Customer Reviews

The Sherlockian

5 star:		(48)
4 star:		(37)
3 star:		(19)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Graham Moore has written a novel that takes place in two different periods: the turn of the 20th century - which was the end of the Victorian era in England - and the increasingly muddled present. Loosely based on real events, this fascinating novel suggests that the era in which Sherlock Holmes and his creator flourished exists in a kind-of golden glow in our modern imagination. According to Moore the primal source of the mystery story is an innate need to know that lays deep within us all. And the protagonists in both eras actively involve themselves in two great mysteries. In 1900 Arthur Conan Doyle figuratively dons the mantle of his creation Sherlock Holmes. He is aided by his close friend Bram Stoker (the author of Dracula) who serves as a fiercely loyal stand-in for Watson. The two writers are thrust into a dangerous search for the murderer of several young women. It is nearly the end of Conan Doyle's self-imposed 7 year long hiatus from new Sherlock tales following the 'death' of Holmes at the hands of Professor Moriarty at the Reichenbach Falls. It is also a period of political upheaval in which women are demanding the right to vote while men - and Conan Doyle is one of the most vocal opponents - seem solidly entrenched in opposition. The nascent modern era appears to have been crystallized in these events as the hideous murders that Conan Doyle and Bram Stoker pursue reveal several bitter surprises.

In 2010 a top Holmes scholar claims to have discovered Conan Doyle's long-sought diary covering those first few crucial months in 1900. The diary quickly disappeared after Conan Doyle's mysterious entries and remained lost for more than a century. Soon after the announcement of this critical discovery the scholar is found murdered. Young Harold White, a Sherlock Holmes devotee and recent inductee into The Baker Street Irregulars (the chief assemblage of Holmes buffs) has discovered the scholar's body. With a mysterious young woman acting as HIS Watson, the increasingly excited and ambitious White is also thrust into the Holmes role. The two investigations continue in tandem in alternate chapters. As the mysteries deepen - and their ramifications profoundly resonate through the years - we are skillfully led into several areas of thought. The author uses these events to broach the notion of the mystery tale as a metaphor for some of the deeper conundrums that haunt our lives and hopes. The need to know is deeply ingrained into the human psyche, assuming prime importance even as the illusions of the main characters are stripped away one-by-one, leaving them utterly exposed and vulnerable. The author wields his spare and crystalline prose like a scalpel, dissecting his characters to reveal the bitter truths that lay at their core. It is a bravura performance by a young writer of obvious talent. The Sherlockian is an exemplary novel. It is more than a mere mystery: it is an exploration of the conflicted human heart and our unceasing need for illumination, no matter how faint the light and obscure its revelation. There is one minor complaint: I found the ending somewhat predictable, written with one eye towards Hollywood and the need for a dramatic ending ripe for filming. But that disappointment failed to negate what went before. This is a superb novel.

Brief summary and review, no spoilers.

This story is told in alternating chapters, starting off in the 1883 as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is contemplating killing off his fictional detective, Sherlock Holmes. The next chapter takes us to the present as we are introduced to Harold White, who has recently been invited to be a member of the prestigious Baker Street Irregulars. He is the youngest member, and he has earned his invitation by his extensive knowledge of all things regarding Holmes and by his having written an article in the Irregulars' quarterly publication called The Baker Street Journal. To say he is excited is an understatement.

As we go back and forth in time in these alternating chapters, we follow Arthur Conan Doyle (teamed up with his friend, Dracula author Bram Stoker) as they investigate a serial killer. We see how Doyle was castigated by Holmes fans for killing their hero, and we find out why years later, Doyle brings Holmes back to life in The Hound of the Baskervilles. We also find out why he wrote the diary which went missing for so many years.

In the chapters that take place in the present time, Harold White also becomes involved in the investigation of a murder of a member of the Baker Street Irregulars - one who purportedly had a long missing and much sought after diary from Arthur Conan Doyle. Along with his "Watson", a young woman named Sarah, we resolve the mystery and find out what happened to that diary.

If you are a big fan of Sherlock Holmes and you are are familiar with Doyle's stories and novels I think you will enjoy this book. I thought the alternating chapter technique was used effectively, and I liked that. At the same time, in critique, this was not a page-turner for me, and when I'd put the book down I was not that eager to pick it back up. I was surprised to feel this way because I do love mystery novels, although I admit I am rusty on my knowledge of Holmes since it's been years since I read those stories. At the same time, this book did make me think about picking them up again and I appreciate that.

