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Warlock Holmes #4
The Sign of the Nine
“If you ever wondered how much better Sherlock would be if people could hurl hellfire at each other, well this one is for you.” Starburst Magazine on A Study in Brimstone
Warlock Holmes may have demons in his head, but now Dr. John Watson has a mummy in his bloodstream. Specifically that of the sorcerer Xantharaxes, who when shredded and dissolved in an 8% solution, results in some extremely odd but useful prophetic dreams. There’s also the small matter of Watson falling for yet another damsel-du-jour, and Warlock deciding that his companion needs some domestic bliss…
Warlock Holmes may have demons in his head, but now Dr. John Watson has a mummy in his bloodstream. Specifically that of the sorcerer Xantharaxes, who when shredded and dissolved in an 8% solution, results in some extremely odd but useful prophetic dreams. There’s also the small matter of Watson falling for yet another damsel-du-jour, and Warlock deciding that his companion needs some domestic bliss…
400 pages, Paperback
First published May 21, 2019
48 people are currently reading
743 people want to read
About the author
G.S. Denning
8 books299 followersGabriel Denning was born and raised in Seattle. He has published articles for the popular games company Wizards of the Coast, worked as a editor, written a video-game script for Nintendo, and scripted and performed shows at the Epcot Center, Walt Disney World. He now lives in Las Vegas with his family.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 86 reviews
December 4, 2020
4 of 5 stars at The BiblioSanctum https://bibliosanctum.com/2019/06/03/...
The fourth Warlock Holmes book kind of snuck up on me, but it was met with welcome joy because of how much I love this series. I can always count on G.S. Denning’s sense of humor to make me laugh, and I was definitely not disappointed! The Sign of Nine might be my favorite since A Study in Brimstone, and even just the first chapter had rolling with laughter.
But first, a quick crash course for the uninitiated: Warlock Holmes is a creative reimagining of Sherlock Holmes, as you might have already guessed, cleverly injecting paranormal elements into the classic literary tales about the beloved detective character. However, what makes this series different—and why you should check it out—is its satirical spin, for in Denning’s retelling, Holmes is less of a brilliant deductive mastermind and more of a bumbling, incompetent idiot. For all that he can cast spells, read dreams, and commune with demons, on most days Warlock can hardly be counted upon to conduct his own business or even make his own tea without burning the house down around him. The truth is, the real genius living at 221B Baker Street is John Watson, Warlock’s more sensible and capable partner who helps keeps everyone in line and the place running smoothly.
But in the wake of My Grave Ritual, Watson has become seriously incapacitated by illness, his bloodstream having been contaminated by the essence of a sorcerer mummy which now gives him the power of prophetic dreams. In addition, he cannot seem to stop thinking about Irene Adler, the femme fatale who has become his latest obsession. This has caused Warlock Holmes no small amount of consternation and guilt, believing himself to be the cause of his partner’s injuries and misfortunes. Stepping up to become a better person, Holmes also attempts to distance himself from Watson in order to protect him from further harm.
Watson, however, would have none of it. Like the previous volumes, The Sign of Nine is presented as a series of short tales chronicling the adventures of the two men, as told from Watson’s point-of-view. Needless to say, the sudden reversal in their roles has made him cranky and indignant. Four books in though, it’s heartening to see how much their relationship has developed, and I’m also enjoying this fresh take on their usual dynamic. Watson, who has always prided himself on his intelligence and sophistication, is now shocked to find he has become the slovenly and unstable one. Holmes, on the other hand, has become the caregiver, looking out for Watson and making sure he doesn’t leave the house without putting on pants.
Fortunately, these changes have not affected the rhythm or tone of the humor, merely shifted it in a different direction so we can appreciate it from another angle. Watson is as witty as ever, and if anything, he’s even funnier in this book with a more sardonic and snarkier edge to his humor. Likewise, Warlock Holmes is still a loveable, blundering weirdo. Also, while I found the comedy in last couple of volumes to be slightly more slapstick, this one returns to a more balanced state between the subtle and the unsubtle, very similar to the way it was in A Study in Brimstone. Thing is, I don’t typically do well with too much silliness or juvenile humor, which is why, unsurprisingly, my favorite part of the book was all the clever wisecracks and rejoinders in the dialogue, not to mention how it was mostly the story’s satirical components that made me laugh. That said, Denning does silliness and slapstick in such a genuine, passionate and down-to-earth way that it’s hard to fault him too much, even when he’s pushing things over the top.
Speaking of which, the source material for Warlock Holmes is clearly just as important to the author as his creations, because he goes to great lengths to try and incorporate elements the original tales into this world in which Holmes is a warlock, Inspector Lestrade is a vampire, and Tobias Gregson is Torg Grogsson, an ogre. You can tell Denning is having a blast writing these books because a lot of that enthusiasm is transferred to the reader, explaining why even the shorter and less eventful tales were so enjoyable to read.
Here’s hoping that there will be more Warlock Holmes books in the future, especially with the larger series plot arc with Moriarty still unresolved. I’ve come to care a lot about these characters, and I can’t wait for another adventure with them.
The fourth Warlock Holmes book kind of snuck up on me, but it was met with welcome joy because of how much I love this series. I can always count on G.S. Denning’s sense of humor to make me laugh, and I was definitely not disappointed! The Sign of Nine might be my favorite since A Study in Brimstone, and even just the first chapter had rolling with laughter.
But first, a quick crash course for the uninitiated: Warlock Holmes is a creative reimagining of Sherlock Holmes, as you might have already guessed, cleverly injecting paranormal elements into the classic literary tales about the beloved detective character. However, what makes this series different—and why you should check it out—is its satirical spin, for in Denning’s retelling, Holmes is less of a brilliant deductive mastermind and more of a bumbling, incompetent idiot. For all that he can cast spells, read dreams, and commune with demons, on most days Warlock can hardly be counted upon to conduct his own business or even make his own tea without burning the house down around him. The truth is, the real genius living at 221B Baker Street is John Watson, Warlock’s more sensible and capable partner who helps keeps everyone in line and the place running smoothly.
But in the wake of My Grave Ritual, Watson has become seriously incapacitated by illness, his bloodstream having been contaminated by the essence of a sorcerer mummy which now gives him the power of prophetic dreams. In addition, he cannot seem to stop thinking about Irene Adler, the femme fatale who has become his latest obsession. This has caused Warlock Holmes no small amount of consternation and guilt, believing himself to be the cause of his partner’s injuries and misfortunes. Stepping up to become a better person, Holmes also attempts to distance himself from Watson in order to protect him from further harm.
Watson, however, would have none of it. Like the previous volumes, The Sign of Nine is presented as a series of short tales chronicling the adventures of the two men, as told from Watson’s point-of-view. Needless to say, the sudden reversal in their roles has made him cranky and indignant. Four books in though, it’s heartening to see how much their relationship has developed, and I’m also enjoying this fresh take on their usual dynamic. Watson, who has always prided himself on his intelligence and sophistication, is now shocked to find he has become the slovenly and unstable one. Holmes, on the other hand, has become the caregiver, looking out for Watson and making sure he doesn’t leave the house without putting on pants.
Fortunately, these changes have not affected the rhythm or tone of the humor, merely shifted it in a different direction so we can appreciate it from another angle. Watson is as witty as ever, and if anything, he’s even funnier in this book with a more sardonic and snarkier edge to his humor. Likewise, Warlock Holmes is still a loveable, blundering weirdo. Also, while I found the comedy in last couple of volumes to be slightly more slapstick, this one returns to a more balanced state between the subtle and the unsubtle, very similar to the way it was in A Study in Brimstone. Thing is, I don’t typically do well with too much silliness or juvenile humor, which is why, unsurprisingly, my favorite part of the book was all the clever wisecracks and rejoinders in the dialogue, not to mention how it was mostly the story’s satirical components that made me laugh. That said, Denning does silliness and slapstick in such a genuine, passionate and down-to-earth way that it’s hard to fault him too much, even when he’s pushing things over the top.
Speaking of which, the source material for Warlock Holmes is clearly just as important to the author as his creations, because he goes to great lengths to try and incorporate elements the original tales into this world in which Holmes is a warlock, Inspector Lestrade is a vampire, and Tobias Gregson is Torg Grogsson, an ogre. You can tell Denning is having a blast writing these books because a lot of that enthusiasm is transferred to the reader, explaining why even the shorter and less eventful tales were so enjoyable to read.
Here’s hoping that there will be more Warlock Holmes books in the future, especially with the larger series plot arc with Moriarty still unresolved. I’ve come to care a lot about these characters, and I can’t wait for another adventure with them.
Read
June 1, 2019I love this series. The name "Warlock Holmes" tells you everything--horror/Holmes mashup with jokes galore. This installment has a strong through-line plot which I felt the last slightly lacked, and still keeps the level of occult horror and excellent gags equally high. A vastly enjoyable read, ballasted by some real heart.
June 27, 2019
This fourth volume of the adventures of Warlock Holmes is the broadest sweeping narrative yet. Out-maneuvering Pinkerton detectives, overcoming Italian Mafioso’s, and uncovering folktale selkies, are just some of the encounters depicted in this paranormal spoof of Arthur Conan Doyle’s illustrious detective stories.
Our story begins as John Watson and Warlock Holmes reverse their characters more than usual for this author’s version of the famous duo. Watson, determined to find Moriarty and Adler, begins experimenting with introducing a 7% solution of mummified Persian sorcerer into his blood stream in hopes of inducing prophetic dreams.
Watson’s “dream sequences” populate every other story in this anthology of linked narratives, as Watson poisons his body and gains Holmes’ suspicions, under a drug-induced hallucinated state that shows him truths about Moriarty’s past. Watson’s addiction leads to an even greater role reversal for the master of deduction (Watson) and the bumbling sorcerer (Holmes) who is forced for once to be the responsible one, and attempt to save Watson’s life and soul in the process.
But how does Warlock manage to accomplish such a task with his limited understanding of humanity and human interactions? Holmes decides Watson needs a love interest of course. And naturally he chooses the latest damsel in distress to cross their paths, Mary Morstan. It doesn’t matter that Watson is not the least bit interested in her, not to Holmes. Because he has determined Mary will be John’s salvation, through a magical intervention that rocks the conclusion to this anthology.
G. S. Denning takes these well-beloved characters and molds them to fit perfectly into the new scenarios he has devised, while retaining enough of the original source material that they remain recognizable to fans of Conan Doyle. The author manages to seamlessly insert his own dramatic and paranormally influenced-material into the 1890’s vernacular, while his creations are at home discussing subjects of magic, sorcery, necromancy, and fairy tales.
While G. S. Denning is hardly the first author to imitate, or reimagine, the writings of the classic author, this book and the series are both a humorous and entertaining tribute, one I would recommend to any fans of either Sherlock Holmes or paranormal mysteries. I award The Sign of Nine five stars. I’m sad I have to wait almost another year for the next volume in the series.
