Sherlock Holmes and the King's Evil: And Other New Tales Featuring the World's Greatest Detective

Lost Sherlock #4

by Donald Serrell Thomas

Here are five stunning novellas featuring the great detective, by the acknowledged master of Sherlockian pastiche.

In these five tales of intellectual derring-do, Sherlock Holmes is shown at the height of his powers. He cooperates with a young Winston Churchill in the famed Siege of Sydney Street, helps defeat a plan for a German invasion outlined in the Zimmermann Telegram, establishes a link between two missing lighthouse keepers and the royal treasures of King John, and more.

Included are: The Case of the Tell-Tale Hands, The Case of the King s Evil, The Case of the Portuguese Sonnets, The Case of Peter the Painter, and The Case of the Zimmermann Telegram. "

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Short Stories, Detective, Audiobook, Historical Fiction, Suspense

352 pages, Hardcover

First published May 27, 2009

About the author

aka Francis Selwyn

Donald Serrell Thomas is an English author of (primarily) Victorian-era historical, crime and detective fiction, as well as books on factual crime and criminals, in particular several academic books on the history of crime in London. He has written a number of biographies, two volumes of poetry, and has also edited volumes of poetry by John Dryden and the Pre-Raphaelites.

Reviews

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

Review from Badelynge.

The Case of the Tell Tale Hands.
A rather dull and pedestrian story to begin an anthology with, Watson uncharacteristically documenting the intricacies of finger printing rather than injecting any excitement or urgency into the proceedings. At the half way stage I was almost hoping for the introduction of a Pygmy or two. Holmes seems perpetually on the verge of calling all and sundry, including Watson, blithering morons. The only lighter moment in the whole affair is the alacrity that Watson displays in choosing Ilfracoombe over Tenby as a holiday destination.

The Case of the King's Evil.
This one was much more to my liking. The plot, though not too murky in its complexity, is still interesting enough to hold the interest, mainly due to how Holmes handles affairs, maintaining a teasing attitude with Watson throughout, which all stems from how the case initially requested aid from the good Doctor and not the better than good detective. The case takes the pair to Norfolk to discover what happened to two brothers, lighthouse keepers both, who have gone missing after a witnessed fight. There are good descriptions throughout of the estuary, the mudflats and the treacherous tides and quicksand under foot. There is a particularly suspenseful sequence out on the mud flats, the tide rushing in, as Holmes pushes bullishly toward a solution with Watson in reluctant tow, the latter seemingly with more mind to the danger the environment poses than the other. I must admit to a fairly rabid fetish in myself for lighthouses, so combining my Holmesian obsession with such is a double whammy. Good stuff.

The Case of the Portuguese sonnets.
Back to more dull ramblings among the murky doings of forgers and extortionists. Too much time is spent with the mechanics and history of forgery, which reads sometimes like a light skimming session on Wikepedia. Hired by Robert Browning's son Holmes travels to Venice, which as a location is largely ignored in favour of dusty rooms filled with poetry, documents and manuscripts from a whole host of figures from Byron to Whitman, as he immerses himself in the dubious art of the forgerer. Yes I chuckled several times at some of Holmes' stock put-downs as Watson and Lestrade so obligingly set themselves up but beyond that my main state of mind, despite being doubly armed with a hot Nespresso and a box of Jaffa Cakes, was boredom. Holmes needs an adversary to outwit or a problem to solve, lives to save or judgement to fall.

The Case of Peter the Painter.
This one is jam packed full of the things that make a good Sherlock Holmes story one of the all time high marks for cosy reads. It's got a little of everything. Holmes has a visitor and he can't resist showing off his 'method' for Watson by applying it to the woman who calls. The woman in question tells a story of a sick daughter, yellow canaries and foreigners up to no-good. Holmes is on top note. Watson not so much. Unfortunately, at this point it becomes apparent that Donald Thomas' schtick has turned up wearing Doc Martens; Thomas loves to tie in the story with some historical incidence - in this case the clashes between police and Russian Anarchists notoriously remembered as 'the Houndsditch Murders' in which three policemen were gunned down dead and several more wounded and the Siege of Sydney Street in which Winston Churchill was at hand leading armed police and a detachment of Scots Guard against a heavily armed group of robber/anarchists. Watson gets heavily side-lined as the two Holmes brothers get pally with Winston but at least it gives him time to get some quality reading done in the form of Scott's Heart of Mid-Lothian. Although this is one of the better stories by Thomas I still think it had potential to be better without being diluted by the author's little history essays. 'The Siege of Sidney Street' also appeared in Barrie Roberts' 'Sherlock Holmes and the Railway Maniac', the first of nine Holmes novels which I heartily recommend.

