Sherlock Holmes fiction please?

[Gaith]

FYI: There are two sequels to The Seven Percent Solution: The West End Horror and The Canary Trainer. Although the first book is far and away the best of the three.

These are the only non-Doyle Holmes books I've read, and I liked them a lot. Seven Percent is by far the strongest as everyone seems to be saying.

I love all three of Meyer's books, and, goofy though it may be, kinda love The Canary Trainer the most. Anyhow, in my personal Holmes fan canon, these stories happened, and, per Meyer's Watson's introduction in T7PCS, "The Final Problem", "The Empty House", "The Creeping Man" and several other Doyle stories didn't.

 

[Allyn Gibson]

i guess i should mention i read The Beekeeper's Apprentice by Laurie R. King last month. didn't really care for it. there were parts i enjoyed, parts were just dry and boring, and other parts were very predictable. still, it was an interesting WWI era take on Holmes.

I find it difficult to think of King's novels as Sherlock Holmes novels. She would say that they're Mary Russell novels that happen to costar Sherlock Holmes, but I think it's something deeper than that. When she wrote Beekeeper's Apprentice, she was, by her own admission, wholly unfamiliar with the Canon, and she based her Holmes and her Watson on Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce, which she did know.

The one book in the series that I think is worthwhile as a Holmes novel is the fourth, The Moor. It's a sequel to The Hound of the Baskervilles. A Letter of Mary has some points of interest, the biggest one of which might be the appearance of Dorothy Sayers' Peter Wimsey; King thought the character was in the public domain, and he's not.

 

[Greg Cox]

FYI: There are two sequels to The Seven Percent Solution: The West End Horror and The Canary Trainer. Although the first book is far and away the best of the three.

These are the only non-Doyle Holmes books I've read, and I liked them a lot. Seven Percent is by far the strongest as everyone seems to be saying.

I love all three of Meyer's books, and, goofy though it may be, kinda love The Canary Trainer the most. Anyhow, in my personal Holmes fan canon, these stories happened, and, per Meyer's Watson's introduction in T7PCS, "The Final Problem", "The Empty House", "The Creeping Man" and several other Doyle stories didn't.

I enjoyed The Canary Trainer, too. To my mind, The West End Horror is the weakest of the three. Granted, it's been ages since I read it but I remembering thinking that the plot was a bit on the thin side; it mostly seemed like an excuse to have Holmes and Watson bump into Oscar Wilde and Bram Stoker and other luminaries . . . .

 

[The Grim Ghost]

Not Sherlock Holmes exactly.. but you might be interested in checking out August Derleth's Solar Pons series.

It's a Holmes pastiche. There are a lot of them. Derleth did a lot of Lovecraft pastiche stuff as well so you may be familiar with him through that.

 

[Saga]

i guess i should mention i read The Beekeeper's Apprentice by Laurie R. King last month. didn't really care for it. there were parts i enjoyed, parts were just dry and boring, and other parts were very predictable. still, it was an interesting WWI era take on Holmes.

I find it difficult to think of King's novels as Sherlock Holmes novels. She would say that they're Mary Russell novels that happen to costar Sherlock Holmes, but I think it's something deeper than that. When she wrote Beekeeper's Apprentice, she was, by her own admission, wholly unfamiliar with the Canon, and she based her Holmes and her Watson on Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce, which she did know.

The one book in the series that I think is worthwhile as a Holmes novel is the fourth, The Moor. It's a sequel to The Hound of the Baskervilles. A Letter of Mary has some points of interest, the biggest one of which might be the appearance of Dorothy Sayers' Peter Wimsey; King thought the character was in the public domain, and he's not.

i wanted to like Mary Russell, but i just couldn't get into the character. i doubt i'll read any of the other books in that series.

 

[Gaith]

I enjoyed The Canary Trainer, too. To my mind, The West End Horror is the weakest of the three. Granted, it's been ages since I read it but I remembering thinking that the plot was a bit on the thin side; it mostly seemed like an excuse to have Holmes and Watson bump into Oscar Wilde and Bram Stoker and other luminaries . . . .

I see what you mean, but, two points:

1) All the historical characters actually were in London, doing more or less what the novel has them doing, at the time in question. (T7PCS, on the other hand, takes place before the real Anna Freud was born.) Just a fun tidbit.

2) The totally awesome finale might well have the biggest implications for history as a whole.

Really, all three pastiches are so tonally and thematically unique that I have a hard time calling any one better than the others. A- for all of 'em from moi.

 

[ClayinCA]

There's a really good Doctor Who/Sherlock Holmes crossover novel, All-Consuming Fire by Andy Lane (who, as Andrew Lane, has recently been writing a series of Young Sherlock books, which I haven't read myself but hear good things about). All-Consuming is part of the Doctor Who New Adventures novels published in the Nineties, and it's really rather good, being almost a Doctor Who and Holmes story each in equal parts (it's even about 50% narrated by Watson). There's a wonderful moment where Holmes tries to deduce things about the Doctor by the cut of his clothes (out of Holmes' frame of reference because they were made in another time) or the speck of mud on his shoe (which comes from another planet entirely, so Holmes can't make anything of it). Holmes does manage to win one or two over on the Doctor as well, though, and I'd love to see the book adapted into a crossover between Steven Moffat's two series.

