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4.14 AVERAGE
4.14 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
the first few short stories were meh, but the rest were good and engaging
My Sherlock Holmes odyssey continues with instalment number 4, The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes.
This is a pretty sad collection, since Holmes is assumed to be deceased in the final tale, but I have sneaking suspicion he may return soon......
This is a pretty sad collection, since Holmes is assumed to be deceased in the final tale, but I have sneaking suspicion he may return soon......
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Audiobook narrated by Stephen Fry.
Perhaps not better than Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. That one had more memorable stories on the whole and probably more consistent than this. But it's not that far off from that book, and The Final Problem is my favourite Sherlock Holmes story that I've read till now, and Stephen Fry killed it in narration. It would've been the perfect end to this series, but there are 4 more books to go. Below are my notes/ratings of individual stories:
Story 1: Silver Blaze
3.5/5
— “Is there any point to which you would wish to draw my attention?”
— “To the curious incident of the dog in the night-time”
— “The dog did nothing in the nighttime.”
— “That was the curious incident.”
Pretty good start for the book. An interesting enough mystery, but not the most thrilling conclusion. Among the easier mysteries to solve.
Story 2: The Adventure of the Cardboard Box
4/5
The mystery is pretty clear once we get the sister's info from the old lady, but it's the mystery that was so intriguing. Also, the ending convo between Holmes and Watson was great.
Perhaps not better than Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. That one had more memorable stories on the whole and probably more consistent than this. But it's not that far off from that book, and The Final Problem is my favourite Sherlock Holmes story that I've read till now, and Stephen Fry killed it in narration. It would've been the perfect end to this series, but there are 4 more books to go. Below are my notes/ratings of individual stories:
Story 1: Silver Blaze
3.5/5
— “Is there any point to which you would wish to draw my attention?”
— “To the curious incident of the dog in the night-time”
— “The dog did nothing in the nighttime.”
— “That was the curious incident.”
Pretty good start for the book. An interesting enough mystery, but not the most thrilling conclusion. Among the easier mysteries to solve.
Story 2: The Adventure of the Cardboard Box
4/5
The mystery is pretty clear once we get the sister's info from the old lady, but it's the mystery that was so intriguing. Also, the ending convo between Holmes and Watson was great.
Story 3: The Adventure of the Yellow Face
4.5/5
Among the very top of Sherlock Holmes stories I've read till now. Might be just below Irene Adler case. Intriguing mystery and an even better conclusion. And to top it all off, an absolutely amazing closing line from Sherlock.
“Norbury”
Story 4: The Adventure of the Stock-broker's clerk
2.5/5
The plot was pretty similar to The Adventure of the Red Headed League. And equally dull as that story. Maybe a tiny bit better but still. I've seen better Sherlock Holmes mysteries.
Story 5: The Adventure of 'Gloria Scott'
3.5/5
It's the origin story of Sherlock Holmes. Kinda cool, but thing extraordinary other than that.
Story 6: The Adventures of the Musgrave Ritual .
3.5/5
It's another piece of the Sherlock Holmes origin story.
Story 7: The Adventure of the Reigate Squire
4/5
Intriguing mystery, great deduction. Just a classic Sherlock Holmes story.
Story 8: The Adventures of the Crooked Man
3.5/5
Story 9: The Adventure of the Resident Patient
4/5
4.5/5
Among the very top of Sherlock Holmes stories I've read till now. Might be just below Irene Adler case. Intriguing mystery and an even better conclusion. And to top it all off, an absolutely amazing closing line from Sherlock.
“Norbury”
Story 4: The Adventure of the Stock-broker's clerk
2.5/5
The plot was pretty similar to The Adventure of the Red Headed League. And equally dull as that story. Maybe a tiny bit better but still. I've seen better Sherlock Holmes mysteries.
Story 5: The Adventure of 'Gloria Scott'
3.5/5
It's the origin story of Sherlock Holmes. Kinda cool, but thing extraordinary other than that.
Story 6: The Adventures of the Musgrave Ritual .
3.5/5
It's another piece of the Sherlock Holmes origin story.
Story 7: The Adventure of the Reigate Squire
4/5
Intriguing mystery, great deduction. Just a classic Sherlock Holmes story.
Story 8: The Adventures of the Crooked Man
3.5/5
Story 9: The Adventure of the Resident Patient
4/5
Story 10: The Adventure of the Greek Interpreter
3.5/5
First introduction of Sherlock Holmes' brother.
Story 11: The Adventure of the Naval Treaty
4/5
The more distraught Holmes' client seem to be, the more entertaining these mysteries become.
Story 12: The Final Problem
5/5
Holy fucking shit! This is my favourite Sherlock Holmes story. Better than Yellow Face, better than the copper beeches, and probably even slightly better than the Scandal in Bohemia. And this isn't even one of those classic Sherlock Holmes mysteries. There's no murder to solve, no suspect to catch. This is just Sherlock Holmes on a run from his greatest adversary, Professor Moriarty. This story solely relies on your investment in the lives of Holmes and Watson, or it just won't work. And I am invested. I love these characters.
Easily the greatest ending of any Sherlock Holmes story, and among my all-time favourite endings ever. There's nothing more I could've asked for.
3.5/5
First introduction of Sherlock Holmes' brother.
Story 11: The Adventure of the Naval Treaty
4/5
The more distraught Holmes' client seem to be, the more entertaining these mysteries become.
Story 12: The Final Problem
5/5
Holy fucking shit! This is my favourite Sherlock Holmes story. Better than Yellow Face, better than the copper beeches, and probably even slightly better than the Scandal in Bohemia. And this isn't even one of those classic Sherlock Holmes mysteries. There's no murder to solve, no suspect to catch. This is just Sherlock Holmes on a run from his greatest adversary, Professor Moriarty. This story solely relies on your investment in the lives of Holmes and Watson, or it just won't work. And I am invested. I love these characters.
Easily the greatest ending of any Sherlock Holmes story, and among my all-time favourite endings ever. There's nothing more I could've asked for.
After a very, very long break from Holmes and this book, I finally got through the final four or five stories to wrap it up. I have to say, the disjointed crime of the week style that Doyle has taken up makes none of the mysteries have any weight. A couple of the stories stand out, namely “The Gloria Scott” and “The Naval Treaty.” “The Final Problem” is a great idea that suffers from the past-tense nature of the story and therefore lacks real details. I can feel Doyle’s exhaustion with these stories though, and it doesn’t surprise me that he tried to kill it off.
Just finished this collection of Sherlock Holmes stories. When I was a kid the power went out a lot at our house because we lived kind of far out in the country. When that happened my dad always pulled out a flash light and read Sherlock Holmes to us, so the four stars might be mostly nostalgia. But the book is still a fun quick read. It's suspenseful in that you want to find out "who done it", even though I still think that the story itself never leaves enough clues to allow you figure it out on your own anyway. Still fun...still worth four stars. :)
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
I am sorry to say I much prefer the novel format compared to these short stories. The set pattern to each mystery with omitted details that Sherlock reveals at the end becomes very obvious in the repetition and made me feel a little excluded from the stories (though in all fairness, if I hadn't read it in two days, but rather a story a day it probably would have been more enjoyable)
adventurous
dark
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes