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Mycroft Holmes and Sherlock #2
Mycroft and Sherlock
The new novel by NBA All-Star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, starring brothers Mycroft and Sherlock Holmes. It is 1872, and a series of gruesome murders is the talk of London. Mycroft Holmes - now 26 and a force to be reckoned with at the War Office - has no interest in the killings; however his brother Sherlock has developed a distasteful fascination for the macabre to the detriment of his studies, much to Mycroft's frustration. When a ship carrying cargo belonging to Mycroft's best friend Cyrus Douglas runs aground, Mycroft persuades Sherlock to serve as a tutor at the orphanage that Douglas runs as a charity, so that Douglas might travel to see what can be salvaged. Sherlock finds himself at home among the street urchins, and when a boy dies of a suspected drug overdose, he decides to investigate, following a trail of strange subterranean symbols to the squalid opium dens of the London docks. Meanwhile a meeting with a beautiful Chinese woman leads Mycroft to the very same mystery, one that forces him to examine the underbelly of the opium trade that is enriching his beloved Britain's coffers. As the stakes rise, the brothers find that they need one another's assistance and counsel. But a lifetime of keeping secrets from each other may have catastrophic consequences....
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First published October 9, 2018
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About the author
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
54 books643 followersAs a center for the Los Angeles Lakers from 1975 to 1989, American basketball player Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, originally Lew Alcindor, led the all-time scores in history of national basketball association in 1984.
This former professional player current serves as assistant coach. Typically referred to as Lew Alcindor in his younger days, he changed his name when he converted to Islam.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kareem_...
This former professional player current serves as assistant coach. Typically referred to as Lew Alcindor in his younger days, he changed his name when he converted to Islam.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kareem_...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 521 reviews
November 16, 2019
4.5 stars
When I first saw this series, I have to say I was a little unsure what a book about Sherlock Holmes written by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar would look like. I have long been a fan of his basketball playing but clearly have not followed him very closely because he has written many books and is well known in the Sherlock world for his love of Sherlock Holmes. With this series, Abdul-Jabbar demonstrates that he is incredibly talented in more than one field because his portrayal of Sherlock, Mycroft, and their world is outstanding.
The Sherlock Holmes in this series is young (only 19), and I really enjoyed the life invented for him before he becomes famous. The mystery is clever, the writing is spectacular, and the resolution is highly satisfying. I look forward to Mycroft and Sherlock’s next adventures!
For more reviews, check out my Instagram account, https://www.instagram.com/thoughtsfro....
When I first saw this series, I have to say I was a little unsure what a book about Sherlock Holmes written by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar would look like. I have long been a fan of his basketball playing but clearly have not followed him very closely because he has written many books and is well known in the Sherlock world for his love of Sherlock Holmes. With this series, Abdul-Jabbar demonstrates that he is incredibly talented in more than one field because his portrayal of Sherlock, Mycroft, and their world is outstanding.
The Sherlock Holmes in this series is young (only 19), and I really enjoyed the life invented for him before he becomes famous. The mystery is clever, the writing is spectacular, and the resolution is highly satisfying. I look forward to Mycroft and Sherlock’s next adventures!
For more reviews, check out my Instagram account, https://www.instagram.com/thoughtsfro....
October 25, 2018
I’ve been anticipating the publication of this book for about a year and it did not disappoint! Another rip-roaring, page turning, almost literally heart-stopping adventure of Mycroft Holmes and his friend Douglas. Although I found the story underwhelming, it’s the depth of the writing and the characters that will keep readers coming back to this series. I agree with other reviewers that there was a little too much Sherlock for a Mycroft adventure, but I think Sherlockians will enjoy being there with Sherlock as he matures, when he is discovering the joy that investigation brings him and beginning to hone his craft. I also appreciated seeing the more vulnerable side of Mycroft in this book and learning the reasons why he developed into a more cerebral and less physical person than Sherlock became even though they have roughly the same set of skills. I only hope I don’t have to wait three years for the next adventure!
October 17, 2018
As long as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and co-writer Anne Waterhouse continue to write books in the Holmes' series, I will be ready and waiting to read them. I thoroughly enjoyed "Mycroft Holmes," the pair's first book; their second offering is no less dynamic.
