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The Moriarty Papers: The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes's Great Nemesis, Compiled by Colonel Sebasian Moran
The secret scrapbook of Professor James Moriarty, archenemy of Sherlock Holmes, contains diary entries, clippings, sketches, maps, diagrams, and more that reveal him as a criminal mastermind.
160 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2011
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews
February 16, 2021
What an interesting book! Quite different from all the Sherlock Holmes stories I've read so far..I looove Moriarty's diary entries. So fascinating to explore his thoughts and beliefs..
"Without me he would be nothing"
M.
"Without me he would be nothing"
M.
October 19, 2019
Let me start off by saying how pretty this book looks! I expected it to be a novel, but it’s more like a scrapbook, containing things like pictures, posters and maps, aiming to look like it really has been a collection of things written and kept by Moriarty and put together by Moran. So purely based on that, it’s already worth having.
However, content wise it’s not very outstanding. This book proposed the extreme theory . I did enjoy how Moriarty is being portrayed as a man who is obsessed by Sherlock; claiming he just finds him really annoying and arrogant, but somehow being unable to resist messing with him - and often failing when doing so, too. I also enjoyed the idea that almost all cases were in some way retracable to Moriarty (although not as a consulting criminal, but rather out of vengeance or boredom, which made it less interesting). However, it failed to hold my attention throughout the book, as a lot became repetitive and you’d really have to remember the cases well to see how Moriarty’s version differs from the original. That the entries weren’t in chronological order, was not helpful either. But the biggest bummer was, like the publishers admit as well: we still don’t really know who Moriarty was.
However, content wise it’s not very outstanding. This book proposed the extreme theory . I did enjoy how Moriarty is being portrayed as a man who is obsessed by Sherlock; claiming he just finds him really annoying and arrogant, but somehow being unable to resist messing with him - and often failing when doing so, too. I also enjoyed the idea that almost all cases were in some way retracable to Moriarty (although not as a consulting criminal, but rather out of vengeance or boredom, which made it less interesting). However, it failed to hold my attention throughout the book, as a lot became repetitive and you’d really have to remember the cases well to see how Moriarty’s version differs from the original. That the entries weren’t in chronological order, was not helpful either. But the biggest bummer was, like the publishers admit as well: we still don’t really know who Moriarty was.
September 22, 2019
Pasa por ser una compilación de varios documentos del Profesor Moriarty, efectuada por su clásico secuaz, el Coronel Sebastian Moran. El formato facsímil lo hace no brillante pero sí muy agradable, y esencialmente eso me invitó a traérmelo como recuerdo de mi paso por el Sherlock Holmes Museum Gift Shop (al museo en sí no entré porque había una cola intensa de turistas chinos, y además ni siquiera está en la dirección correcta). Los textos, narrados en primera persona por James Moriarty tienen bastante interés, puesto que ofrecen interpretaciones alternativas de algunos de los casos más sonados de Holmes. En general, cada caso se presenta como si hubiese sido una maquinación del Profesor, y la solución hallada por Holmes errónea o manipulada. El procedimiento puede tornarse en algún que otro punto forzado o repetitivo, pero tampoco es un libro para leer de tapa a contratapa. Me gusta la forma en la que está expresado el odio de Moriarty por Holmes, y en algunos puntos es bastante relatable. La frase de “una vez que se ha descartado lo imposible”, etcétera, siempre me pareció bastante estúpida, y me alegra que este Moriarty coincida conmigo.
June 26, 2018
I received an ARC from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for a review.
This was quite the interesting read. And for fans of Sherlock Holmes, it’s a must. Various classic Sherlock Holmes stories are told from professor Moriarty’s perspective, often with a flare for the dramatic, rich wit, and humour when some of them backfire. His schematics for various inventions, maps, and interactions with many famous people are included, as well as a few puzzles for the reader. Very cool book. I enjoyed it
This was quite the interesting read. And for fans of Sherlock Holmes, it’s a must. Various classic Sherlock Holmes stories are told from professor Moriarty’s perspective, often with a flare for the dramatic, rich wit, and humour when some of them backfire. His schematics for various inventions, maps, and interactions with many famous people are included, as well as a few puzzles for the reader. Very cool book. I enjoyed it
August 11, 2018
I read this as a bit of fun - and as a homage to the greatest fictional villain and criminal mastermind of all time - Professor James Moriarty.
