tracey_stewart's review against another edition
5.0
It is inevitable that writers feel a deep-seated urge to pit Sherlock Holmes against Jack the Ripper. The murders happened in the midst of Holmes's career; his contemporary readership must have wished he could step out of the pages and hunt down their nightmare for them. So it's no surprise that this is not the first time the idea has been pursued; there have been a couple of films (Murder by Decree with Christopher Plummer and James Mason as Holmes and Watson, and A Study in Terror), a handful of other books (including Michael Dibdin's The Last Sherlock Holmes Story), and a video game. This was my first foray into the mashup.
Half an hour into the audiobook, I had small doubts. Holmes and Watson both faithfully give their solemn word that they will never reveal the details of the case the story starts with … but the concept is that the book is one of Watson's memoirs (albeit one he leaves sealed). It seems a bit odd that he'd even write the story down. I wasn't fond of this beginning, this prologue, wondering why it was starting there, with such an extended look at another case … until nearly the very end, when the reason for starting there becomes clear and it all just adds to the brilliance of the book.
First of all, as I commented somewhere, if Simon Vance narrated all audiobooks I would never read another page for myself again. I love this performance – every character is dead on: Watson, warm and a little dusty; Holmes, the famous clear strong tenor; Miss Monk, believably feminine and East End without going falsetto Eloiza Doolittle. And the Welsh accents just made me happy. All the accents made me happy. The reading was a joy.
I loved the Doyle-esque "Several highly publicized investigations that year displayed Holmes's remarkable skills to the public, including the appalling affair of the faulty oil lamp, and the matter of Mrs. Victoria Mendoza's mysteriously vanishing thimble and its consequences." Shades of the Giant Rat of Sumatra … Although perhaps Ms. Faye can be prevailed upon to do what Doyle never did, and give us those stories. (Along with "the affair of the second cellist".) I live in hopes that this is only the first of a new Holmes series.
There was, it seems, an innocence that was lost when Jack the Ripper began his work. It's hard to fathom that before 1888 ordinary folk could not conceive of such atrocities – or at least this is the sentiment Lyndsay Faye puts into the mouths of the gentlemen set to pursue the monster, from Holmes to the lowliest constable. Now, with 24-hour news and CSI and Criminal Minds and true crime podcasts, it's sadly hard to conceive of such a sweet time. There had been serial killers before the Ripper, but through some confluence of the media and the infancy of modern investigative techniques he became the first one to cause such a tremendous flurry, the first one to make the history books.
It's been some time since I read the actual original stories, but not so much time since I watched the wonderful current BBC series, and something that strikes me throughout Dust and Shadow is that this Holmes is much nicer than Benedict Cumberbatch's. He is much freer in his friendship with Watson than I was expecting – this Holmes is less "sociopathic genius with absolutely no social skills" than "so much smarter than everyone else there's no point in talking to them, with the exception of Watson". He placates Mrs. Hudson and pours tea for his friend and everything.
And this pastiche makes me want to go back and read all of the original work soon (had I world enough, and time). The characterizations of Holmes and Watson, and also LeStrade, are so engaging that part of me wants to hold them up against the originals. The tone of the writing feels very genuinely Watsonian. (Quotes are a right pain to make note of in the audio format – I usually hear lines I wish I could make note of while driving – but there have been several descriptive flourishes which made me smile at their Victorian purple tinge. Ah, there's one: "shafts of lunar illumination": beautiful) This is a Watson I want on my side, a Watson I want more of, staunch and solid and not remotely stupid. I love this Watson.
And I love this Holmes. A great deal of it is, of course, the really gorgeous tone of the narrator – his Holmes just rings out, clarion. But this is a Holmes that fits the template in my head: he feels right. This is one of the reasons I keep reading fan-fiction and pastiche and media tie-ins despite all the garbage that brings: when it's bad it's unconscionable, but when it's good – when the writer captures the voice of a well-known and well-loved character - it's so very much fun.
I also enjoyed the new part-time member of the team, Miss Mary Ann Monk. She's thisclose to being a cliché – but Lyndsay Faye pulls off a young woman toward whom it seems Watson and Holmes both harbor fondness, and indeed admiration – and I don't mind. Non-canon romance, liaisons outside of the bounds of the Official Story, is usually something that raises my hackles, but I found myself mentally nudging one or the other of the duo her way.
I think the only fault I can possibly find is that there's not enough Mrs. Hudson. I can live with it. And honestly, the use of Mrs. Hudson – particularly at the end – was wonderful. So … not a fault, after all.