Although the timeline of the second book, "Mycroft and Sherlock" follows that of "Mycroft Holmes," these books could just as easily be read as stand-alones for the adventures in each of them. Reading them in sequence adds to the understanding of some of the main characters' developments, something I personally enjoy.
Although the timeline of the second book, "Mycroft and Sherlock" follows that of "Mycroft Holmes," these books could just as easily be read as stand-alones for the adventures in each of them. Reading them in sequence adds to the understanding of some of the main characters' developments, something I personally enjoy.
March 7, 2021
Very well done. I will definitely read the next one!
October 13, 2019
This book is the best Sherlock Holmes pastiche I've read in a long time. I'm kinda picky about my Sherlock Holmes portrayals (okay, VERY picky about them), but this one pleased me so much! It focuses more on Mycroft than Sherlock and is definitely the most relatable portrayal I've seen of the elder Holmes brother in basically forever.
I was a little worried about Sherlock himself at first because he's very young here, still a university student, and I thought at first he had too much, um... emotional fervor, maybe? A little too reckless? Too moody? But as I read on, I could see how the authors were contrasting that with who he would eventually become with who he is as a young adult, how things he experiences at this point help mold and shape him into the mature Holmes we meet in Doyle's stories. By the middle of the book, I was fully accepting of this portrayal, especially as we spent more time in Sherlock's point of view.
One of the things I liked best about this book was how CLEAN it is! There are zero cusswords. There's no sex. There are quite a few mentions of violent crimes, some of them extreme, but we don't get detailed accounts of how that violence occurs, we see its aftermath or hear someone's remembrance of it. The violence we do see is street-fights and things of that sort. The plot centers around a series of corpses that have been cut into four parts and mutilated, but they don't go into great detail about them, just say which body parts were cut off, using phrases that Victorian gentlemen would use, if that makes sense? It never seemed icky or gratuitous to me.
But there's a lot of talk about drug use, about how opium and its derivatives are totally legal at that time, very common, and how they can destroy people's lives. The murders are linked to the opium trade, and there's a lot of discussion about the drugs and about characters in the story who have used them, including children. I learned some really interesting historical things from this, and it was intriguing from a Sherlockian perspective since we know that by the time of the canonical stories, he was using cocaine recreationally, though Dr. Watson did eventually help him overcome that habit. But here we already see the seeds planted for how he would be able to encounter and acquire the drug, as well as why it was kind of treated as not a huge deal within the canon.
I was a little worried about Sherlock himself at first because he's very young here, still a university student, and I thought at first he had too much, um... emotional fervor, maybe? A little too reckless? Too moody? But as I read on, I could see how the authors were contrasting that with who he would eventually become with who he is as a young adult, how things he experiences at this point help mold and shape him into the mature Holmes we meet in Doyle's stories. By the middle of the book, I was fully accepting of this portrayal, especially as we spent more time in Sherlock's point of view.
One of the things I liked best about this book was how CLEAN it is! There are zero cusswords. There's no sex. There are quite a few mentions of violent crimes, some of them extreme, but we don't get detailed accounts of how that violence occurs, we see its aftermath or hear someone's remembrance of it. The violence we do see is street-fights and things of that sort. The plot centers around a series of corpses that have been cut into four parts and mutilated, but they don't go into great detail about them, just say which body parts were cut off, using phrases that Victorian gentlemen would use, if that makes sense? It never seemed icky or gratuitous to me.
But there's a lot of talk about drug use, about how opium and its derivatives are totally legal at that time, very common, and how they can destroy people's lives. The murders are linked to the opium trade, and there's a lot of discussion about the drugs and about characters in the story who have used them, including children. I learned some really interesting historical things from this, and it was intriguing from a Sherlockian perspective since we know that by the time of the canonical stories, he was using cocaine recreationally, though Dr. Watson did eventually help him overcome that habit. But here we already see the seeds planted for how he would be able to encounter and acquire the drug, as well as why it was kind of treated as not a huge deal within the canon.
June 28, 2021
Okay, so the plot was awesome, the setting was perfect, I loved Mycroft and Douglas, the mystery worked quite well, and they mentioned Pimlico. *happy dance*
But really, I am ONLY here for Sherlock. I NEED TO PROTECT HIM. HE IS MY BOI AND HE NEEDS HUGS AND PEOPLE TO RESCUE HIM FROM DANGEROUS SITUATIONS. (The sheer amount of protective instincts this boy inspired--especially in the last half of the book--was astounding.)