Told from the point of view of one of Moriarty's henchmen, one Colonel Sebastian Moran, we have a compilation of notes, newspaper clippings, photos, diary notes, articles put together in a scrapbook. These items gives us an insight into the inner workings and thinking of Moriarty, who refers to Holmes as 'the insufferable prig", and has utter disdain for both Watson and Conan-Doyle.
What I liked was Moriarty's notes on Holmes' cases, also from his perspective, with a list of his own criminal operations and the results. Readers of Holmes will be very familiar with many of the listed case studies.
Its a bit of fun that will appeal to fans of Holmes and Moriarty. Definitely one for the collection!
Told from the point of view of one of Moriarty's henchmen, one Colonel Sebastian Moran, we have a compilation of notes, newspaper clippings, photos, diary notes, articles put together in a scrapbook. These items gives us an insight into the inner workings and thinking of Moriarty, who refers to Holmes as 'the insufferable prig", and has utter disdain for both Watson and Conan-Doyle.
What I liked was Moriarty's notes on Holmes' cases, also from his perspective, with a list of his own criminal operations and the results. Readers of Holmes will be very familiar with many of the listed case studies.
Its a bit of fun that will appeal to fans of Holmes and Moriarty. Definitely one for the collection!
April 3, 2019
Let me start by saying I really enjoy Sherlock stories, and I had really high hopes for this book when I found it in a Sherlock inspired section of a small bookstore. I saw it and immediately felt that it could contain a really great story from the perspective of Holmes greatest adversary. The style and art of the book hooked me in as I quickly flipped through the pages and I immediately purchased it.
After reading through the first dozen or so pages, however, I started to question what kind of story the book was really trying to tell, and by page twenty the disillusionment set in. Moriarty came through as more of a grade school child bickering about someone and constantly calling them names, not the great villainous character who endeavored in such deep and twisted plots as I recalled. The author tries to tie Moriarty into, literally, every Holmes story that Arthur Conan Doyle wrote and it often felt very forced. Every character from Doyle's stories is suddenly an agent of Moriarty, and every story is now initiated by Moriarty for one reason or another (attempting to steal an object, to punish an individual, etc).
I did read the entire book, and I do still greatly enjoy the style - the handwritten font, the imagery and drawings that embellish bits and pieces of the stories - but I would only recommend this for an absolute die-hard fan that wants to read every bit of Sherlockian literature there is.
After reading through the first dozen or so pages, however, I started to question what kind of story the book was really trying to tell, and by page twenty the disillusionment set in. Moriarty came through as more of a grade school child bickering about someone and constantly calling them names, not the great villainous character who endeavored in such deep and twisted plots as I recalled. The author tries to tie Moriarty into, literally, every Holmes story that Arthur Conan Doyle wrote and it often felt very forced. Every character from Doyle's stories is suddenly an agent of Moriarty, and every story is now initiated by Moriarty for one reason or another (attempting to steal an object, to punish an individual, etc).
I did read the entire book, and I do still greatly enjoy the style - the handwritten font, the imagery and drawings that embellish bits and pieces of the stories - but I would only recommend this for an absolute die-hard fan that wants to read every bit of Sherlockian literature there is.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 30, 2018
What a refreshingly original book! The Moriarty Press is the gathering of all documents that could be salvaged after this criminal mastermind's death by Colonel Sebastian Moran. Among photographs, sketches and notes, these pieces of texts give the readers a glimpse into the villain's mind and soul.
The Moriarty Press is a must-have books for all fans of Doyle's hero, Sherlock. Accompanied by stunning artwork, the book portrays Moriarty's genius in an incredibly fun and interesting way. This book is definitely recommended for fans of fiction.