There is a comeuppance that is received a good ways into the book which was one of the most satisfying examples of just deserts ever. And the final confrontation hit all the right notes. And that's all I'll say about that.
Being me, I looked up Ripper history. Lyndsay Faye was completely faithful to it up to the point of Holmes's growing involvement, and in fact wove him into the reality with enviable skill. And part of the brilliance of this book is the life breathed into a one hundred and twenty-four year old story: new suspense is added with the question of how it would play out. Would Holmes manage to save any of the victims? How would his involvement affect the sequence of events? Would the inconclusive end – the Ripper kills just ending with no real explanation – be worked into the tale? I can't really answer the questions without massive spoilers, so instead I will say simply this:
*standsup*clap*clap*clap*clap*
Half an hour into the audiobook, I had small doubts. Holmes and Watson both faithfully give their solemn word that they will never reveal the details of the case the story starts with … but the concept is that the book is one of Watson's memoirs (albeit one he leaves sealed). It seems a bit odd that he'd even write the story down. I wasn't fond of this beginning, this prologue, wondering why it was starting there, with such an extended look at another case … until nearly the very end, when the reason for starting there becomes clear and it all just adds to the brilliance of the book.
First of all, as I commented somewhere, if Simon Vance narrated all audiobooks I would never read another page for myself again. I love this performance – every character is dead on: Watson, warm and a little dusty; Holmes, the famous clear strong tenor; Miss Monk, believably feminine and East End without going falsetto Eloiza Doolittle. And the Welsh accents just made me happy. All the accents made me happy. The reading was a joy.
I loved the Doyle-esque "Several highly publicized investigations that year displayed Holmes's remarkable skills to the public, including the appalling affair of the faulty oil lamp, and the matter of Mrs. Victoria Mendoza's mysteriously vanishing thimble and its consequences." Shades of the Giant Rat of Sumatra … Although perhaps Ms. Faye can be prevailed upon to do what Doyle never did, and give us those stories. (Along with "the affair of the second cellist".) I live in hopes that this is only the first of a new Holmes series.
There was, it seems, an innocence that was lost when Jack the Ripper began his work. It's hard to fathom that before 1888 ordinary folk could not conceive of such atrocities – or at least this is the sentiment Lyndsay Faye puts into the mouths of the gentlemen set to pursue the monster, from Holmes to the lowliest constable. Now, with 24-hour news and CSI and Criminal Minds and true crime podcasts, it's sadly hard to conceive of such a sweet time. There had been serial killers before the Ripper, but through some confluence of the media and the infancy of modern investigative techniques he became the first one to cause such a tremendous flurry, the first one to make the history books.
It's been some time since I read the actual original stories, but not so much time since I watched the wonderful current BBC series, and something that strikes me throughout Dust and Shadow is that this Holmes is much nicer than Benedict Cumberbatch's. He is much freer in his friendship with Watson than I was expecting – this Holmes is less "sociopathic genius with absolutely no social skills" than "so much smarter than everyone else there's no point in talking to them, with the exception of Watson". He placates Mrs. Hudson and pours tea for his friend and everything.
And this pastiche makes me want to go back and read all of the original work soon (had I world enough, and time). The characterizations of Holmes and Watson, and also LeStrade, are so engaging that part of me wants to hold them up against the originals. The tone of the writing feels very genuinely Watsonian. (Quotes are a right pain to make note of in the audio format – I usually hear lines I wish I could make note of while driving – but there have been several descriptive flourishes which made me smile at their Victorian purple tinge. Ah, there's one: "shafts of lunar illumination": beautiful) This is a Watson I want on my side, a Watson I want more of, staunch and solid and not remotely stupid. I love this Watson.
And I love this Holmes. A great deal of it is, of course, the really gorgeous tone of the narrator – his Holmes just rings out, clarion. But this is a Holmes that fits the template in my head: he feels right. This is one of the reasons I keep reading fan-fiction and pastiche and media tie-ins despite all the garbage that brings: when it's bad it's unconscionable, but when it's good – when the writer captures the voice of a well-known and well-loved character - it's so very much fun.
I also enjoyed the new part-time member of the team, Miss Mary Ann Monk. She's thisclose to being a cliché – but Lyndsay Faye pulls off a young woman toward whom it seems Watson and Holmes both harbor fondness, and indeed admiration – and I don't mind. Non-canon romance, liaisons outside of the bounds of the Official Story, is usually something that raises my hackles, but I found myself mentally nudging one or the other of the duo her way.
