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3.97 AVERAGE
3.97 AVERAGE
Wow this even more enjoyable than I thought it would be going in! I love the depictions of the characters here and how real the emotions felt all with respect to the time period. I also really enjoyed the portrayal of women here--not shown as lesser beings, but as friends (especially in the case of Mary-- I love Mary here and would have loved to seen some things from her perspective) going through some similar challenges, in the case of the women featured. Would recommend.
For me the shocking thing here isn't that someone published a queer look at Watson and Sherlock but that they did it in the 1980s. Even into the mid-late 1990s when I started publishing short stories most publishers had bans on gay characters, often blacklisting authors so that's the shocker, not that someone imagined them as queer. That, I suspect happens often. I don't. I see Holmes as Aro/Ace instead but regardless I went into this after someone gave me the book.
One of the stars was for the year published and the way Piercy wrote it, making it feel tonally as if it were a Sherlockian tale. On the other hand, I found it rather dull. It's not a mystery with queer pining. It's unrequited queer pining and suffering with something of a mystery in it. You're in for a 140 pages of Watson mentally moaning about how he can't have Sherlock. (which made it really a 2 star read in most places specially the first story)
We have two novelettes. The first is the weaker of the two. They are written as if they were Watson detailing a case like usual but these were to be published after their deaths when they could no longer hurt them.
Watson has been asked to get Holmes to look into some missing letters for a friend, letters of a compromising nature. At this time period, being homosexual isn't just going to ruin your reputation, it's a ticket to jail (especially for men, women were a little better protected). This of course is the segue into Watson's pining for Holmes.
I honestly can't even remember what the letters were about or the names of the people, I was that bored with it. If not using this for a reading challenge, I would have DNFed it there. It ends with Holmes giving Watson good advice for the time: concentrate on your job, learn to be more discreet (we learn that Watson was given to going to Molly clubs) and marry to throw off suspicion (which in this time period was the safest thing to do if you were gay, just ask Oscar Wilde)
The second was a bit more interesting as it revolves around "The Final Problem" the infamous death of Sherlock at Reichenbach Falls. In this Watson has married Mary which is a marriage that acts as a shield for them both, she being a lesbian. (again not an unusual solution at that time). So we get that story through Watson's unrequited love lens. Somehow everyone seems able to take one look at Watson and knows he's gay...
We also get Watson's reaction to Holmes's death (needless to say he takes it beyond bad) and to his return to life. And after all the queer suffering (Watson even thinks at a young gay couple, enjoy it now before you suffer like I suffer) it ends on a positive note.
My main quibble with this story is Mycroft who Piercy chose to depict as a despicable brother and cruel (potentially homophobic) man and might even be Moriarty himself. Not sure where she pulled that out of the ether but it didn't jive with my understanding of Mycroft at all and it was jarring.
At the end of the day, I won't remember this book by the time April rolls around.
One of the stars was for the year published and the way Piercy wrote it, making it feel tonally as if it were a Sherlockian tale. On the other hand, I found it rather dull. It's not a mystery with queer pining. It's unrequited queer pining and suffering with something of a mystery in it. You're in for a 140 pages of Watson mentally moaning about how he can't have Sherlock. (which made it really a 2 star read in most places specially the first story)
We have two novelettes. The first is the weaker of the two. They are written as if they were Watson detailing a case like usual but these were to be published after their deaths when they could no longer hurt them.
Watson has been asked to get Holmes to look into some missing letters for a friend, letters of a compromising nature. At this time period, being homosexual isn't just going to ruin your reputation, it's a ticket to jail (especially for men, women were a little better protected). This of course is the segue into Watson's pining for Holmes.
I honestly can't even remember what the letters were about or the names of the people, I was that bored with it. If not using this for a reading challenge, I would have DNFed it there. It ends with Holmes giving Watson good advice for the time: concentrate on your job, learn to be more discreet (we learn that Watson was given to going to Molly clubs) and marry to throw off suspicion (which in this time period was the safest thing to do if you were gay, just ask Oscar Wilde)
The second was a bit more interesting as it revolves around "The Final Problem" the infamous death of Sherlock at Reichenbach Falls. In this Watson has married Mary which is a marriage that acts as a shield for them both, she being a lesbian. (again not an unusual solution at that time). So we get that story through Watson's unrequited love lens. Somehow everyone seems able to take one look at Watson and knows he's gay...
We also get Watson's reaction to Holmes's death (needless to say he takes it beyond bad) and to his return to life. And after all the queer suffering (Watson even thinks at a young gay couple, enjoy it now before you suffer like I suffer) it ends on a positive note.
My main quibble with this story is Mycroft who Piercy chose to depict as a despicable brother and cruel (potentially homophobic) man and might even be Moriarty himself. Not sure where she pulled that out of the ether but it didn't jive with my understanding of Mycroft at all and it was jarring.
At the end of the day, I won't remember this book by the time April rolls around.
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
'Did you think that I cared for my reputation, when one word--one note, one token, could have let me know, oh God, that you were still alive? How could you, how could you, when you knew--that I loved you?'
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Diverse cast of characters:
No