News — Sherlock Holmes and Arthur Conan Doyle

"This is Mr. McMullen’s second book of Sherlockian fiction and his gift for catching the reality of time and place is undiminished.  Since this book is about Irish History, it is a sad book.  It tells of the Easter Uprising of 1916 as experienced by Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson at the request of Mycroft Holmes.  The characters are mostly historic and are presented much as they were, flawed human beings trying to live up to their own ideals. My knowledge of 20th Century Irish History is spotty at best, so I cannot speak to the accuracy of Mr. McMullen’s portrayals,...

"This is another collection of tales by David Ruffle.  By my count it is his fourth collection, but I am not sure of the various publishing dates and editions involved.  This collection begins with a lengthy novella and includes a dozen or more, shorter items.  Those that are not fragments could be described as short stories.  Most have some Sherlockian content, but some have no relation to Holmes and Watson. The title story is quite interesting and draws its villain from deep in Holmes’ past.  Mycroft and Inspector Lestrade put in appearances and Dr. Watson pursues his second (or is she...

In the coming weeks the courts will make the final decision on Undershaw, Conan Doyle’s former home. It has been the subject of a long running battle between the developers who seek to destroy it, and the band of Sherlock Holmes fans who are fighting to save it and return it to its former glory. (Undershaw today, neglected and run down) The high court ruled in favour of the fans - the developers appealed - that was defeated too - now they have appealed the rejection of the appeal (come on....). Now we just have to wait for that to...

"This book is the second Sebastian McCabe – Jeff Cody mystery, following his earlier No Police Like Holmes.  This book lacks the impressive character set of eccentric Sherlockians encountered in the first, but it does present a dandy mystery and a new set of eccentrics.  This group are a bit more difficult to categorize, but they tend to come from the world of entertainment, if anywhere in particular. Much of the narrative concentrates on academic in-fighting, with our heroes in medias res.  We are treated to a double murder with theories obscured by facts and suspects just oozing both motives...

” Sherlock Holmes seems to be on everyone’s mind lately… including Amy Thomas’. She’s recently released a book entitled The Detective and the Woman, a tale of Holmes’ interactions with Irene Adler. Following my review of her novel, I got to chat with Amy, who provided some brilliant insights into Doyle’s stories. The Sherlock Holmes stories seem to be experiencing a particular boom of popularity lately, with the films and numerous TV series. Why, do you think, is Sherlock Holmes so popular, and why has he endured? Sherlock Holmes has always had a wide fanbase, even during the years when he...