 

[Allyn Gibson]

There's a really good Doctor Who/Sherlock Holmes crossover novel, All-Consuming Fire by Andy Lane (who, as Andrew Lane, has recently been writing a series of Young Sherlock books, which I haven't read myself but hear good things about).

I've read the first one, Death Cloud. It's nice. It's not Watsonian, for some very obvious reasons, but it's still an enjoyable read.

All-Consuming is part of the Doctor Who New Adventures novels published in the Nineties, and it's really rather good, being almost a Doctor Who and Holmes story each in equal parts (it's even about 50% narrated by Watson).

I think it's more like 80% Watson. And then there's Benny's notes, but they're not that much of the book.

Holmes and Watson later appear as guests at Benny's wedding in Happy Endings, as I recall.

Sherlock Holmes also appears in two Doctor Who spin-off novels in the Faction Paradox line -- Of the City of the Saved by Philip Purser Hallard and Erasing Sherlock by Kelly Hale.

I'd love to see the book adapted into a crossover between Steven Moffat's two series.

I thinK Moffat and Gatiss could aim a higher than adapting a nearly twenty year old novel.

I could see Moffat doing something fun -- a Doctor Who episode on a Saturday night. Contemporary adventure in London. Then, on Sunday night's Sherlock, you see the same adventure from the perspective of Sherlock and John. Each episode would be self-contained. They would even share guest-stars. But here's the thing -- the Doctor and Sherlock don't actually meet. The Doctor does things that affect Sherlock's investigation. Sherlock does things that upset the Doctor's plans. I could see Moffat trying this just for the challenge.

 

[DrMaturin]

Not Sherlock Holmes exactly.. but you might be interested in checking out August Derleth's Solar Pons series.

It's a Holmes pastiche. There are a lot of them. Derleth did a lot of Lovecraft pastiche stuff as well so you may be familiar with him through that.

I'll also second the Solar Pons series by Derleth who may be better known for his Arkham House connections.

You also might want to try The Caves of Steel and The Naked Sun by - I forget .

If you want to dig beneath the stories look at the two volume set The Annotated Sherlock Holmes ed by William S. Barring-Gould, which I read or the updated version - the New Annotated Sherlock Holmes ed by Leslie Klinger. This looks like a candidate for an ebook since my copy weighs about 11 lbs.

 

[Cutter John]

Many thanks everyone. Been enjoying the discussion and been taking notes.

I'm currently finishing up the original tales by listening to "The Casebook of..." on audiobook, read by Derek Jacobi. Lord than man has an amazing voice.

 

[Captain Dago]

I'll second the nomination of "The Annotated Sherlock Holmes," edited by William S. Baring-Gould. Just finished re-reading it myself for the umpteenth time in the last 40 years.

 

[Kirkman1987]

I have the three volume Leslie Klinger annotated edition and return to it often. Its packed with illustrations (Sidney Paget and others), historical notes, and fun nitpicking. It's also one of the most handsome books I've ever seen, especially if you can get it in it's original hardcover with slipcase version.

This thread has been helpful to me as well. I'll be adding a few suggestions to my reading list.

 

[Allyn Gibson]

Not a book, but this autumn production begins on a new film, Sherlock Holmes Vs. Frankenstein. If the production company's website (the distributor, too) is to be believed, Nicholas Rowe and Alan Cox are reprising their roles from Young Sherlock Holmes!

 

[Christopher]

Not a book, but this autumn production begins on a new film, Sherlock Holmes Vs. Frankenstein. If the production company's website (the distributor, too) is to be believed, Nicholas Rowe and Alan Cox are reprising their roles from Young Sherlock Holmes!

If that's true, it's awesome. I've always wanted to see them reunite as the adult Holmes and Watson, though I would've preferred it to be in more of an A-list picture.

Plus they've cast Clement von Franckenstein as Baron Karl von Frankenstein. Cute. (Oh, and it looks like he had an uncredited bit part in Young Frankenstein too.)

 

[ClayinCA]

Not a book, but this autumn production begins on a new film, Sherlock Holmes Vs. Frankenstein. If the production company's website (the distributor, too) is to be believed, Nicholas Rowe and Alan Cox are reprising their roles from Young Sherlock Holmes!

If that's true, it's awesome. I've always wanted to see them reunite as the adult Holmes and Watson, though I would've preferred it to be in more of an A-list picture.

Plus they've cast Clement von Franckenstein as Baron Karl von Frankenstein. Cute. (Oh, and it looks like he had an uncredited bit part in Young Frankenstein too.)

Well, it's very difficult to tell from the stills provided, but Holmes sure doesn't look very much like Nicholas Rowe (unless Rowe has changed a lot, which is of course possible).

 

[Christopher]

Well, it's very difficult to tell from the stills provided, but Holmes sure doesn't look very much like Nicholas Rowe (unless Rowe has changed a lot, which is of course possible).

Considering that he was 19 then and 46 now, naturally he would've changed, and taking that into account, it definitely looks like the same person to me, in the shape of the eyes and nose and the overall bone structure.

 

[Lonemagpie]

^Not to mention Shane Briant reprising his role from Frankenstein And The Monster From Hell, according to their website.