Sherlock Holmes. A Three-Pipe Christmas. Sherlockian Stories and Commentary. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Vincent Starrett, August Derleth (Writers). Dan Andriacco (Editor). Belanger Books (2020)

 

A glorious treat from any Sherlock Holmes fan. Starting with an original Sherlock Holmes story by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle there are two other stories that play of it and each other. There are three essays following each story that pick up on the themes of each story and add to the overall pleasure of the book.

The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle is the first story, a Sherlock Holmes adventure by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle it is a brilliant example of the stories and the reasons for their enduring popularity. A seemingly minor event leads to a much more significant one. This story includes one of the best and most sparkling examples of Sherlock Holmes displaying his powers of observation and deduction based on a simple object. When the plot moved the action is very engaging and the conclusion deeply satisfying.

The three essays that follow takes very different approaches to the story, they are insightful and considered. Reading them adds to the pleasure of the original story as they pick up unseen threads.

The Unique Hamlet by Vincent Starrett is considered to be one of the finest Sherlock Holmes pastiches written to date. Opening with a nice call back to one of the original stories it moves nicely onto an intriguing mystery. Holmes and Watson pursue the matter using the methods they should, and the reveal is beautifully staged. As is noted in one of the following essays the author’s own view of the story changed over time as the public response strongly identified one aspect of the story over the other.

The following essays are engaging and informative, they provide views of the interest tension in the story arising from the twofold intent of the author and why it has developed the reputation that it has.

The Adventure of the Unique Dickensians. By August Derleth is a Solar Pons story. Solar Pons is August Derleth’s response to being told by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle that he would not be writing ant more Sherlock Holmes stories and that neither could August Derleth. It clearly and deliberately plays off The Unique Hamlet and includes a very nice Dickens flavour that is never overdone. A client come to Solar Pons about an annoying incident and it leads very nicely to a very satisfying conclusion.

The essays that follow nicely pick up the Sherlock Holmes and Dickens threads in the story and celebrate them.

Dan Andriacco has created a most unexpected treat, the stories are well worth reading on their own, combining them together so that that the connections between than can be revealed and adding engaging and informative essays is a masterstroke. Casting new light on the familiar, allowing it to be appreciated anew is a gift to a reader completely in line with the seasonal link in the stories.