News — the sherlock holmes society of london

Sherlock Holmes Society of London "A handsome hardback novel by Diane Gilbert Madsen. The Conan Doyle Notes: The Secret of Jack the Ripper is the third DD McGil Literati Mystery, the first two being published by Midnight Ink. Some of the characters bear canonical names, but this is set in present-day America. An apparently routine fraud case for insurance investigator DD McGil interweaves with a more curious matter, a murderous assault on a friend of hers and the theft of an old diary that hints at a momentous discovery – Arthur Conan Doyle’s own notes on the Whitechapel murders and the identity...

"Sherlock Holmes: The Scottish Question, or Sons of the Thistle by Mike Hogan  seems singularly appropriate to the year of the Scottish referendum, as it starts with the reported theft of the Coronation Stone from Westminster Abbey (but is it the real Stone of Destiny?), leading Holmes to uncover a plot by Scottish nationalists to destroy the Union. In the shadows, behind the plot, is a foreign power, whose aim goes beyond the dismantling of the United Kingdom. Terrorism, espionage, danger and hair’s-breadth escapes make The Scottish Question apolitical thriller rather than a detective story – and why not? There’s...

"Due on 12 September is A Scandal in Bohemia, adapted as a graphic novel by the brilliant Czech illustrator Petr Kopl and translated (back) into English by Paul & Jana Simpson. Actually there are two adventures here, the other being ‘The Speckled Band’, and both serve to show Holmes that women can be just as courageous and intelligent as men – much to Watson’s satisfaction. The result is a feast for the eye and the imagination. The vivid, exciting text is enhanced by artwork that’s by turns deeply atmospheric and devastatingly funny – and often beautiful. This is a thoroughly classy production (MX Publishing;www.mxpublishing.co.uk). The original won the 2013 Fabula Rasa Czech Award for...

"Volume 1 of A Study in Terror: Sir Arthur Conan  Doyle’s Revolutionary Stories of Fear and the  Supernatural, edited by Derrick Belanger. The  influence of Poe on Conan Doyle wasn’t limited to his  stories of detection: the tales of mystery and imagination  left their mark as well. ACD didn’t write very much in  that vein, but the best of it can be classed with the best of  Poe. Here are eight stories – ‘The Terror of Blue John  Gap’, ‘The Horror of the Heights’, ‘The Captain of the  Pole Star’, ‘J Habakuk Jephson’s Statement’, ‘The  Leather Funnel’, ‘The Silver Mirror’,...

“Project Two, to One, Be: Sherlock Holmes and a House of Light, Shadows and Views edited by Carrie Carlson & Lynn Gale. John Gibson has written the introduction, and the foreword is by Laurie R King. There follow nearly 140 pages of essays, long and short, enhanced by photographs and original artwork, some of it, like Riley  Stark’s cover design, outstanding. Ms Carlson notes:  ‘Not all of our contributors are professionals in their chosen medium, and many of the writers are non-native English Speakers, and yet they all speak from the heart.” All the royalties from the book go to the...