Our story begins as John Watson and Warlock Holmes reverse their characters more than usual for this author’s version of the famous duo. Watson, determined to find Moriarty and Adler, begins experimenting with introducing a 7% solution of mummified Persian sorcerer into his blood stream in hopes of inducing prophetic dreams.
Watson’s “dream sequences” populate every other story in this anthology of linked narratives, as Watson poisons his body and gains Holmes’ suspicions, under a drug-induced hallucinated state that shows him truths about Moriarty’s past. Watson’s addiction leads to an even greater role reversal for the master of deduction (Watson) and the bumbling sorcerer (Holmes) who is forced for once to be the responsible one, and attempt to save Watson’s life and soul in the process.
But how does Warlock manage to accomplish such a task with his limited understanding of humanity and human interactions? Holmes decides Watson needs a love interest of course. And naturally he chooses the latest damsel in distress to cross their paths, Mary Morstan. It doesn’t matter that Watson is not the least bit interested in her, not to Holmes. Because he has determined Mary will be John’s salvation, through a magical intervention that rocks the conclusion to this anthology.
G. S. Denning takes these well-beloved characters and molds them to fit perfectly into the new scenarios he has devised, while retaining enough of the original source material that they remain recognizable to fans of Conan Doyle. The author manages to seamlessly insert his own dramatic and paranormally influenced-material into the 1890’s vernacular, while his creations are at home discussing subjects of magic, sorcery, necromancy, and fairy tales.
While G. S. Denning is hardly the first author to imitate, or reimagine, the writings of the classic author, this book and the series are both a humorous and entertaining tribute, one I would recommend to any fans of either Sherlock Holmes or paranormal mysteries. I award The Sign of Nine five stars. I’m sad I have to wait almost another year for the next volume in the series.
June 18, 2023
The Sign of Nine
By G.S. Denning
I love the Warlock Holmes books but this wasn't as funny as the other books. It was still entertaining and I am glad I read it but just not as good as the other ones.
By G.S. Denning
I love the Warlock Holmes books but this wasn't as funny as the other books. It was still entertaining and I am glad I read it but just not as good as the other ones.
July 7, 2019
I don't know why this series isn't more popular. I always look forward to a new Warlock novel, and this one did not disappoint. The humor is hilarious, and I just love the idea of a slightly incapable but totally adorable Warlock Holmes who needs his buddy Watson's deductive reasoning skills to solve his cases. In this one, Warlock has decided that his Watson needs some romance in his life, and the meddling is just adorable!!! I can't wait to see Watson face his nemesis (the woman!) in the next book :D
March 6, 2021
Another enjoyable enstallment in the series. Those characts just grew on me and their flaws/attitudes just make me laugh now.
June 2, 2023
Holmes and Watson are back and things are getting quite serious. Watson is still reeling from his encounter with Irene Adler, noted femme fatale and mastermind (someday I would like someone to interpret Irene as she is in the original story, which is to say, someone who just wants to be left alone to live her own life, but I suspect I will be waiting a long time for this). Love has made Watson kind of stupid, and he's taking some pretty serious risks, serious enough to worry Warlock "I know I'm endangering the world by using magic but it's just way more convenient" Holmes.
There's still plenty of humor to be found, with some sections being downright Pratchett-esque and a blink-and-you'll-miss-it homage to Lovecraft. The affectionate skewering of the original stories is hilarious, and I particularly appreciated the skewering of the more problematic and colonialist aspects of the original The Sign of Four (let's just say if Torg Groggson looks at you and says "you da worst," you've made some very bad choices).
Warlock is by far one of my favorite interpretations of Holmes, and I've run into many. His twisted logic and so-stupid-they're-brilliant theories, along with the fact that he's truly affectionate and loyal and cares about people, make him extremely endearing.
There's still plenty of humor to be found, with some sections being downright Pratchett-esque and a blink-and-you'll-miss-it homage to Lovecraft. The affectionate skewering of the original stories is hilarious, and I particularly appreciated the skewering of the more problematic and colonialist aspects of the original The Sign of Four (let's just say if Torg Groggson looks at you and says "you da worst," you've made some very bad choices).
Warlock is by far one of my favorite interpretations of Holmes, and I've run into many. His twisted logic and so-stupid-they're-brilliant theories, along with the fact that he's truly affectionate and loyal and cares about people, make him extremely endearing.
April 8, 2021
Very interesting and different view of the great detective. Fun and entertaining read. Recommended
July 3, 2019
Originally published at Risingshadow.
G. S. Denning's Warlock Holmes: The Sign of Nine is an excellent and much-awaited continuation of the Warlock Holmes series, which parodises and satirises Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories in a brilliant way. This amazing novel offers readers amusing and clever mysteries, delivered with precision and impeccable style.
The Sign of Nine is a splendid novel to everybody who loves humorous fantasy fiction and mystery stories. It's a wonderful and irresistibly original blend of fantasy, mystery and horror elements with plenty of inventiveness and charming wittiness. I'm sure that readers who love humorous stories will be impressed by this novel and its contents, because it's something different and unique.
I consider The Sign of Nine to be one of the most amusing and entertaining novels of the year, because the author has fully captured the essence of the original Sherlock Holmes stories and has boldly created his own stunningly original vision of the famous detective and his sidekick Dr. John Watson. Everything about this novel exudes originality and quality, because the author's take on Sherlock Holmes is absolutely hilarious in its shamelessly quirky approach to the source material.
This novel consists of the following stories:
- The Adventure of the Noble Arse-Face
- The Toymaker
- The Adventure of Beppo vs. Napoleon (A Fight in Six Rounds)
- The Devil and the Neophyte
- The Adventure of Black Peter Blackguard McNotVeryNice
- The Gang
- The Adventure of the Ring of Red Faction
- The Detective
- The Sign of Nine
As Dr. John Watson states in the first story, the first novel told of how the strange adventure began and the second one told of how Dr. Watson came into his own as an adventurer and detective, and the third novel told of how Moriarty and Adler came back into the lives of Dr. Watson and Warlock Holmes to bring them defeat upon defeat. Now, this fourth novel tells of Dr. Watson's addiction and shame.
In these stories, Warlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson deal - amongst other things - with Moriarty, Irene Adler and the treasure hunter Mary Morstan. This time, readers have an opportunity to read about how Watson injects himself with bits of shredded Persian mummy to learn more about James Moriarty and Irene Adler. Readers will learn what happens to Watson as he becomes addicted to the use of remains of the mummy.
The characterisation is spot-on in these stories, because the author has created fully-fleshed characters who are surprisingly far more interesting as persons than the original characters on which they are based on. I have to admit that I'm surprised at how much depth the characters have and how well they are portrayed, because the author pays attention to their characteristics and behaviour, not to mention their various flaws.
Here's a bit of information about the stories without spoilers:
"The Adventure of the Noble Arse-Face": This opening story finds Dr. John Watson recovering from what happened to him at the end of the previous novel. Dr. Watson and Warlock Holmes help a lord to find out what has happened to his bride.
In "The Toymaker", Dr. Watson dreams of an elderly toymaker and James Moriarty after injecting himself with a solution made of the shredded remains of the sorcerer Xantharaxes. I found this story fascinating, because it has a strange fairy tale kind of a feel to it.
In "The Adventure of Beppo vs. Napoleon (A Fight in Six Rounds)", the protagonists find themselves solving a mystery involving busts of Napoleon. I loved this story, because it's something different due to the perpetrator's identity.
"The Devil and the Neophyte" is an interesting dream sequence about Irene Adler, James Moriarty and a demon.
"The Adventure of Black Peter Blackguard McNotVeryNice" tells of how the protagonists are investigating the death of a man called Captain Peter Carey aka Black Peter. The revelations during the investigation are fascinating and surprising.
"The Gang" is a dream sequence about Moriarty, the toymaker and Irene Adler. I found this dream sequence especially intriguing, because it's sophisticatedly dark and is filled with a foreboding atmosphere.
In "The Adventure of the Ring of Red Faction", Warlock Holmes and Dr. Watson are asked to look into the matter of a mysterious lodger who has weaseled his way into the house of Mrs. Warren and doesn't come out of his rooms. The mysterious person has instructed Mrs. Warren not to try and find out anything about him.
"The Detective" is a dream sequence in which Watson dreams of something alarming and unexpected in the basement room. I was impressed by this dream, because it's sufficiently dark and revealing.
The final story, "The Sign of Nine", is a brilliantly realised novella-length story with a fine plot. In this story, Mary Morstan needs Warlock Holmes and Dr. Watson's help in a matter concerning a mysterious meeting she is supposed to attend. I enjoyed reading about Thaddeus Sholto, because the author's way of writing about him and his unusual appearance was thrilling. I was also pleasantly surprised about how the author wrote about what happened between Dr. Watson and Mary Morstan.
The dream sequences, which are taken from the dream journal of Dr. John Watson, are a great addition to the story, because they're well written and have quite a lot of dark fantasy elements. I was fascinated by Dr. Watson's self-poisoning and his addiction to the remains of the mummy, because he consciously injected himself with the remains in order to find out more information about important things.
I enjoy the author's witty writing style and find it refreshing. G. S. Denning has been a competent and excellent writer since the first novel and with each new instalment he has become increasingly fluent at writing fiction that echoes the Victorian atmosphere and setting of the original stories. To spice things up, he throws in a few well chosen modern elements, eeriness and captivating quirkiness.
What I like most about this novel (and its predecessors) is the author's ability to combine elements of mystery fiction, fantasy fiction and weird fiction in an entertaining and thrilling way. He seamlessly blends these elements to create strange mysteries that are incredibly funny and highly enjoyable.
Because I loved this novel and found it impressive, I look forward to reading the fifth instalment, The Finality Problem. I can hardly wait to get my hands on the forthcoming novel, because this novel left me wanting more. I simply can't get enough of these novels!
If you enjoy reading humorous speculative fiction and love mystery stories, G. S. Denning's Warlock Holmes: The Sign of Nine should definitely be at the top of your reading list, because it's one of the most entertaining humorous speculative fiction novels ever published. It's addictive and compelling escapism to readers who want to treat themselves to an enjoyable reading experience filled with humour, fantasy and mystery.
Highly recommended!
G. S. Denning's Warlock Holmes: The Sign of Nine is an excellent and much-awaited continuation of the Warlock Holmes series, which parodises and satirises Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories in a brilliant way. This amazing novel offers readers amusing and clever mysteries, delivered with precision and impeccable style.
The Sign of Nine is a splendid novel to everybody who loves humorous fantasy fiction and mystery stories. It's a wonderful and irresistibly original blend of fantasy, mystery and horror elements with plenty of inventiveness and charming wittiness. I'm sure that readers who love humorous stories will be impressed by this novel and its contents, because it's something different and unique.