The Moriarty Press is a must-have books for all fans of Doyle's hero, Sherlock. Accompanied by stunning artwork, the book portrays Moriarty's genius in an incredibly fun and interesting way. This book is definitely recommended for fans of fiction.
October 3, 2017
The Moriarty Papers es una obra basada en una recopilación de todas las cartas, papeles, notas, diarios, mapas, tarjetas y planos que Moriarty ha ido haciendo y escribiendo a lo largo de toda su vida. Nos introducimos plenamente en una de la mente más retorcidas de la literatura y la más odiada, y en parte envidiada, por Sherlock Holmes.
Nos adentramos de lleno en sus pensamientos más profundos al leer su diario, que data desde 1887 hasta 1894. En su diario prácticamente nos encontramos el odio que tenía hacia Sherlock y todos planes que hizo para conseguir deshacerse de él y de Watson.
Para leer más: https://antiasreadings.blogspot.com.e...
Nos adentramos de lleno en sus pensamientos más profundos al leer su diario, que data desde 1887 hasta 1894. En su diario prácticamente nos encontramos el odio que tenía hacia Sherlock y todos planes que hizo para conseguir deshacerse de él y de Watson.
Para leer más: https://antiasreadings.blogspot.com.e...
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December 10, 2018I honestly can´t review this book. I received a digital copy as an ARC but i can´t make it work properly with the software i have. A shame, because I was really interested and has great reviews.
March 5, 2020
Some interesting perspectives of some cases regarding the idea Moriarty had more fingers in more pies than we were led to believe.
However, at times the book could be a little confusing.
However, at times the book could be a little confusing.
July 25, 2012
Some suspension of disbelief required, I think, for the more hardcore Holmes fan, but I found the way Moriarty's diary was written (like an evil, sassy 15 year old girl) and Moran's footnotes remarkably enjoyable. Massively entertaining, and worthy of a position on the shelf of any Holmesian or appreciator of Victorian ephemera.
September 22, 2019
Nicely produced attempt at miniature art/coffee table book (book is size of a mass market paperback) with inventive content. As a piece of Holmesiana it requires a major suspension of disbelief, one must accept the idea that Moriarty was involved in every Holmes case, and survived his descent into Reichenbach Falls; and that every character in the stories, including Mrs Hudson, Mycroft Holmes and even Dr. Watson were on his payroll!
My personal belief is that Doyle took all of five minutes in coming up with the Professor, devising him as nothing more than an evil twin/dark reflection of Holmes. (He so hated his brilliant creation, he was plotting his literary death only a few stories into the Canon, his mother talked him out of doing so for several more stories. ) Doyle never quite justified Moriarty's evil reputation as the Napoleon of Crime, it has been left to pastiche writers to accomplish that. Doyle only created a means to an end. It is therefore ironic that Moriarty has come to represent the epitome of literary criminal masterminds.
Entertaining, and lavish, although plagued by visual and textual anachronisms (adhesive tape wasn't invented until 1920), the book is worth adding to the Holmes collection as an amusing sidelight.
My personal belief is that Doyle took all of five minutes in coming up with the Professor, devising him as nothing more than an evil twin/dark reflection of Holmes. (He so hated his brilliant creation, he was plotting his literary death only a few stories into the Canon, his mother talked him out of doing so for several more stories. ) Doyle never quite justified Moriarty's evil reputation as the Napoleon of Crime, it has been left to pastiche writers to accomplish that. Doyle only created a means to an end. It is therefore ironic that Moriarty has come to represent the epitome of literary criminal masterminds.
Entertaining, and lavish, although plagued by visual and textual anachronisms (adhesive tape wasn't invented until 1920), the book is worth adding to the Holmes collection as an amusing sidelight.
