CRIME Sherlock Holmes is at work in three stories: solving the problem of a hat and a goose in 'The Blue Carbuncle'; finding a missing fiancé in 'A Case of Identity'; and discovering the identity of a strange creature in 'The Yellow Face'. Dossiers: Conan Doyle Defends the Crew of the 'Titanic' Arthur Defends the Underdog
A dazzling collection of new Sherlock Holmes stories, which sees the detective solving fiendish crimes, many involving methods beloved of Victorian murderers, poison by arsenic or cyanide, or even by venomous arachnids and reptiles. The colourful cast of characters includes villains bent on vengeance, traitorous revolutionaries, unfaithful and greedy wives wishing to rid themselves of their husbands, unfaithful and greedy husbands ditto, gullible widows, charming seducers, and captivating con artists out to fleece the innocent. Whether at a circus at Ramsgate, a magic show at London's Egyptian Hall, a deadly séance on Hampstead Hill, a pagan Celtic ritual in rural Wales or over genteel teas in elegant mansions, our intrepid detective, assisted as always by the long-suffering Dr Watson, stays hot on the heels of the criminals. Susan Knight, author of the critically acclaimed Mrs Hudson Investigates series of books, ably takes on the persona of Dr Watson in these nine adventures, while remaining ever faithful to the canon.
Is Sherlock Holmes really as rational as he seems? He talks about the importance of reasoning and logic, but why then does he sometimes seem like a "strange Buddha"? On the other hand, why in The Sign of the Four does Watson smash a Buddha? What is going on in The Sign of the Four, that strange tale of Empire? What is going on in all the original sixty stories in "the canon"? In this study of the stories, Sheldon Goldfarb explores questions like these, from the significance of the eggs in "Thor Bridge" to the reason Watson keeps leaving Holmes for an insubstantial wife. What meanings lurk beneath the surface of these detective stories? Why is there an obsession with Napoleon in this story or an article on free trade in this other? Can we find answers to these questions? Perhaps. In any case, in this collection of essays (or "Musings") on each of the 60 stories, Dr. Goldfarb, an award-nominated mystery writer himself and the holder of a PhD in English literature, light-heartedly tries out a variety of perspectives, allowing readers to come to their own conclusions about such matters as the nature of the angel in "A Case of Identity" or the reason Holmes abandons his magnifying glass for binoculars in "Silver Blaze." Who brings binoculars to a horse race? Indeed.
