Reviewed by Jeanne
This wonderful collection of short stories imagines the worlds
of Sherlock Holmes and H.P. Lovecraft colliding to deliciously chilling
effect. There’s a good mix of authors,
from Poppy Z. Brite to Brian Stableford to Barbara Hambly, and as far as I’m
concerned, there wasn’t a bad story in the bunch. I’ll confess outright while I
have read a number of Lovecraft’s tales such as The Dunwich Horror, Rats in the Walls, and Pickman’s Model, I’m not well-versed in
the world. I’m sure I missed a lot of
subtle touches, but even so I thoroughly enjoyed these tales.
I picked the book up to re-read a favorite story: Neil Gaiman’s A Study in Emerald. I had read it in another collection some years
ago, and then inspired by the graphic novel version of the story, decided I
wanted to read the original and ended up working my way through the whole book.
Gaiman’s story is set in a universe where, we gradually realize, the Earth is
ruled by the Great Old Ones as royal families and the Great Detective and his
Bosworth are called upon to solve the mystery of a murder of the Queen’s
nephew. The writing is superb and the surprises are many. I especially liked the advertisements that
appeared from time to time.
Some authors made more
of the Victorian setting than others; The
Curious Case of Miss Violet Stone by Brite and Ferguson which has Holmes
and Watson investigating the case of a young woman who, it is claimed, has not
eaten in three years is a reflection of the “fasting girls” of that era.
Another uses Watson’s service in Afghanistan as a
backdrop. The Adventure of the Arab’s Manuscript by Michael Reaves had Watson
encountering a woman who had once saved his life and who now is on the trail of
a copy of a forbidden book.
Usually in such a collection I’ll find a story or two that I
consider a complete clunker, but not in this one. While I liked some stories
better than others, there wasn’t a one I disliked.
If you like Holmes with a bit of a supernatural edge, this may
be a collection for you. I think Lovecraft fans would also enjoy it.
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