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alba_marie's review against another edition
3.0
This anthology is a collection of various stories about Sherlock - almost entirely a younger, pre-Watson version of the man before he became a great detective - in America. As an American who left the US as early as possible and haven't looked back, I didn't enjoy these nearly as much as similar anthologies set in Europe. The "wild west" era is probably one of the least interesting subjects/time periods to write about. But anyway, here are my thoughts:
1) 'Inga Sigerson Weds' by Richard A. Lupoff: Not great. The characters weren't convincing, I didn't find any hint of the real Sherlock in this story, the plot was boring, and going to the US for the sister to attend a wedding of a person she'd never met seemed tenuous.
2) 'MY SILK UMBRELLA' by Darryl Brock: Really boring. Baseball is one of the least exciting sports in the world and an even less interesting subject. Mark Twain is one of America's least interesting authors. Combine the two and... bleeh. Oh and I couldn't care less about the fate of a stupid umbrella fallen off a bleacher and stolen by a child!
3) 'THE OLD SENATOR' by Steve Hockensmith: Slightly more interesting. All about the actors and a son looking for approval from his father. It was better than the first two, but not my favourite. (There were a lot of stories about actors, strangely?)
4) 'The American Adventure' by Gary Lovisi: Another actress. More gripping, but I didn't find the Sherlock of the story in line with the "real" Sherlock. Real Sherlock wouldn't have fallen for a women - let alone a lusty, whiny, coniving one. Diana is no Irene Adler!
5) 'THE SACRED WHITE ELEPHANT OF MANDALAY' by Michael Mallory: Hands down my favourite. I mean, there's a fantastical mansion, a beautiful white elephant, talk of faraway lands, and PT Barnum!
6) 'The Curse of Edwin Booth' by Carole Bugge: The longest one, and another one about an actor. This time, one who is getting death threats. But I enjoyed it, its length gave me more time to connect with the characters. Though the plot was simple by the end, I enjoyed all the snares and red herrings.
7) 'The Case of The Reluctant Assassin' by Peter Tremayne: Irish Sherlock? Nope. I live in Ireland and can say with 100% certainty... NOPE.
8) 'CUTTING FOR SIGN' by Rhys Bowen: Ok, I don't actually like Wild-West stories, but this one wasn't too bad. At least it did feel like a young Sherlock, esp during the trial.
9) 'THE ENGLISH SENOR' by Marta Randall: Really, really liked this one. Sherlock barely features in this one, but I really connected with the main character and the setting in Mexico and the labyrinthine monastery was amazing! My other favourite story.
10) 'The Stagecoach Detective: A Tale of The Golden West' by Linda Robertson: It was... eh. Not too memorable after the English Senor. It wasn't great, and was pretty obvious what was happening.
It was a fun holiday read esp for a spur of the moment library pick, but nothing special. I'd prefer my Sherlock to stay in the UK where Sherlock is meant to be! At the very least in Europe.I can even see him in Asia. But Sherlock in America? Nope.
1) 'Inga Sigerson Weds' by Richard A. Lupoff: Not great. The characters weren't convincing, I didn't find any hint of the real Sherlock in this story, the plot was boring, and going to the US for the sister to attend a wedding of a person she'd never met seemed tenuous.
2) 'MY SILK UMBRELLA' by Darryl Brock: Really boring. Baseball is one of the least exciting sports in the world and an even less interesting subject. Mark Twain is one of America's least interesting authors. Combine the two and... bleeh. Oh and I couldn't care less about the fate of a stupid umbrella fallen off a bleacher and stolen by a child!
3) 'THE OLD SENATOR' by Steve Hockensmith: Slightly more interesting. All about the actors and a son looking for approval from his father. It was better than the first two, but not my favourite. (There were a lot of stories about actors, strangely?)
4) 'The American Adventure' by Gary Lovisi: Another actress. More gripping, but I didn't find the Sherlock of the story in line with the "real" Sherlock. Real Sherlock wouldn't have fallen for a women - let alone a lusty, whiny, coniving one. Diana is no Irene Adler!
5) 'THE SACRED WHITE ELEPHANT OF MANDALAY' by Michael Mallory: Hands down my favourite. I mean, there's a fantastical mansion, a beautiful white elephant, talk of faraway lands, and PT Barnum!
6) 'The Curse of Edwin Booth' by Carole Bugge: The longest one, and another one about an actor. This time, one who is getting death threats. But I enjoyed it, its length gave me more time to connect with the characters. Though the plot was simple by the end, I enjoyed all the snares and red herrings.
7) 'The Case of The Reluctant Assassin' by Peter Tremayne: Irish Sherlock? Nope. I live in Ireland and can say with 100% certainty... NOPE.
8) 'CUTTING FOR SIGN' by Rhys Bowen: Ok, I don't actually like Wild-West stories, but this one wasn't too bad. At least it did feel like a young Sherlock, esp during the trial.
9) 'THE ENGLISH SENOR' by Marta Randall: Really, really liked this one. Sherlock barely features in this one, but I really connected with the main character and the setting in Mexico and the labyrinthine monastery was amazing! My other favourite story.
10) 'The Stagecoach Detective: A Tale of The Golden West' by Linda Robertson: It was... eh. Not too memorable after the English Senor. It wasn't great, and was pretty obvious what was happening.
It was a fun holiday read esp for a spur of the moment library pick, but nothing special. I'd prefer my Sherlock to stay in the UK where Sherlock is meant to be! At the very least in Europe.I can even see him in Asia. But Sherlock in America? Nope.
hdungey's review
3.0
A couple of the later stories in this book were weak entries, but on the whole, very enjoyable speculations about the three years when all the world though Holmes was dead.
evila_elf's review
3.0
Most of the stories didn't impress me all that much. They were slow - which isn't a good quality for a short story - or they seemed to focus on an uninteresting character other than Holmes.
The first half of the book only had one story that I liked: Water from the Moon.
After that, I was seriously thinking about putting the book down for good until I reached Kurland's story. Finally! After that, things went uphill. Mostly. There were several good stories in a row that had interesting cases and felt like the author put some time into them.
The first half of the book only had one story that I liked: Water from the Moon.
After that, I was seriously thinking about putting the book down for good until I reached Kurland's story. Finally! After that, things went uphill. Mostly. There were several good stories in a row that had interesting cases and felt like the author put some time into them.
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