The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - The Moonstone's Curse

by Sam Siciliano

The aristocratic Charles Bromley arrives at 221B Baker Street to beg SHERLOCK HOLMES for his help. Bromley believes that his wife is in danger, as she has refused an offer to sell the Moonstone, a fabulous diamond that has been in her family for generations but which is said to be cursed. When a jeweller is found murdered, it seems as if the Moonstone deserves its reputation. Then the diamond is stolen, and Holmes must try to unravel a mystery centuries in the making.

Genres: Mystery, Historical Mystery, Fiction, Thriller

336 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2017

Reviews

[Dale · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fabulous gem with a murderous spirit attached to it!

Siciliano is back with more blending of various authors! Siciliano’s chosen author for this volume is Wilke Collins. The book is presented as a kind of sequel to Collins’ novel The Moonstone.

The accursed jewel has passed down to a lady called Alice Bromley. Once part of an Indian temple statue, the stone had been stolen many years ago. Charles Bromley, husband to Alice comes to 221B citing danger to his wife and asking Holmes for help.

As usual with Sam Siciliano, Doctor Henry Vernier takes Watson’s place in the adventure. In fact, Holmes dismisses Watson’s writings as “mostly fiction.” Vernier is Holmes’ cousin and Vernier’s wife, lady Doctor Michelle Doudet Vernier plays her part as well.

The book uses subtle hints and clues carefully, revealing just enough to tantalize the reader and keep him or her hooked. A steady pace helps, rather than hinders the plot, making time to fully develop all of the characters.

There is one thing that maybe I missed, but I don’t think so. In the final reveal, it seems some of those involved are never clearly identified. I guess I could have missed something, but going back and rereading the last several chapters still left me unsatisfied.

If you can get beyond the fact that Watson doesn’t appear in the story as narrator, or indeed at all, the story isn’t all that bad. It is just a bit lose in the end. The mystery is solved, some crooked people identified, but not all of them I believe.

I give the book three and one-half stars…

Quoth the Raven…

[R. G. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Skimmed the last 100 pages. The case was the only interesting thing about the book. Holmes felt off. The Watson-replacement was a boob-watching Gary Stu. I need a palate cleanser now.

[Cindy Ladensack · Rating 2 out of 5]

I usually do enjoy these fresh takes on Sherlock Holmes, but this one had a couple of things that I just couldn't get past: first, the replacement Watson. Ugh, was he tedious! We get it, he is a 'bosom' man, and he thinks his wife is super hot. Two, the setup for the burglary was ridiculous; I can't believe that Holmes would have let that happen. And three, the wrap-up at the end was too long -- I just skimmed it. Interesting concept but just didn't live up to its premise.

[Peter Graff · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nothing memorable about this Holmes, the mystery, or the characters. Mostly a period-piece about Victorian apparel

[Tony · Rating 1 out of 5]

Incredibly boring until the last 2 or 3 chapters. Watson is gone, replaced by Sherlock's horny cousin. Author seemed to have a fixation with everyone's clothing.

[Tiffany · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an okay but disappointing read. Usually, I love Sherlockian retellings and have patience for them, but this book really tried that patience. The sad thing is that I do like the mystery of this book and the tie in to Wilkie Collins' 'The Moonstone' was pretty good. The problems I had with Siciliano are as follows:

1. He clearly hates John Watson enough that he REPLACED him entirely with a watered down Gary Stu wannabe replacement.

2. His attempts to humanize Sherlock Holmes falls flat when he literally dismisses Conan Doyle's canon all because Watson is the one who documents most of the cases.

3. I got annoyed with the author when I felt he didn't understand that he was using borrowed characters from another canon. While I appreciate Siciliano's contributions to the realm of Sherlock Holmes retellings, somebody's got to tell the fool that he's playing in somebody else's garden and that character hate for the sake of introducing a poorly developed self insert Stu is NOT cool.

I do have another book by this author titled: The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - The Devil and the Four. I do know that this is also a book that has eliminated Watson entirely from the narrative, but I am interested in knowing if the writer has improved, so I will be reading that one in the very near future.

[Hastings75 · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great read.

Can’t believe I haven’t come across Sam Siciliano’s Holmes before! Thoroughly enjoyable read and a great surprise find (full credit to the friend who brought it for me after a hard week at work!).👍

[Stuart · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting mystery combined with an emotionally supportive Sherlock Holmes and a Watson shaped hole...

I have been really enjoying the continuation of the Sherlock Holmes story-line and each authors different take on the famous detective. Personally I felt that The Moonstone Curse was too much of a departure from the kind of Sherlock Holmes novel I enjoy. This is mostly a continuation of Sam Siciliano's favourite novel The Moonstone with a Sherlock Holmes coating. The plot centres around the possible theft of the Moonstone Diamond, a gem stolen generations ago and handed down through Alice Bromley's family tree. The Bromley's are concerned about the jewel being stolen and have asked Sherlock to investigate who would want to steal the diamond and how they might achieve that goal.

