Encounters of Sherlock Holmes

Encounters of Sherlock Holmes #1

by George Mann (Editor)

Modern masters of steampunk and horror offer their own spin on the Sherlock Holmes mythos in a series of stories that are “a thunderously good time” (Criminal Element) A brand-new collection of Sherlock Holmes stories from a variety of exciting voices in modern horror and steampunk, including James Lovegrove, Justin Richards, Paul Magrs, Guy Adams and Mark Hodder. Edited by respected anthologist George Mann, and including a story by Mann himself.Introduction by George Mann The Loss of Chapter Twenty-One by Mark HodderHolmes and the Indelicate Widow by Mags L HallidayThe Demon Slasher of Seven Sisters by Cavan ScottThe Post-Modern Prometheus by Nick KymeMrs Hudson at the Christmas Hotel by Paul MagrsThe Case of the Night Crawler by George MannThe Adventure of the Locked Carriage by Stuart DouglasThe Tragic Affair of the Martian Ambassador by Eric BrownThe Adventure of the Swaddled Railwayman by Richard Dinnick  The Pennyroyal Society by Kelly HaleThe Persian Slipper by Steve LockleyThe Property of a Thief by Mark WrightWoman’s Work by David BarnettThe Fallen Financier by James Lovegrove

Genres: Mystery, Short Stories, Fiction, Anthologies, Historical Fiction, Crime, Steampunk

400 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 19, 2013

About the author

George Mann is an author and editor, primarily in genre fiction. He was born in Darlington, County Durham in 1978.
A former editor of Outland, Mann is the author of The Human Abstract, and more recently The Affinity Bridge and The Osiris Ritual in his Newbury and Hobbes detective series, set in an alternate Britain, and Ghosts of Manhattan, set in the same universe some decades later.
He wrote the Time Hunter novella "The Severed Man", and co-wrote the series finale, Child of Time.
He has also written numerous short stories, plus Doctor Who and Sherlock Holmes audiobooks for Big Finish Productions. He has edited a number of anthologies including The Solaris Book of New Science Fiction, The Solaris Book of New Fantasy and a retrospective collection of Sexton Blake stories, Sexton Blake, Detective, with an introduction by Michael Moorcock.

Reviews

[Barry Huddleston · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have to confess a certain bias. I love Sherlock Holmes and fit into the camp that believes that bad Holmes is better than no Holmes at all. I’m also a steampunk fan. Having admitted that, is it any surprise that I thoroughly loved the collection of new Holmes stories in "Encounters of Sherlock Holmes"?

I really enjoy George Mann’s work and reviewed his book Ghosts of Manhattan a couple of years ago. His story “Case of the Night Crawler” is excellent and I loved that he pulled in his “Newbury and Hobbes” characters. This isn’t the only case of an author pulling in his characters, Hodder brings in Algernon Swinburne and Sir Richard Burton in his story “The Loss of Chapter 21.”

Frankenstein’s monster, Dr. Jekyll, and Martians, all have parts to play in the various stories. Even Mrs. Hudson gets in the act with David Barnett’s brilliant story “Woman’s Work.” As you might image, not all of the stories are home-runs. Having said that, I think there is a little something for everyone from steampunk to Holmes purist (okay, less so the Holmes purist).

I can’t recommend this one highly enough. It’s a great introduction to authors that you may not have read. I enjoyed every minute of it and give Encounters of Sherlock Holmes 4 1/2 stars out of 5.

[Riju Ganguly · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Brand-New Tales of the Great Detective” have been gracing the literary landscape almost as soon as the stream of canonical stories dried out. These tales, or pastiches, cover the entire spectrum: from the excruciatingly authentic to blasphemously entertaining. The anthology under discussion mostly stands up to the challenge of churning out a bunch of entertainers while treading the same path that has been muddied by thousands before, and hence it is definitely worth a read. The contents are:
 Introduction by George Mann (editor)

1. “The Loss of Chapter Twenty-One” by Mark Hodder: I was expecting a proper Burton & Swinburne story, with a cameo played by Holmes, but was disheartened to find a rather mediocre mystery involving Burton’s translation of an unpublished part of “The Perfumed Garden”.
2. “Sherlock Holmes and the Indelicate Widow” by Mags L Haliday: A solid story about the necropolis railway and shenanigans going on there, but nothing comparable to the gothic gem “Necropolis” from Basil Copper.
3. “The Demon Slasher of Seven Sisters” by Cavan Scott: BEST story of the book, and I would most definitely be looking forward towards reading more stories penned by this author.
4. “The Post-Modern Prometheus” by Nick Kyme: a fantastical and rather grim story that mixes Dr. Jekyll (and Mr. Hyde) with Baron Frankenstein and straight-away veers into the realm of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen and Van Helsing territories. Not so good.
5. “Mrs. Hudson at the Christmas Hotel” by Paul Magrs: an entertaining story involving demons, jewels, Mrs. Hudson and Holmes.
6. “The Case of the Night Crawler” by George Mann: again my hopes of reading a dashing story of Newbury & Hobbes were, …er, dashed. It was a lame and entirely predictable story from the editor, and holds no re-read value.
7. “The Adventure of the Locked Carriage” by Stuart Douglas: an enjoyable mystery, and definitely better than the stories from more famous authors.
8. “The Tragic Affair of the Martian Ambassador” by Eric Brown: same thing happened again as my expectations regarding a full-throttle steampunk story were shattered, and I was forced to read a pale mimicry of Neil Gaiman’s astonishing “A Study In Emarald”.
9. “The Adventure of the Swaddled Railwayman” by Richard Dinnick: decidedly better mystery, dealing with serious issues in a logical manner.
10. “The Pennyroyal Society” by Kelly Hale: not much of a mystery, but a hard look at some of the most troubling issues concerning womanhood in turn-of-the-century Britain, and a feel-good ending provided through Holmes.
11. “The Persian Slipper” by Steve Lockley: not much of a mystery again, but readable stuff.
12. “The Property of a Thief” by Mark Wright: an enjoyable encounter between Raffles and Holmes, which was, unfortunately, devoid of any mystery.
13. “Woman’s Work” by David Barnett: very good story told from Mrs. Hudson’s surprisingly active point-of-view, which might have been (gasp!) the nebulous beginning for the adventure involving the blue carbuncle.
14. “The Fallen Financier” by James Lovegrove: good story, without much of a mystery.