Four stars!
But really, I am ONLY here for Sherlock. I NEED TO PROTECT HIM. HE IS MY BOI AND HE NEEDS HUGS AND PEOPLE TO RESCUE HIM FROM DANGEROUS SITUATIONS. (The sheer amount of protective instincts this boy inspired--especially in the last half of the book--was astounding.)
Four stars!
October 17, 2019
I read the first of these and had mixed feelings about it, but because I really liked the main characters, Mycroft and Cyrus, I decided to give the second one a try. I'm glad I did, because I enjoyed this book much more than the first. I would rate my enjoyment level at 5/5, but I do see some flaws in the plot's structure, so it's 4/5.
Sherlock joins Mycroft and Cyrus as a major character. He's only 18, and quite an angsty teenager, but I found him mostly endearing and very in-character for canon Sherlock. I liked this interpretation of him at a different age. He's vulnerable and makes mistakes, and he's not really any smarter than Mycroft; he's just amoral and reckless, which gives him more opportunities for heroism. But it feels like the narrative is aware of this fact, and this is really Mycroft's story.
Mycroft here is a guy trying to do his best in life, for his country and for his difficult younger brother, while struggling with some serious personal problems. In a sense, the book is the story of Mycroft giving up on finding happiness for himself, so it has a melancholy feel. There's one prominent female character and Mycroft develops a crush on her. She's a pretty interesting side character, and I was glad she didn't have a larger role, since I strongly disliked the romance plot in the first book.
My problem with the book (big spoiler):
Minor problem (small spoiler):
I love both Cyrus and Mycroft, as well as their friendship, and I also love the fact that Sherlock didn't take over this book. I'm not a big fan of fight scenes, but these were all very good and not too long or frequent. In fact, this book is written like popular crime thrillers, in that it has short chapters and lots of PoV changes, although it's a fairly long book. There is still a lot of flavor of 1870s London, which is what draws me to historical mysteries.
I listened to the audiobook narrated by Damian Lynch, and he was fantastic.
Sherlock joins Mycroft and Cyrus as a major character. He's only 18, and quite an angsty teenager, but I found him mostly endearing and very in-character for canon Sherlock. I liked this interpretation of him at a different age. He's vulnerable and makes mistakes, and he's not really any smarter than Mycroft; he's just amoral and reckless, which gives him more opportunities for heroism. But it feels like the narrative is aware of this fact, and this is really Mycroft's story.
Mycroft here is a guy trying to do his best in life, for his country and for his difficult younger brother, while struggling with some serious personal problems. In a sense, the book is the story of Mycroft giving up on finding happiness for himself, so it has a melancholy feel. There's one prominent female character and Mycroft develops a crush on her. She's a pretty interesting side character, and I was glad she didn't have a larger role, since I strongly disliked the romance plot in the first book.
My problem with the book (big spoiler):
Minor problem (small spoiler):
I love both Cyrus and Mycroft, as well as their friendship, and I also love the fact that Sherlock didn't take over this book. I'm not a big fan of fight scenes, but these were all very good and not too long or frequent. In fact, this book is written like popular crime thrillers, in that it has short chapters and lots of PoV changes, although it's a fairly long book. There is still a lot of flavor of 1870s London, which is what draws me to historical mysteries.
I listened to the audiobook narrated by Damian Lynch, and he was fantastic.
February 15, 2021
Three and a half stars for this one - oh, what the heck. I'm changing it to four. I liked it much better than the first, despite some really implausible detecting on the part of Sherlock, and the fact that I got lost more than once among the cast of side characters.
I loved that this felt more accurate as a prequel to the later lives of Mycroft and Sherlock. Whereas Mycroft Holmes felt too far off the actual ACD characters, this one gave pleasant (well, to me) hints of what they will become.
And, Douglas and Huan are just good.
I loved that this felt more accurate as a prequel to the later lives of Mycroft and Sherlock. Whereas Mycroft Holmes felt too far off the actual ACD characters, this one gave pleasant (well, to me) hints of what they will become.
