Tangled Web UK Review April 2008
Execution of Sherlock Holmes: & Other New Adventures of the Great Detective by
Donald Thomas
hbk out April 08
Published by Pegasus Books
at £12.79
This is the third of Mr Thomas’s anthologies of pastiche, and the best so far. Both previous offerings are now out of print, most undeservedly in the case of the more recent, Sherlock Holmes and the Running Noose (first published by Macmillan in 2001). Perhaps this has contributed to marketing problems, or perhaps not; either way, Execution is largely unknown in the UK, which is a shame as it is a competent collection produced in an affordable and attractive hardcover. The volume contains only five short stories, but they are all at the lengthier end of the format, for a total of 352 pages. Mr Thomas’s style is not quite the voice of Watson, and his Holmes can be uncharacteristically arrogant, but the narrative has a charm and vitality all of its own.
The title story finds Holmes kidnapped by a cabal of Canonical villains, including Charles Augustus Milverton and Professor Moriarty’s two brothers. He is held in the recently closed Newgate prison, pending a mock trail and genuine execution. The concept is not only highly original, but also pokes fun - at the same time as taking advantage of - the convenient and sometimes repetitive conclusions Sir Arthur Conan Doyle employed. Mr Thomas draws from The Five Orange Pips and The Adventure of the Red Circle; he might equally have used The Resident Patient, The Greek Interpreter, and The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge. This auspicious beginning is followed by the disappointing The Greek Key, an overlong and over-complex attempt to recreate Edgar Allan Poe’s The Gold Bug and Sir Arthur’s The Adventure of the Dancing Men. Perhaps worst of all, the story ignores and even supersedes one of the key Holmes adventures, His Last Bow. Similarly, The Case of the Peasenhall Murder is an unconvincing tale of Holmes investigating a historical murder in Suffolk in 1902.
Like many of the best originals, The Case of the Phantom Chambermaid begins with Holmes being consulted in a non-criminal matter, the virtue of a chambermaid at the Royal Albion Hotel in Brighton. The inquiry involves a variety show performer, and very quickly takes on a sinister aspect. The collection starts and finishes on a high note, and The Queen of the Night is the most gripping. Set during the coronation of King Edward VII, Holmes has a duel to the death with Colonel James Moriarty which is almost as tense and atmospheric as that with his brother in Sir Arthur’s The Final Problem. Despite two mediocre offerings, Execution is more than redeemed by the rest. On balance, this is an enjoyable read, and a worthy addition to any Sherlockian’s bookshelf.
(
Rafe McGregor
Rafe's own site - www.rafemcgregor.co.uk)
Thousands of New and used Books at your Fingertips...
Support Tangled Web - Buy Your Books Online
