Reviews tagging 'Racism'

The Sign of Four: A Sherlock Holmes Novel by Arthur Conan Doyle

106 reviews

meganpbennett's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

I read The Sign of the Four many years ago, and enjoyed it. Read it again as part of the Letters from Watson, where in 2023 we read all the short stories in internal chronological order, and in 2024, the four novels. Very interesting, this one. 
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misscoffeereads's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

The Sign of the Four is the second entry in the Sherlock Holmes mysteries by Arthur Conan Doyle. Mary Morstan is the new client who arrives at 221B Baker Street to present Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson a new mystery which at the onset involves a father's disappearance and the receipt of pearls, but soon evolves to be more complex and mysterious than initially believed.

The novel is a light mystery read featuring the classic mix of Holmes' keen intellect and deduction, and Watson's steady, empathetic voice. The mystery itself was more clear cut than I expected, with no major twists or red herrings. The dash of romance
between Watson and Mary
was cute amidst the dark setting of a murder. Admittedly the book went by quickly and lacked much surprises. But it certainly left a taste for wanting to read a couple more of Holmes and Watson's adventures.
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frankieclc's review against another edition

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2.0

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decodethebooks's review against another edition

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dark

2.0

commits both the sins of being hugely racist and just really confusing.
locked room mystery was fun. turning that into a treasure hunt is not so fun.
and once again the massive amounts of racism and descriptions of colonisation was a real turn off… shocking I know.
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e_ski's review against another edition

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mysterious slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? N/A
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.25

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theatrenerd_'s review against another edition

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dark inspiring mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

I preferred this to A Study in Scarlet, although it followed a similar structure. Loved this and the appearance of the Mary Morstan plotline! 
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acogna's review against another edition

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mysterious medium-paced

3.0

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lavenderlion's review against another edition

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medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

It was hard to get through this Holmes’ story due to Conan Doyle’s racist and pro-imperialist biases.
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bea_g_i's review against another edition

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3.0

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annoying_bookworm's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No

2.25

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