And, Douglas and Huan are just good.
July 15, 2022
Kareem Abdul Jabar’s Holmesian novel is a very readable version of the great detective’s saga. The prose is true to Victorian England and the details support the setting perfectly. I was transported to late 19th century London in all its glory and its squalor.
This is a story involving a very young Mycroft and Sherlock, long before they develop into a political powerbroker and the world’s most brilliant detective, respectively. We see Mycroft grappling with the idea of becoming just another career bureaucrat in the War Office, which would be a tragic misuse of his extraordinary intellectual talents. He has already accumulated great wealth and respect, attracting the attention of those in high places, including the Queen. Mycroft struggles to educate and train his equally brilliant and headstrong younger brother, Sherlock, a Herculean task even for someone as accomplished as he is.
Sherlock is still a teenager, but not in the ordinary sense. He is a genius in areas that interest him while refusing to apply himself to any task he finds common or boring. In this novel, he has found his calling in investigation, using his skills at deduction to find the root of the burgeoning opioid crisis plaguing the Chinese community in particular.
The brothers are on the trail of those who are providing dangerous drugs to both aristocrats and the underclasses, but they approach the problem from different directions and independent of one another. The action builds to a climactic ending, with both brothers nearly losing their lives.
The plot is intricately woven and revealed in small parcels, switching back and forth from the perspective of one brother and then the other. Both add to the reader’s understanding while the Holmes brothers reach their separate conclusions. I really enjoyed the conflict between the two men as they strove to promote their own brand of investigation. A fascinating play on classic characters and a highly entertaining mystery.
This is a story involving a very young Mycroft and Sherlock, long before they develop into a political powerbroker and the world’s most brilliant detective, respectively. We see Mycroft grappling with the idea of becoming just another career bureaucrat in the War Office, which would be a tragic misuse of his extraordinary intellectual talents. He has already accumulated great wealth and respect, attracting the attention of those in high places, including the Queen. Mycroft struggles to educate and train his equally brilliant and headstrong younger brother, Sherlock, a Herculean task even for someone as accomplished as he is.
Sherlock is still a teenager, but not in the ordinary sense. He is a genius in areas that interest him while refusing to apply himself to any task he finds common or boring. In this novel, he has found his calling in investigation, using his skills at deduction to find the root of the burgeoning opioid crisis plaguing the Chinese community in particular.
The brothers are on the trail of those who are providing dangerous drugs to both aristocrats and the underclasses, but they approach the problem from different directions and independent of one another. The action builds to a climactic ending, with both brothers nearly losing their lives.
The plot is intricately woven and revealed in small parcels, switching back and forth from the perspective of one brother and then the other. Both add to the reader’s understanding while the Holmes brothers reach their separate conclusions. I really enjoyed the conflict between the two men as they strove to promote their own brand of investigation. A fascinating play on classic characters and a highly entertaining mystery.
December 21, 2018
Was not as impressed with this one as the first. If felt like too many characters who were not as fully developed as I would have liked. Definitely dragged for me.
"Now a force to be reckoned with in the War Office, the young Mycroft Holmes is growing his network of contacts and influence, although not always in a manner that pleases his closest friend, Cyrus Douglas. A Trinidadian of African descent, Douglas has opened a home for orphaned children, while still running his successful import business. When a ship carrying a cargo in which Douglas was heavily invested runs aground on the Dorset coast, Mycroft convinces his brother Sherlock to offer his services at the orphanage while Douglas travels to see what can be salvaged. Sherlock finds himself surprisingly at home among the street urchins, but is alarmed to discover that two boys show signs of drug addiction. Meanwhile Douglas also finds evidence of opium use on two dead sailors, and it becomes clear to Mycroft that the vile trade is on the ascent once again.Travelling to China on the trail of the drug business, Mycroft and Douglas discover that there are many in high places willing to make a profit from the misery of others. Their opponents are powerful, and the cost of stemming the deadly tide of opium is likely to be high.
