The Country of the Saints

by Arthur Conan Doyle

John Ferrier and his daughter are in danger when they are saved by a group of Mormons.

Genres: Fiction, Mystery, Classics, Audiobook

59 pages, Paperback

Published April 8, 2018

About the author

Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle was a Scottish writer and physician. He created the character Sherlock Holmes in 1887 for A Study in Scarlet, the first of four novels and fifty-six short stories about Holmes and Dr. Watson. The Sherlock Holmes stories are milestones in the field of crime fiction.

Doyle was a prolific writer. In addition to the Holmes stories, his works include fantasy and science fiction stories about Professor Challenger, and humorous stories about the Napoleonic soldier Brigadier Gerard, as well as plays, romances, poetry, non-fiction, and historical novels. One of Doyle's early short stories, "J. Habakuk Jephson's Statement" (1884), helped to popularise the mystery of the brigantine Mary Celeste, found drifting at sea with no crew member aboard.

Reviews

[Mulan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Die Fortsetzung war echt spannend!!! Die Erzählweise fand ich auch echt cool. Der Fokus ist hier mehr auf der Backstory vom ersten Mörder in der Reihe, die sich inhaltlich von der Serie unterscheidet

[Mishkaah]

The backstory of our killer (A Study in Scarlet) is found in The Country of the Saints. This takes us to Utah, where a father named John Ferrier and his adoptive daughter are on the verge of death when a gang of Mormons intervenes to save them. They are saved but made to integrate into society. In defiance of the Mormons' wishes, Lucy plans to wed our murderer Jefferson Hope when she is an adult. Ferrier is killed, Lucy is made to wed, and she passes away from a shattered heart. Hope sets out to track down and assassinate the guilty guys, even following them to England.

[Thakzhan · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the first book "a study in scarlet", Dr. Watson and Sherlock Holmes are solving a murder case.

This second book is about the story of ther murderer and what led him to commit the crime.

Great read, but when listening to the audiobook, you might have to re-listen to the book again if you didn't catch a few details because they all are relevant for the story.

[Connor N. F. Field · Rating 3 out of 5]

Literally The Punisher if it was the American West

[Sophie Mae · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book and thought the story was intriguing. Was it necessary? No. Was it fun? Yeah.

[Siddharth Srivastava · Rating 3 out of 5]

The backstory to 'A Study in Scarlet', finds a surreal, serene, and engaging realization in this second installment, The Country of the Saints.

Would you rather give up your life than accept a culture you don't relate to and hate, or accept the culture superficially, deceiving its men and build your life depending on them and then break away? Is it deceit? What if those men forced that culture upon you in bargain for saving your life? Is it deceit still? Survival instinct, more often than not, transcends moral boundaries and ethical responsibilities.

Anarchy, however, births from blind faith, and quite ironically so. The pendulum oscillates. The bell rings every time the pendulum hits an extreme. It rang in the backyards of the 'Holy Four'. It rang in the camp where John Ferrier was mauled and buried. It rang when Jefferson Hope vowed of revenge.

That dystopia is only a thing of the present or future is a farce. It has always existed among us. Inside us. That good and evil are two different things is a farce. They both eat off each other and also constantly reinforce each other. A parasitic symbiosis. A twin-star system, if you may. That is what good and evil is. Hope and despair are siblings. Without despair, there's no hope and vice-versa.

Vengeance a life force? Definitely so. 20 years! Jeff Hope lived for Lucy and John's ghosts. Chased Drebber and Stangerson across 2 continents. Lost his life's meaning and eventually his life soon after he relieved the Earth of those two greedy harem-loving bastards.

However, the way Holmes explained everything word by word at the last was a bit unnecessary, but then again, these were the OG writings who hailed crime fiction to the pedestal where they are now.

Be it the scenery, be it the dialogues, movements, actions, responses, everything is justified and expressed in a creamy language. A treat to the palate. Rich and exemplary. It surely gives strong reasons to prefer literature in original British English more than any other translation, or even American English, for that matter.

[Maja · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really creative way to expand the universe and give understanding to the characters actions. I felt that each new character introduced was likeable and drive the plot even though I didn’t feel they were as impactful as our title characters. This said, some of the antagonists could have used a little more development but I understand Conan Doyle was working with a set length of writing. The plot itself was also incredibly engaging, offering up something trendy for the period but contrasting to what has been said so far. However, the end conclusion really dragged on. We’d already had an explanation of Sherlock’s workings and I did not feel this needed to be given in such depth again. All in all, still an enjoyable read but it did flag a little bit

[Mike Lisanke · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this, the 2nd part (the backstory and details) of the Study in Scarlett, we hear the much more interesting story of the lives which developed into the case for Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. While the 1st part was interesting and amusing (as always) the 2nd half Country of the Saints (the Mormons? please) was twice as good. They are often meant to be read as bookends to the complete story and I can recall completing this 2nd half on my initial read of the Scarlett study.

[Michele · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will say that I did my research on the order of the Holmes books. The Country of the Saints is a must follow up read if you read A Study in Scarlet as it is the backstory to our murderer. Doyle is a stupendous story teller and wordsmith. This book is actually a short story as it is only about fiftyish pages so not a difficult get. There are little hints here and there that the reader will recognize and pick up one relating to the first story.

[Kaya Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

Honestly a little boring, although I liked getting additional context through the murderer’s perspective. It seems some editions have this story directly after a Study in Scarlet? I prefer thinking of them as separate just because of the wildly different settings. Having them in one book would be too uncanny

[Katie Alice · Rating 3 out of 5]

I always end up missing London as a setting during most of this book. My association between Sherlock and old London roads is just too strong. And although it's a good story and I love seeing the origin story of the last killer, it doesn't feel classic Sherlock.

[Reader]

Second book in the Sherlock Holmes series. This one focuses on the Mormons in Utah who take in the 2 final survivors of a wagon train out west. The true character of the Mormon Church is revealed. Quite a captivating story.

[Sam Crossland · Rating 5 out of 5]

As read by Stephen Fry. Back story of the Mormon religion and key characters of A Study in Scarlet and then the conclusion of how the case was solved by SH.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not knowing what I was getting into, I was a little bored at the beginning, wondering where the familiar characters were. It ended up being a mystery/revenge story that sort of dazzled me.

[Olatomi Afilaka · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story clears up the missing information in a study of scarlet case.

[Phoebe · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don’t know why this book and a Study in Scarlet are separate they’re way better read together. Also what is that description ??

[Barbara Watson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Impressive, and riveting back story to the first Sherlock Holmes book.

[RedReads · Rating 2 out of 5]

technically well written as you'd expect, but christ this was dull.

[Donna Flemming · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book definitely belongs with 'A Study in Scarlet' - now it all makes some sense. No idea why this would be separate from the first book.

[JawJacker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Crazy

[Nathan Perrin · Rating 5 out of 5]

An interesting Sherlock Holmes mystery that meets surprise Mormon history.

[T.L. Routledge · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was more interesting than I was expecting. Essentially this is the backstory of the killer from A Study in Scarlett.

[ottilie · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an epic villain origin story, if my gf was kidnapped and forced to marry a Mormon I too would become a murder

[Huey · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was boring and not as interesting as the first book. It might just be my attention span, but I lacked the motivation to read it with full investment.

[Abragail Arnold · Rating 4 out of 5]

Part of the Sherlock Holmes: Definitive Collection. Adding this for page count on Goodreads. The full review will be posted on the audiobook version once it's finished.