Yes, another Sherlock Holmes anthology. This one is really good, with the authors depicting Holmes and Watson in wildly new ways; alternative history for fictional characters.
Only one story out of fourteen didn't resonate with me: "Half There/All There," by Glen Mehn. It was set in Andy Warhol's Factory; the Bohemian nature was off-putting but I did like the reference to Irene Adler planning RFK's assassination. For the one dud, though, there are five others that are truly excellent. "The Final Conjuration," by Adrian Tchaikovsky is probably my favorite. It is a pure fantasy complete with magic and wizards, where the Elizabethan Holmes is summoned as a demon. The ending here was awesome, being an explanation of how Holmes survived Reichenbach Falls. Two others are hard science fiction: "A Woman's Place," by Emma Newman and "The Small World of 221B," by Ian Edginton. Newman has Mrs. Hudson take center stage as she is revealed to be the genetic mastermind responsible for both Holmes and Moriarty, and Edginton crafts a story strongly reminiscent of the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Elementary, Dear Data." "A Study in Scarborough," by Guy Adams was a bit more traditional—Holmes and Watson are depicted as world-famous radio stars—but with a great twist at the conclusion. The final entry in this volume was very meta: "Parallels," by Jenni Hill creates a story the main character is an author that writes Holmesian fan fiction!
In total, I found this to be an above average collection with a diverse group of settings. Thoroughly enjoyable.
Sherlock Holmes owes a lot to the revisionists.
No comments:
Post a Comment