"Now a force to be reckoned with in the War Office, the young Mycroft Holmes is growing his network of contacts and influence, although not always in a manner that pleases his closest friend, Cyrus Douglas. A Trinidadian of African descent, Douglas has opened a home for orphaned children, while still running his successful import business. When a ship carrying a cargo in which Douglas was heavily invested runs aground on the Dorset coast, Mycroft convinces his brother Sherlock to offer his services at the orphanage while Douglas travels to see what can be salvaged. Sherlock finds himself surprisingly at home among the street urchins, but is alarmed to discover that two boys show signs of drug addiction. Meanwhile Douglas also finds evidence of opium use on two dead sailors, and it becomes clear to Mycroft that the vile trade is on the ascent once again.Travelling to China on the trail of the drug business, Mycroft and Douglas discover that there are many in high places willing to make a profit from the misery of others. Their opponents are powerful, and the cost of stemming the deadly tide of opium is likely to be high.
March 29, 2022
I like my mysteries to have a dramatic reveal or an unforeseen twist. While "Mycroft and Sherlock" has a more subtle flow, it is not unsatisfying. I had no idea Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was both so talentedly literate and a fellow Holmesian. The authors' characterizations are spot-on, the interplay between Sherlock and Mycroft is genuine, and I learned many new late 19th Century British words (with the aid of Google -- never mind that I've already forgotten them.) I didn't realize this was the second in a trilogy, but I will continue this line of inquiry to its conclusion.
March 30, 2019
First off, the Goodreads summary is kinda way off. Or not. Well, most of it is true, but no one goes to China, that's for sure.
Anyways. I've outgrown middle grade long ago, finding good YA requires picking through too many cringy fantasies and angsty books, and adult--well, let's just say I too often bump into a pot of stuff I'd rather not read. Which is why a book like this one--a clean, interesting adult fiction-- is GOLD to me.
The plot was fascinating. The writing...well, I can't quite say. It was fancy but that fit the book, and writing--so long as it's not garish or iverly simplistic--rarely bothers me.
The plot is fascinating. Threads and webs, Holmes mysteries are rarely the type you can solve as you read and instincts at the beginning of the book have a remarkable end-up-true rate, but they do keep you reading. And then, of course, the characters.
Even though it is Douglas's cargo in the ship that runs aground, Douglas's boys' home that is such an integral part of the story, he kinda takes a back seat in this one. He's still Mycroft's best friend. He's still a full character, helping Mycroft investigate, interacting with the boys, and trying to deal with Sherlock. But the book is, after all, "Mycroft and Sherlock". This one is largely about the brothers.
Mycroft has changed since the last book, as he and Douglas acknowledge. He's dealing with his career, a his past, his future, a startling personal relationship...and Sherlock. We learn a lot about the Holmes brothers' relationship here...Mycroft, it seems, is trying to raise Sherlock. And if the last book was meant to tell us how My rodt became who he is, and this book was a bit of continuance on that, this one is meant to show us how Sherlock became who he is.
Honestly? Sherlock stole the show for me. I guess some people would find him seriously annoying...but I liked him. I think it was Sherlock, his new band of child devotees, and his wilder investigations that I enjoyed the most.
While Mycroft and Douglas are working 'the case', Sherlock conducts his own, more clandestine investigations which should have been interconnected with the others, but due to his and Mycroft's tendencies for secrets, tend to run parallel to each other. sherlock.is hardly more than a kid...not yet nineteen, old enough for Douglas's boys to view him as an adult but young enough that he is himself, to all other characters, a boy, not a man. He keeps his secrets close to his chest, even from the reader, and there's a lot we don't understand or really know until the very end...nice plot twisting, by the way, took something that we know to be obviously Tru from the very beginning and add SO MANY DETAILS I did NOT expect.
*SPOILER** (excuse me until I can fix this on my laptop)
It's at the end we find out this has really been Sherlock's book all along. Some people might complain about the pacing...life doesn't often pace very well. I was fine with it.
*END SPOILER ;) ****
The ending was sad, though. Life, I suppose. And...Mycroft and Sherlock, prequel to the the actual stories. Being a person who cries easily while reading I almost did, which I will never admit to my siblings (unless they decide to actually read this while review...)
But yes. Like I said at the beginning...gold.
Anyways. I've outgrown middle grade long ago, finding good YA requires picking through too many cringy fantasies and angsty books, and adult--well, let's just say I too often bump into a pot of stuff I'd rather not read. Which is why a book like this one--a clean, interesting adult fiction-- is GOLD to me.