I consider The Sign of Nine to be one of the most amusing and entertaining novels of the year, because the author has fully captured the essence of the original Sherlock Holmes stories and has boldly created his own stunningly original vision of the famous detective and his sidekick Dr. John Watson. Everything about this novel exudes originality and quality, because the author's take on Sherlock Holmes is absolutely hilarious in its shamelessly quirky approach to the source material.
This novel consists of the following stories:
- The Adventure of the Noble Arse-Face
- The Toymaker
- The Adventure of Beppo vs. Napoleon (A Fight in Six Rounds)
- The Devil and the Neophyte
- The Adventure of Black Peter Blackguard McNotVeryNice
- The Gang
- The Adventure of the Ring of Red Faction
- The Detective
- The Sign of Nine
As Dr. John Watson states in the first story, the first novel told of how the strange adventure began and the second one told of how Dr. Watson came into his own as an adventurer and detective, and the third novel told of how Moriarty and Adler came back into the lives of Dr. Watson and Warlock Holmes to bring them defeat upon defeat. Now, this fourth novel tells of Dr. Watson's addiction and shame.
In these stories, Warlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson deal - amongst other things - with Moriarty, Irene Adler and the treasure hunter Mary Morstan. This time, readers have an opportunity to read about how Watson injects himself with bits of shredded Persian mummy to learn more about James Moriarty and Irene Adler. Readers will learn what happens to Watson as he becomes addicted to the use of remains of the mummy.
The characterisation is spot-on in these stories, because the author has created fully-fleshed characters who are surprisingly far more interesting as persons than the original characters on which they are based on. I have to admit that I'm surprised at how much depth the characters have and how well they are portrayed, because the author pays attention to their characteristics and behaviour, not to mention their various flaws.
Here's a bit of information about the stories without spoilers:
"The Adventure of the Noble Arse-Face": This opening story finds Dr. John Watson recovering from what happened to him at the end of the previous novel. Dr. Watson and Warlock Holmes help a lord to find out what has happened to his bride.
In "The Toymaker", Dr. Watson dreams of an elderly toymaker and James Moriarty after injecting himself with a solution made of the shredded remains of the sorcerer Xantharaxes. I found this story fascinating, because it has a strange fairy tale kind of a feel to it.
In "The Adventure of Beppo vs. Napoleon (A Fight in Six Rounds)", the protagonists find themselves solving a mystery involving busts of Napoleon. I loved this story, because it's something different due to the perpetrator's identity.
"The Devil and the Neophyte" is an interesting dream sequence about Irene Adler, James Moriarty and a demon.
"The Adventure of Black Peter Blackguard McNotVeryNice" tells of how the protagonists are investigating the death of a man called Captain Peter Carey aka Black Peter. The revelations during the investigation are fascinating and surprising.
"The Gang" is a dream sequence about Moriarty, the toymaker and Irene Adler. I found this dream sequence especially intriguing, because it's sophisticatedly dark and is filled with a foreboding atmosphere.
In "The Adventure of the Ring of Red Faction", Warlock Holmes and Dr. Watson are asked to look into the matter of a mysterious lodger who has weaseled his way into the house of Mrs. Warren and doesn't come out of his rooms. The mysterious person has instructed Mrs. Warren not to try and find out anything about him.
"The Detective" is a dream sequence in which Watson dreams of something alarming and unexpected in the basement room. I was impressed by this dream, because it's sufficiently dark and revealing.
The final story, "The Sign of Nine", is a brilliantly realised novella-length story with a fine plot. In this story, Mary Morstan needs Warlock Holmes and Dr. Watson's help in a matter concerning a mysterious meeting she is supposed to attend. I enjoyed reading about Thaddeus Sholto, because the author's way of writing about him and his unusual appearance was thrilling. I was also pleasantly surprised about how the author wrote about what happened between Dr. Watson and Mary Morstan.
The dream sequences, which are taken from the dream journal of Dr. John Watson, are a great addition to the story, because they're well written and have quite a lot of dark fantasy elements. I was fascinated by Dr. Watson's self-poisoning and his addiction to the remains of the mummy, because he consciously injected himself with the remains in order to find out more information about important things.
I enjoy the author's witty writing style and find it refreshing. G. S. Denning has been a competent and excellent writer since the first novel and with each new instalment he has become increasingly fluent at writing fiction that echoes the Victorian atmosphere and setting of the original stories. To spice things up, he throws in a few well chosen modern elements, eeriness and captivating quirkiness.
What I like most about this novel (and its predecessors) is the author's ability to combine elements of mystery fiction, fantasy fiction and weird fiction in an entertaining and thrilling way. He seamlessly blends these elements to create strange mysteries that are incredibly funny and highly enjoyable.
Because I loved this novel and found it impressive, I look forward to reading the fifth instalment, The Finality Problem. I can hardly wait to get my hands on the forthcoming novel, because this novel left me wanting more. I simply can't get enough of these novels!
If you enjoy reading humorous speculative fiction and love mystery stories, G. S. Denning's Warlock Holmes: The Sign of Nine should definitely be at the top of your reading list, because it's one of the most entertaining humorous speculative fiction novels ever published. It's addictive and compelling escapism to readers who want to treat themselves to an enjoyable reading experience filled with humour, fantasy and mystery.
Highly recommended!
June 9, 2023
Continuing to enjoy this series. So far this is my least favorite, simple because I didn't care for the dream sequences.
It is still a great book with the same great dynamic between Warlock and Watson. I loved how the author presented Mary Morston in this book. I can't wait to finish the last one in the series and then hope that the writer writes more.
It is still a great book with the same great dynamic between Warlock and Watson. I loved how the author presented Mary Morston in this book. I can't wait to finish the last one in the series and then hope that the writer writes more.
June 11, 2019
These books are so damn good. Funny, heartfelt at times, with touches of horror. The saddest part is when it ends. Going to go see if I can pre-order the next one yet...or just pre-order them all in perpetuity.
October 14, 2024
Zip, zam, zoom, zoicks! I feel like I should be making weird sound effects for this book. This continues to be such a fun and zany series. Warlock Holmes is a maniac, gotta love that guy.
August 31, 2020
Another excellent installment in the series.
January 24, 2024
I love this series but this is probably my least favorite so far. I don't care about dreams or dream sequences. I know in this paranormal/fantasy setting it was supposed to blur the lines between what is just a dream and what in the dream is actually real. Because of this, I didn't enjoy a good number of scenes in the story. However, I understand this is a pretty specific gripe to have. So I'm going to move past it and talk to you about how much I love this series.
These books are straight up just FUN! They're ridiculous and humorous with characters that are so distinct and clear. My favorite Sherlock Holmes "retelling", if you can even call this a retelling. Just a solidly fun, over-the-top read. I'm going to prioritise the last book this year and add this series to the list of ones I want to finish in 2024!
3 star read!
These books are straight up just FUN! They're ridiculous and humorous with characters that are so distinct and clear. My favorite Sherlock Holmes "retelling", if you can even call this a retelling. Just a solidly fun, over-the-top read. I'm going to prioritise the last book this year and add this series to the list of ones I want to finish in 2024!
3 star read!
September 24, 2023
Second-to-last installment in the Warlock Holmes series. As always, this book is a collection of short stories, irreverently based (to varying degrees) on the original Arthur Conan Doyle mysteries. These continue to develop Watson's relationship with Holmes, Holmes' potentially apocalyptic relationships with an accountable number of demons and dead gods, more information about Moriarty's organization and past history, as well as Denning's take on the Seven Per-Cent Solution (although in this series, Watson is the addict, and the injections are blood infused with mummified Persian sorcerer). The stories are weird and funny and bring encounters with an anti-Napoleonic murder monkey, a greed demon, Italian secret societies, shapechanging whalers, Pinkerton Nazgul (well, sort of), literal steampunks, and a giant manhunting demon-bug. 3.5 stars.
September 2, 2020
As Watson begins dabbling in mystical narcotics, Holmes must contend with a series of increasingly baffling cases which will result in the expulsion of his long suffering colleague from 221B Baker Street.
In Denning's horror tinged homage to Sherlock Holmes, there are some laugh out loud moments, but equally some classic terror as fate ensures past misdemeanours do not go unpunished.
In Denning's horror tinged homage to Sherlock Holmes, there are some laugh out loud moments, but equally some classic terror as fate ensures past misdemeanours do not go unpunished.
May 31, 2019
I snort laughed my way through this newest collection of Warlock Holmes' adventures!
September 9, 2022
My least favorite book in the series, but still pretty entertaining.
October 24, 2025
Denning lets us know what we are in for from PAGE 1:
"What fresh apocalyptic treat have I for you now?
This is the volume of my shame. Perhaps my own sun has never reached a very high zenith, but in this volume, it is at its dimmest and most flickering. So close to failure, personal defeat, degradation and dishonor. There is nobody to blame but myself. Nobody to thank for my deliverance except Holmes and - oh, I shudder to say it - the hated Mary Morstan. Part of this volume is not even the chronicle of my actions, but merely of my dreams."
AND OH WHAT DREAMS THEY ARE! Watson has become a drug addict, injecting himself nightly with a 7.5% solution of the cremains of the sorcerer Xantharaxes (stored in a Persian slipper nailed to the wall of course). This destroys Watsons body on the regular but the dreams, oh the dreams! They are prophetic! And it's the only way he can learn more about Irene Adler and Moriarty and Pinkerton. He doesn't know what he doesn't know and there's so much he doesn't know and needs to know! The fever dream recaps are interspersed between the (un)usual adventures of Holmes and Watson, this one building to a climatic ending with one hell of a surprise twist. (Hell is other people. And love is blind. And BOTH? Well is it more than one man can take? We will have to wait until the next book to find out.)
Short stories include:
The Adventure of the Noble Arse-Face - Dr. John Watson recovers and awakes to find Lestrade has been letting his blood and Grogsson has inserted a beef wellington into his arm (for protein!). Once that alarm has worn off and the meat arm is disgorged, Dr. Watson and Warlock Holmes help an obnoxious lord track down his missing dowry, and the incidental runaway bride attached to it.
The Toymaker - dream journal. Watson visits the shop of an aging, genius toymaker just at the moment he gets a challenge he can't resist from a bizarre customer: Moriarty. His niece Irene hasn't come back from dinner yet though and it's getting quite late...
The Adventure of Beppo vs. Napoleon (A Fight in Six Rounds) - monkey business bent on destroying Napoleon busts! With a connection to Moriarty and the search for one of the nine talismans of course.
The Devil and the Neophyte - dream journal. Irene as a songbird in a speakeasy as she seduces one of Pinkerton's men. We don't get very far with this plot, aside from further establishing Irene as a force to be reckoned with. Watson is loath to leave the scene but the dream shifts. We eventually realize this is a young Moriarty, even then, trying to outwit a demon in a deal. The punishment the demon exacts is... existentially terrifying. And formidable. Or forming? Or both? It makes Moriarty the man he is.
