A review by ashlurtis
The Sign of Four by Arthur Conan Doyle

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

3.75

This is the first time I've ever willingly read a Sherlock Holmes book and I was both surprised and not at all surprised. I've seen the newer movies and know the "lore" of the character to a certain extent, but I was not at all ready for the blatant descriptions of drug use! Bizarre, to say the least! It can be fun to read from different times/eras, and it can also be a little uncomfortable. 

I did not understand some of the lingo which I think made the story a little shallower for me, but overall I don't think I missed too much. I chose this book because it was on the smaller side, but I felt like the mystery was solved really quickly and then the back story took up most of the end, which I didn't really care about since the book was so short. I didn't have time to get invested in any of the characters, so I didn't much care where the stolen treasure came from? 

Of course there is something to be said for canon and I will most likely read more of the Doyle books I have sitting on the shelf, but I'm not running to them.
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