A second Sherlock Holmes pastiche from the pen of Robert J. Harris, The Devil’s Blaze (2022) sees him once again take his cue from the Second World War setting of the Basil Rathbone films rather than Arthur Conan Doyle’s original Victorian milieu.
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#1292: No Police Like Holmes – The Giant Rat of Sumatra (1976) by Richard L. Boyer
I’ll level with you: I have never understood the obsession Sherlockians have with the Giant Rat of Sumatra.
Continue reading#1289: No Police Like Holmes – Dust and Shadow (2009) by Lyndsay Faye
It is no doubt fitting that the last Sherlock Holmes pastiche I read saw our Great Detective tackling a copycat of the Jack the Ripper killings in 1942, given that the next one I would go on to read would see him tackle the actual Ripper killings in 1888.
Continue reading#1286: Little Fictions – ‘The Final Problem’ (1893) by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
#1283: Little Fictions – ‘The Naval Treaty’ (1893) by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
The key facet of most crime and detective fiction is that we, the reader, should find ourselves in sympathy with the person who is the victim — or, more rarely, the perpetrator — of, some crime. Sometimes, though, that’s simply not possible.
Continue reading#1282: I Knew So Perfect Yesterday – My Ten Favourite Mysteries of the 1940s
Last year my book club picked our favourite 1930s mysteries, and earlier this year we moved on a decade and each selected a top 10 for the 1940s. So, well, here’s mine.
Continue reading#1280: Little Fictions – ‘The Greek Interpreter’ (1893) by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
The original antepenultimate case for the world’s first consulting detective; the perfect time to introduce some new lore, what?
Continue reading#1277: Little Fictions – ‘The Resident Patient’ (1893) by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
#1274: Little Fictions – ‘The Crooked Man’ (1893) by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Five Tuesdays in April should allow me to finish off the last five stories in The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes (1894). Right?
Continue reading#1271: Minor Felonies – Running Girl (2014) by Simon Mason
A little while ago, I asked for recommendations of Sherlock Holmes pastiches. Shortly thereafter, I stumbled into Running Girl (20014) by Simon Mason, which is Teenage Sherlock in all but name.
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