The Case of the Zimmermann Telegram.
The title is all you really need to know. If you have an interest in the Zimmermann Telegram then google some bibliography and save yourself having to read some historical commentary masquerading as a Sherlock Holmes story. Taking place during the 'His Last Bow' era, the story features Sherlock as our secret master decoder and Watson as a secret agent. Sound good? It isn't. No narrative whatsoever, just a very potted spotty history of the exploits of Room 40's codebreakers during the Great War but with Holmes as the prime mover. It occurred to me that the whole story might be another coded message which I eventually managed to decode. It reads thus: FEEL FREE TO SKIM THIS RUBBISH. Unfortunately the message revealed itself too late.

I do like a good anthology. But I do much prefer a mixed author anthology. In a mixed author anthology Donald Thomas might have been represented by the very agreeable 'The Case of the King's Evil', whereas here, in a single author anthology, his faults are highlighted by their repetition and by the inclusion of stories that are of variable quality. Many of these single author anthologies by authors attempting the Holmes pastiche have their highlights but are also of variable quality. It really underlines just what Doyle achieved to maintain such a high level of consistency throughout all 56 of his Sherlock Holmes short stories.

Seeing as how this anthology consisted of five stories I decided to award a star for each story which was worth reading.

[Mike · Rating 3 out of 5]

When started this book over a year ago, I had read (in quick succession) two previous Holmes books by this author. As I recall, I did not give glowing reviews to them, as the characters felt wrong in their speech and mannerisms. I was about three fourths of the way through this one when I hopped on a plane to the UK for two weeks (June ’11), but kept it “open” on goodreads intending to finish it off. But work (a credible, if not good excuse) kept me busy. Two weeks back in the US, then another three weeks in the UK in July. By then, it had sunk to a low, “inevitable” priority.

Over the intervening year, I remembered my place in the book and my rough feelings about it and the guilt grew. Finally I got it back and finished it.

As with Mr. Thomas’ other Holmes books, he tries a balancing act: fiction plus fact. The author has written several documentaries & crime books that span several decades and reach back as far as the Victorian Era (1840s – 1900s). He is something of an expert in these matters. In this book each of the five stories is based around historical events, although woven into the fabric of Doyle’s creation. In some cases, the veneer of fiction is rather thin; in others it is deeper and more inventive.

When I picked the book up again (Aug ’12) I started in at the start of the fourth tale (as that was what I was in the middle of a year earlier. I chose to re-read the entire story and found that I could identify where I had stopped. This is one of his typical tales where there is a lot of first-person interaction between Holmes, Watson, and the other characters, much as Doyle did in the majority of “official” stories.

The last tale is written more as a historical record. There is minimal “conversation” and much more description of past events. I was pleasantly surprised to find that this story read a lot more naturally to me than most of his others. The narrative flowed smoothly and the sparse dialog was much more “in character”. While it wouldn’t be much of a challenge for the author, if more of his Holmes stories followed this template, I would have probably rated his volumes more highly.

Even though I think the fifth story was a more enjoyable read, to be honest about my feelings from one year ago I am rating this book as I did the others. If you’ve read “The Secret Cases of Sherlock Holmes” or “Sherlock Holmes and the Voice from the Crypt” or “Sherlock Holmes and the Ghosts of Bly” or “The Execution of Sherlock Holmes” and thought well of them, then I think you will enjoy this one, also. Despite my criticisms, I am glad that I read these books.

To paraphrase the old Anita Bryant OJ commercials, “A day without Sherlock Holmes is like a day without sunshine.” Or to put it another way, I’m always happy to discover new material about the world’s greatest Consulting Detective. As much as I appreciate the new and the different, Holmes is one of those things that I hold dear. So, I’ll be going after “Sherlock Holmes and the Running Noose” someday.

