The Scarlet thread of murder!

A Study in Scarlet
by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

"I might not have gone but for you, and so have missed the finest study I ever came across: a study in scarlet,eh? Why shouldn't we use a little art jargon. There's the scarlet thread of murder running through the colourless skein of life, and our duty is to unravel it, and isolate it,and expose every inch of it." (p.37).

I first read this as a teenager looking for diversion and escape, I had no preconceptions and expectations, but journeyed innocently into the grimy world of late Victorian London to be dazzled by the genius of Sherlock Holmes through the naive and admiring eyes of Dr Watson.  Sherlock Holmes represents my first case of hero worship, I found his cerebral eccentricity compelling and attractive, I found him plausible and his more obnoxious moments entirely forgivable.  I also found his rational explanation of the inexplicable, comforting and admirable, mystery was no longer that, but rather a puzzle to be reduced by logic and the application of knowledge and mental discipline. 

In this, the very first Sherlock Holmes story, Doyle introduces Holmes' scientific and rational approach to mystery, but as evidenced by the above quote the narrative also maintains a romantic tone in it's portrayal of what is a new scientific discipline.  A Study in Scarlet like all the Sherlock Holmes stories embodies a Victorian enthusiasm for science and rationalism, via a manifestation of the Byronic hero and a taste for the Gothic.

I must admit I enjoyed this novel as much now as when I read it many years ago.  I did find myself wondering about how p.c. the plot was, given the vilification of Mormons and structurally the narrative is perhaps a little disjointed.  It is a very short novel and Holmes succeeds in catching his murderer quite early on, the middle of the novel is devoted to recounting the perpetrator's back story, exposing the motivation for the crime and reveals an abrupt shift in setting and viewpoint, but it does effectively expose motivation and is an entertaining narrative.  In many respects this short novel has the tight story telling that characterises the short stories.  It recounts Watson's first encounter with Holmes and his methods, beginning what is a now legendary partnership.

This is just a short post I may come back and add to this, short of time at the moment, suffice to say this is an entertaining read. 

Sherlock Holmes Pastiche

The Beekeeper's Apprentice
by Laurie R. King
The first Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes mystery

My reading this book is a good example of how book blogs can help promote and spread the word about an individual title.  The Beekeeper's Apprentice is a title I seem to have seen on various sites over the years, almost always with an enthusiastic and  glowing review, so when I was wandering in Pulp Fiction, (favourite genre bookshop) and this title was prominently displayed it seemed a natural move to pick it up and add it to my TBR, in the last few days I finally got around to reading it. 

First let me say that as a Sherlock Holmes pastiche featuring a young woman with an intellect to match and rival the great detective, this book would have been absolutely loved by my fourteen year old self but I must admit that my more cynical and critical older self was left wondering what all the fuss was about.  A diverting enough escape, I think perhaps my expectations for this title may have been just too high.

This novel sees the fifteen year old Mary Russell wandering somewhat clumsily around the Sussex Downs with her nose buried in a book where she stumbles into an older man engaged in an intense study of bees, the man of course turns out to be none other than the now retired Sherlock Holmes.  Holmes impressed by Mary's apparent intellect begins a mentoring relationship with the young Mary.  Essentially a Mary Sue character I found the story of Mary Russell to be unrealistic and like most Mary Sue creations ultimately irritating.  Characterisation was for me a serious issue in this text, the problem with using someone else’s well established characters  is that your own interpretation will not match up with how readers imagined the original creation and this was very much the issue for me, King’s Sherlock Holmes just never really fitted my image and expectations of the character, for that matter neither did the peripheral characters of Watson, Mrs Hudson and Mycroft.  The plot itself was okay and structurally at least King tried to emulate the feel of Doyle’s original collected stories.  Russell and Holmes deal with a number of minor mysteries culminating in the abduction of  a child and finally one significant challenge, there is, however, little mystery in that final challenge, although it is a diverting enough read.  

The precocious arrogance of Mary Russel was more than a little irritating, her dismissal of Watson as essentially stupid next to not only Holmes’ intellect but her own, was off putting, even though it was not unusual for Holmes to dismiss Watson’s intelligence in the original stories.  I think it was just the blatant Mary Sue nature of the novel that left me unimpressed.  Like the author, Mary Russell has an interest in theology, and it is theology along with chemistry that Russell chooses to study at Oxford. Towards the end of the novel Holmes and Russell are sent off on an excursion through Palestine, which seems to have more to do with pandering to King’s particular interests than the requirements of the narrative and the final damming element for me was the romance emerging between the aging detective and the much, much younger female protagonist.  In later novels Russell and Holmes become a married couple, I think I prefer my detectives as essentially isolated and tortured figures because Sherlock Holmes as a happy married man just doesn't seem right and certainly not if the woman in question is young enough to be his granddaughter.

