Sherlock Holmes and The Folk Tale Mysteries - Volume 1

Sherlock Holmes and The Folk Tale Mysteries #1

by Gayle Lange Puhl

A home invasion results in property damage. Children disappear and a disgruntled ex-employee is suspected. Girl visits relative, walks in on scene of carnage. A man searches for days, seeking his lost love. A young woman accuses her father’s wife of attempted murder. Dramatic news from CNN? Stories ripped from today’s headlines? No, they are cases investigated by Mr. Sherlock Holmes and his intrepid companion and biographer, Dr. John H. Watson. Drawn into the dark underbelly of folk tale reality, Holmes and Watson travel the streets of London and into the far English countryside to discover the truth about some of the most famous accounts found in childhood literature. Described in Dr. Watson’s inimitable style and with the names changed to protect the innocent, these tales recount how Sherlock Holmes investigated cases involving missing children, a trio of brothers threatened with destruction and the contents of an ancient box that told a tale of heroism and death. Enter the world of the world’s first consulting detective. Stand again in Baker Street and look up at the windows of 221B. That shadow on the blind, is it Lestrade, coming to tell of a baffling case he has failed to solve? Or is it Mrs. Hudson, bring tea and sandwiches to a suffering client? Could it be the Great Detective himself, pacing up and down the length of the room, wrapping his mighty brain around yet another conundrum presented for his consideration? Join Dr. Watson in the adventures that live on these pages and you’ll never think the same about folk tales and nursery rhymes again.

Genres: Mystery

312 pages, Paperback

First published August 12, 2015

Reviews

[Jessica Fortin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Many of these tales take an unusual twist on the Grimm's fairy tales we all grew up with. Some took me a while to figure out which tales these stories were based on, but all were enjoyable. I like how the relationship between Holmes and Watson was handled as well. Gayle Lange Puhl has a fun take on two traditional genres.

[Dale · Rating 5 out of 5]

My thanks to Steve and Timi at MX Books for my review copy of this book, and for continuing to share Sherlock Holmes with the world!

These adventures of Sherlock Holmes are set in similar situations to Folk Tales such as “The Three Little Pigs” or “Red Riding Hood.” Placing Holmes in this world makes for some terrific stories.

This isn’t the world of Fairy Tales. The stories are not full of magical beings fairy godmothers, or The Wizard of Oz. The author states that the stories do not contain this element because “magic is illogical.” And yet there is an undercurrent of people and events that could be interrupted as “magical.”

Folk Tales were invented to make children aware of dangers in the world. There was a true fear of wolves, witches, devils, demons and such. To let children remember the danger, stories were written, often with a moral, to teach caution.

These tales are meant to teach people about Sherlock Holmes!

I am going to skip my usual detailed thoughts on each individual story, as I cannot see how to word the brief glimpse into each tale without spoiling the entire tale. Suffice to say that the reader will recognize where each tale merges with a popular Folk Tale. The situations will be very like the Folk Tale they represent, but remember this is Sherlock Holmes—not Humpty Dumpty.

“Ghosts need not apply.” said Holmes on the occasion of “The Sussex Vampire.” Logic and deduction take the place of magic and heroes. And it all is well written and great fun.

I give this volume of stories five stars…

Quoth the Raven…

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a free copy of this book through a Goodreads FirstReads giveaway.

First of all, I have to start off by saying my review might be a bit biased. I completed an undergraduate thesis on fairy tale subversion and Victorian writing, so I am already a bit infatuated with the combination of fairy tales and Victorian texts. Secondly, I am a HUGE fan of Sherlock Holmes, so I was ecstatic when I received a copy of this book.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. The author seamlessly integrates the folk tale tradition with the logical world of Sherlock Holmes. If you're a fan of Sherlock Holmes and fairy/folk tales, then this is a collection of stories you must read! I look forward to the next volume of stories.

On a minor side note, the only thing that bothered me about this book was that it seemed like I was reading a manuscript and not a finished version of the book. There were some typos in the text, and some sentences also broke off in the middle, with the other half continuing into the next paragraph. I found it a quite odd, and I don't know if it's just because I have an early version of the book or not, but I still enjoyed the stories regardless. :)