The Adventure of Black Peter Blackguard McNotVeryNice - but what's in a name? A man universally loathed. In which Grogsson is NOT the man / ogre who harpooned Black Peter to the wall. But it's not likely his fellow police officers will buy that story, so Holmes and Watson and Lestrade have to investigate to clear his name. Supernatural twist in this one was a stunner - selkies!
The Gang - dream journal. This one involves the toymaker and Irene, several years on. Moriarty is in yet another body, a supernatural one. This one is supposed to be immortal goddammit, how can it be dying already! But it DOES explain how the prophetic nature of Moriarty's pronouncements came to be. There's a scandal and Irene leaves Moriarty at this point, though not without drama and danger. Moriarty jumps into yet another body, his penultimate before 'rooming' with Holmes.
The Adventure of the Ring of Red Faction - Italians! Mafia! Pinkerton detectives! Sergeant Hopkins dies AGAIN and Holmes has to reanimate him AGAIN! A mysterious, though well paying lodger has booked a room in the house of Mrs. Warren. She's enraged that he is ABIDING by the terms of his proposed agreement! He doesn't emerge from the room. Ever! Won't be seen. And now Mrs. Warren suspects it's another lodger entirely! But she can't prove it. And she's not supposed to ask any questions. HA!
The Detective - dream journal. Pinkerton, his plans, his agents, and how it all intersects with the Sign of Nine and Moriarty. Or will, eventually. What can Watson do?!
The Sign of Nine - Watson is busted by Holmes because his body is so far busted and he's "covered in doom" as Holmes says. Enter the "hateful" Mary Morstan. She's not so much in search of her father, she figures he's long dead, as she is her share of the buried treasure / inheritance. She's been getting a massive pearl the size of a chicken egg every year for seven years as recompense and this year... no pearl. What gives? Throughout their first meeting she's constantly reprimanding Holmes and Watson for interrupting her. This would be empowering as an antidote to mansplaining if Denning hadn't written her as so wholly without feeling, completely greedy, and an utter pill. His description of her is worthy of a Georgette Heyer villain (or a dreaded P.G. Wodehouse Aunt?), and that's high praise indeed even if the picture he paints is one of detestability. He paints so vividly and particularly. As to the plot, there's a buried treasure, a greed demon attached to it, and methane-subsisting half demon descendants that survive by constantly smoking their hookas of most unusual blends. (Honestly these details! So genius!) And of course another talisman from the sign of nine.
If I were half as clever as Denning I would be keeping track of the original list of nine, how many have been mentioned in stories so far, where they wound up, who has possession, etc, as I'm sure this will all be of the utmost importance for the last book (published to date, so far five).
Please Mr. Denning - can you hurry up and publish the sixth already? What will I do once I finish the next one?!
p.s. Now you know what ACD felt like on hiatus with all his annoying fans badgering him for more stories. It's your own fault!
Some favorite quotes from along the wild ride:
"A blast of pale moonlight threw angular shadows across the house's irregular lines and did a fine job of pointing out, 'Hello, I just wanted you nice people to realize you are about to head into a place that is not normal.' Yes, thank you, moon."
"The night was dark, because... well... nights are."
"What I meant to say was something along the lines of 'Ha ha, that's what you get' but I was never to have the chance.
Mary rose, pointed one finger straight in my face and declared, 'Then I thank God it is gone, for I wish nothing ever to come between us!'
The she recoiled with a look of horror and muttered, 'No. Wait... What I meant was: you're an ass!'
'And you are a terrible person,' I told her, 'and I want to kiss you, right in the middle of your awful, awful face.'
"What fresh apocalyptic treat have I for you now?
This is the volume of my shame. Perhaps my own sun has never reached a very high zenith, but in this volume, it is at its dimmest and most flickering. So close to failure, personal defeat, degradation and dishonor. There is nobody to blame but myself. Nobody to thank for my deliverance except Holmes and - oh, I shudder to say it - the hated Mary Morstan. Part of this volume is not even the chronicle of my actions, but merely of my dreams."
AND OH WHAT DREAMS THEY ARE! Watson has become a drug addict, injecting himself nightly with a 7.5% solution of the cremains of the sorcerer Xantharaxes (stored in a Persian slipper nailed to the wall of course). This destroys Watsons body on the regular but the dreams, oh the dreams! They are prophetic! And it's the only way he can learn more about Irene Adler and Moriarty and Pinkerton. He doesn't know what he doesn't know and there's so much he doesn't know and needs to know! The fever dream recaps are interspersed between the (un)usual adventures of Holmes and Watson, this one building to a climatic ending with one hell of a surprise twist. (Hell is other people. And love is blind. And BOTH? Well is it more than one man can take? We will have to wait until the next book to find out.)
Short stories include:
The Adventure of the Noble Arse-Face - Dr. John Watson recovers and awakes to find Lestrade has been letting his blood and Grogsson has inserted a beef wellington into his arm (for protein!). Once that alarm has worn off and the meat arm is disgorged, Dr. Watson and Warlock Holmes help an obnoxious lord track down his missing dowry, and the incidental runaway bride attached to it.
The Toymaker - dream journal. Watson visits the shop of an aging, genius toymaker just at the moment he gets a challenge he can't resist from a bizarre customer: Moriarty. His niece Irene hasn't come back from dinner yet though and it's getting quite late...
The Adventure of Beppo vs. Napoleon (A Fight in Six Rounds) - monkey business bent on destroying Napoleon busts! With a connection to Moriarty and the search for one of the nine talismans of course.
The Devil and the Neophyte - dream journal. Irene as a songbird in a speakeasy as she seduces one of Pinkerton's men. We don't get very far with this plot, aside from further establishing Irene as a force to be reckoned with. Watson is loath to leave the scene but the dream shifts. We eventually realize this is a young Moriarty, even then, trying to outwit a demon in a deal. The punishment the demon exacts is... existentially terrifying. And formidable. Or forming? Or both? It makes Moriarty the man he is.
The Adventure of Black Peter Blackguard McNotVeryNice - but what's in a name? A man universally loathed. In which Grogsson is NOT the man / ogre who harpooned Black Peter to the wall. But it's not likely his fellow police officers will buy that story, so Holmes and Watson and Lestrade have to investigate to clear his name. Supernatural twist in this one was a stunner - selkies!
The Gang - dream journal. This one involves the toymaker and Irene, several years on. Moriarty is in yet another body, a supernatural one. This one is supposed to be immortal goddammit, how can it be dying already! But it DOES explain how the prophetic nature of Moriarty's pronouncements came to be. There's a scandal and Irene leaves Moriarty at this point, though not without drama and danger. Moriarty jumps into yet another body, his penultimate before 'rooming' with Holmes.
The Adventure of the Ring of Red Faction - Italians! Mafia! Pinkerton detectives! Sergeant Hopkins dies AGAIN and Holmes has to reanimate him AGAIN! A mysterious, though well paying lodger has booked a room in the house of Mrs. Warren. She's enraged that he is ABIDING by the terms of his proposed agreement! He doesn't emerge from the room. Ever! Won't be seen. And now Mrs. Warren suspects it's another lodger entirely! But she can't prove it. And she's not supposed to ask any questions. HA!
The Detective - dream journal. Pinkerton, his plans, his agents, and how it all intersects with the Sign of Nine and Moriarty. Or will, eventually. What can Watson do?!
The Sign of Nine - Watson is busted by Holmes because his body is so far busted and he's "covered in doom" as Holmes says. Enter the "hateful" Mary Morstan. She's not so much in search of her father, she figures he's long dead, as she is her share of the buried treasure / inheritance. She's been getting a massive pearl the size of a chicken egg every year for seven years as recompense and this year... no pearl. What gives? Throughout their first meeting she's constantly reprimanding Holmes and Watson for interrupting her. This would be empowering as an antidote to mansplaining if Denning hadn't written her as so wholly without feeling, completely greedy, and an utter pill. His description of her is worthy of a Georgette Heyer villain (or a dreaded P.G. Wodehouse Aunt?), and that's high praise indeed even if the picture he paints is one of detestability. He paints so vividly and particularly. As to the plot, there's a buried treasure, a greed demon attached to it, and methane-subsisting half demon descendants that survive by constantly smoking their hookas of most unusual blends. (Honestly these details! So genius!) And of course another talisman from the sign of nine.
If I were half as clever as Denning I would be keeping track of the original list of nine, how many have been mentioned in stories so far, where they wound up, who has possession, etc, as I'm sure this will all be of the utmost importance for the last book (published to date, so far five).
Please Mr. Denning - can you hurry up and publish the sixth already? What will I do once I finish the next one?!
p.s. Now you know what ACD felt like on hiatus with all his annoying fans badgering him for more stories. It's your own fault!
Some favorite quotes from along the wild ride:
"A blast of pale moonlight threw angular shadows across the house's irregular lines and did a fine job of pointing out, 'Hello, I just wanted you nice people to realize you are about to head into a place that is not normal.' Yes, thank you, moon."
"The night was dark, because... well... nights are."
"What I meant to say was something along the lines of 'Ha ha, that's what you get' but I was never to have the chance.
Mary rose, pointed one finger straight in my face and declared, 'Then I thank God it is gone, for I wish nothing ever to come between us!'
The she recoiled with a look of horror and muttered, 'No. Wait... What I meant was: you're an ass!'
'And you are a terrible person,' I told her, 'and I want to kiss you, right in the middle of your awful, awful face.'
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 26, 2019
This was my least favorite of the Warlock Holmes book in no small part I think because of the seriousness and fatality that was woven throughout the third book's narrative. I was expecting a wrap up of those threads or, at least, a ramp up of the tension and potential consequences. Having delivered neither "The Sign of Nine" feels more like a diversion from the Warlock Holmes saga than an addition to it.
October 3, 2019
Star Rating: 4
Quote: “The smell nearly distracted me from my task, but no-I remained steadfast. Stiff upper lip, Watson! Action! Answers! THEN bacon.” (I feel like this quote perfectly captures both the hilarity of these stories and the perfect Victorian voice that Denning’s brilliantly captures.)
Quick Synopsis:
Sherlock Holmes is an unparalleled genius who uses the gift of deduction and reason to solve the most vexing of crimes.Warlock Holmes, however, is an idiot. A good man, perhaps; a font of arcane power, certainly. But he’s brilliantly dim. Frankly, he couldn’t deduce his way out of a paper bag. The only thing he has really got going for him are the might of a thousand demons and his stalwart flatmate. Thankfully, Dr. Watson is always there to aid him through the treacherous shoals of Victorian propriety… and save him from a gruesome death every now and again.
Mus(e)ic:
My Blood by Twenty One Pilots (Sherlock and Watson’s bond, because no matter how they remake these stories, that is always the crux that makes the story.)
_____________________________________________________________
The Short Story (review for readers:
Where do I even start?
With how hilarious these books are? With how much I loved the concept of combining two of may favourite things!? With how Denning absolutely nailed the writing style of Sir Arthur Doyle? With how I randomly stumbled upon the first book while roaming the biggest bookstore in North America and can’t believe how lucky I was?
