Difference between revisions of "The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes: The Man From Hell by Barrie Roberts"

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Noted West Country philanthropist Lord Backwater is
+
Noted West Country philanthropist Lord Backwater is killed – by poachers, according to the police investigating. His son disagrees, and calls in Sherlock Holmes, who quickly establishes that the true solution to the mystery is much stranger – involving a feared criminal brotherhood, crimes from many years past, and the Gates of Hell themselves.
killed – by poachers, according to the police investigating. His son
 
disagrees, and calls in Sherlock Holmes, who quickly establishes that
 
the true solution to the mystery is much stranger – involving a feared
 
criminal brotherhood, crimes from many years past, and the Gates of
 
Hell themselves.
 
  
I should probably point out that the Gates of Hell, and the man
+
I should probably point out that the Gates of Hell, and the man styling himself as the Man From Hell, aren't actually supernatural – but that's not to downplay the danger that Holmes, his faithful companion Watson, and the new Lord Backwater face. The action builds to a thrilling climax as the great detective uses his powers of deduction to work out the secrets of the victim's past.
styling himself as the Man From Hell, aren't actually supernatural –
 
but that's not to downplay the danger that Holmes, his faithful
 
companion Watson, and the new Lord Backwater face. The action builds
 
to a thrilling climax as the great detective uses his powers of
 
deduction to work out the secrets of the victim's past.
 
  
This is fairly standard for a Sherlock Holmes story, in many ways. The
+
This is fairly standard for a Sherlock Holmes story, in many ways. The West Country setting and the death of a member of the aristocracy, followed by his heir hiring Holmes, is strongly reminiscent of ''Hound
West Country setting and the death of a member of the aristocracy,
+
of the Baskervilles'' – and let's face it, when it comes to detective stories, the ''Hound'' is hardly a bad one to take inspiration from. It's the emulation that's really impressive here – I've read all of
followed by his heir hiring Holmes, is strongly reminiscent of ''Hound
+
Conan Doyle's Holmes novels and short stories, and many of the other books to have been written using Sherlock as a character, in addition to some internet fanfic. While I've enjoyed many of the books written
of the Baskervilles'' – and let's face it, when it comes to detective
+
by later authors, I'd never previously read anyone whose style was particularly close to the original. Barrie Roberts, in this book, has an incredibly similar style to Conan Doyle himself, both in his voice
stories, the ''Hound'' is hardly a bad one to take inspiration from.
+
writing as Watson and in the overall plot construction, from the obligatory scene early on when Holmes dazzles Backwater with his deductions about the heir, to the action climax which is so reminiscent of some of the short stories.
It's the emulation that's really impressive here – I've read all of
 
Conan Doyle's Holmes novels and short stories, and many of the other
 
books to have been written using Sherlock as a character, in addition
 
to some internet fanfic. While I've enjoyed many of the books written
 
by later authors, I'd never previously read anyone whose style was
 
particularly close to the original. Barrie Roberts, in this book, has
 
an incredibly similar style to Conan Doyle himself, both in his voice
 
writing as Watson and in the overall plot construction, from the
 
obligatory scene early on when Holmes dazzles Backwater with his
 
deductions about the heir, to the action climax which is so
 
reminiscent of some of the short stories.
 
  
The mystery has twists and turns, but is probably one of the easier
+
The mystery has twists and turns, but is probably one of the easier Sherlock Holmes stories to 'solve'. I could guess reasonable amounts of what was happening as we went along, and while I can't hand on heart say that I guessed the murderer too far in advance, the character in question was certainly on my suspects list. That's not a criticism, though – as much as I like the ingenious plots of some detective novels with seven or eight twists and turns at the end, I also enjoy feeling intelligent when I work out at least some of what's happening, and Roberts definitely 'plays fair' with the reader, giving them enough information to make a good stab at a solution.
Sherlock Holmes stories to 'solve'. I could guess reasonable amounts
 
of what was happening as we went along, and while I can't hand on
 
heart say that I guessed the murderer too far in advance, the
 
character in question was certainly on my suspects list. That's not a
 
criticism, though – as much as I like the ingenious plots of some
 
detective novels with seven or eight twists and turns at the end, I
 
also enjoy feeling intelligent when I work out at least some of what's
 
happening, and Roberts definitely 'plays fair' with the reader, giving
 
them enough information to make a good stab at a solution.
 