I think the only fault I can possibly find is that there's not enough Mrs. Hudson. I can live with it. And honestly, the use of Mrs. Hudson – particularly at the end – was wonderful. So … not a fault, after all.
There is a comeuppance that is received a good ways into the book which was one of the most satisfying examples of just deserts ever. And the final confrontation hit all the right notes. And that's all I'll say about that.
Being me, I looked up Ripper history. Lyndsay Faye was completely faithful to it up to the point of Holmes's growing involvement, and in fact wove him into the reality with enviable skill. And part of the brilliance of this book is the life breathed into a one hundred and twenty-four year old story: new suspense is added with the question of how it would play out. Would Holmes manage to save any of the victims? How would his involvement affect the sequence of events? Would the inconclusive end – the Ripper kills just ending with no real explanation – be worked into the tale? I can't really answer the questions without massive spoilers, so instead I will say simply this:
*standsup*clap*clap*clap*clap*
rachelmcg2004's review against another edition
5.0
WHAT an ending! Lyndsay Faye did a MASTERFUL job with this book!
Review to come. 4.5 out of 5 stars!
Review to come. 4.5 out of 5 stars!
opticflow's review against another edition
4.0
This book is very good, and nearly 5 stars. I applaud the author for tackling the slippery slope of giving Holmes a female colleague.
While Miss Monk is ambitious and clever in her own right, she comes off a bit like a fan fiction Mary Sue and falls victim (oh! terrible pun) to the trope of hooker with a heart of gold. Then she meets an absolutely terrible end, dopey and saccharine sweet. Must admit I didn't see that coming.
Although Mycroft plays such a small part in this story, I did absolutely love the observation that Sherlock's job focuses on micro details to make sense of the past while Mycroft's job focuses on macro trends to predict the future.
Watson was well drawn (and isn't this the only thing that matters) but I was not too keen on this Sherlock. He seems positively tender, which is not an adjective that fits him well, even with regards to his all important friendship with Watson.
Happy 125th anniversary to the ripper murders, I'm glad to know they were solved all along by the best. (I guess Watson would say this sentiment is more than a bit not good.)
While Miss Monk is ambitious and clever in her own right, she comes off a bit like a fan fiction Mary Sue and falls victim (oh! terrible pun) to the trope of hooker with a heart of gold. Then she meets an absolutely terrible end, dopey and saccharine sweet. Must admit I didn't see that coming.
Although Mycroft plays such a small part in this story, I did absolutely love the observation that Sherlock's job focuses on micro details to make sense of the past while Mycroft's job focuses on macro trends to predict the future.
Watson was well drawn (and isn't this the only thing that matters) but I was not too keen on this Sherlock. He seems positively tender, which is not an adjective that fits him well, even with regards to his all important friendship with Watson.
Happy 125th anniversary to the ripper murders, I'm glad to know they were solved all along by the best. (I guess Watson would say this sentiment is more than a bit not good.)
liedora's review against another edition
2.0
For a debut novel, this book was OK. Yes, I said OK as I had a love hate relationship with this book from the very first chapter.
For anyone to take on writing about the characters of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson takes guts, but if it is pulled off well as in the case of the [b:The House of Silk: A Sherlock Holmes Novel|11093329|The House of Silk A Sherlock Holmes Novel|Anthony Horowitz|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327877129s/11093329.jpg|16015218] it can be a glorious thing, that was not the case here. Despite a valiant effort, this Author was unable to capture all the character nuances that combine to make the detective readers of other Holmes missives have come to know and expect. By writing the book from the perspective of Dr. Watson a lot of the internal debates and musings Holmes has with himself are lost along with a lot of his eccentric qualities. In this book Holmes comes across as an arrogant, pretentious ass that has no lovable qualities to his name at all. Unfortunately, Dr. Watson does not come out of this novel unscathed; as a character I’ve always seen as being the stable and steadying force behind Holmes, here he is depicted as bumbling fool who would be well pressed to dress himself in the morning. The portrayal of Jack the Ripper was also flimsy, and would have benefitted greatly with a lot more fleshing out and back story.
The novel is extremely dry, the language at times definitely at odds with the era in which it is set. The Author does a good job of portraying Whitechapel at the time of the murders but apart from that there was very little to keep me interested, and this was definitely not the page turner that had been promised. For me there was not enough tension, and the discovery of who the Ripper was became obvious about partway through the book; surely not a mystery worthy of calling in Holmes to solve.
