Many of you might have already heard and may have even read the latest addition to the Holmes collection - The House of Silk by Anthony Horowitz. For those who haven't heard about it yet; this is the first officially authorized Sherlock Holmes novel by the Conan Doyle Estate since the actual series. It was published in November 2011.
The plot as narrated by Dr. Watson, who is still alive, was an unpublished story from the Holmes collection due to its sensitive nature, which ultimately got published after a 100 years from the period it actually happened. There are no gimmicks to make this plot believable, it simply mentions this and straightaway goes into the story.
The story revolves around a double murder, seemingly unrelated but ultimately ending up together in a serious social issue. As a Holmes fan and a reader, the book will take you to a ride back in time through the streets of London and it almost touches all the key elements that the books were known for: his deductive skills, gangs, street urchins, mistaken identities, unusual twists including Holmes walking into a trap(though intentionally) and numerous references made by Watson to various stories in the actual series. Even key characters from the actual series make an appearance at many points (cannot reveal more here, but there are surprise cameos, it may be a touch modern in that sense).
The most important deviation from the original series would be the emotional side that has been brought in. For instance, it includes apologies from Watson to Lestrade through his writings. More importantly another side of Holmes and someone else ('guess who?') is revealed as the story goes forward. No, there is no romance here :)
The narrative is smooth and is kept as close as possible to the original write ups. To sum it up the book is worth reading this Christmas season and it will take you back to those good old Holmseian days. So go for it!
Verdict: Must read for fans!
The plot as narrated by Dr. Watson, who is still alive, was an unpublished story from the Holmes collection due to its sensitive nature, which ultimately got published after a 100 years from the period it actually happened. There are no gimmicks to make this plot believable, it simply mentions this and straightaway goes into the story.
The story revolves around a double murder, seemingly unrelated but ultimately ending up together in a serious social issue. As a Holmes fan and a reader, the book will take you to a ride back in time through the streets of London and it almost touches all the key elements that the books were known for: his deductive skills, gangs, street urchins, mistaken identities, unusual twists including Holmes walking into a trap(though intentionally) and numerous references made by Watson to various stories in the actual series. Even key characters from the actual series make an appearance at many points (cannot reveal more here, but there are surprise cameos, it may be a touch modern in that sense).
The most important deviation from the original series would be the emotional side that has been brought in. For instance, it includes apologies from Watson to Lestrade through his writings. More importantly another side of Holmes and someone else ('guess who?') is revealed as the story goes forward. No, there is no romance here :)
The narrative is smooth and is kept as close as possible to the original write ups. To sum it up the book is worth reading this Christmas season and it will take you back to those good old Holmseian days. So go for it!
Verdict: Must read for fans!
No comments:
Post a Comment