Sherlock Holmes and a Hole in the Devil's Tail

by Viktor Messick

Holmes and Watson are handed the challenge of solving the London Tarot Murders, a dark episode which, to quote Dr. Watson's in his memoirs, "occupies a lofty place in the annals of all black deeds ever committed in the long memory of the ancient, regal city, higher even than the infamous affair with the Ripper."

Some fiend is brutally murdering random people in Lower Havering and pinning cards from the Italian deck upon their faces. And this string of killings appears to have some relation to the strange, unsolved slaying of the renowned solicitor Richard Corkright in his cozy, secure Merton office. The gauntlet is thrown down, and Holmes, at great risk to both himself and his faithful chronicler, snatches it up. But what price will the two valiant men pay for meddling in the affairs of the sinister Tarot Master?

Genres: Mystery

Audible Audio

Published September 23, 2016

Reviews

[Dale · Rating 5 out of 5]

A creepy little alleyway…


My thanks to Steve and Timi at MX Publishing for my review copy of this book. May Undershaw stand forever!


“The Devil’s Tail” is a narrow, twisting alley sometimes used by passersby to reach McGeady Street in Merton. A Mr. Richard Cockright was murdered there in his office. Cockright was a lawyer by trade.


The difficulty of this case is determining just how the murderer got in and out of the room. There seems to be no discernible secret entrance, but Holmes is certain that one is there. Curiously, there is a hole in the Devil’s Tail across from the back wall of Cockright’s office…


Meanwhile, there is another series of murders taking place. The so-called “Tarot Master” has been dropping bodies, seemingly at random, each marked with a Tarot card from a certain deck. The cards are linked to the method of murder. Stabbed victims are marked by the suite of swords, blunt force trauma victims by the suite of staves, and poison victims by the suite of cups.


Worse, the “Tarot Master” has actually contacted Holmes to dare the detective to catch him! The “Tarot Master” tells Holmes in advance there will be further victims. Cockright’s murder has no Tarot card with the body, and yet Holmes sees a connection between the cases. Even Watson wonders if the Great Detective is off his game for once…


I found the story to be a nice little mystery. There are twists, turns, and trails that run cold. A number of suspects are mentioned, and Holmes weighs the evidence with a scale that can find differences in weight to a microscopic degree. For Holmes the Devil is in the details which might just point back to a hole in the Devil’s Tail…


I give the book four stars. Unfortunately the pace varies, almost reaching a standstill at times. Overall, the book does have a real mystery and is within plausible limitations.


Quoth the Raven…


Buy It Here>

[Christopher Connell · Rating 2 out of 5]

An OK edition to my Sherlock condition. However, I feel the author Viktor Messick missed the mark and truly capturing the voice of Watson and Holmes. This Holmes is more condescending than Doyle's and I will be honest the author drones on and on when Holmes is talking. I really wanted to like this more. The premise is fascinating a killer who pins tarot cards to their victims, however the execution was lacking in this novel.

There were two parts that lines that were repeated; I don't think this takes away from the novel, but does show a lack of editing.

The narrator Kevin Theis is amazing, and I actually picked up the book solely on his performance in Ian Shimwell's works.

[fred jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting and entertaining addition to the Holmes universe. A series of brutal murders with a Tarot theme and the killing of a renowned solicitor draw Holmes and Watson into very different areas of London. The story is well written and has some excellent touches, the depictions of the leads are generally as they were originally described but I found some of the lesser characters a little weak. Narration is excellent with a good range and well performed.. I will definitely be listening to more of these. I received a complimentary copy of the audio and am leaving a voluntary honest review.

[Christopher Lutz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this one a lot. The mystery dealt with a series of serial murders and a seemingly unrelated incident involving a secret passage. The journey to unravel it was quite satisfying and the narrator did a quality job with the reading. His Holmes was particularly good. I noticed a few editing errors in the story but otherwise an enjoyable Sherlock Holmes adventure that very much captured the spirit and the voices of the original stories.

I received a free copy of the audio edition in exchange for a review.

[William Howle · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very short book, always surprised at the number of times the characters created by Conan Doyle have been used. This story revolves around the use of Tarot cards to plan a crime to kill someone to obtain an inheritance. The cards are used to eliminate by murder those people who have been involved in the death of the person who was providing the inheritance in his Will

[Ellen White · Rating 4 out of 5]

A twisted alleyway, a murder in the office, and Sherlock to figure out how.
A murder, but how the killer got in and out. His calling leaving tarot card Given audio for my voluntary review and my honest opinion. Found narration was good.

[Tony Ciak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Random people murdered with an Italian Taro Card pinned to their bodies; enter Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson. Who have been working on a locked room murder.

[Bargle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disappointing addition to the Holmes library. It often doesn't sound like a Watson story. The writer doesn't seem to quite be able to recreate the Doyle style. There are occasional bits of dialogue that don't ring true (old bean?). At least it's brief.