This is a very good first novel. I usually do not like a parallel story format. Here, Moore alternates chapters between the present day characters and the historical A. C. Doyle with a famous friend. Surprisingly, he pulled it off. I think the key was the length of the chapters, each ending with a bit of a cliffhanger that made it easy to slip back into each story line on return.

The Product Description (unfortunately we have to click on "See all Editorial Reviews" above and look for it) nicely summarizes the plot without spoiling any of the story. In the style of good mysteries, we have a murder or two or maybe some more. We also have a missing volume of Doyle's diary. Of course, all the normal phrases from Sherlock Holmes come to mind as you read through the book.

The primary success of the book is Moore's writing - it's very smooth and he doesn't try to get in the way of the story to show his ability. That, in itself, showed his ability. The characters, though, are unevenly developed. We have the very well drawn and the very stereotyped. But, that doesn't particularly affect the story. (Our hero provides us with some enjoyable moments and it seems this could be the first of a series.)

The story, though quite fun, is too predictable too often. That is not a fatal flaw, because (again) the uniqueness of the story and the writing ability make a few problems forgivable. Unfortunately, it does make for a weaker overall impression than I was hoping for. This is well worth the time and a good addition to a mystery library - and definitely a better than average first novel.

Graham Moore's debut novel has all the ingredients to be a delicious mystery. it opens with Arthur Conan Doyle and his dear friend Bram Stoker as Arthur debates the pros and cons of killing off his famed character, Sherlock Holmes. Filled with a bitter hatred for his character because all of London believes Holmes to be real, and Arthur to be his literary agent, he sets about to destroy Sherlock and falls into a real life Holmes mystery along the way when murdered young women start appearing across his path.

In the present, newly inducted Sherlockian Harold White celebrates his membership into the exclusive Holmes fan club, the Baker Street Irregulars. On the morning of the most important Irregular meeting in history, the presentation of the missing diary of Arthur Conan Doyle, Harold is pulled into his own Sherlock novel when the man who found the diary is murdered and the diary goes missing.

Alternating between these two mysteries, The Sherlockian flows along quite nicely in the beginning. The plots are intriguing and, like a good mystery, keep you turning the page. But about a third of the way in a shift in the writing can be felt, a twist in the flow. No longer was I reading a mystery whose words carried the story. Suddenly I could feel the presence of the author, his hand in the way things were turning out, his decisions in making a clue appear here or there. It caused me to step back from the book and view it as a piece of the author's work, not a natural thing of its own.

I know a good book because the writing works for itself, the characters carry me along, not the author. When I can sense an author at work, I am removed and the book feels clumsy and even contrived. Sadly, The Sherlockian became that for me. The writing was still decent, but Harold became an annoying, weak character instead of a charming Holmes enthusiast, and Arthur Conan Doyle became a silly, bumbling detective instead of the writer of great mysteries.

Overall I became underwhelmed by The Sherlockian about half-way through. I persisted out of curiosity to see how Moore would solve the mystery of the diary, but in hindsight, I've already forgotten what kept me turning the page, and I only finished reading last night.

I just finished reading THE SHERLOCKIAN. What a mess, despite the many terrific reviews. The writing was amateurish; the characters one-dimensional and both plots boring and without suspense.

I appreciate the research that must have gone into this book. The concept was intriguing: two intertwining plots, one present-day and one at the turn of the twentieth century, both touching on a missing Conan Doyle diary, and both informed by real events. And the ending did, indeed, tie both plots together.

But I'm afraid that's all I can say that's good about it.

Both detectives were bumbling, neither capable of finding their way out of a paper bag without the heavy-handed interception of the author. The regular alternation of short chapters of plot #1 with plot #2, repeated without variation, just added to the tedium. The Harold White plot went nowhere till the end. And the Conan Doyle plot, the better of the two, was a pastiche of several unrelated strands. Nothing fit together, which is, after all, what you'd expect in a detective story by the great Arthur Conan Doyle.

Yecch.

My daughter gave me this book for Christmas, and I just read it in a single 36-hour period. Boy, she had me pegged. This is a clever historical thriller, and the device of moving back and forth chapter by chapter between two mysteries---one Conan Doyle was working on and one about Conan Doyle being worked on today---was an excellent device that kept the pace and suspense up and provided for double the number of twists and revelations. The tales are wonderfully woven together. You do not need to be a Sherlock Holmes expert to enjoy this one, and it is great, light fun. I laughed out loud several times. A wonderful debut.

