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A review by strikingthirteen
A Study in Sherlock: Stories Inspired by the Holmes Canon by Margaret Maron, Neil Gaiman, Leslie S. Klinger, Charles Todd, Lee Child, S.J. Rozan, Laurie R. King, Laura Lippman, Jerry Margolin, Jan Burke, Lionel Chetwynd, Thomas Perry, John Sheldon, Gayle Lynds, Dana Stabenow, Jacqueline Winspear, Colin Cotterill, Alan Bradley, Tony Broadbent, Phillip Margolin
3.0
OVERALL: It's an interesting little collection of stories. Some are Holmes stories, some are just inspired by the idea. Really most are of the latter category so as long as you are prepared for that sort of thing it's alright. A lot of the stories I found mediocre, or just out of my depth because I'm not familiar with the characters. What awesome stories there are are awesome, you just have to deal with some average stuff to get to the awesome.
You'd Better Go In Disguise - Alan Bradley (5/5): I heavily enjoyed this one. The man in the park, the knowing right off that Montague is Holmes, that either the doctor on the bench or the other guy is Watson, and then just how it's revealed that the narrator is a murderer and how everything is just sprung right there. It's just so well done.
As To "An Exact Knowledge of London" - Tony Broadbent (3/5): The whole taxi cab ride reads a bit long and just seems like one long showoffy knowledge of how well the author, or the character, knows Holmesian Canon and adaptations. That being said that is rather the point as we find out about the seemingly immortal Watson and Holmes still working to defend everyone against Moriarty by simply allowing their images to propagate to the point that they can't see the forest for the trees as Holmes says. Very nicely done twist.
The Men With The Twisted Lips - S.J. Rozan (2/5): A look at "The Man With The Twisted Lip" in which the opium den owners work together to draw in Holmes and Watson in order to get Neville St. Clair off their backs. That's really all there is to it. Didn't particularly enjoy it all that much.
The Adventure of the Purloined Paget - Philip Margolin and Jerry Margolin (2/5): I think I was a little out of the loop on this one. Everyone is using an alias naturally and then using scraps from other stories we create this. It's nicely tongue and cheek but still rather forgettable.
The Bone-Headed League - Lee Child (2/5): Another thing resting on adapting a story into a real word setting. Not particularly interesting.
The Startling Events in the Electrified City - Thomas Perry (4/5): Holmes and Watson are called to America to help a US President appear to be assassinated in order for his country to gain stability and to avert a world war. It's good old fashioned Holmes and Watson and I can totally see Conan Doyle having written this. It is epic.
The Mysterious Case of the Unwritten Short Story - Colin Cotterill (1/5): Not really sure what this was doing here aside from a bit of an off top wander from a sort of Holmes outsider.
The Case of Death and Honey - Neil Gaiman (5/5): As usual, Mr. Gaiman delivers the awesome. We have Holmes' interest in bees as highlighted by the death of his brother and the search for some sort of immortality. Then he speaks of meeting Watson and giving him some and that just makes my heart melt. It is quite well written. Okay, I mean AMAZINGLY written.
A Triumph of Logic - Gayle Lynds and John Sheldon (2.5/5): A bunch of lawyers play at Sherlock Holmes. That's really all I can say about it. A bit of clever work with the names I will say but otherwise I think they would work better in their own world than playing in the fringes of Holmes'
The Last of Shelia-Locke Holmes - Laura Lippman (5/5): One of the few not!Holmes stories that I really like - probably it reminds me of a young me tramping around my maternal grandparents' house with a magnifying glass dragging my 'Watson' (my uncle) along looking for stuff. It's a very grown up look of a childhood fantasy and it is awesome.
The Adventure of the Concert Pianist - Margaret Maron (5/5): This is set just before "The Empty House" and Mrs. Hudson and Dr. Watson work together to help out Mrs. Hudson's niece. It's great work in the shadow of the absence of Holmes and you see just how much the two have picked up from the great detective. Much enjoyed let me tell you.
The Shadow Not Cast - Lionel Chetwynd (4/5): Sometimes I'm a bit of a sucker for military mysteries. So this really turned my crank. That's really awesome.
The Eyak Interpreter - Dana Stabenow (2.5/5): This is pretty much "The Greek Interpreter" retold with a different detective. That was really it.