Actually, I’ll start here to clear up any confusion right away. First, you might notice that this review is not for one of the books in the Warlock Holmes series, but the first 4 (the only 4 published at the time I write this.) This is because, to be perfectly honest, I devoured these damn books so fast I didn’t have time to write any reviews in-between, and now I can’t really tell what happened in which novel. And I think that might just tell you exactly how I feel about these ridiculous books.
I FREAKING LOVED THEM.
I’ve honestly never read a book – let alone three in a row – that made me laugh out loud as much as these stories. If I was reading near my husband, I’d laugh and he’d say, “What?” and I’d have to repeat, “Nothing, just this book,” over and over and over until he finally learned to just ignore my cackling. Because there was a lot of it. Not only were the events funny, but the entire sarcastic way everything was written was exactly my sense of humour. So, if you want something to make you smile and laugh, you’ve found it.
That’s not to say that there aren’t any dark parts, because there are. But even through the gross or scary or tense scenes, somehow the author still squeaks a laugh out of you.
And really, what more can I say then Sherlock Holmes meets magic? Because that’s pretty much a dream come true in my opinion. If that doesn’t call to you, then I don’t think we can be friends. Sorry, not sorry.
Okay, I will say one more thing. Denning did an amazing job taking these stories and twisting them just enough so that you could easily recognise them, but they were new. Nothing was as it seemed (because pretty much every tale had something to do with magic or demons or a combination of both) so these stories felt both familiar and exciting because you knew what was going to happen, but you really didn’t.
But you may have noticed that with all my ravings, I gave it 4 out of 5 stars. Why? This is because though I loved the stories, the writing style, and the characters, one thing that bothered me just enough was the portrayal of Holmes. I don’t want to spoil anything, but I’ll just say that you will not find the Sherlock you know in these novels. The Holmes in this book is an idiot. An adorable idiot who you will grow to love, but he’s an idiot just the same, and it was a bit tough to get over that. The author gets around this by basically combining Watson and Holmes into one, so the Watson characters is sort of both, and the Holmes characters is basically a new one. I got over it, mostly. But I know there will be people out there who will not be pleased by this. And to those people I say. Lighten up. These books are meant to be fun and light hearted and that’s what you get.
_____________________________________________________________
The Long Story (review for writers) SPOILERS AHEAD:
The Plot: To be honest, I don’t know what to say about the plot, because Cummings used Doyle’s plots and turned them on their head. So on one hand he didn’t really come up with the mysteries we’ve come to know and love but on the other he sort of did, because now they involve demons and monsters and new characters and he did a freaking fantabulous job of that. He was also able to link them all together in an overarching plot (mostly) what with Moriarty and The Woman and Warlock’s crazy backstory. For that, I give full applause. And also, what a genius idea in the first place. Using something that is so well loved and has a huge fan base (Sherlock) and adding a little something fresh to attract an entirely new set of fans (magic and demons.) However, with that being said, you’ve got to be careful when you do this. Because some fans are a bit crazy, and if you stray too much, you will face their wrath.
The Setting/Worldbuilding: Obviously we get to spend more glorious time in 221B Baker Street, and we get to traipse in Scotland yard and the rest of London, but we don’t get much more than that. But that’s okay. Because we don’t need more than that. Us Sherlock fans are already happy returning to the world we already know, or an upside-down version of that. And I should add that the author does do a damn good job making us feel like we are in Victorian London.
The Characters: Okay, so this is really the heart of this review, isn’t it? Because the reason people read the Sherlock Holmes stories are for Sherlock and Watson. I mean, we like the adventures too, but what really kept these stories alive is the two brothers from other mothers. It’s their bond, their relationship, and their quirks that we adore. The fact that these strange people were able to find each other and form a friendship that can never be unraveled. And though relationship gets turned on its head a bit just like everything else in the Warlock books, we never lose this bond. Although, the characters themselves are a little…different.
For instance, Warlock is not Sherlock. I’ll say that right of the bat. To me, Warlock was a brand new character who really only had one thing in common with Sherlock: his lack of social skills. Okay two: they’re both detectives. Other than that, they were not the same characters. Warlock has no power of deduction, demons tell him everything (which I thought was hilarious) and he wasn’t…well, a jerk. He was warm, and cuddly and loved everyone and everything. And I admit, at first it was a bit jarring, because where did Sherlock go? This certainly wasn’t him, and people read the remakes of these stories for him. But despite myself, I did start to adore Warlock, because you can’t not. Especially after I accepted that he was simply a new character, not Sherlock.
Because Sherlock does appear in the books, in Watson. The Watson in these stories is actually a combination of our beloved characters, like they somehow had a baby (fanfic writers, go wild.) He is the deducing one, able to read a person in seconds simply with observation. He’s the one that’s a little colder. He’s the one that can be brusque and a little uncompassionate. But he also has a big heart, and he’s loyal, and he is, of course, a doctor, just like the Watson we love. And, he’s often the one trying to cover up for Warlock or protecting him or telling him not to do these stupid things. So, Sherlock is here, he’s just a little hidden. It’s a bit of a gamble to write such beloved characters this way, and as I mentioned, it did jar me at first. And I’m sure there are people out there who straight up hated it. But to me, I got over it, I fell in love with them, and that was that.
However, I do have to mention a few of the other characters. Irene is basically the same sneaky Irene we know and love, but some of the other characters get an interesting twist as well. Moriarty is almost like Voldemort in the sense that his physical body doesn’t exist, so at first he’s trapped himself in Warlock’s head, appearing now and again to chant mysteriously while Warlock’s eyes turn green. Then he escapes Warlock’s head and is in some sort of stone (I think.) But regardless of all that, he’s still the criminal mastermind we know, he just has a few extra powers to help him along. Hudson is there and is almost the same except for her interesting obsession with erotic novels. I’m not judging, Mrs. Hudson. I’m sure it gets boring in that era and a girl’s gotta entertain herself somehow. And then there’s Grogson (Gregson) and Lestraude (though I think it’s spelled differently as well and I can’t remember how) Grogson is an ogre, and has somehow become a detective, and Lestraude is a vampire, and also has found himself as a detective, and though their characters where funny, I couldn’t quite understand how they managed to become detectives (especially Grogson for he can barely read and write and is like clearly not human) and how no one has figured it out. Sure, there are characters who are suspicious but…This one little thing bothered me enough that it’s another reason I had to take a star off. Of all the outrageous things that you must overlook in these stories, none suspending my disbelief as much as these characters. I think I needed more of an explanation maybe.
The Writing: Denning straight up nailed Doyle’s voice in these books. Everything about it was like you were reading the original stories and yet, surprise, there’s a demon and here’s a demon and everywhere demons. It honestly might have been the thing that impressed me the most about the entire series, because to be honest, I was a little afraid when I first spotted this book. I was in the largest book store in the entire world and somehow, I stumbled upon the first book, and it immediately grabbed my attention, because again, WarlockHolmes. Sign me up, no questions asked. I knew no matter what I had to give this a try BUT I was fully prepared for some terrible writing and lackluster..well, everything. Because that’s what I usually find with weird versions of my favourite old tales. But nope. I was pleasantly surprised.
If you want to read more of my reviews, check out my website https://themuseandthemanuscript.com
Quote: “The smell nearly distracted me from my task, but no-I remained steadfast. Stiff upper lip, Watson! Action! Answers! THEN bacon.” (I feel like this quote perfectly captures both the hilarity of these stories and the perfect Victorian voice that Denning’s brilliantly captures.)
Quick Synopsis:
Sherlock Holmes is an unparalleled genius who uses the gift of deduction and reason to solve the most vexing of crimes.Warlock Holmes, however, is an idiot. A good man, perhaps; a font of arcane power, certainly. But he’s brilliantly dim. Frankly, he couldn’t deduce his way out of a paper bag. The only thing he has really got going for him are the might of a thousand demons and his stalwart flatmate. Thankfully, Dr. Watson is always there to aid him through the treacherous shoals of Victorian propriety… and save him from a gruesome death every now and again.
Mus(e)ic:
My Blood by Twenty One Pilots (Sherlock and Watson’s bond, because no matter how they remake these stories, that is always the crux that makes the story.)
_____________________________________________________________
The Short Story (review for readers:
Where do I even start?
With how hilarious these books are? With how much I loved the concept of combining two of may favourite things!? With how Denning absolutely nailed the writing style of Sir Arthur Doyle? With how I randomly stumbled upon the first book while roaming the biggest bookstore in North America and can’t believe how lucky I was?
Actually, I’ll start here to clear up any confusion right away. First, you might notice that this review is not for one of the books in the Warlock Holmes series, but the first 4 (the only 4 published at the time I write this.) This is because, to be perfectly honest, I devoured these damn books so fast I didn’t have time to write any reviews in-between, and now I can’t really tell what happened in which novel. And I think that might just tell you exactly how I feel about these ridiculous books.
I FREAKING LOVED THEM.
I’ve honestly never read a book – let alone three in a row – that made me laugh out loud as much as these stories. If I was reading near my husband, I’d laugh and he’d say, “What?” and I’d have to repeat, “Nothing, just this book,” over and over and over until he finally learned to just ignore my cackling. Because there was a lot of it. Not only were the events funny, but the entire sarcastic way everything was written was exactly my sense of humour. So, if you want something to make you smile and laugh, you’ve found it.
That’s not to say that there aren’t any dark parts, because there are. But even through the gross or scary or tense scenes, somehow the author still squeaks a laugh out of you.
And really, what more can I say then Sherlock Holmes meets magic? Because that’s pretty much a dream come true in my opinion. If that doesn’t call to you, then I don’t think we can be friends. Sorry, not sorry.
Okay, I will say one more thing. Denning did an amazing job taking these stories and twisting them just enough so that you could easily recognise them, but they were new. Nothing was as it seemed (because pretty much every tale had something to do with magic or demons or a combination of both) so these stories felt both familiar and exciting because you knew what was going to happen, but you really didn’t.
But you may have noticed that with all my ravings, I gave it 4 out of 5 stars. Why? This is because though I loved the stories, the writing style, and the characters, one thing that bothered me just enough was the portrayal of Holmes. I don’t want to spoil anything, but I’ll just say that you will not find the Sherlock you know in these novels. The Holmes in this book is an idiot. An adorable idiot who you will grow to love, but he’s an idiot just the same, and it was a bit tough to get over that. The author gets around this by basically combining Watson and Holmes into one, so the Watson characters is sort of both, and the Holmes characters is basically a new one. I got over it, mostly. But I know there will be people out there who will not be pleased by this. And to those people I say. Lighten up. These books are meant to be fun and light hearted and that’s what you get.