The plot was fascinating. The writing...well, I can't quite say. It was fancy but that fit the book, and writing--so long as it's not garish or iverly simplistic--rarely bothers me.
The plot is fascinating. Threads and webs, Holmes mysteries are rarely the type you can solve as you read and instincts at the beginning of the book have a remarkable end-up-true rate, but they do keep you reading. And then, of course, the characters.
Even though it is Douglas's cargo in the ship that runs aground, Douglas's boys' home that is such an integral part of the story, he kinda takes a back seat in this one. He's still Mycroft's best friend. He's still a full character, helping Mycroft investigate, interacting with the boys, and trying to deal with Sherlock. But the book is, after all, "Mycroft and Sherlock". This one is largely about the brothers.
Mycroft has changed since the last book, as he and Douglas acknowledge. He's dealing with his career, a his past, his future, a startling personal relationship...and Sherlock. We learn a lot about the Holmes brothers' relationship here...Mycroft, it seems, is trying to raise Sherlock. And if the last book was meant to tell us how My rodt became who he is, and this book was a bit of continuance on that, this one is meant to show us how Sherlock became who he is.
Honestly? Sherlock stole the show for me. I guess some people would find him seriously annoying...but I liked him. I think it was Sherlock, his new band of child devotees, and his wilder investigations that I enjoyed the most.
While Mycroft and Douglas are working 'the case', Sherlock conducts his own, more clandestine investigations which should have been interconnected with the others, but due to his and Mycroft's tendencies for secrets, tend to run parallel to each other. sherlock.is hardly more than a kid...not yet nineteen, old enough for Douglas's boys to view him as an adult but young enough that he is himself, to all other characters, a boy, not a man. He keeps his secrets close to his chest, even from the reader, and there's a lot we don't understand or really know until the very end...nice plot twisting, by the way, took something that we know to be obviously Tru from the very beginning and add SO MANY DETAILS I did NOT expect.
*SPOILER** (excuse me until I can fix this on my laptop)
It's at the end we find out this has really been Sherlock's book all along. Some people might complain about the pacing...life doesn't often pace very well. I was fine with it.
*END SPOILER ;) ****
The ending was sad, though. Life, I suppose. And...Mycroft and Sherlock, prequel to the the actual stories. Being a person who cries easily while reading I almost did, which I will never admit to my siblings (unless they decide to actually read this while review...)
But yes. Like I said at the beginning...gold.
May 4, 2019
More page-turning adventures of Mycroft and Cyrus. This time with more Sherlock and Huan! Plus drugs.
October 26, 2019
I was disappointed--doubly so, because I love Abdul-Jabbar and I love those rascally Holmes bros. But both the writing and the story were inelegant and boring.
July 1, 2023
Another great Sherlock mystery.
September 16, 2019
I had no idea Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was a author of fiction. I guess he has written a few of these. This is my first. Well paced and interesting. I’ve enjoyed the book. A good addition to the Sherlock Holmes tradition.
December 11, 2018
Three-and-a-half but closer to four stars. Didn't realize this was the second in a series, but I wasn't confused or anything while reading it. Really, the biggest reason I picked up the book was because I saw Kareem the Dream's name on the cover and remembered that he was recently hired as a staff writer on the new season of my all-time favorite show, Veronica Mars. So glad I picked it up because Kareem and Ms. Waterhouse can write! This book moves at breakneck speed and really does an incredible job of conveying that, at the end of the day, Sherlock Holmes is a bit of a jerk. Really fun read.
June 8, 2019
Its so disheartening how disappointed I was with this entire book. They've completely destroyed the stories and history of Sherlock Holmes, as if they never existed. Mycroft is given the deductive reasoning, but only on minor occasions. Sherlock is made to be a teenage buffoon. And events, even a brawl are more silly than serious. I was so counting on a book to add to the world of Sherlock Holmes but this is so not it
April 1, 2021
I may be the only person around who watched basketball in the early 90's who didn't know that Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was a massive Sherlock Holmes fan. Which makes my selection of reading this book (and starting on book #2 of a series) a strange leap of faith.
The leap was rewarded! I had a delightful time running around with Mycroft, Sherlock, Douglas, Juan, and the rest. Perhaps now I should read book #1?
