2 out of 5 stars.
I would like to thank Dover Publications for an ARC of this book in exchange for an open and honest review.
Sadly this was a DNF (Did Not Finish) book for me. A compilation of short stories based on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s famous Sherlock Holmes that were written at the time Holmes’ stories were originally in print sounded like a terrific book to read. Sadly, for me, the stories were rather hit and miss. Even sadder is the fact I found them more misses than hits. Some, like the story by Mark Twain, was well written and enjoyable. Others, I just scratched my head at and wondered what the point was.
What may have helped is if each story and its author were better introduced. Yes there was an introduction to the book, and it covered the basics of what the tales would be about… but in this sort of compilation, I do enjoy each new tale having a brief introduction about the author – to refresh the reader as to who they are again – and maybe a brief rundown of the story to put it into some context. That way they might not seem like such a mish mash of tales that got rather redundant and repetitive for me.
This book may suit others, or may have been more enjoyable if I restricted myself to a story a day rather than trying to read it all in one sitting… but it wasn’t a book for me. The concept is good, there are some notably good authors included, but all in all it just didn’t capture and keep my attention as hoped.
Would I recommend this book to others? I might mention it if the subject arose and point out why I didn’t like it, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to recommend it, sorry.
Would I buy this book for myself? In its current formatting, I probably wouldn’t. If the chapters had the author intros and synopsis added, I might reconsider, but right now not a book I’d own.
In summary: A book with a lot of promise that just didn’t follow through or entertain me the way I had hoped it would. Not a book for me, but other fans of Sherlock Holmes may enjoy it.
Until next time,
Janis. XXOO
Janis's Journal 