[Simona · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is the dullest little anthology of Holmes novels I have ever read. I haven't been able to find here the smallest spark of Sherlock's magic. I am sorry, I really dislike to write less than positive reviews.

[S.M. · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's fine I guess. If you're after a very cut and dry, technically sound mystery that puts character second (if even that), you'll probably be satisfied with this collection. I found it so stiff and dull that it barely held my attention.

[Wynssa · Rating 1 out of 5]

Most Sherlock Holmes fanfiction is better than this plodding attempt. No amount of clever ideas - having Holmes discover the truth of Wilde's "Lord Arthur Savile's Crime", for instance; or introducing the young Winston Churchill as the pre WWI Home Secretary - can make up for the terrifyingly pedestrian slog Thomas produces. Neither Holmes not Watson have a distinctive voice; only gimmicky expressions nabbed from Conan Doyle. Boring, boring, boring - pass the seven percent solution *now*, there's a good man.

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent short stories but likely best off read rather as an audiobook. Enjoyable though when walking or working outside

[James Leigh · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a brilliant book, in that it continues in the method of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's chronicling of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John H. Watson in their detective work in Victorian England. I must admit, however, that I was quite bothered by the fact that in several of the stories, the author mentioned names of rather important figures in history as well as dates that nailed down the work of the Great Detective.
I will admit that it has been some time since I have read much of the work of Conan Doyle, but my recollection is that while Holmes and Dr. Watson were in contact with important figures, such as the King of Bohemia, they were never named. I assume that Conan Doyle had a two-fold reasoning behind this. On the one hand, I believe that these were not named as a matter of personal privacy. For instance, if the child of well-known English writers were to visit the Great Detective for a mystery, Conan Doyle would not have mentioned his name as fans of Holmes and Dr. Watson could possibly hound this person for more details on the supposed meeting, as many tend to blur the lines between fiction and reality. On the other hand, the necessity for an author to create a realistic world must be based, at some level, on reality, and by using unreachable characters (i.e. the Home Secretary) there would be no need to use these names as he would be known by the readers.
Excluding these two factors, which in my humble opinion are quite significant, the book is quite fitting as a continuation of the Holmes canon. Donald Thomas is, as Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine aptly posits, "the all-time best at Sherlockian pastiche." Thomas clearly has a vast knowledge of Victorian daily life and history, and he uses this, along with his knowledge of Conan Doyle's work and characters to create a series of five short stories that could have come from the time period itself.

[Sage · Rating 1 out of 5]

edit, days later: I realized yesterday what really bugged me, above everything else that's wrong with this book: Thomas uses even FEWER women characters in this volume than Doyle did. THAT takes some doing. :(

------------------------
my orig review:

Gah, that was the most boring Holmes fic I've ever read. It isn't the subject matter. I've read plenty of war stories, and I've read some novels featuring complex cryptography. I slogged through Neal Stephenson's Cryptonomicon, for god's sake, and I didn't even hate it.

This was just DULL. Also, more telling than showing. Also, there are almost no women in the entire book. How can you write five novellas with only a handful of women, total, including Mrs. Hudson and a mostly useless client in distress? Next to this, Arthur Conan Doyle's usual mundane (and sometimes purple) prose is vivid and electrifying.

Also, twenty minutes after finishing it, I can't remember anything but the ending of the last novella.

(Why, why did I bother? Oh, right, some of the historical detail was nifty. *goes in search of some decent nonfiction history* )

[Daisy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not bad for a non Doyle Sherlock Holmes book, I've read worse. The author interpreted the Holmes character pretty well, however, his Watson grated on me. Having just finished Dust and Shadow: An Account of the Ripper Killings by Dr. John H. Watson by Lyndsay Faye, a book which nailed both characters, the time, and streets of London, this was a step down. If you're in the mood for a new Holmes story go with the Faye book. If you do undertake The King's Evil skip the last story that gets heavily bogged down in the inner workings of code breaking during WWI.