Certainly King has considerable skill, this is a hugely popular novel, so I feel a little guilty for not really liking this novel.  A story about an intelligent, strong young woman set during the early 20th century, I really should like this novel and yet I don’t.  I don’t want to put anyone off reading this book, it’s just that for me at least this book will not be remembered as a favourite read, having said that, it is still a book I would recommend to young readers.  I am sure I have seen this title described as a young adult book and I suspect at, say fourteen I would have enjoyed this book a lot more.  I would have enjoyed the kick arse nature of Mary’s character, her intelligence and independence and even probably the fantasy of her relationship with Sherlock Holmes.

It would be a dull world if we all liked the same things, but at least I can to an extent understand and appreciate other readers fondness for this novel and the rest of the series, it just isn’t my cup of  tea so to speak.

Spectral hounds and ghastly deeds out on the moors!

The Hound of the Baskervilles
by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

I first read The Hound of the Baskervilles many years ago in my early teens, I think The Sign of Four was my first Sherlock Holmes book, borrowed on impulse from the local library, it was the beginning of what was I think my first literary crush.  As a teenager Holmes entered my consciousness as something of an ideal hero: the cerebral man of action for whom the rational intellect was the ultimate weapon.  Doyle's stories had a great vitality, just as his hero was a vital and compelling figure.  From that first book I went on to read every Sherlock Holmes story I could find and from there to read everything I could find written by Doyle.  In that process I discovered Doyle wrote a varied range of fiction, aside from the stories of the great detective, I also discovered with relish his wonderful science fiction which for me rivalled the best of Wells and Verne.  Doyle himself became a figure of interest and I also read biographies of the man himself, as complex and as fascinating as his fictional creations, but it has been a long time since I have engaged with any of Arthur Conan Doyle's wonderful stories, until now, but having just re-read The Hound of the Baskervilles I will definitely be re-reading more of his work.

This book proved a great escapist read, filled as it is with a compelling narrative and evocative atmosphere, essentially gothic in tone, as much a ghost story as a crime novel, this book enters the imagination and sets up a dark residence.  The subject of the plot is well known: Holmes and Watson are approached by a Dr Mortimer to investigate the mysterious death of Sir Charles Baskerville and protect his heir Sir Henry from succumbing to a similar fate.  The recent death and the continuing looming threat seem to stem from the legendary curse on the Baskerville family of a spectral hound hunting down the descendants of the villainous Sir Hugo whose vile behaviour originates the curse.

The story begins in London but then sees Holmes dispatch Watson as Sir Henry's bodyguard to Baskerville Hall in Devon.  It is from this point that Doyle wonderfully evokes the gloomy moors and the terrifying great Grimpen mire; '...a false step yonder means death to man or beast.' Doyle peoples his gothic landscape with a cast of likely suspects, including an escape convict wandering the moor, through Watson's eyes the reader is granted the clues to the mystery, while Holmes remains a mysterious figure lurking in the background. The novel progresses at an urgent pace and I read most of the short novel in one day.  It was a freezing cold, bleak Autumn day at that and this novel made a perfect companion, as I sat nestled in my home library by a cozy fire with cats and my own hound for company. The book celebrates the power of the imagination, evoking so fully character and setting, Doyle loves to blend hard logic and scientific rationalism with the power of imaginative thought, he has Holmes sitting in an armchair while mentally exploring the Baskerville landscape:
"The world is full of obvious things which nobody by any chance ever observes.  Where do you think that I have been?'
'A fixture also.'
'On the contrary, I have been to Devonshire.'
'In spirit?'
'Exactly...."
I to travelled to Devonshire, Baskerville hall and it's haunting surrounds, re-living a youthfull enjoyment of a great novel.  Next time I visit my favourite bookshop I will be seeking out more Holmes stories and also Doyle's science fiction which I now also want to re-read.

I read this in a popular penguin edition and I really love these inexpensive, iconic editions, the evocation of the old penguin editions seems to add to the enjoyment of reading a title like this, couldn't resist the promotional video for these: