Review of The Sherlockian by Graham Moore

Hey Blog Readers,

This is a review of the novel, The Sherlockian by Graham Moore.  Sorry this review is coming so soon after the previous one about The Ghost Bride, by Yangsze  Choo, but I actually neglected to write a review for it and decided to write one curtailing the previous review because the novel was also a historical-fiction-turned-murder-mystery and so I thought it would be appropriate.

So, let's get down to it. The novel is a dual viewpoint novel and as such, is set in two different places and times giving the reader insight into the lives of the esteemed writer Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who is living in England and also a Sherlock Holmes enthusiast named Harold White, who is a literary researcher in the United States. The novel opens with from the perspective of Doyle during the time directly after he has 'killed off' Sherlock Holmes. We see the author paint a picture of Doyle that gives the reader insight into how and why Doyle wanted to end the Holmes stories and this chapter introduces us to the man behind Holmes, and all the real life problems he has. The book continues in chapter two with our first impressions of Harold when he is inducted into a fraternity of sorts called The Baker Street Irregulars, which is a group of people dedicated to lore associated with Sherlock Holmes but who are, surprisingly, not that interested in his creator Sir Conan Doyle. The novel continues in this manner, giving each character a chapter in turn, until the climax of the novel, which is itself a debatable event, as the time in between the somewhat 'dual climaxes' could give the reader pause.

The novel is well written and is free from useless musings and fluff, which plague the novels published nowadays so horrendously. It is not a long read and though there is some archaic language to draw the reader into the times in which Doyle lived, the adjustment is mildly enjoyable and can be, at times, quite diverting. As to the secondary characters, there is few, but they are well written and memorable. In the current day portion of the story, there is a man who is a would be villain and a reporter who is more than she seems. Within the Doyle timeline, there are basically Doyle and his friends along with a few odd characters thrown in for flavor. I don't know how much of the story written is truth and frankly, it is so engrossing that I daren't say I don't care to know.

The story in both instances follows the lost diary of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. In Doyle's time, he is living the events that he wrote about and in the present day, the diary has been found and is going to make a debut appearance at the annual meeting of The Baker Street Irregulars. The novel opens on the eve of the beginning of both timelines, the diary and the annual meeting and from the get go, the reader is drawn shamelessly into a world of intrigue and confusion that demands their full attention and gives them all the clues to guess where and how the story will end. It is written in the fashion of a Holmes story and I would wager that any fan of the Holmes stories would be pleased by the care with which the story was undertaken. Over all, I would rate this novel very highly!

Go and borrow it, buy it, read it in the store, just don't steal it.

If you want to purchase the book the link to the amazon store is listed below. I believe you can read the first six chapters online at Barnes&Noble.com.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Sherlockian-Graham-Moore/dp/0446572586