A review by impreader
Murder in the Vatican: The Church Mysteries of Sherlock Holmes by Ann Margaret Lewis

2.0

A bit on the weak side, this immensely interesting book in terms of subject matter falls rather short in its delivery. It is a collection of three short stories detailing Holmes unrecorded--though briefly mentioned--forays into the Vatican. While Lewis writes a lovely voice for Pope Leo, she seems to invested in placing the Church in il cuore degli sui racconti. Sans the tension between Holmes God of Reason, and the Pope's God of Grace, there is little tension outside the trade tautness of murder and mystery, and thus the characters become too cut-out, too controlled--Holmes too tame, Watson near indiscernable. Though it is worth noting that Lewis's Pope Leo makes an excellent recorder of Holmesian escapades--if only her Holmes were up to snuff to be recorded.