The Manifestations of Sherlock Holmes by James Lovegrove
I would like to thank Lydia from Titan for an advance copy of this collection in exchange for a fair and hoinest review
Publisher - Titan
Published - 21st January
Price - £7.99 paperback £5.46 Kindle eBook
Tales of treachery, intrigue and evil…
Maverick detective Sherlock Holmes and his faithful chronicler Dr John Watson return in twelve thrilling short stories.
The iconic duo find themselves swiftly drawn into a series of puzzling and sinister events….
If you imagine Sherlock Holmes, which Holmes do you see? Aloof logic machine, adventurer, detective just as there are so many Holmes stories now there are different interpretations. A bit like Doctor Who the adventures and the people we see play the role mean we have a very flexible format. James Lovegrove is known a for a number of recent Holmes tales and I’m this collection we see a focus on Holmesian tales in their best known setting - the short story.
Amongst this very enjoyable collection are the following gems
The Adventure of the Marchindale Stiletto - a very strong opening tale where the theft of an apparently supernatural family heirloom leads to a turn in a wealthy family’s fortunes. I really do enjoy these tales where Holmes gets placed in an apparently supernatural setting and his rational abilities take over. All the clues are shown throughout so it makes a great test for the reader to work out what is actually going on. A fine puzzle.
The Problem of the Emperor’s Netsuke - an exclusive take for the collection which is a little unusual as it’s purely Holmes telling Watson of an adventure he’d taken alone. A museum is found to have been robbed in apparently broad daylight with all of a Japanese emperor’s special collection apparently replaced. It is a very aptly finely crafted tale which is telling you everything and yet you’ll still have to work hard to see what is going on. A short but smart study in human nature.
The Adventure of the Fallen Financier - we still tend to think of Holmes as a stereotype machine aloof of humanity but I think in the original stories a lot more nuance is shown. In this tale we start with Homes using his abilities to cynically dismantle various passerby’s secrets but in the actual tale of a man apparently who kept to his death for reasons unknown he shows a much smarter understanding of human nature than we tend to think him capable of.
The Strange Case of Dr Slacker and Mr Hope - not all the tales in the collection are rational logic puzzles. In this horror tale Holmes begins acting increasingly out of character and Watson worries his friend has finally succumbed to the pressure of his work and lifestyle. It’s subtle and by the end very unnerving plus an excellent tribute to other novels of the time…
Pure Swank - actually this may be my favourite in the collection. It’s about the little known other consulting detective Clarence Barker who is mentioned a arrival of Holmes in just one story. This is the tale from his point of view. Lovegrove weaves a much more interesting character who he cleverly links to many more Holmes tales. What I really liked is here we get one character with a very unique different view of Holmes to our usual one and a sense that our narrator is not quite as observant as he thinks he is…
The Adventure of the Innocent Icarus - another more fantastical version of Holmes. Here people in London have the abilities of flight, speed and like Watson invincible skin. But Sherlock Holmes can only think. I really liked the idea of Holmes being seen generally as inferior by the world and yet he rises to the occasion - the final line is a beauty.
The Adventure of the Challenging Professor - Lovegrove allows a retiring Sherlock Holmes to cross the path of another Conan Doyle creation Professor Challenger. I think the fun in this is mixture of two worlds but if I say this is an unlocked door mystery with a pterodactyl isn’t that really all you need to know that this story is going to be a lot of fun?
The Adventure of the Noble Burglar - another unique tale from the perspective of Tony the dog often used by Holmes to track down miscreants. A really enjoyable and unique narration.
The Adventure of the Deadly Seance - capping the collection is Holes once more dealing with the apparent supernatural. A wealthy shipping magnate died after a strange seance - was it a ghost or an unscrupulous servant? Really liked how Lovegrove accurately throws the tricks of spiritualism into the story and the ending again reminds us that Holmes really does have a fine human sense of justice.
As you can gather I really enjoyed the collection it offers a huge variety of original Holmes tales that take the characters and world of Conan Doyle - pays tribute; plays with it and expands it. If you enjoy seeing Holmes and Watson live again in new stories then this would be a fine treat for you.