If you like Sherlock Holmes, you may enjoy this book; as for me I don’t think I will be reading anymore by this Author despite their valiant attempts to recreate the works of Arthur Conan Doyle.
Originally reviewed on: http://catesbooknuthut.com/2015/02/09/review-dust-and-shadow-an-account-of-the-ripper-killings-by-dr-john-h-watson-lyndsay-faye/
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
For anyone to take on writing about the characters of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson takes guts, but if it is pulled off well as in the case of the [b:The House of Silk: A Sherlock Holmes Novel|11093329|The House of Silk A Sherlock Holmes Novel|Anthony Horowitz|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327877129s/11093329.jpg|16015218] it can be a glorious thing, that was not the case here. Despite a valiant effort, this Author was unable to capture all the character nuances that combine to make the detective readers of other Holmes missives have come to know and expect. By writing the book from the perspective of Dr. Watson a lot of the internal debates and musings Holmes has with himself are lost along with a lot of his eccentric qualities. In this book Holmes comes across as an arrogant, pretentious ass that has no lovable qualities to his name at all. Unfortunately, Dr. Watson does not come out of this novel unscathed; as a character I’ve always seen as being the stable and steadying force behind Holmes, here he is depicted as bumbling fool who would be well pressed to dress himself in the morning. The portrayal of Jack the Ripper was also flimsy, and would have benefitted greatly with a lot more fleshing out and back story.
The novel is extremely dry, the language at times definitely at odds with the era in which it is set. The Author does a good job of portraying Whitechapel at the time of the murders but apart from that there was very little to keep me interested, and this was definitely not the page turner that had been promised. For me there was not enough tension, and the discovery of who the Ripper was became obvious about partway through the book; surely not a mystery worthy of calling in Holmes to solve.
If you like Sherlock Holmes, you may enjoy this book; as for me I don’t think I will be reading anymore by this Author despite their valiant attempts to recreate the works of Arthur Conan Doyle.
Originally reviewed on: http://catesbooknuthut.com/2015/02/09/review-dust-and-shadow-an-account-of-the-ripper-killings-by-dr-john-h-watson-lyndsay-faye/
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
cpt_tusktooth's review against another edition
4.0
On the heels of reading "Gods of Gotham," I was excited to read another period mystery by Lyndsay Faye. "Dust and Shadow, a fast-paced Sherlock Holmes mystery, did not disappoint. In this tale, Holmes and Watson are on the trail of Jack the Ripper. A great deal of historical research and detail went into this story and the payoff is a good one. Of course, Holmes gets his man in the end.
swirls's review against another edition
4.0
Sherlock Holmes vs Jack the Ripper. I have so many book club books I SHOULD be reading that I got overwhelmed and decided to dive back into fanfic. This was a joy to read - excellent characterizations of Holmes and Watson with some interesting side characters pulled from brief mentions in the Doyle canon. I forgot just how bloody and horrific the Ripper murders were - but in this version Ripper is targeting Holmes' reputation as well. Dun dun DUN. A very good read.
thejoeyharris's review against another edition
5.0
Lyndsay Faye has written a wonderful pastiche about Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson's investigation into the Ripper Killing. The solution is satisfying, and I became quite attached to the character of Miss Monk. Worth the time of any Holmes fan.
readingwithhippos's review against another edition
4.0
The day after I started reading Dust and Shadow, I came across Lyndsay Faye's open letter to The President Who Shall Not Be Named, which made me bawl like a baby (in a hopeful way). So yes, I'm officially a fan for life. I've added every book in her back catalog to my TBR. It's happening. Anyway, topical feels-y blog posts aside, this is a great book on its own merits and was just the kind of cozy read I needed to make me feel better about life. Sherlock Holmes and John Watson investigate the notorious Jack the Ripper killings—what could be better? Holmes and Watson are the kind of gallant, stand-up guys you don't see too often these days, in literature or otherwise. They are the opposite of cold and hardened detectives; in fact, their empathy in the face of nightmarish violence is what makes the book so great. Certain politicians should take note.
More book recommendations by me at www.readingwithhippos.com
More book recommendations by me at www.readingwithhippos.com
trudecal's review against another edition
5.0
I enjoyed this so much more than I expected to! I honestly forgot it wasn't actually Conan Doyle once the plot really got moving. Clearly very well researched, loved the attention to detail in terms of the city at the time, the known Ripper facts and Conan Doyle's style. I listened to the audiobook through Audible's free books for Amazon Prime members, and the narrator was great - highly recommend.