February 16, 2020
This is a mixed medium effort (mission reports interspersed with letters, writing in the margins, mechanical plans) so the visuals are nice looking and there are even two ciphers for you to solve. The book likely wouldn't have suffered for maybe spacing those sections which looked like cursive (very looping writing which sometimes interfered with deciphering it). Moriaty comes off quite cartoonishly - he has such a grand sense of his own importance that he disapproves of the KKK because he "cannot tolerate a rival organization overreaching him in terms of evil" and writes letters to the publisher's condemning the lack of himself in Doyle's books. He has only two modes in this book: lambasting Sherlock's stupidity or lauding his own evil genius which in this book's interpretation of events either outwits Sherlock at every turn or was hindered by his allies' incompetence. The mission reports are sparse on details of Moraity's brilliant plans - it requires the readers to be familiar with the Sherlock books and not just the cursory knowledge of who the characters are. There is also some stereotyping as apparently Americans are "vulgar, but effective" and women are all treacherous and unknowable.
August 12, 2018
I have conflicting feelings about this book. On the one hand, I love the concept, the art and the whole execution of the book. I especially enjoyed how they've managed to make Moriarty basically the exact same as Sherlock Holmes, i.e. they live on 221 C Butcher Street, Moriarty has his own "irregulars", the whole thing is compiled by Moran as Moriarty's "Watson" and throughout it all, Moriarty is determined not to be anything like Sherlock Holmes. On the other hand, the attempt to involve Moriarty in every single one of Sherlock's cases means that the explanation for why he is involved is often sketchy at best and doesn't really take the central conflict of the original story into account. Additionally, I enjoyed the aesthetic of much of the book being handwritten, but the font used to achieve this effect was so much like handwriting that it sometimes complicated my reading. Overall, I found the book fun and quirky, but not without its flaws. I recommend it for any Sherlockian in love with the character of Moriarty.
January 3, 2018
This is a very funny take on Moriarty - he comes across as writing his diary like he's Regina George. He's constantly complaining about the 'Baker Street Blunderer' like a forlorn teenager with a really bad crush. The suggestions everyone from Mrs Hudson to Lestrade were answering to him do, to be fair, make an upsetting amount of sense and his takes on the 'Adventures' as we know them are a mix of exasperation and bragging. The move to make Conan Doyle a paid writer for Holmes, rather than a fiction writer as we believe him to be, makes this book all the funnier.
Good for a Holmes fan and lovely because I picked it up at the Baker Street Museum but I think that unless you have read the stories in a bit of detail, a lot of this would go over your head. The book is excellently presented and 'complied', but there were so many parts it took a while for me to place because I haven't read any Holmes recently and I'm not sure that opens it up to as wide a readership as it could have had.
Good for a Holmes fan and lovely because I picked it up at the Baker Street Museum but I think that unless you have read the stories in a bit of detail, a lot of this would go over your head. The book is excellently presented and 'complied', but there were so many parts it took a while for me to place because I haven't read any Holmes recently and I'm not sure that opens it up to as wide a readership as it could have had.
October 22, 2022
The book is set up as if a (fictitious) publisher found an earlier publication by Colonel Sebastian Moran, Professor James Moriarty's #1 confidant. In this publication, Moran compiled old documents from Moriarty, mostly in no chronological order, and sold them to a publisher for lack of money. Among them are diary entries, protocols, designs for machines, drawings for experiments, collages and all sorts of other things. So you don't necessarily follow a consecutive story, but get insights into Moriarty's perspective on well-known Sherlock Holmes cases. If you have read those beforehand, you can place some connections, which almost adds some puzzle fun to the whole thing. I must admit, I have a few mixed feelings towards the portrayal of Moriarty. However, the impressions you get when leafing through Moriarty's thoughts and working methods are very exciting and interesting. As a Sherlock fan, I really enjoyed this extremely beautifully designed little book. :)
July 30, 2018
A fun conceit and concept that turns the Holmes' narratives on their heads with largely successful results. My only knock is that the format (diary entry, case file, then picture of some related invention, map, etc.) gets a little repetitive as the book moves along - a few more injections of Colonel's Moran's invective would have been appreciated. I would caution that this is not for a casual Holmes fan, as there are some deep track cross references and asides, especially as the collected papers aren't presented in chronological order. An enjoyable read for sure and a strong recommend for Sherlockians!
