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A review by gbliss
The House of Silk by Anthony Horowitz
3.0
I am a fan of Anthony Horowitz's Alex Rider series, and -- of course -- fan of the original Conan Doyle works.
This never felt like a marriage made in heaven to me. A tad too arranged and clever. The strength of the Alex Rider books is rooted in how contemporary they are, in vividly drawn characters, and delightfully tangled plots.
It felt at times like Horowitz was intimidated by the legacy he was asked to continue. The all-too-carefully-included references to Holmes-trivia seemed included to fend off criticism from hard core fanatics who might be hostile to Horowitz, as opposed to my skeptical. Bullets in the wall, check. Toe of the Persian slipper, check. Stradivarius, check. Baker Street Irregulars, check. Lestrade, check.
That said, I would like Horowitz to do this again. I think a second effort he might feel liberated and less intimidated.
This never felt like a marriage made in heaven to me. A tad too arranged and clever. The strength of the Alex Rider books is rooted in how contemporary they are, in vividly drawn characters, and delightfully tangled plots.
It felt at times like Horowitz was intimidated by the legacy he was asked to continue. The all-too-carefully-included references to Holmes-trivia seemed included to fend off criticism from hard core fanatics who might be hostile to Horowitz, as opposed to my skeptical. Bullets in the wall, check. Toe of the Persian slipper, check. Stradivarius, check. Baker Street Irregulars, check. Lestrade, check.
That said, I would like Horowitz to do this again. I think a second effort he might feel liberated and less intimidated.