'Tales of treachery, intrigue and evil… Maverick detective Sherlock Holmes and his faithful chronicler Dr John Watson return in twelve thrilling short stories.
'The iconic duo find themselves swiftly drawn into a series of puzzling and sinister events: an otherworldly stone whose touch inflicts fatal bleeding; a hellish potion unlocks a person’s devilish psyche; Holmes’s most hated rival detective tells his story; a fiendishly clever, almost undetectable method of revenge; Watson finally has his chance to shine; and many more – including a brand-new Cthulhu Casebooks story.'
The Manifestations of Sherlock Holmes is the latest Sherlock Holmes release from Titan Books, bringing together a dozen short stories by the acclaimed James Lovegrove. Having written many full length novels, and short stories about the world's greatest detective and his faithful partner, John Watson, Lovegrove is one of those rare writers that can not only tell a great mystery story, but captures the essence of the characters wonderfully.
This collection seems to aim to offer a little of everything, with some stories that could have very easily fit into the original tales as written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, whilst others show the characters in some very different, and far removed scenarios.
The Adventure of the Marchindale Stiletto, the first story in this collection, feels like a very early adventure in the Sherlock Holmes canon, one where Holmes is presented with a relatively simple puzzle (for him at least), and there's no real criminal element at work. The story revolves around a missing family heirloom that Holmes is asked to find. The story doesn't go out of its way to give you the solution to the puzzle, but gives enough clues that even if you don't work out every single detail you end up figuring out the broader strokes.
This is also true for The Problem of the Emperor's Netsuke, which sees Holmes called in to investigate the theft of dozens of priceless artifacts on loan from the Emperor of Japan, thefts that have been cunningly hidden by well crafted duplicates. As with the first story, it's a fairly harmless case where no one is hurt and the 'criminal' is actually a really nice person, and you'll find yourself figuring out who's responsible before Holmes reveals it.
These are nice little stories that show the almost fiendish simplicity that often accompanied some of Sherlock Holmes' stories, where just enough information is given to the reader to allow you to feel like you're there working it out alongside Holmes. Some of these stories, however, are decidedly different.
The Affair of the Yithian Stone is set within the world of Lovegrove's Cthulhu Casebook trilogy, where Holmes and Watson battle against the otherworldly forces of Cthulhu and other denizens from Lovecraft's world. Here the two detectives are having to deal with a deadly ancient artifact imbued with technology and magic far beyond our understanding. Whilst it's not the usual kind of Sherlock Holmes story it still feels like the same characters, and getting to see them interacting with the world of the Cthulhu mythos is brilliant.
Another story that takes inspiration from other literary works is The Strange Case of Dr Sacker and Mr Hope. Taking a cue from Robert Louis Stevenson's Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, this story sees Holmes being transformed into a terrifying murderer by a potion made up by Dr Jekyll. Targeting those criminals he was investigating this new Mr Sherringford Hope begins a murder spree before transforming his old partner Dr Watson into Dr Ormond Sacker. A chilling and horrific tale that shows how deadly a person Holmes would be if he ever turned to evil, the story is also a good bit of fun Sherlock Holmes history, as the two names Lovegrove gives these new personalities are the original names given to them when Conan Doyle firs started developing the characters.
Whether you're interested in these new and strange versions of the characters, or want stories that feel true to the original works, The Manifestations of Sherlock Holmes can provide readers with brilliant stories that are sure to entertain. Not only is Lovegrove able to tell interesting and engaging mysteries, but he's able to write versions of Holmes and Watson that feel right, that capture that magic that made them such a success when written by Arthur Conan Doyle.
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