Loved every minute of this well written, can't put it down mystery. Read "The Historian", both of these books fall under the category of my favorite reads. You will love the page turning glimpse into the realm of historical fiction! Reading is supposed to be fun - you won't find yourself drudging through anything boring here, more like grabbing up any opportunity to pour over another chapter!

"The Sherlockian" is a novel I wanted to like, and that often goes a long way. Alas, the book did not quite live up to my expectations, for several reasons. On the one hand, the plot and structure do show a nice level of creativity, and Mr Moore has tackled a unique view of Sherlockiana. But the book is too long by one-third, the two main protagonists are, at best, annoying, the others are thin cardboard, and its not really a whodunit, but really a What Happened and Why. While I like much of the real Holmes oeuvre, I have found Doyle a difficult man to like, especially as he grew older. I was more drawn to his "Watson", Bram Stoker - one of the few characters with any sort of depth - and too bad Moore didn't find a way to work Oscar Wilde into the plot (other than tangentially; you can always count on Oscar to liven up any proceedings.)

Perhaps more telling is the lack of style I got from Mr Moore. The book has some substance, but not enough style. Moore's a raconteur - and not a great one - not a compelling author.

What I did find interesting was how much of the "fiction" had actually happened! That elevated what I felt was a two-starrer to three.

rhb

While Mr. Moore has the markings of a future wordsmith, he has a way to go to be able to walk the walk of true Sherlockians. The first half of the book, although sprinkled with inaccuracies, was mostly enjoyable (case in point: BSI members do not have their dinner at the Algonquin Hotel, nor do they "quack," and Mr. Moore left out one of the long-standing and honored traditions of the society--that of receiving an investiture). I was intrigued with how he would knit together the two seemingly independent plots. Sadly, in order to make it work, he had to portray Sir Arthur Conan Doyle as a coarse, cruel, insensitive man who was anything but a gentleman. This goes against everything written about Conan Doyle and what every Sherlockian treasures about the man. Yes, Doyle tired of Holmes and "killed" him. But...

***SPOILER ALERT!!!***

...as a physician Doyle would not have cold-bloodedly killed anyone, not even a villain. And he most certainly would not have used the language attributed to the character named Doyle in THE SHERLOCKIAN. Yes, it is a work of fiction, but because of the disrespectful manner in which Doyle is handled I cannot recommend it to any Sherlockian of my acquaintance.

Having said that, though, I do believe that Mr. Moore has a great deal of talent and I look forward to his next book.

I very seldom like the modern day attempts to write Sherlock Holmes stories because I find most of them to be a caricature of the great detective and not true to the man created by Conan Doyle. The main exception to that are the novels by Laurie King, largely because she focuses not on Holmes but on Mary Russell, the young wife who marries Holmes after his retirement. At first I felt that the Sherlockian might also rise above the usual attempts to recreate Doyle's genius as it focused, not on Holmes but on Conan Doyle himself in one time period and on young Harold White, an inductee into the Baker Street Irregulars in the current time period.

It is an interesting concept and I wasn't really bothered by Moore's technique of alternating chapters in each storyline, except I just couldn't get interested in the modern day story. I found White to be a weak, annoying character who really did not emulate Holmes all that well, but often seemed more like a bumbling Watson. The storyline of looking for Doyle's missing diary from the time period after Holmes "died" at Reichenbach Falls didn't do much for me and I found that as this storyline continued, it became more and more jumbled till it ended in what I considered to be a major cop out by the author.

I found the storyline focusing on Conan Doyle to be much more interesting and enjoyable, especially as so much of it mirrored what we know to be historically accurate. The use of Bram Stoker as a foil to Doyle's efforts to play Holmes added an interesting dynamic. I probably would have given the book a much higher rating except for the ending of this storyline which I found extremely abhorrent and out of character for what we know about Conan Doyle.

Would I read another book by Moore focusing on these characters? I doubt it. It took me a very long time to get into this book, and the only reason I expended the effort was because my husband recommended it to me and he knows my tastes well enough that I figured there must have been a reason. I did eventually get drawn into it to the point where I had a hard time putting it down, only to feel bitterly disappointed at the unsatisfactory ending of both threads. I am now left with a sense that I really wasted my time and would have been much better off quitting the book before I got too heavily involved in it.