Customer Reviews

The Canary Trainer: From the Memoirs of John H. Watson

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

But it's not as bad as all that. Nevertheless if you want to read Meyer's Holmes pastiches I'd recommend starting with the other two (_The Seven Per Cent Solution_ and _The West End Horror_). Meyer at his best is splendid.

If you do so, then be sure to ignore the misinformation in the Kirkus Reviews excerpt above. _The West End Horror_ has nothing to do with Jack the Ripper; it concerns a pair of grisly murders that take place in London's theater district. I assume the reviewer is thinking of Edward Hanna's _The Whitechapel Horrors_.

I really enjoyed this book, perhaps more so than other reviewers because I've never seen "The Phantom of the Opera" and if I read the book, it's decades ago, so I came to this with an open mind. And I'm reading it because it's a Sherlock Holmes story. I've read and re-read the originals and enjoy the pastiches if they capture the voice or essence of Doyle's work.
I read Meyer's first two Holmes books but missed this one somehow for over a decade. It's as good as the earlier ones, I think. Holmes is telling the story and it sounds like him and what we have of Watson is very Watson-like. Holmes as an orchestra violinist is believable. And what fun it is! What a villanous villain Nobody is. And what an attractive bunch of characters, the innocent Christine, helpful, friendly Ponelle. Holmes is not a man who cultivates friends. Even "that woman" turns up wearing her masculine disguise. And that labyrinth of basements beneath the Opera House. I haven't a clue if the really exist or if they figured in "Phantom", but they made a fine setting for this story.
I recommend that you read it for all these reasons.

I've read all three of Nicholas Meyer's Sherlockian pastiches, and oddly enough, this one's my favorite. Yes, it lacks Watson, yes, everyone already knows the story of the Phantom of the Opera, and yes, Meyer stupidly describes a real-life character as dead when he was actually very much alive - but the plot is fast-paced, and Holmes makes a good enough narrator that Watson's absence doesn't hurt as much as it might. Although it has Irene Adler in it, Meyer knows better than to turn the book into a romance. In fact, Holmes' reaction to Adler's presence is nicely ambiguous; while he's clearly attracted/fascinated by "the woman," he just as clearly wishes she'd go away and leave him alone! Get it from the library and see if it appeals to you before you buy it.

As a big fan of both Sherlock Holmes and the Phantom of the opera, I eagerly looked forward to reading this book, but found it disappointing. The premise itself is great - the master detective investigating the strange occurrences at the Paris Opera house. However, Holmes makes many uncharacteristic blunders throughout his investigation, and his work is hampered by the fact that he must keep his true identity a secret, since he is believed to be dead at the time. The book also suffers because of the absence of Dr. Watson. The book also shows Christine Daae as an idiot, and the Phantom as an evil maniac with no redeeming qualities.

I really enjoyed Nicholas Meyer's previous two Holmes pastiches, "The Seven-Per-Cent Solution" and "The West-End Horror," but I don't feel that "The Canary Trainer" is as good as its two predecessors. It was a very interesting premise, but I just don't like the way Meyer handled it.

The description of the Opera house is so well done that it almost becomes a character unto itself. The powers of the ghost are convincing - how could any human accomplish the deeds attributed to it? Has Holmes met a force beyond the reach of his genius and logic? Original tale and yet it keeps the charm of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle alive.

I was always facinated by Holmes' two creative crutches - cocaine and the violin. The use of one or the other always brought the needed solution into his mind and so I was very pleased that Meyer showed us more about Holmes' musical abilities. Bringing Irene Adler into the story was also a nice touch.

Meyer continues his version of Sherlock Holmes with a tale of Holmes' lost years after the "Moriarty Problem." Holmes becomes a violinist for the Paris Opera and through the intervention of Irene Adler, becomes involved in the strange case of the "opera ghost." There are many problems with this novel. Watson's presence is sorely missed and efforts to replace his role with characters from the opera are unsuccessful. Irene Adler's inclusion is an uneccessary distraction and is used soley to comment on Holmes' sexual repression. The case itself is so familiar to the reader that only the inclusion of Holmes changes the basic story, thus there are no surprises.(who doesn't know the basics of Laroux's Phantom?) This was a very disappointing sequel to Meyer's other Holmes' novels and wasn't owrth the wait.

"The Canary Trainer" is another "rediscovered" Sherlock Holmes manuscript, written this time in the voice of Holmes himself.
It was very easy to imagine that Sherlock Holmes had actually written this "memoir".
The story (which takes it's place in the chronology right after Meyer's " The Seven Per Cent Solution") begins when Sherlock Holmes is hired as a violinist with the Opera company orchestra.
He learns of the strange events surrounding the "Ghost", and, allowing himself to be perceived as a Surete agent 'undercover', begins to investigate the 'accidents' which have been taking place in the Opera house.
Unexpectedly,his cover is blown by the indomitable Irene Adler, who is engaged to perform with the Paris Opera Company, and who blackmails him into protecting her young friend, the lovely Christine Daae.
Irene joins him in his investigation.
Anyone familiar with the orginal story of the Phantom of the Opera, (or who has seen Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical of the same name) will enjoy this book, with it's familiar characters, and what seems to be an insider's view of the mysterious events.
I have read this book more than three times, and am buying another copy to replace one that has gotten ragged from being read too many times.
For me, there can be no higher praise than saying that a book is not only worth reading, but reading again.

I was a big fan of 'The Seven-Percent Solution", both the film and the book. I also liked the sequel book, "The West End Horror", but this one, while well done, seems like a little too much. Taking place between the events of "Solution" and "West End Horror", it seems a little awkward given that it's the middle book of a trilogy, but was written last. I didn't think this one worked as well as the first two books. This time Meyer links Holmes to another famous fictional character's tale, previously he had linked Holmes to real-world figures and made much better use of them as characters than the fictional personages in this one. The book felt a little like a rejected "League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" (graphic novel, not the movie) story. But still I liked it and hope Meyer does another one, because i like the way he writes Holmes

Having read all of Meyer's Sherlockian novels, I found this to be at least as good as The Seven Per Cent solution, probably better. These two novels pair Holmes with characters who are at the very least equal to the task of dealing with or against him. Anyone who has read The Phantom of the Opera must be intrigued by the character of the Persian, and Meyer treats us to the alternative possibility that it was none other than Holmes who followed Erik to his underground home. Wonderful stuff!

I liked this book because it combined my two favourite characters: the phantom of the opera (Erik) and Sherlock Holmes. Sherlock stayed the remarkable genius that he is(even though he blundered miserbly sometimes-but,hey,YOU try to do better). But I was really disappointed with the treatment of Erik. Meyer calls him 'the creature' and makes him more insane than even in the original book! Personally, I the most appealling thing about Erik is that he IS a sympathetic character hopelessly in love with Christine Daae. This is why I 'liked' the Canary Trainer, not 'loved' it. (P.S.-Having Gaston Leroux as the music instucter was a creative touch)