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seforana's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Gore, Body horror, Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Death, and Physical abuse
mariekejee's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
This is not the first detective short story collection I have read: previously, I have listened to one of Agatha Christie's called The Underdog and Other Stories, which I did not enjoy. In general, short story detectives are not long enough to create tension, and by the time you (hopefully) memorised the characters names, it is almost time for the reveal. However, I enjoyed this short story collection much more than the previous, mainly due to the fact that I felt I could participate in the mystery more than in the previous collection. In short story form, the mysteries remind me a bit of a brain teaser - most of the stories contained few characters, making it easy to make up your own suspect list and theories.
Despite being more able to follow the mystery, I still find myself not particularly a fan of detectives in short format. I like having the option of participating in the sluething, but being invested in the characters is definitely a big part of what makes a good mystery for me. As such, while I generally enjoyed the book, I wasn't too sad to see it ending.
There are definitely stronger stories amongst the bunch; there's a reason that A Scandal in Bohemia is so well known, and it is one of the few stories that I really did think suited its shorter format. The Adventure of the Speckled Band and The Red-Headed League were such wild stories that they kept me amused throughout. Most of them were a fun read, although some are forgettable, or have such an unsurprising reveal that the story was a bit dull altogether (for example, the story where the woman is left at the altarby, what turns out to be her stepfather, such that she does not marry another man ).
All in all, it was a fun book to take with me on transit, the stories usually lasting me just long enough for a one-way trip. If you're a fan of Sherlock Holmes, I'm sure you'll enjoy reading this collection, even though I will probably stick to the novels from now on.
Despite being more able to follow the mystery, I still find myself not particularly a fan of detectives in short format. I like having the option of participating in the sluething, but being invested in the characters is definitely a big part of what makes a good mystery for me. As such, while I generally enjoyed the book, I wasn't too sad to see it ending.
There are definitely stronger stories amongst the bunch; there's a reason that A Scandal in Bohemia is so well known, and it is one of the few stories that I really did think suited its shorter format. The Adventure of the Speckled Band and The Red-Headed League were such wild stories that they kept me amused throughout. Most of them were a fun read, although some are forgettable, or have such an unsurprising reveal that the story was a bit dull altogether (for example, the story where the woman is left at the altar
All in all, it was a fun book to take with me on transit, the stories usually lasting me just long enough for a one-way trip. If you're a fan of Sherlock Holmes, I'm sure you'll enjoy reading this collection, even though I will probably stick to the novels from now on.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence and Death
Minor: Racism
maren_hemsath's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Gun violence, and Murder
Moderate: Drug use, Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, Domestic abuse, Confinement, Blood, Racism, Racial slurs, and Drug abuse
Minor: War, Sexism, Medical content, and Animal death
chalkletters's review against another edition
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.25
After getting angry at period-typical misogyny and racism in the first two Sherlock Holmes novels, Nickie suggested that I might find the short stories to be more palatable, so I was curious to find out whether that would be true for The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. Though I’ve read (or listened to) all twelve stories before, it’s been a long time, so my tastes might definitely have matured out of them.
There was only one instance, in A Case of Identity, in which I felt that Arthur Conan Doyle really mistreated one of his female characters: Holmes works out exactly how his client, Miss Sutherland, was manipulated and deceived but declares that she won’t believe him if he tells her, so just leaves her to get on with her unhappy life! Clearly, it’s the solving of the puzzle that matters to Sherlock (and Dr Watson), and not the actual result of his actions. That would be okay, except that I increasingly feel as though the same is true of Arthur Conan Doyle, and what’s forgivable in a flawed character is less so in a real person.
For the most part, the beginnings of the stories were a little tediously repetitive: Watson notes that Sherlock solves cases for the nobility, but says that these are sometimes less interesting and shows off Sherlock’s skills less well than whichever case he’s introducing. There’s nothing wrong with a formula that works, I suppose, but I might recommend not reading these stories back to back to back.
The problems and their solutions are clever, and anyone reading these for the first time would likely be carried along by that alone. (Except in the case of The Five Orange Pips, which is sadly incredibly obvious to a modern reader. I can only assume that the Klu Klux Klan was less familiar to British readers in 1892 than it would be today.) Remembering the endings of ten out of twelve stories definitely put me in a position to notice more of the flaws!
Content Warnings
Minor: Addiction, Animal death, Drug use, Gun violence, Murder, Violence, Death, Blood, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
caitlin_doggos's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Drug abuse, Violence, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Murder, and Animal death
novelyon's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
informative
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Medical content, Addiction, Death, and Medical trauma
Minor: Blood, Confinement, Animal cruelty, Classism, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Incest, and Violence
anniereads221's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
fast-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Murder, Racism, Sexism, Torture, Violence, and Xenophobia
silver_valkyrie_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I don't usually vibe as well with short stories, but in the case of Sherlock Holmes I think the short stories work much better than the novels. You get a much higher concentration of the deductions and clever bits, with most of the filler left out. Fun!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Confinement and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal death and Violence
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