Shannon's Library

LET’S GET EXCITED ABOUT THIS BOOK!

Hurtling from present day New York to Victorian London, “The Sherlockian” weaves the history of Sherlock Holmes and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle into an inspired and entertaining double mystery that proves to be anything but “elementary.”

In 1893, Sherlock Holmes-adoring Londoners eagerly opened their Strand magazines, anticipating the detective’s next adventure, only to find the unthinkable: his creator, Arthur Conan Doyle, had killed their hero off. London spiraled into mourning – crowds sported black armbands in grief – and railed against Conan Doyle as his assassin. Then in 1901, just as abruptly as Conan Doyle had “murdered” Holmes, he resurrected him. Though the writer kept detailed diaries of his days and work, Conan Doyle never explained this sudden change of heart. After his death, one of his journals from this period was discovered to be missing, and in the decades since, has never been found…Or has it?

When literary researcher Harold White is inducted into the preeminent Sherlock Holmes enthusiast society, he never imagines he’s about to be thrust onto the hunt for the missing diary. But when a shocking murder occurs, it is Harold – using wisdom and methods gleaned from countless detective stories – who takes up the search, both for the diary and for the killer.

Shannon’s Rating — PG-13 (2 F-words and a few uses of the C-word)

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LET’S TALK ABOUT THIS BOOK!

Do you like reading novels that switch back and forth between time periods with each chapter? I do. It’s one of my favorite story-telling techniques and it’s admirably done by Graham Moore in “The Sherlockian.” The chapters alternate between Arthur Conan Doyle in 1893 and 2010 with Harold White. Each time period has a story to tell and a mystery to be solved. I was equally captivated with each time period, and it was so fun to see how their storylines came together in the end.

I loved how Arthur Conan Doyle was written. His curmudgeonly personality and hatred towards his own literary creation, Sherlock Holmes, made me laugh.

In “The Sherlockian” Arthur Conan Doyle tries to solve a mystery just like Holmes would do. He’s shocked to find out that being a detective in the “real world” is not as easy as it is on paper. As he’s puzzling out the mystery he thinks…

Was this how it felt to be one of his readers? To be lost in the middle of the story, without the slightest of notions as to where you were headed? Arthur felt horrible. He felt as if he had no control of events as they unfolded. What trust his readers must put in him, to submit themselves to this unnerving confusion, while holding out hope that Arthur would see them through to a satisfying conclusion. But what if there were no solution on the final page?

I truly believe a well-written mystery novel is a work of genius. The creativity and intelligence needed to craft a solid, believable mystery by an author is to be commended. Agatha Christy could do it. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle could do it. And Graham Moore can be added to this acclaimed list. “The Sherlockian” is a fun, adventure-filled mystery novel that kept me interested and guessing until the very end. Well done!

And so, fellow readers and mystery enthusiasts, as Sherlock Holmes once said, “The game is afoot!”

I hope you enjoy this one as much as I did!