[Pinko Palest · Rating 2 out of 5]

very uneven. A couple of the stories were so good they could pass for the original. Most of the others were pitiful and some were extremely right-wing to boot (for example the one with the Russian anarchists). But the worst thing about the book is this: Sherlock Holmes was definitely no intellectual. He knew nothing about high-brow literature and politics was a no-go zone for him. It is part of his charm and it is what Connan Doyle made him like. Thomas goes out of his way to make Sherlock Holmes a connoisseur of all the arts and a political expert to boot.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the stories Thomas crafts in this book, particularly 'The Case of the King's Evil' and 'The Case of the Zimmerman Telegram.' Thomas's dialog between Watson and Holmes is reminiscent of Doyle's engaging style, although here the descriptive narrative is not as well done (whereas the scenes of Sherlock Holmes's original escapades seem to come alive on the page for me, it felt like these were flat by comparison). It's a fun, quick read.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

A modern day author (c. 1997) stole Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's beloved character and attempted to imititate Doyle's style. He largely succeeded, as far as I can tell. The stories were interesting and the characters seemed to stay close to their original character, although the time frame might not. (Doyle stopped writing these stories before WWI was upon us, as far as I know). Some of the deduction from clues was a little far-fetched at times, but that was true in the original series too.

[Gina Guesby Mays · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very nicely narrated in this audiobook. The writing of course was super but I loved the narrator's different characters and the intensity of what was going on with England at the time. The wars we're such serious business that involving the great detective puts new hope into the outcome. Well done to the author and the narrator!

[Cricket Muse · Rating 4 out of 5]

While many readers have expressed negative views of Thomas‘s Sherlock Holmes pastiche, a deeper appreciation of the cavalcade of historical detail can be summoned. Thomas captures the voice of Watson well, Sherlock somewhat. Of the five stories “Peter the Painter” provides as much action and intrigue as “The Hound of Baskerville.”

[Delores Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a bad book that copies Arthur Conan Doyle"s form. Tyhe stories sound exactly like the original stories but are very different in that he even travels to the United States. If you like mysteries try this one on for size.

[J · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good imitation of the original Doyle stories.

[ATM · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really loved The Case of the Zimmerman Telegram.

[David Elkin · Rating 4 out of 5]

some really good tales, some just ok. Overall, a good addition to the ever growing number of Holmes stories.

[Sandra Guzdek · Rating 5 out of 5]

It had been a while since I read the original Conan Doyle stories, but I have to say that this collection of short stories really rings true to the canon. They are well-written and clever; there is a real sense of authenticity. (I was amused that, during one of the stories, Sherlock Holmes opines on the case of Dr. Crippen, who was one of the subjects of the book I'd read just prior to this one ( Thunderstruck ). Holmes opines that Crippen was "unjustly executed" and indeed "wrongly convicted"—an opinion I am not sure I share.)

[Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as enjoyable as some of the other Holmes “continuations” I’ve read of late. The style isn’t anything near Doyle’s and the cases are too complicated and not meant to be solved. We are meant to consume them and marvel at the author’s writing and research abilities. I don’t deny that those are good, but it isn’t what I look for when I want more Holmes. I’ll read more in this series to see if anything changes.

[Cindy B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another interesting SH story by an author I’m liking more the more I read his historical and fictional tales. An engaging story with a WWI plot (within historical and real context). Narration is, as usual, excellent.
Several stories of SH — all are deserving of this rating.

[Ruth · Rating 1 out of 5]

2 I do often wonder why some books are enjoyable and some are just plain awfully boring. Sadly, this one is the latter. Repetitive in the descriptions of Holmes and Watson, their quirks and quidditch’s and the higher class of society. Not for me.

[Sam · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fine if you're desperate for Sherlock and not picky. This book does that thing where Sherlock and John interact with real political figures like Winston Churchill while being written in 2009. It's the worst Sherlock Holmes derivative trope, in my opinion. It made a mid book annoying.

[Pamela · Rating 2 out of 5]

The thrill is, if not gone, definitely on the wane. Too bad as I had such high hopes.

[Jenn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad. Liked it a lot

[Pat Beard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Uneven. Not up to the earlier stories.

[Paschalis]

elibrary

[Dana · Rating 3 out of 5]

5 stories. 2 I really enjoyed, 2 were ok, one was extremely boring.

[Stasia Higgins · Rating 4 out of 5]

I haven’t read the author’s other Holmes stories, but really enjoyed these. I found them all engaging, with the exception of the Lord Byron and WWI stories, which didn’t really catch my attention.

[Andy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Certainly passable