't feel any of the stories should embarass or disturb real Holmes fans, as long as they are willing to entertain "ish" as an approach to Holmes. I enjoyed the book. Especially because I listened to it in audiobook format, the shorter stories were nice and bite-sized for stopping and starting on my daily commute.
bmwpalmer's review against another edition
3.0
Very nice. I don't read a lot of mystery novels in general (Alan Bradley and Neil Gaiman were the only two authors in this compilation who I had heard of before) so I missed out on some of the inside jokes or previously established characters in a few of these short stories by famous mystery authors. Still, it was nice to sit down of an evening and read a Sherlock Holmes-ish story in one sitting like I used to do (with the real thing) when I was a kid.
freereverie's review against another edition
4.0
There are quite a few awesome stories in this anthology, all of whom deal with Sherlock Holmes in some way, either by re-imagining the old stories from new perspectives, or writing about people who took their cues from the famous detective. If you're a fan of Holmes, or of a good short story, then this might be the book for you. The authors within are mostly writers of mystery fare, but there are a few others thrown in that provide a greater spectrum.
All in all, a great fun and fascinating read. And if anything, it made me want to read some more Holmes, which is never a bad idea.
All in all, a great fun and fascinating read. And if anything, it made me want to read some more Holmes, which is never a bad idea.
mohillskc's review against another edition
2.0
Worth reading, but not all stories are equal in quality. Loved ‘Dunkirk’ by John Lescroart. Beautiful and heart breaking.
sarrie's review against another edition
3.0
There were a few really strong pieces in this but a lot of them were kind of flat. I was honestly a bit disappointed overall. There was at least one I actively disliked since it seemed have just had the Sherlock angle horned in. I did pick up an author or two though that'll I'll keep reading, so there is that.
pussreboots's review against another edition
4.0
http://pussreboots.pair.com/blog/2016/comments_08/study_in_sherlock.html
ktlove's review against another edition
3.0
A post-Christmas on-a-whim purchase now that I've been sucked in by Steven Moffat's BBC reboot of Sherlock Holmes. Entertaining enough, but somehow Sherlock's just not the same without the Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman Snark Show.
craftwitch's review against another edition
5.0
i bought this solely for the neil gaiman story and it did not disappoint. all of the stories were fantastic and i definitely have some new authors to look into.
bethmitcham's review against another edition
3.0
A variety of stories, from new stories of the original characters to tone pieces to stories giving missing pieces from the stories. Some work as short stories and some don't really, but none are so long that they get annoying. It's a good book club pick with something for everyone.