The leap was rewarded! I had a delightful time running around with Mycroft, Sherlock, Douglas, Juan, and the rest. Perhaps now I should read book #1?
March 25, 2019
A fairly enjoyable mystery is bogged down by trying too hard: too many convoluted sentences attempting to replicate Victorian speech, too many info details trying too hard to replicate the time and place, and so forth.
I do enjoy the characterizations of Mycroft and Sherlock in this series, but Douglas was seriously under-utilized here.
I do enjoy the characterizations of Mycroft and Sherlock in this series, but Douglas was seriously under-utilized here.
October 28, 2024
I guess you have to do it at some point, but bringing Sherlock front and center felt like a mistake to me. It broadened the narrative too much and didn't quite work. Shifting from Mycroft loses what was a special about the first book. Oh well. I've got to keep going at this point.
We discussed more on But Have You Tried... https://soundcloud.com/allthebooks/th...
We discussed more on But Have You Tried... https://soundcloud.com/allthebooks/th...
August 5, 2025
I’m a devoted Sherlockian and it’s the reason I picked up this book. What I enjoyed from the start was Mycroft’s character— the older and more sensible brother. He’s an advisor to Secretary of War in Victorian England. I enjoyed his character and learning of his personal struggles.
Sherlock is only 19, reckless but intelligent. His power of deduction is clear and I felt the I was seeing the younger version of Doyle’s Sherlock.
I also appreciated Douglas, Mycroft’s best friend and confidante. He’s a black Britain originally from Trinidad. The friendship between him and Mycroft is heartwarming, but the book doesn’t expand much upon it which left me with an incomplete feeling.
As for the plot, this is where my brain was excessively overworked.
The story begins with horrific murders of a number of men. I thought that was it: the classic murder mystery waiting to be solved, but I was wrong. We’re introduced to the world of opium and drug abusers among children and adults. I was still focused, but not for long. There’s the smuggling which takes place through sea by stuffing the substance in dolls. Then the dolls branch out into a story of their own which is hard to tie back to the original crime of murder. Then comes the forged coins and some info dumping on economics. The multiple crimes were crammed in a confusing way and I was lost by then.
I was really invested in the characters, but the plot was bogged down with too much making it underwhelming. Even when the mysteries are solved at the end, they felt like chemistry equations which I had to work out, but miserably failed.
I might give the series another chance if the other books are not so complicated as this one.
Sherlock is only 19, reckless but intelligent. His power of deduction is clear and I felt the I was seeing the younger version of Doyle’s Sherlock.
I also appreciated Douglas, Mycroft’s best friend and confidante. He’s a black Britain originally from Trinidad. The friendship between him and Mycroft is heartwarming, but the book doesn’t expand much upon it which left me with an incomplete feeling.
As for the plot, this is where my brain was excessively overworked.
The story begins with horrific murders of a number of men. I thought that was it: the classic murder mystery waiting to be solved, but I was wrong. We’re introduced to the world of opium and drug abusers among children and adults. I was still focused, but not for long. There’s the smuggling which takes place through sea by stuffing the substance in dolls. Then the dolls branch out into a story of their own which is hard to tie back to the original crime of murder. Then comes the forged coins and some info dumping on economics. The multiple crimes were crammed in a confusing way and I was lost by then.
I was really invested in the characters, but the plot was bogged down with too much making it underwhelming. Even when the mysteries are solved at the end, they felt like chemistry equations which I had to work out, but miserably failed.
I might give the series another chance if the other books are not so complicated as this one.
December 26, 2019
Mycroft and Sherlock by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Anna Waterhouse is an excellent read for fans of the classic detective. It's a great continuation of the series and it's nice to see their young Sherlock get a bit of a bigger role this time around whereas book one primarily focused on Mycroft. Here we get to see Sherlock before he becomes the world famous police consultant. The coolest cameo in this installment is Joseph Bell, aka the real life surgeon who inspired Sherlock Holmes. This could be read as a standalone historical mystery, but it's so worth picking up book one to get the full effect. If you're a fan of Sherry Thomas's Lady Sherlock or Nicholas Meyer's The Seven-Percent Solution, you'll also enjoy Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Anna Waterhouse's Mycroft Holmes and Sherlock series. I can't wait to see where book three goes in The Empty Birdcage.