  
Of all the Sherlock Holmes stories out there written by authors other
+
Of all the Sherlock Holmes stories out there written by authors other than Conan Doyle, this is definitely the one I'd be happiest to recommend to fans of the originals. For those people who've never read
than Conan Doyle, this is definitely the one I'd be happiest to
+
a Holmes book (is there anyone still out there in that category?), this works well enough as a detective novel anyway, and will hopefully inspire people to search out Sir Arthur's books.
recommend to fans of the originals. For those people who've never read
 
a Holmes book (is there anyone still out there in that category?),
 
this works well enough as a detective novel anyway, and will hopefully
 
inspire people to search out Sir Arthur's books.
 
  
 
I'd like to thank the publishers for sending a copy to The Bookbag.
 
I'd like to thank the publishers for sending a copy to The Bookbag.

Revision as of 09:40, 6 August 2011


The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes: The Man From Hell by Barrie Roberts

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Buy The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes: The Man From Hell by Barrie Roberts at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

Category: Crime
Rating: 5/5
Reviewer: Robert James
Reviewed by Robert James
Summary: This superbly written Sherlock Holmes novel is by far the best written of Conan Doyle's numerous imitators.
Buy? Yes Borrow? February 2008
Pages: 192 Date: February 2010
Publisher: Titan Books Ltd
ISBN: 978-1848565081

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Noted West Country philanthropist Lord Backwater is killed – by poachers, according to the police investigating. His son disagrees, and calls in Sherlock Holmes, who quickly establishes that the true solution to the mystery is much stranger – involving a feared criminal brotherhood, crimes from many years past, and the Gates of Hell themselves.

I should probably point out that the Gates of Hell, and the man styling himself as the Man From Hell, aren't actually supernatural – but that's not to downplay the danger that Holmes, his faithful companion Watson, and the new Lord Backwater face. The action builds to a thrilling climax as the great detective uses his powers of deduction to work out the secrets of the victim's past.

This is fairly standard for a Sherlock Holmes story, in many ways. The West Country setting and the death of a member of the aristocracy, followed by his heir hiring Holmes, is strongly reminiscent of Hound of the Baskervilles – and let's face it, when it comes to detective stories, the Hound is hardly a bad one to take inspiration from. It's the emulation that's really impressive here – I've read all of Conan Doyle's Holmes novels and short stories, and many of the other books to have been written using Sherlock as a character, in addition to some internet fanfic. While I've enjoyed many of the books written by later authors, I'd never previously read anyone whose style was particularly close to the original. Barrie Roberts, in this book, has an incredibly similar style to Conan Doyle himself, both in his voice writing as Watson and in the overall plot construction, from the obligatory scene early on when Holmes dazzles Backwater with his deductions about the heir, to the action climax which is so reminiscent of some of the short stories.

The mystery has twists and turns, but is probably one of the easier Sherlock Holmes stories to 'solve'. I could guess reasonable amounts of what was happening as we went along, and while I can't hand on heart say that I guessed the murderer too far in advance, the character in question was certainly on my suspects list. That's not a criticism, though – as much as I like the ingenious plots of some detective novels with seven or eight twists and turns at the end, I also enjoy feeling intelligent when I work out at least some of what's happening, and Roberts definitely 'plays fair' with the reader, giving them enough information to make a good stab at a solution.

Of all the Sherlock Holmes stories out there written by authors other than Conan Doyle, this is definitely the one I'd be happiest to recommend to fans of the originals. For those people who've never read a Holmes book (is there anyone still out there in that category?), this works well enough as a detective novel anyway, and will hopefully inspire people to search out Sir Arthur's books.

I'd like to thank the publishers for sending a copy to The Bookbag.

Further Reading: For other Holmes reading, Eliminate the Impossible: An Examination of the World of Sherlock Holmes on Page and Screen by Alistair Duncan and Steve Emecz is an excellent non-fiction book. For more crime fiction, I'd highly recommend The Brutal Art by Jesse Kellerman.

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Buy The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes: The Man From Hell by Barrie Roberts at Amazon You can read more book reviews or buy The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes: The Man From Hell by Barrie Roberts at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
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