The Case That Holmes Lost - Charles Todd (3/5): Sherlock Holmes is being sued, which confuses the everloving hell out of his creator. It's pretty much rehashing a story in 'real life' and also through the fictional version so it was fun but also felt like being trapped in an echo.
The Imitator - Jan Burke (2/5): Honestly I really don't remember much of this one.
A Spot of Deduction - Jacqueline Winspear (3.5/5): So we get a look at the beginnings of Raymond Chandler and Philip Marlowe. I'm not very familiar with either but I am aware of them. So it was a very interesting character study if little else.
You'd Better Go In Disguise - Alan Bradley (5/5): I heavily enjoyed this one. The man in the park, the knowing right off that Montague is Holmes, that either the doctor on the bench or the other guy is Watson, and then just how it's revealed that the narrator is a murderer and how everything is just sprung right there. It's just so well done.
As To "An Exact Knowledge of London" - Tony Broadbent (3/5): The whole taxi cab ride reads a bit long and just seems like one long showoffy knowledge of how well the author, or the character, knows Holmesian Canon and adaptations. That being said that is rather the point as we find out about the seemingly immortal Watson and Holmes still working to defend everyone against Moriarty by simply allowing their images to propagate to the point that they can't see the forest for the trees as Holmes says. Very nicely done twist.
The Men With The Twisted Lips - S.J. Rozan (2/5): A look at "The Man With The Twisted Lip" in which the opium den owners work together to draw in Holmes and Watson in order to get Neville St. Clair off their backs. That's really all there is to it. Didn't particularly enjoy it all that much.
The Adventure of the Purloined Paget - Philip Margolin and Jerry Margolin (2/5): I think I was a little out of the loop on this one. Everyone is using an alias naturally and then using scraps from other stories we create this. It's nicely tongue and cheek but still rather forgettable.
The Bone-Headed League - Lee Child (2/5): Another thing resting on adapting a story into a real word setting. Not particularly interesting.
The Startling Events in the Electrified City - Thomas Perry (4/5): Holmes and Watson are called to America to help a US President appear to be assassinated in order for his country to gain stability and to avert a world war. It's good old fashioned Holmes and Watson and I can totally see Conan Doyle having written this. It is epic.
The Mysterious Case of the Unwritten Short Story - Colin Cotterill (1/5): Not really sure what this was doing here aside from a bit of an off top wander from a sort of Holmes outsider.
The Case of Death and Honey - Neil Gaiman (5/5): As usual, Mr. Gaiman delivers the awesome. We have Holmes' interest in bees as highlighted by the death of his brother and the search for some sort of immortality. Then he speaks of meeting Watson and giving him some and that just makes my heart melt. It is quite well written. Okay, I mean AMAZINGLY written.
A Triumph of Logic - Gayle Lynds and John Sheldon (2.5/5): A bunch of lawyers play at Sherlock Holmes. That's really all I can say about it. A bit of clever work with the names I will say but otherwise I think they would work better in their own world than playing in the fringes of Holmes'
The Last of Shelia-Locke Holmes - Laura Lippman (5/5): One of the few not!Holmes stories that I really like - probably it reminds me of a young me tramping around my maternal grandparents' house with a magnifying glass dragging my 'Watson' (my uncle) along looking for stuff. It's a very grown up look of a childhood fantasy and it is awesome.
The Adventure of the Concert Pianist - Margaret Maron (5/5): This is set just before "The Empty House" and Mrs. Hudson and Dr. Watson work together to help out Mrs. Hudson's niece. It's great work in the shadow of the absence of Holmes and you see just how much the two have picked up from the great detective. Much enjoyed let me tell you.
The Shadow Not Cast - Lionel Chetwynd (4/5): Sometimes I'm a bit of a sucker for military mysteries. So this really turned my crank. That's really awesome.
The Eyak Interpreter - Dana Stabenow (2.5/5): This is pretty much "The Greek Interpreter" retold with a different detective. That was really it.
The Case That Holmes Lost - Charles Todd (3/5): Sherlock Holmes is being sued, which confuses the everloving hell out of his creator. It's pretty much rehashing a story in 'real life' and also through the fictional version so it was fun but also felt like being trapped in an echo.
The Imitator - Jan Burke (2/5): Honestly I really don't remember much of this one.
A Spot of Deduction - Jacqueline Winspear (3.5/5): So we get a look at the beginnings of Raymond Chandler and Philip Marlowe. I'm not very familiar with either but I am aware of them. So it was a very interesting character study if little else.