I received an ecopy from the publishers and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I received an ecopy from the publishers and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
July 2, 2018
Not bad, an interesting little insight into Sherlock Holmes' nemesis. I quite enjoyed it, it would be good to read as a companion to all the Holmes stories in order. The only thing that bothered me was the fact that EVERYONE seemed to work for Moriarty, all the police, even Watson! Why should Holmes be the only one to stand against him? That he is the mastermind behind every case also seems a little implausible, but hey, it doesn't have to be realistic. A bit of fun.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 31, 2017
Nice short book. Funny at times. It really gives you insight into the bright mind of Moriarty.
Not like all the other books. I found it unique.
Would recommend to people who are fans of the original works of Conan Doyle and to those who like any tv show or movie of Sherlock Holmes (except for maybe elementary considering that in that show moriarty is female and in the originals he's male).
Not like all the other books. I found it unique.
Would recommend to people who are fans of the original works of Conan Doyle and to those who like any tv show or movie of Sherlock Holmes (except for maybe elementary considering that in that show moriarty is female and in the originals he's male).
May 11, 2018
This is a fun read for fans of Sherlock Holmes. The book presents -- in the form of letters, photos, newspaper clippings, and journal entries collected by "Moran" -- the canon's stories and characters from Moriarty's perspective. One of the handwriting fonts was a bit difficult to read, but the theories about characters' backgrounds and various cases were amusing.
December 4, 2018
I was given this for free in exchange for an honest review. Here goes.
This was pretty boring. I’ll admit it was kind of interesting and had some potential to entice people to want to enjoy it. However, 80% of it was like listening to a guy complain about another person and how much better he is than than and how much better they are than everyone. It was exhausting.
This was pretty boring. I’ll admit it was kind of interesting and had some potential to entice people to want to enjoy it. However, 80% of it was like listening to a guy complain about another person and how much better he is than than and how much better they are than everyone. It was exhausting.
June 18, 2020
The edition is a good looking book. The graphics are outstanding and present really well. Unfortunately, the individual texts in the book are not what I expected the tone of Moriarty's writings should be like. They are presented as sidenotes and explanations of undertones of the different Sherlock Holmes cases, but feel too forced to me.
May 17, 2017
i always love me some good moriarty shit. my favorite parts were when Sebastian Moran was on a guest list as "Colonel James Moriarty" and that long letter at the end where Seb just complained about being left alone. ah, psychopathic gays are always great. :)
December 1, 2017
Beautiful little collection of papers, plans, diagrams and diary entries of Professor Moriarty, great for a gift to a Sherlock Holmes fan. The added comments in the margins by Col. Moran add a bit of humour to it, too.
October 10, 2019
Himmel, was für ein uninspiriertes Buch mit lauter platten Umdeutungen klassischer Holmes-Fälle. Einfälle, wie Moriarty in der Butcher Street 111c wohnen zu lassen, sind in ihrer Schlichtheit nicht zu unterbieten.
December 2, 2019
Content - it was okay - two stars
Style/format - really liked it (especially the fold-out map and illustrations)- four stars
Next time I read the Sherlock Holmes canon, I hope I remember to reference The Moriarty Papers; it'll be an entertaining juxtaposition of disparate minds.
Style/format - really liked it (especially the fold-out map and illustrations)- four stars
Next time I read the Sherlock Holmes canon, I hope I remember to reference The Moriarty Papers; it'll be an entertaining juxtaposition of disparate minds.
December 29, 2022
If you're looking for a detailed work of Sherlockian scholarship, this isn't the book for you. However, if you want to read a light-hearted story by an author who obviously knows their Sherlock Holmes, this is the book for you.
May 18, 2018
THis was an amazing book that was set up exactly like a journal. Perfect book for any sherlock holmes fans.
July 10, 2018
A different perspective on some well-loved stories. I received a copy from NetGalley and this is my honest review. I really loved this look at Holmes' cases through Moriarty's perspective.
August 22, 2018
Read this review and more at lucieninthestars.ca
Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews