Holmes and Moriarty: a novel

Rubin follows The Turnglass with an exciting if slick Sherlock Holmes pastiche. At the outset, Holmes is contacted by actor George Reynolds, who's been cast as the lead in an odd production of Richard III--Reynolds's fellow actors are almost implausibly inept, and each performance is attended by the exact same group of people. Meanwhile, arch-criminal (and Holmes nemesis) Professor Moriarty is tasked with solving the apparently impossible murder of a vicious London gang leader. Eventually--in chapters that toggle between the perspectives of Watson and Moriarty's sidekick, Col. Sebastian Moran--the two cases overlap, forcing Holmes and Moriarty to join forces. Rubin treats the setup more like an Indiana Jones adventure than an Arthur Conan Doyle mystery, pitting his central duo against supernatural forces, a swarm of poisonous creatures, and an ancient Aramaic parchment in need of deciphering. Swashbuckling action, rather than ingenious deduction, takes the lead, and readers' mileage will vary depending on how faithful they prefer their Holmes and Watson tributes to be. Casual fans should have plenty of fun, but Baker Street regulars will want to look elsewhere. (May)

Rubin follows The Turnglass with an exciting if slick Sherlock Holmes pastiche. At the outset, Holmes is contacted by actor George Reynolds, who's been cast as the lead in an odd production of Richard III—Reynolds's fellow actors are almost implausibly inept, and each performance is attended by the exact same group of people. Meanwhile, arch-criminal (and Holmes nemesis) Professor Moriarty is tasked with solving the apparently impossible murder of a vicious London gang leader. Eventually—in chapters that toggle between the perspectives of Watson and Moriarty's sidekick, Col. Sebastian Moran—the two cases overlap, forcing Holmes and Moriarty to join forces. Rubin treats the setup more like an Indiana Jones adventure than an Arthur Conan Doyle mystery, pitting his central duo against supernatural forces, a swarm of poisonous creatures, and an ancient Aramaic parchment in need of deciphering. Swashbuckling action, rather than ingenious deduction, takes the lead, and readers' mileage will vary depending on how faithful they prefer their Holmes and Watson tributes to be. Casual fans should have plenty of fun, but Baker Street regulars will want to look elsewhere. (May)