_____________________________________________________________
The Long Story (review for writers) SPOILERS AHEAD:
The Plot: To be honest, I don’t know what to say about the plot, because Cummings used Doyle’s plots and turned them on their head. So on one hand he didn’t really come up with the mysteries we’ve come to know and love but on the other he sort of did, because now they involve demons and monsters and new characters and he did a freaking fantabulous job of that. He was also able to link them all together in an overarching plot (mostly) what with Moriarty and The Woman and Warlock’s crazy backstory. For that, I give full applause. And also, what a genius idea in the first place. Using something that is so well loved and has a huge fan base (Sherlock) and adding a little something fresh to attract an entirely new set of fans (magic and demons.) However, with that being said, you’ve got to be careful when you do this. Because some fans are a bit crazy, and if you stray too much, you will face their wrath.
The Setting/Worldbuilding: Obviously we get to spend more glorious time in 221B Baker Street, and we get to traipse in Scotland yard and the rest of London, but we don’t get much more than that. But that’s okay. Because we don’t need more than that. Us Sherlock fans are already happy returning to the world we already know, or an upside-down version of that. And I should add that the author does do a damn good job making us feel like we are in Victorian London.
The Characters: Okay, so this is really the heart of this review, isn’t it? Because the reason people read the Sherlock Holmes stories are for Sherlock and Watson. I mean, we like the adventures too, but what really kept these stories alive is the two brothers from other mothers. It’s their bond, their relationship, and their quirks that we adore. The fact that these strange people were able to find each other and form a friendship that can never be unraveled. And though relationship gets turned on its head a bit just like everything else in the Warlock books, we never lose this bond. Although, the characters themselves are a little…different.
For instance, Warlock is not Sherlock. I’ll say that right of the bat. To me, Warlock was a brand new character who really only had one thing in common with Sherlock: his lack of social skills. Okay two: they’re both detectives. Other than that, they were not the same characters. Warlock has no power of deduction, demons tell him everything (which I thought was hilarious) and he wasn’t…well, a jerk. He was warm, and cuddly and loved everyone and everything. And I admit, at first it was a bit jarring, because where did Sherlock go? This certainly wasn’t him, and people read the remakes of these stories for him. But despite myself, I did start to adore Warlock, because you can’t not. Especially after I accepted that he was simply a new character, not Sherlock.
Because Sherlock does appear in the books, in Watson. The Watson in these stories is actually a combination of our beloved characters, like they somehow had a baby (fanfic writers, go wild.) He is the deducing one, able to read a person in seconds simply with observation. He’s the one that’s a little colder. He’s the one that can be brusque and a little uncompassionate. But he also has a big heart, and he’s loyal, and he is, of course, a doctor, just like the Watson we love. And, he’s often the one trying to cover up for Warlock or protecting him or telling him not to do these stupid things. So, Sherlock is here, he’s just a little hidden. It’s a bit of a gamble to write such beloved characters this way, and as I mentioned, it did jar me at first. And I’m sure there are people out there who straight up hated it. But to me, I got over it, I fell in love with them, and that was that.
However, I do have to mention a few of the other characters. Irene is basically the same sneaky Irene we know and love, but some of the other characters get an interesting twist as well. Moriarty is almost like Voldemort in the sense that his physical body doesn’t exist, so at first he’s trapped himself in Warlock’s head, appearing now and again to chant mysteriously while Warlock’s eyes turn green. Then he escapes Warlock’s head and is in some sort of stone (I think.) But regardless of all that, he’s still the criminal mastermind we know, he just has a few extra powers to help him along. Hudson is there and is almost the same except for her interesting obsession with erotic novels. I’m not judging, Mrs. Hudson. I’m sure it gets boring in that era and a girl’s gotta entertain herself somehow. And then there’s Grogson (Gregson) and Lestraude (though I think it’s spelled differently as well and I can’t remember how) Grogson is an ogre, and has somehow become a detective, and Lestraude is a vampire, and also has found himself as a detective, and though their characters where funny, I couldn’t quite understand how they managed to become detectives (especially Grogson for he can barely read and write and is like clearly not human) and how no one has figured it out. Sure, there are characters who are suspicious but…This one little thing bothered me enough that it’s another reason I had to take a star off. Of all the outrageous things that you must overlook in these stories, none suspending my disbelief as much as these characters. I think I needed more of an explanation maybe.
The Writing: Denning straight up nailed Doyle’s voice in these books. Everything about it was like you were reading the original stories and yet, surprise, there’s a demon and here’s a demon and everywhere demons. It honestly might have been the thing that impressed me the most about the entire series, because to be honest, I was a little afraid when I first spotted this book. I was in the largest book store in the entire world and somehow, I stumbled upon the first book, and it immediately grabbed my attention, because again, WarlockHolmes. Sign me up, no questions asked. I knew no matter what I had to give this a try BUT I was fully prepared for some terrible writing and lackluster..well, everything. Because that’s what I usually find with weird versions of my favourite old tales. But nope. I was pleasantly surprised.
If you want to read more of my reviews, check out my website https://themuseandthemanuscript.com
July 10, 2019
A funny supernatural take on some beloved literary characters
Sorcerer Warlock Holmes and his faithful companion Dr Watson are London-based detectives who solve unusual mysteries, often involving demons, magic and aliens. Assisting them in their many unearthly adventures are Inspector Lestrade, who happens to be a vampire and the not-quite-human Inspector Grogsson. In this instalment of their exploits, Watson must deal with his newly developing addiction to the prophetic dreams he experiences when injecting himself with dissolved remnants of the mummified sorcerer Xantharaxes, while Holmes must decide whether their ongoing partnership is in the doctor’s best interests.
I was not quite sure what to expect when reading The Sign of Nine, having not encountered any of the previous instalments in Denning’s parody of Arthur Conan Doyle’s famous detective stories. However, within a few pages, the tone is set as the author becomes embroiled in a wacky, bizarre and very funny spoof of some classic Holmes’ mysteries. While S I have not read many of the original Sherlock Holmes stories, I did recognise some of the tales as being based on them but with cleverly added occult twists and refreshing bursts of humour sprinkled throughout. The short stories are interspersed with Watson’s curious mummy injection-induced visions and all linked together to culminate in the Sign of Nine itself, a slightly longer story with a more convoluted plot but no decrease in pace or wit.
While maintaining the traditional setting and period, the author writes in a very amusing way, giving the characters' mannerisms and behaviours that seem more suited to modern times and as a result creating some amusing exchanges. The supernatural element is made humorous as well by the complete lack of reaction most of the characters have when encountering demons and warlocks, and I too found myself embracing it as normal within a few pages, despite it all seeming very weird at first.
While this book can be read and enjoyed as a standalone, I did feel that I would have gained more enjoyment from it if I knew the backstory of some of the characters, particularly as the nature of the parody means that some critical characters (Moriarty and Irene Adler for example) have been introduced before but presumably with slight alterations to make them fit in to the paranormal theme. Additionally, some aspects of the book were quite dark and unsettling at times and may not be for everyone – fans of a traditional detective story where there is no magical reason for odd occurrences should avoid this book!
In conclusion, this was a clever and funny update to the beloved Sherlock Holmes character, and I enjoyed the humour of the author immensely. It may not be for everyone, but it is certainly unique, and unlike anything, I have read before.
Daenerys
Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of this book to review.
Sorcerer Warlock Holmes and his faithful companion Dr Watson are London-based detectives who solve unusual mysteries, often involving demons, magic and aliens. Assisting them in their many unearthly adventures are Inspector Lestrade, who happens to be a vampire and the not-quite-human Inspector Grogsson. In this instalment of their exploits, Watson must deal with his newly developing addiction to the prophetic dreams he experiences when injecting himself with dissolved remnants of the mummified sorcerer Xantharaxes, while Holmes must decide whether their ongoing partnership is in the doctor’s best interests.
I was not quite sure what to expect when reading The Sign of Nine, having not encountered any of the previous instalments in Denning’s parody of Arthur Conan Doyle’s famous detective stories. However, within a few pages, the tone is set as the author becomes embroiled in a wacky, bizarre and very funny spoof of some classic Holmes’ mysteries. While S I have not read many of the original Sherlock Holmes stories, I did recognise some of the tales as being based on them but with cleverly added occult twists and refreshing bursts of humour sprinkled throughout. The short stories are interspersed with Watson’s curious mummy injection-induced visions and all linked together to culminate in the Sign of Nine itself, a slightly longer story with a more convoluted plot but no decrease in pace or wit.
While maintaining the traditional setting and period, the author writes in a very amusing way, giving the characters' mannerisms and behaviours that seem more suited to modern times and as a result creating some amusing exchanges. The supernatural element is made humorous as well by the complete lack of reaction most of the characters have when encountering demons and warlocks, and I too found myself embracing it as normal within a few pages, despite it all seeming very weird at first.
While this book can be read and enjoyed as a standalone, I did feel that I would have gained more enjoyment from it if I knew the backstory of some of the characters, particularly as the nature of the parody means that some critical characters (Moriarty and Irene Adler for example) have been introduced before but presumably with slight alterations to make them fit in to the paranormal theme. Additionally, some aspects of the book were quite dark and unsettling at times and may not be for everyone – fans of a traditional detective story where there is no magical reason for odd occurrences should avoid this book!
In conclusion, this was a clever and funny update to the beloved Sherlock Holmes character, and I enjoyed the humour of the author immensely. It may not be for everyone, but it is certainly unique, and unlike anything, I have read before.
Daenerys
Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of this book to review.
May 22, 2019
3.5 stars.
I wonder if the Warlock Holmes series has a bit of the Star Trek (+Galaxy Quest) movies syndrome, where each other one is really terrific whilst the rest are somewhat average. Which isn't at all a slur against either series, as both are still entertaining even when not at peak quality.
The Sign Of Nine, the fourth book in our extraordinary pastiche, cleverly collects two sets of tales from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's canon -- the ones dealing with addiction and with, mostly unrelatedly, Italians and other assorted foreigners -- to present Doctor John Watson's descent into self-destruction. Because, despite the name on the series, the real deductive hero here is Watson as he tries to corral the efforts of our small-w warlock Holmes, the vampiric Inspector Lestrade and the literally trollish Inspector Grogsson as they solve particularly odd crimes and foil malevolent supernatural entities. Unfortunately, as the book begins, Watson has unwittingly discovered the joys of mystical drug abuse, which he uses to chase visions of the elusive but captivating Irene Adler through space and time.
Alas, she only appears here in said visions (a by-product of Sir Conan Doyle's writing about her in only one story himself,) leaving poor Watson to the real-world predations of that insufferable treasure hunter Mary Morstan. I had wanted a showdown between the two women, but I suppose that that will have to keep till the next book, The Finality Problem, hopefully coming out in a year or so's time. What I did get in this novel was the heartbreaking threat of the permanent dissolution of the bond between Watson and Holmes, rendered far more convincingly (and affectingly!) than in the source novels. G. S. Denning has managed to make me care about these characters far more than Sir Conan Doyle ever could, and has actually made me go back to consult with the canon on the cases featured. That's about the best thing any loving pastiche could possibly do: spur the reader to revisit the source material and reappraise its worth for the better.
