Series & Short Stories: Baker Street, Irish County, Victorian Magic & Evil Geniuses

Reviews by Jeanne

Baker Street Translation by Michael Robertson is the third in the “Heath and Heath” series about two brothers who rent offices at 221 B Baker Street in London, and thus fall heir to answering all the letters sent to Sherlock Holmes.  This time around, the brothers find themselves involved with an earnest translator who wants to prove he made no errors, but ends up dead for his troubles, a Texas lawyer who wants to know why his client was told to make a will leaving her vast fortune to Reggie, Reggie’s romantic rival kidnapped, and a whole load of toy ducks. I found the book to be a lot of fun, with some Sherlockian references thrown in.  You don’t have to read all the books in the series, but you might want to read The Brothers of Baker Street before this one just to learn about the romantic triangle.

An Irish Country Wedding by Patrick Taylor continues the story of Dr. Fingal Flahertie O’Reilly and his young protégé Dr. Barry Laverty as they minister to the good people of Ballybucklebo in the early 1960s.  In this entry, O’Reilly is planning his wedding to old flame Kitty when his loyal housekeeper, Kinky Kincaid, is stricken with a serious ailment.  In the meantime, there are the usual village problems to be sorted and perhaps the start of a new romance.  I have thoroughly enjoyed all the Irish Country series, which just seems to get better and better.  If you like the stories of Miss Read, James Herriot, or even Alexander McCall Smith, this might be a series for you.  The stories are gentle but there’s a practical, no nonsense feel to them. Some things work out as expected; others don’t. The Irish setting is absolutely delightful, though the author makes sure that it isn’t seen as purely idyllic.  He avoided Irish politics for the most part, but does start to address the question a bit in this book.  Here’s an earlier series review: Irish Country Series

Queen Victoria’s Book of Spells, edited by Ellen Datlow and Terry Wilding is a collection of fantasy stories in a Victorian setting.  As usual with these editors, there’s a strong collection of stories and excellent selection of authors, including Gregory Maguire (Wicked), multiple award winning novelist Tanith Lee, and Ellen Kushner (Thomas the Rhymer.)  A number of the stories feature magical takes on real people such as Queen Victoria and the Brontes, real events (the phosphorous strike) or well-known literary creations (Scrooge and Frankenstein.) If you like the era and enjoy a bit of the fantastical, there’s sure to be something you like in this collection.

On the other hand, if you prefer something more futuristic, try The Mad Scientist’s Guide to World Domination:  Original Short Fiction for the Modern Evil Genius edited by John Joseph Adams.  This collection features contributions from authors such as Diana Gabaldon, Naomi Novik, and Harry Turtledove.  The stories range from amusing to tear-inducing, and all are clever.  “Professor Incognito Apologies:  An Itemized List” by Austin Grossman is the sort of story I expected in this collection, but the twists made it memorable.  “The Executor” by Daniel H. Wilson read a bit like one of the old hard-boiled mystery stories, while “The Angel of Death Has A Business Plan” by Heather Lindsley explains that evil geniuses need a coach to get those threats just right.

Letters to Sherlock

Reviewed by Jeanne

When barrister Reggie Heath and his brother Nigel took offices at 221 Baker Street, they agreed to a somewhat unusual clause in the lease: to answer letters sent to Sherlock Holmes by admirers from around the world. They are to send out a standard form letter, and they are not to have contact with any of the senders.

This is the premise for Michael Robertson’s “Heath & Heath” series of mysteries featuring intricate plots, entertaining characters and sometimes implausible situations but all in good fun.  In the first book, The Baker Street Letters, Reggie returns to the office to find a dead clerk and his brother apparently headed for America in response to a letter for Sherlock. Not only does that make Nigel look very, very guilty, but he may lose his law license if he fails to appear in front of a review board so Reggie sets off in hot pursuit along with Laura, Reggie’s current girlfriend who used to be Nigel’s girl. It soon becomes apparent that someone else is taking that letter seriously—deadly seriously.

I thought The Baker Street Letters had a very good premise and some good characters but for me it had a bit of a disorganized feel. Nice, but not especially memorable, so I wasn’t chomping at the bit to read the second book in the series.  In fact, I almost didn’t, but the third book was getting very good reviews indeed and a quick check showed that reviewers had thought the second book very good as well.

Now, reviewers and I don’t always agree, but I decided I’d pick up The Brothers of Baker Street so that I could either be impressed or make a note to myself to ignore certain reviewers in the future because they didn’t know what they were talking about.

Good news for all concerned, they did know.  The second book is much better than the first and I quite enjoyed it.  The book picks up not long after the end of Baker Street Letters.  Nigel is still in America, but Reggie is definitely feeling the aftermath of his impulsive actions in the U.S. His law practice is in shambles, he has no clients to speak of, he’s run through most of his money, and his girlfriend is seeing another man.  Things are so desperate that he agrees to take on a criminal case, though he had sworn off those years ago—a little matter of not wanting to defend guilty people.  Besides, there are some extenuating circumstances: the defendant’s solicitor swears he’s innocent, a hard-working bloke who has pulled himself up by his bootstraps to make something of himself, much like Reggie’s father had done. The cabbie, one of England’s fabled Black Cab drivers, is accused of preying on his fares and even murdering two of them.  Meanwhile, someone is taking an interest in the tabloid reports of the “Balmy Barrister” who thinks he’s Sherlock, which may explain the letter sent to Reggie’s office welcoming Mr. Holmes’ return and bearing the signature “Moriarity.”

This second book is still fun and features entertaining characters, but the author has really sharpened his focus. The plot is very well constructed and even seemingly throwaway lines can lead to important clues.  I was hooked within fifty pages and now am looking forward to reading the third book in the series, The Baker Street Translation, which has also gotten very good reviews. I have high hopes.