January 10, 2020
As a reader of mysteries, i do like Sherlock. But i really prefer the stories in visual format (ie. plays, tv, movies). Truthfully, i found the Doyle books a bit dull.
But since this was for my book group & i do like books that put a different spin on common/popular characters.
I liked the spin of it being a young Sherlock & the early days of Mycroft's career in govt. As well as an attempt at explaining how someone soooo smart could become a drug addict.
That aside, this just wasn't for me.
it was way too wordy. unnecessary descriptions. and i got bored. very slow in the beginning. it does pick up a bit in the middle but by then i wasn't interested anymore.
But since this was for my book group & i do like books that put a different spin on common/popular characters.
I liked the spin of it being a young Sherlock & the early days of Mycroft's career in govt. As well as an attempt at explaining how someone soooo smart could become a drug addict.
That aside, this just wasn't for me.
it was way too wordy. unnecessary descriptions. and i got bored. very slow in the beginning. it does pick up a bit in the middle but by then i wasn't interested anymore.
July 5, 2020
This second installation did not disappoint. The historical context of normalized, legal use of opium and derivatives was terrifyingly quotidian. I am really loving the "prequel" feel of getting to know the Holmes brothers in their early days, including their subtle personality differences and Sherlock as an infuriating teenager. KAJ and Waterhouse also do a beautiful job of portraying the people of various ethnicities in these stories in nuanced, deeply humanizing ways while showing the historical circumstances they inhabit. And it was so exciting! The descriptions of fight scenes feel cinematic. Highly recommend!
December 3, 2020
This was an addition to his series on Mycroft Holmes. I enjoyed it but lost a couple of the twists and turns. It fits right in to the time period and the cultures mentioned (English, of course, but also Chinese) and did a good job. Some was a bit predictable, based on having read the Canon. Honestly, both Mycroft and Sherlock come off as self centered arrogant rather uncaring men. Sherlock is a teen at the time, so has some excuse but Mycroft needs some lessons in kindness as well, as even his best friend, Cyrus Douglas informs him. Will continue to read but not avidly waiting for the next.
November 29, 2021
As Good As the First
I've been enjoying Sherlock Holmes and all offshoots since I was little. This series makes me so happy!
Sherlock is young, 19, and in school. Mycroft is 26 and officially works for the state department, but unofficially for Queen Victoria herself.
This mystery involves the Chinese drug trade, the plight of orphans, and political power and intrigue. These books also give us a hint of how the Holmes Bros. became who they are later.
Well done!
I've been enjoying Sherlock Holmes and all offshoots since I was little. This series makes me so happy!
Sherlock is young, 19, and in school. Mycroft is 26 and officially works for the state department, but unofficially for Queen Victoria herself.
This mystery involves the Chinese drug trade, the plight of orphans, and political power and intrigue. These books also give us a hint of how the Holmes Bros. became who they are later.
Well done!
June 21, 2023
Loved this next installment in the Mycroft Holmes series! In this one we get to know Sherlock a little bit more. Now 19, Sherlock has developed a fascination with a local murder spree, which is distracting him from his studies. While older brother Mycroft originally tries to deter him, he, too is drawn in. Along with his best friend Cyrus Douglas and reliable buddy Huan, now moved to London from Trinidad, they are on the case (whether they want to be or not). Looking forward to book three!
October 11, 2021
3.5
So here's the thing. I really liked the start and the ending of the book, really really liked it. The problem of this book is the medium part, from pag 200 to pag 300 it becomes extremely slow, not bad... just slow.
I'm a Sherlock Holmes fan in any media, and I really like this book, but I would change certain things. It's still good so read it.
So here's the thing. I really liked the start and the ending of the book, really really liked it. The problem of this book is the medium part, from pag 200 to pag 300 it becomes extremely slow, not bad... just slow.
I'm a Sherlock Holmes fan in any media, and I really like this book, but I would change certain things. It's still good so read it.
November 1, 2018
The 2nd of Jabbar’s books about Mycroft & Sherlock Holmes is well-written and entertaining. He does a good job of bringing the characters to life and letting the readers get to know them better. Thoroughly enjoyable read.
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