That said, this novel isn't perfect: while I know Mr Denning was satirizing the the xenophobia of the originals and Victorian society at large, it was still a bit uncomfortable reading the bit about the Italian/chimpanzee, but there is only so much gold one can spin from dross, after all. Elsewise, this is a refreshingly modern (in terms of manners, if not setting) and hilarious paranormal take that I recommend to anyone who enjoys mysteries + humor + weird fiction.
Interview with the author to come soon! Meanwhile, check out my first interview with him on the release of the preceding book in the series, My Grave Ritual.
I wonder if the Warlock Holmes series has a bit of the Star Trek (+Galaxy Quest) movies syndrome, where each other one is really terrific whilst the rest are somewhat average. Which isn't at all a slur against either series, as both are still entertaining even when not at peak quality.
The Sign Of Nine, the fourth book in our extraordinary pastiche, cleverly collects two sets of tales from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's canon -- the ones dealing with addiction and with, mostly unrelatedly, Italians and other assorted foreigners -- to present Doctor John Watson's descent into self-destruction. Because, despite the name on the series, the real deductive hero here is Watson as he tries to corral the efforts of our small-w warlock Holmes, the vampiric Inspector Lestrade and the literally trollish Inspector Grogsson as they solve particularly odd crimes and foil malevolent supernatural entities. Unfortunately, as the book begins, Watson has unwittingly discovered the joys of mystical drug abuse, which he uses to chase visions of the elusive but captivating Irene Adler through space and time.
Alas, she only appears here in said visions (a by-product of Sir Conan Doyle's writing about her in only one story himself,) leaving poor Watson to the real-world predations of that insufferable treasure hunter Mary Morstan. I had wanted a showdown between the two women, but I suppose that that will have to keep till the next book, The Finality Problem, hopefully coming out in a year or so's time. What I did get in this novel was the heartbreaking threat of the permanent dissolution of the bond between Watson and Holmes, rendered far more convincingly (and affectingly!) than in the source novels. G. S. Denning has managed to make me care about these characters far more than Sir Conan Doyle ever could, and has actually made me go back to consult with the canon on the cases featured. That's about the best thing any loving pastiche could possibly do: spur the reader to revisit the source material and reappraise its worth for the better.
That said, this novel isn't perfect: while I know Mr Denning was satirizing the the xenophobia of the originals and Victorian society at large, it was still a bit uncomfortable reading the bit about the Italian/chimpanzee, but there is only so much gold one can spin from dross, after all. Elsewise, this is a refreshingly modern (in terms of manners, if not setting) and hilarious paranormal take that I recommend to anyone who enjoys mysteries + humor + weird fiction.
Interview with the author to come soon! Meanwhile, check out my first interview with him on the release of the preceding book in the series, My Grave Ritual.
May 28, 2019
After a bit of a slow start (trying to make something out of a slow Holmes story), Denning is back on form with several hilarious supernatural improvements on Arthur Conan Doyle. There are plenty of strange details in the original ACD stories, and Denning explodes them into narrative importance. There are also so many weird coincidences that only exist so that Holmes has a mystery to solve, and Denning puts them in their rightful place as lies told by Holmes and Watson in order to keep people from doing stupid things. Or magical fallout from Holmes' activities.
Holmes tries and fails to resist using magic to solve problems, Watson continues to take on most of the ACD Holmes traits (deduction, energetic solving of cases, drug addiction), and the constables do constable things. I think that killing a character ACD never really got much good use out of was a very wise decision. That said, there seems to be so much supernatural activity in the British Empire that it's a wonder no one notices. There's also a sudden and abrupt departure of all the "flower girls" from the story; perhaps Watson scared them off.
It's a good breather to put the Moriarty plotlines into the background as 100% Denning flashbacks, giving us some his backstory as well as motivations. It was a totally unexpected change in character for him to have the memories of a 300-year-old power plant caretaker in an alien civilization, but it gives us a reason why Moriarty is so dedicated to continued life as well as a source for his incredible focus. It also hints at this Holmes universe taking place not so much in a separate fantasy cosmos, but in something closer to the "bottom of the Mandelbrot set" as they say in the Laundry files. Moriarty especially would settle in well as Angleton, though Holmes would probably be dead or an entertainment for Prime Minister Everyman in that setting.
I don't want to give everything away, so I'll just say this: Well done, Mr. Denning, for making something entertaining out of some of the more ... prosaic Holmes stories, and something downright hilarious out of the ones with a bit more to them. I eagerly await you managing to do something, anything out of A Case of Identity - if you decide to do that one. There are more meaty Holmes stories still out there; I just want to see what you would do with that weird idea.
Holmes tries and fails to resist using magic to solve problems, Watson continues to take on most of the ACD Holmes traits (deduction, energetic solving of cases, drug addiction), and the constables do constable things. I think that killing a character ACD never really got much good use out of was a very wise decision. That said, there seems to be so much supernatural activity in the British Empire that it's a wonder no one notices. There's also a sudden and abrupt departure of all the "flower girls" from the story; perhaps Watson scared them off.
It's a good breather to put the Moriarty plotlines into the background as 100% Denning flashbacks, giving us some his backstory as well as motivations. It was a totally unexpected change in character for him to have the memories of a 300-year-old power plant caretaker in an alien civilization, but it gives us a reason why Moriarty is so dedicated to continued life as well as a source for his incredible focus. It also hints at this Holmes universe taking place not so much in a separate fantasy cosmos, but in something closer to the "bottom of the Mandelbrot set" as they say in the Laundry files. Moriarty especially would settle in well as Angleton, though Holmes would probably be dead or an entertainment for Prime Minister Everyman in that setting.
I don't want to give everything away, so I'll just say this: Well done, Mr. Denning, for making something entertaining out of some of the more ... prosaic Holmes stories, and something downright hilarious out of the ones with a bit more to them. I eagerly await you managing to do something, anything out of A Case of Identity - if you decide to do that one. There are more meaty Holmes stories still out there; I just want to see what you would do with that weird idea.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 17, 2019
Firstly, I would like to thank Titan Books for sending me this advanced review copy. Sign of Nine is in fact that 4th book in the Warlock Holmes series, yet as a total newcomer I didn't feel as if I had to have read what came before to fully enjoy this, as there are plenty of nods back to earlier stories. Firstly I have to say the narration in this book is outstanding, In my head I was Dr. Watson and I read it in my best Victorian gentleman voice, which in itself made me stop and laugh at myself. The richness of the words and the execution of the comedy timing were great, in both their ridiculousness and dedication to the time period.
With an air of of a man stumbling to the right conclusion until he fell over and it hit him in the face, Warlock Holmes's powers of deduction are questionable but surprisingly sound. Their escapades are real adventures, bringing them into contact with all manner of things that go bump in the night. I loved how nothing phased Watson and my, does he see some sights. Fantastic mythology, great characters and a story that neatly clicks into place as each section moved on. There is a ton of imagination into the scenarios our protagonists find themselves in, I certainly was never bored!
Expertly combining comedy with tragedy, there are frequent reminders that outside of the comedy of errors there are actually real and brutal crimes afoot, yet the comedy never felt in bad taste and the tragedy quite chilling at times. I found the arrangement of the story interesting, split into both story and dreamscape elements, the short stories leading up to the Sign of Nine were great at setting the scene. I loved the feature of one of my favourite mythical creatures, the Selkie, in one of the more tragic tales too. The dreamscape elements will be very satisfying to those who are fans of the source material as they give a great take and depth on what makes familiar faces such as Moriarty and Irene Adler tick - I found these little sections really came alive and were the only real time that I wished I had read what had come before.
This is a great comedy read with plenty of fantasy to go hand in hand with it, this was one out of comfort zone read that I am very happy to have picked up!
With an air of of a man stumbling to the right conclusion until he fell over and it hit him in the face, Warlock Holmes's powers of deduction are questionable but surprisingly sound. Their escapades are real adventures, bringing them into contact with all manner of things that go bump in the night. I loved how nothing phased Watson and my, does he see some sights. Fantastic mythology, great characters and a story that neatly clicks into place as each section moved on. There is a ton of imagination into the scenarios our protagonists find themselves in, I certainly was never bored!
Expertly combining comedy with tragedy, there are frequent reminders that outside of the comedy of errors there are actually real and brutal crimes afoot, yet the comedy never felt in bad taste and the tragedy quite chilling at times. I found the arrangement of the story interesting, split into both story and dreamscape elements, the short stories leading up to the Sign of Nine were great at setting the scene. I loved the feature of one of my favourite mythical creatures, the Selkie, in one of the more tragic tales too. The dreamscape elements will be very satisfying to those who are fans of the source material as they give a great take and depth on what makes familiar faces such as Moriarty and Irene Adler tick - I found these little sections really came alive and were the only real time that I wished I had read what had come before.
This is a great comedy read with plenty of fantasy to go hand in hand with it, this was one out of comfort zone read that I am very happy to have picked up!
October 8, 2019
Ah, this was exactly what I needed. Silly humor, profound realizations, and parodies of the original Holmes stories that are much more insightful than the originals, in most ways. Highly recommended, and I am looking forward to the next installment. Which isn't due out for 7 months. * sigh *
The Adventure of the Noble Arse-Face - Beautiful send-up of "The Noble Bachelor". I find this version much more plausible, even without Warlock's accidental interference.
The Toymaker - Odd dream interlude, giving some background on Moriarty and Irene Adler. I can't think of any ACD Holmes stories it might connect to.
The Adventure of Beppo vs. Napoleon (A Fight in Six Rounds) Nice interpolation of the "Six Napoleons" from ACD. Here, of course, there's magic involved, and the perpetrator is an ape. For bonus points, there's a Mario & Luigi reference.
The Devil and the Neophyte - Another dream interlude, with more background on Moriarty, and an interestingly bleak SF society. If it's from an ACD story, I was unable to find it quickly.
The Adventure of Black Peter Blackguard McNotVeryNice - While this is one where I enjoyed the original, the Warlock Holmes version is a lot more fun. I will note that I found the lack of Lestrade in later ACD Holmes stories a bit odd, and so I am gratified to see both Lestrade and Grogson continuing to play a role in the Warlock Holmes versions.
The Gang Third dream interlude. More background on Moriarty, and how he came to be entwined with Warlock.
The Adventure of the Ring of Red Faction Stays close to the original "Adventure of the Red Circle" while poking fun at some of the odder aspects of it, right up until there's a monster in the climactic room when Warlock and Watson get there. Then it goes full on Warlock Holmes.
The Detective - Fourth dream interlude. The Pinkertons have raised a sort of council of Nine Essence-Wraiths (no rings, thusfar), one of whom was seen in the Ring of the Red Faction. Their description makes me think of Slenderman. For some reason, they have false mustaches.
