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bloodravenlib's review against another edition
1.0
I went with high expectations for this book, and except for one or two stories, it was mostly disappointing. Maybe it was just not the book for me; I noticed a good number of people here in GoodReads gave it positive reviews. However, for me, it is a book "inspired by the canon," and apparently that was not saying much. The great detective is mostly peripheral in this collection of stories about Sherlockiana geeks, collectors, and other folks with an interest in Sherlock Holmes but otherwise not related to the detective. This was basically like getting a book that claims to be inspired by Star Trek canon, only to find it is just so-so stories about the Trekkies you meet at conventions who happen to know every single detail of the episodes in the original series, and use that knowledge to solve mysteries. Just because one or two can deduce, as another reviewer mentioned, it is not the deductive art of Sherlock Holmes. That was the main thing that was missing. As I mentioned, there was one or two good entertaining stories here, but overall, the anthology is hit and miss. I will give it credit for being something different, but personally, not something terribly impressive in terms of substance.
I will mention that I have read various anthologies of Sherlock Holmes stories, in addition to having read the whole original canon. If you want something along the lines of Conan Doyle's work, something that truly captures the essence and pays good tribute to the great detective, pick up one of those other anthologies, or just go back the original. In fact, after reading this book, I felt the urge to go back and read Conan Doyle's work, just to remind myself how good that is. For now, if asked for what is a good anthology of Sherlock Holmes stories, I would recommend Shadows Over Baker Street, a nice set of stories where the great detective is tossed in the world of H.P. Lovecraft. That is worth reading. This, in my estimation, not so much. As I said, there are one or two stories in it, including one by Neil Gaiman, but the rest are pretty forgettable.
However, if you enjoy light mysteries with amateur sleuths, anything from Murder, She Wrote to the Mary Russell series (one of this books editors is the author of that series), you just might like this book. Just because I did not enjoy it does not mean you might not either.
I will mention that I have read various anthologies of Sherlock Holmes stories, in addition to having read the whole original canon. If you want something along the lines of Conan Doyle's work, something that truly captures the essence and pays good tribute to the great detective, pick up one of those other anthologies, or just go back the original. In fact, after reading this book, I felt the urge to go back and read Conan Doyle's work, just to remind myself how good that is. For now, if asked for what is a good anthology of Sherlock Holmes stories, I would recommend Shadows Over Baker Street, a nice set of stories where the great detective is tossed in the world of H.P. Lovecraft. That is worth reading. This, in my estimation, not so much. As I said, there are one or two stories in it, including one by Neil Gaiman, but the rest are pretty forgettable.
However, if you enjoy light mysteries with amateur sleuths, anything from Murder, She Wrote to the Mary Russell series (one of this books editors is the author of that series), you just might like this book. Just because I did not enjoy it does not mean you might not either.
ghfryer's review against another edition
3.0
This was a lovely read. Although not all stories in this collection were great there were a few really great ones and I even found some new authors to read. For Sherlock fans in search of something a little different this is a great option.
lididi's review against another edition
3.0
Some good Sherlock fan-fiction from published authors. Some were more enjoyable than others.
astrangerhere's review against another edition
3.0
2.5/5. Started off well but really went down hill in the back half.
mulveyr's review against another edition
Tried the first three stories in the anthology--can't say that any of them did much to evoke the Sherlock Holmes stories; simply having a detective who is good at picking up small details at a crime scene isn't enough.
critterbee's review against another edition
4.0
A nice range of styles, all related to or re-interpretations of, the Sherlock world.
I really loved the Memoirs of Silver Blaze, it was by far my favorite of the stories.
The Hounds of the Baskervilles twitterread was also great.
I really loved the Memoirs of Silver Blaze, it was by far my favorite of the stories.
The Hounds of the Baskervilles twitterread was also great.
gawronma's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 srars. I found in this collection of short stories only a few gems. The stories by Jeffrey Deaver, Michael Connelly, John Lescroart and Cornella Funke were truly remarkable.