I thought the Moonstone Diamond plotline was good, a well rounded mystery with many different elements and characters. Did it need to be a Sherlock Holmes novel...? No it did not. I think Sam Siciliano's writing is an acquired taste. He focuses on romance, class, relationships and culture, which I can appreciate fully but just not as part of Sherlock Holmes' canon. Siciliano has crafted a decent plot with plenty of avenues of investigation. There is death, mystery and several quality plot twists to keep readers interested. I felt that rich people moaning about their first world problems slightly grating but it was all included to build atmosphere and connect the characters together.

I didn't like the fact that Watson wasn't involved. He has driven away by Sherlock and replaced with his cousin, Dr Henry Vernier. Vernier is an alright companion, but he is more interested in bedding his wife than he is on figuring out the case. Finally, Sherlock is much more emotionally involved in The Moonstone Curse which I am not used too. There is very little back and forth between the two main characters which is a massive shame as I enjoyed the awkward dynamic that Holmes and Watson share.

There are some excellent and important themes included here. Duality; good vs evil. There is culture, religion, curses, handling sexism, jealousy and sexuality. I found myself guessing (wrongly...) all the way through, trying to get a head of the plot and figure it out. I also enjoyed the early 20th century pop culture references. Had this been a sequel to Siciliano's favourite novel The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins (without the Sherlock veneer) then this would have been so much better. The constant and awkward comparisons that naturally occur between Sherlock novels makes The Moonstone Curse feel drastically out of place.

Overall, I think Siciliano's attempt to juggle the Sherlock lore, with the noticeable changes, and the continuation of Collins' The Moonstone was far too much for such a short novel. This book has done Sherlock Holmes no justice in my opinion. Luckily things that don't suit me will almost definitely suit plenty of other readers. If you are interested in mystery novels that are focused on culture and romance then this will be perfect for you. I have given The Moonstone Curse 2.5/5 because though I enjoyed about half of the novel, I spent the other half disappointed.

[Storie Lynch · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this book, the notorious detective Sherlock Holmes and his assistant, Doctor Vernier, investigate the the Bromley family after Charles Bromley came to them with concerns for his wife, Alice. Convinced that she is cursed by having the stone in her possession, Alice’s mental health is slowly deteriorating. After weeks of no new leads, the investigation suddenly picks up after a dinner party when the diamond is stolen. In the end, Sherlock Holmes, with the help of the doctor and the police, lives up to his reputation and finds out who stole the moonstone, and also comes to a conclusion as to whether the stone is really as cursed as everyone thinks it is. I enjoyed this book very much, because it was suspenseful and filled with action and mystery. In addition, it was easy to get into and it was interesting the whole time I was reading it. I would suggest this book to the type of reader who enjoys mysteries, as well as many cliff hangers. I would also suggest this to someone who likes complicated yet interesting plot lines.

[Angie Shoemaker · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun book for me to read. It was light-hearted after my last read. It had a Sherlock character who, although he is written by a modern author, isn’t addicted to drugs or acting like a lunatic. Sherlock’s sidekick, Dr. Vernier, is wonderful. I love how he is devoted to his wife and is a completely good person. This was a quick, refreshing read, which was just what I needed.

[Calvin Daniels · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a full three.

I appreciate stories that change up things, like no Watson. Sadly Dr. Vernier as narrator is bland to the extreme.

As a result the book was tedious at times, being 30-40 pages too long in my mind.

[Kathryn · Rating 2 out of 5]

I made it to page 72 and had enough simply because there wasn’t enough happening! Actually nothing was happening…but a lot of talking. I was too bored to be concerned if anything actually does happen. Don’t recommend.

[Ryan Hastings · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book, once again. This one however I thought was a tad too obvious, or perhaps my skills are just vastly improving after reading 2 previous ones

[Parthiv · Rating 3 out of 5]

Doesnt feel like Holmes, (and what happened to Watson?!?!), but a decent mystery in itself

[D. Wickles · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoy Sherlock Holmes stories, but this one was without Dr. Watson. I missed him.

[Bertha · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was the first book in the series that I read. The book was well written and easy to read but I missed having Watson in the story. I felt Sherlock's cousin, Dr. Henry Verner, wasn't really necessary to the story line.
I won this book from Goodreads and have voluntarily reviewed it.

[Rosie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I normally just like to stick to my romance books, but I'm glad I tried this.

[Ann Theis]

PW

[Clipinchick]

I received this book for free from the author/publisher in response for an honest review of the book. I have not had the opportunity to read this book at this time. I will add my review of this book once I have read the book. Thank k you for allowing me the optometrist review your work. I look forward to reading this book.