The Sign of Nine - Very odd ending, but a good reworking of the original story. Among other things, it removes the problematic racial elements, makes fun of the "Aw, shucks, now I'm captured I'll just tell ya everything" device that ACD often used, and manages a believable ending .
The Adventure of the Noble Arse-Face - Beautiful send-up of "The Noble Bachelor". I find this version much more plausible, even without Warlock's accidental interference.
The Toymaker - Odd dream interlude, giving some background on Moriarty and Irene Adler. I can't think of any ACD Holmes stories it might connect to.
The Adventure of Beppo vs. Napoleon (A Fight in Six Rounds) Nice interpolation of the "Six Napoleons" from ACD. Here, of course, there's magic involved, and the perpetrator is an ape. For bonus points, there's a Mario & Luigi reference.
The Devil and the Neophyte - Another dream interlude, with more background on Moriarty, and an interestingly bleak SF society. If it's from an ACD story, I was unable to find it quickly.
The Adventure of Black Peter Blackguard McNotVeryNice - While this is one where I enjoyed the original, the Warlock Holmes version is a lot more fun. I will note that I found the lack of Lestrade in later ACD Holmes stories a bit odd, and so I am gratified to see both Lestrade and Grogson continuing to play a role in the Warlock Holmes versions.
The Gang Third dream interlude. More background on Moriarty, and how he came to be entwined with Warlock.
The Adventure of the Ring of Red Faction Stays close to the original "Adventure of the Red Circle" while poking fun at some of the odder aspects of it, right up until there's a monster in the climactic room when Warlock and Watson get there. Then it goes full on Warlock Holmes.
The Detective - Fourth dream interlude. The Pinkertons have raised a sort of council of Nine Essence-Wraiths (no rings, thusfar), one of whom was seen in the Ring of the Red Faction. Their description makes me think of Slenderman. For some reason, they have false mustaches.
The Sign of Nine - Very odd ending, but a good reworking of the original story. Among other things, it removes the problematic racial elements, makes fun of the "Aw, shucks, now I'm captured I'll just tell ya everything" device that ACD often used, and manages a believable ending .
July 13, 2021
What, I'm starting another series in the middle? Who would have thought!
Warlock Holmes is exactly what it sounds like on the tin. Our old friend and eminent detective Sherlock Holmes is, in this reality, a warlock with command over demons, some small measure of soul magic, and the voices of otherworldly creatures clamoring in his head. For reasons which are somewhat spelled out in this volume but probably much clearer in a previous one, Watson is using a substance to have prophetic dreams (and sometimes straight up nonsense dreams.) Scotland Yard is full of a variety of monsters, the streets of London are full of cryptids, and the majority of the English seem to have a remarkably difficult time with the idea of Italians.
This book has a very modern, sort of absurd sense of humor that mostly works really well (though there were times, for me at least, where I read a passage and realized the writer thought it was terribly funny and clever but I was just kind of waiting for it to end because it just wasn't working for me. The perils of the subjectivity of humor, I suppose.
The Sign of the Nine contains a number of short stories -- I am not sure if this is the case for the rest of the series, but I suspect I'll go back and check them out, so I'll report back. :) The cases in question see our heroic duo hunting down everything from cursed treasures to runaway brides to vandals with a particular hatred for plaster Napolean busts. And as I said earlier, the humor mostly worked for me, making this a fairly quick and engaging read.
I don't want to get too far into the actual contents, because it's not really the plots that carried me through. But if the synopsis of this book has you curious, you pretty much get exactly what you expect from that. And I definitely had fun with this.
Warlock Holmes is exactly what it sounds like on the tin. Our old friend and eminent detective Sherlock Holmes is, in this reality, a warlock with command over demons, some small measure of soul magic, and the voices of otherworldly creatures clamoring in his head. For reasons which are somewhat spelled out in this volume but probably much clearer in a previous one, Watson is using a substance to have prophetic dreams (and sometimes straight up nonsense dreams.) Scotland Yard is full of a variety of monsters, the streets of London are full of cryptids, and the majority of the English seem to have a remarkably difficult time with the idea of Italians.
This book has a very modern, sort of absurd sense of humor that mostly works really well (though there were times, for me at least, where I read a passage and realized the writer thought it was terribly funny and clever but I was just kind of waiting for it to end because it just wasn't working for me. The perils of the subjectivity of humor, I suppose.
The Sign of the Nine contains a number of short stories -- I am not sure if this is the case for the rest of the series, but I suspect I'll go back and check them out, so I'll report back. :) The cases in question see our heroic duo hunting down everything from cursed treasures to runaway brides to vandals with a particular hatred for plaster Napolean busts. And as I said earlier, the humor mostly worked for me, making this a fairly quick and engaging read.
I don't want to get too far into the actual contents, because it's not really the plots that carried me through. But if the synopsis of this book has you curious, you pretty much get exactly what you expect from that. And I definitely had fun with this.
May 16, 2019
2.75/5 Stars
I would like to thank Titan Books for the opportunity to read this in exchange for an honest review. Please read my full review here.
It’s been a long time, but the newly imagined dynamic duo has finally returned!
I was incredibly excited to have this opportunity to read The Sign of Nine before its release. As a long time Sherlock Holmes fan, and a big fan of the first three books, I couldn’t wait to see what insanity this iteration of Holmes and Watson would be engaging in next. Denning has a rare writing talent that is hard to come by these days, which has always made me appreciate these novels.
To recap, the last time we these two, Watson had accidentally been dosed with a solution containing a Persian mummy’s remains. Holmes, on the other hand, had his hands full trying to deal with Moriarty and Irene Adler, each of whom is serving as their own nefarious dynamic duo foil to Watson and Holmes. Now, Watson is dosing on mummy remains on purpose to get snippets of prophetic dreams, and Holmes is worried that Watson might be doing irreparable damage to himself in the process.
The Sign of Nine is number four in a series that appears to be concluding in April 2020 with Dennings’ final addition to the series. Despite being the fourth book, Denning makes good on ensuring readers don’t have to read the previous books to get through the latest one. In fact, you can pick up just about anywhere in the series and not be lost on the goings-on among the pages.
Denning does do a great job of repurposing old Sherlock Holmes short stories and making them wild and fun to read. I love and appreciate the originals, of course, but seeing Denning warp these timeless stories into something twisted and peppered with both darkness and humor is a refreshing delight as a reader who struggles to find fresh stories on the shelves.
I would like to thank Titan Books for the opportunity to read this in exchange for an honest review. Please read my full review here.
It’s been a long time, but the newly imagined dynamic duo has finally returned!
I was incredibly excited to have this opportunity to read The Sign of Nine before its release. As a long time Sherlock Holmes fan, and a big fan of the first three books, I couldn’t wait to see what insanity this iteration of Holmes and Watson would be engaging in next. Denning has a rare writing talent that is hard to come by these days, which has always made me appreciate these novels.
To recap, the last time we these two, Watson had accidentally been dosed with a solution containing a Persian mummy’s remains. Holmes, on the other hand, had his hands full trying to deal with Moriarty and Irene Adler, each of whom is serving as their own nefarious dynamic duo foil to Watson and Holmes. Now, Watson is dosing on mummy remains on purpose to get snippets of prophetic dreams, and Holmes is worried that Watson might be doing irreparable damage to himself in the process.
The Sign of Nine is number four in a series that appears to be concluding in April 2020 with Dennings’ final addition to the series. Despite being the fourth book, Denning makes good on ensuring readers don’t have to read the previous books to get through the latest one. In fact, you can pick up just about anywhere in the series and not be lost on the goings-on among the pages.
Denning does do a great job of repurposing old Sherlock Holmes short stories and making them wild and fun to read. I love and appreciate the originals, of course, but seeing Denning warp these timeless stories into something twisted and peppered with both darkness and humor is a refreshing delight as a reader who struggles to find fresh stories on the shelves.
September 16, 2019
"Any man would have done the same!"
This was one of the funniest books in the Warlock Holmes series to date! I think I enjoyed this one almost as much as A Study in Brimstone! It was so much fun to read, and the situations just keep getting increasingly insane. I especially loved the retelling of The Sign of Four. While I found the original Jonathan Small somewhat forgettable, I just adored this one! He was probably the best part of The Sign of Nine.
There's some real tension in this title, with trouble brewing between our two protagonists. I won't go into much detail for fear of spoilers, but I'll be the first to admit that I was on the edge of my seat wondering how it all would end. And the ending perfectly sets us up for the next book, which I cannot wait to get my hands on!
This was one of the funniest books in the Warlock Holmes series to date! I think I enjoyed this one almost as much as A Study in Brimstone! It was so much fun to read, and the situations just keep getting increasingly insane. I especially loved the retelling of The Sign of Four. While I found the original Jonathan Small somewhat forgettable, I just adored this one! He was probably the best part of The Sign of Nine.
There's some real tension in this title, with trouble brewing between our two protagonists. I won't go into much detail for fear of spoilers, but I'll be the first to admit that I was on the edge of my seat wondering how it all would end. And the ending perfectly sets us up for the next book, which I cannot wait to get my hands on!
July 1, 2020
I'm giving this a generous 3 stars.
The Warlock Holmes series is definitely humorous, wry, and a play on Arthur Conan Doyle's classic work. It's Holmes in an alternative universe where Watson is great at deduction, Lestrade has a passion for sucking blood, and Warlock is the unsophisticated, bumbling brother of Sherlock and Mycroft.
Denning weaves tales that are fractured versions of the Holmes canon, or invented for his characters. There's s silly streak competing with the Victorian tales of investigation and deduction. These tales full of paranormal creatures: demons, selkies, and sophisticated chimpanzees, to name a few, are clever while Watson's narration is droll and startlingly superior considering he's the one injecting psychedelic drugs.
The full cast of narrators does a superb job making the characters come alive, as all Graphic Audio casts do. Alas, there are few if any sound effects.
For a review of the performance see AudioFile Magazine http://www.audiofilemagazine.com
On a personal note, while I enjoy Graphic Audio audio books of all types and genre, this series isn't my favorite.
The Warlock Holmes series is definitely humorous, wry, and a play on Arthur Conan Doyle's classic work. It's Holmes in an alternative universe where Watson is great at deduction, Lestrade has a passion for sucking blood, and Warlock is the unsophisticated, bumbling brother of Sherlock and Mycroft.
Denning weaves tales that are fractured versions of the Holmes canon, or invented for his characters. There's s silly streak competing with the Victorian tales of investigation and deduction. These tales full of paranormal creatures: demons, selkies, and sophisticated chimpanzees, to name a few, are clever while Watson's narration is droll and startlingly superior considering he's the one injecting psychedelic drugs.
The full cast of narrators does a superb job making the characters come alive, as all Graphic Audio casts do. Alas, there are few if any sound effects.
For a review of the performance see AudioFile Magazine http://www.audiofilemagazine.com
On a personal note, while I enjoy Graphic Audio audio books of all types and genre, this series isn't my favorite.
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