Category: Gen Lit

As most of you know, I am finishing up the last of the four novels of Sherlock Holmes (A Study in Scarlet, The Sign of Four, and The Hound of Baskervilles being the first three) titled The Valley of Fear.

The first three novels were a little hit and miss for me. All of the first three novels that I read were a little on the long-ish and boring side, except for the various forensic science methods/techniques and the short lived love story between Mary and Dr. Watson. So I was totally hoping The Valley of Fear (VOF) was going to be more promising, sadly I was a little on the disappointed side.

I started noticing a formula/pattern to Doyle’s writing pretty early on as most of the stories begin with a little background on Holmes’ “deduction” methods and a set up from the client via Dr. Watson’s narrative. Holmes often does not disclose his theories until late in the story while the audience (like Watson) is forced to try and make heads or tails of the facts. While some find the predictable plot boring, there is some comfort in knowing what to expect.

Obviously the series came out at a time when science, psychology, and industrial advancement were at a pinnacle. Holmes must have been a wildly popular character as he is colorful and interesting…..plus people just naturally have a morbid curiosity about murder and crime….admit it, you know you watch The First 48, Forensic Files, and Cold Case just as much as the next person!

So as I read VOF, I began wondering why the same formula over and over again….I came up with a couple of different possibilities. Like Holmes I have deduced this from the novels: the crime and criminal have not changed; only the style and the way the story is told.

Like A Study in Scarlet, VOF contains a fairly long narrative and background on the murderer. Clearly the focus of the novel is criminal psychology or the proverbial “why” of the crime. Science can easily explain the “how” of the crime but not necessarily the why. The why of a crime/murder is often incomprehensible to a normal person however, society demands an answer, a reason, a why.

Holmes as a character speaks for Victorian society and is clearly a product of that environment. Victorian society is focused on logic, science, and discouraged fantastical ideas. For example, in the Hounds of Baskervilles, the mysterious dog on the moors had to be explained away by logic, it could never be a ghost or phantom…..always a logical explanation. Continue reading “Review: The Valley of Fear (A Sherlock Holmes Novel) by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle” →

I have always been a huge fan of Sherlock Holmes but I have never actually read any of the books. So after coming back from London this summer, I was really excited to read the books.

I started reading the Sherlock Holmes Mysteries on the plane to London, beginning with A Study in Scarlet.

This was actually a pretty interesting novel as it let the reader get to know the main characters. Of course Dr. Watson is the narrator and writer of their adventures but Holmes is CLEARLY the hero.

The story begins with Watson returning from the wars and trying to find a place to live before he goes completely broke! A mutual friend introduces the two men and the reader learns a little of the very eccentric and complicated man who is Holmes. Holmes goes to university…..but doesn’t actually attend there…..he basically crashed the bio/chem departments classrooms.

Watson and Holmes seem like they can tolerate each other and decide to room together. Finally Watson understands…..(kind of)….what it is that Holmes does. Holmes speciality is attention to detail and the art of deduction. He is able to see things most don’t because he does not remember anything not worth remembering and does not trouble himself with nonsense. As the book goes on it is clear Watson is intrigued by Holmes and his methods. They solve their first murder together using Holmes’ methods alone (more or less).

However before they explain how they solved it—they started in on this whole sub plot and background info—honestly I was lost after the first few pages with Holmes’ methods. All of a sudden….we go from foggy London to the American desert in the land of the Mormons (Utah). And that’s where the story picks up.

I was totally lost but I felt surely this would be linked relatively quickly. After another 100 pages of so it finally becomes clear that the story is some how related to the murder in London. Continue reading “Review: A Study in Scarlet and 3 Sherlock Holmes Novels by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle” →