Reviews with content warning for Death - The Valley of Fear

Though I've labelled this a 'revisit' review, I don't think I've actually read The Valley of Fear before. For some reason, I have it down on my list as the final Sherlock Holmes story — though as far as I can tell, it's actually seventh in the series. The story wasn't familiar to me, which is exciting as I got to approach the mystery entirely unsolved.

The format of The Valley of Fear is very, very similar to that of A Study in Scarlet; it's divided into two books, the first features Sherlock Holmes and John Watson attempting to solve a murder in an English country house, while the second travels to America to give us the backstory of the people involved. The secret society ensconced in a remote mining community has extremely similar vibes to the Mormon community in A Study in Scarlet. The women characters are treated (slightly) better, at least, in that they are allowed to make their own decisions and not just abandoned to mistreatment.

Taking the two halves separately: the mystery of The Valley of Fear isn't one of Arthur Conan Doyle's best. A seasoned reader of mysteries will probably immediately realise that the witness testimony is highly suspect. That said, Arthur Conan Doyle was writing earlier than a great many popular mystery authors, so perhaps it wouldn't have been as obvious at the time. The second half is engaging, and features an elements of murder and mystery which make the whole thing feel more in keeping with a Sherlock Holmes book than did the random historical romance inserted in A Study in Scarlet.

Though published later, The Valley of Fear is set before Reichenbach, so can't advance the relationship between Holmes and Watson enough to be interesting. That said, Holmes is extremely idiosyncratic throughout, which is good fun to read, especially the spiel he goes on about why detectives need to be so dramatic.

The Valley of Fear is no The Hound of the Baskervilles, but it's about equally enjoyable as A Study in Scarlet.

Content Warnings

orchidlilly's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

Ooh, this one was fun! I rather like the half-and-half style of the Holmes novels, where you get the mystery in the first half and the backstory in the second, it's neat. Secret societies are fun, although you do forget for the most of the story that this is supposed to relate to Moriarty, which is maybe the point. For this one, I find I like the second half better than the first, simply because I think it has a little bit more suspense, but both bits are good. I think it's my favorite Holmes novel so far.

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ayushk21's review

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adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

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a_wren_that_reads's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced

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

4.25

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anniereads221's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

2.5

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