Hence, the anthology is recommended.

[Margaret · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is probably one of the more eclectic volumes of Sherlock Holmes stories I've read.

They range from traditional through to steampunk, and the quality ranges fairly widely as well.

Fans of Mark Hodder's Burton and Swinburne books will be delighted (as I was) to find the very first story involves his intrepid duo, with Holmes solving a crime for a dieing Sir Richard Burton.

Paul Magrs' story "Mrs Hudson at the Christmas Hotel" was told in the form of letters and was quite humourous, but did jar oddly with the tone of the rest of the book. I do admit, I did like that story very much. It had elements of Doyle, Lovecraft, and Chetwynd-Hayes to it that saved it from being a failure. It could very easily have tilted the other way and just been cringe invoking.

Editor George Mann's own story in the volume involves his steampunk genre characters Sir Maurice Newbury and Miss Veronica Hobbes. This was the other stand out story for me.

On the whole I would rate the book 2.5 stars, but as GoodReads doesn't allow half stars, will round up to 3. Not an impressive volume by any measure, but a reasonable enough way to while away a quiet evening.

[Gram · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fine collection of Sherlock Holmes stories from authors who know their stuff when it comes to Alfred Conan Doyle's timeless detective hero. There were 2 or 3 of these where I found myself skipping pages, but the rest were very enjoyable - especially a delightful tale ( “Woman’s Work.”) involving the redoubtable Mrs Hudson, landlady of 221B Baker Street, in which Holmes lives.

In a different style, "The Night Crawler" is a steampunk influenced story by George Mann featuring an alliance between Doctor Watson and Newbury & Hobbes (the hero and heroine of Mr Mann's novels), although the ending was a bit weak. “The Demon Slasher of Seven Sisters” by Cavan Scott was another fine effort and, all in all, 10 or 11 out of 14 isn't a bad score for a book of short stories.

[Danielle The Book Huntress · Rating 4 out of 5]

George Mann and thirteen other writers provide new mystery-solving fodder for the famous duo of Holmes and Watson. I say well done over all. A couple of the stories were a bit dry (and I fell asleep reading those), but I enjoyed most of the stories. I liked how unique each one read, yet Holmes and Watson are true to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's creations. You wouldn't think an author could combine them with Martian aliens and Lovecraftian monsters, but you'd be wrong.

I'd recommend this overall to Sherlock Holmes/Watson fans.

Reviewed for Bitten by Books. http://bittenbybooks.com.

[Victor Gentile · Rating 5 out of 5]

George Mann in his book, “Encounters Of Sherlock Holmes” a Book in the Encounters of Sherlock Holmes series published by Titan Books brings us new short stories featuring the adventures of Sherlock Holmes.

From the Back Cover: Brand New tales of the great detective

The spirit of Sherlock Holmes lives on in this collection of fourteen brand-new adventures. Marvel as the master of deduction aids a dying Sr. Richard Francis Bacon; matches wits with gentleman thief, A. J. Raffles; crosses paths with H. G. Wells in the most curious circumstances; unravels a macabre mystery on the Necropolis Express; unpicks a murder in a locked railway carriage; explains the origins of his famous Persian slipper and more!

If you are anything like me then you grew up with Sherlock Holmes as well. When I was a kid I read everything that Arthur Conan Doyle wrote about the master sleuth and, of course, watched all the movies with Basil Rathbone. However Mr. Doyle only wrote so many Holmes stories before he died. Hooray for George Mann! He has found new stories of the great detective and edited them into this new volume. Fourteen new stories all written in the style and voice of Dr. Watson so that they are just like reading one of the originals. There is even an adventure for Mrs. Hudson as well as Dr. Watson. “Encounters Of Sherlock Holmes” is great fun. Let me assure you if you like Sherlock Holmes then you are going to really enjoy this. I recommend it highly!

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Titan Books. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

[Roger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Encounters of Sherlock Holmes is a very steampunk-y collection of Holmes tales. Each story has some thing good to recommend it. Featured authors include Mark Hodder, George Mann (who also edits this volume) plus Eric Brown and James Lovegrove. I always enjoy, watching the interaction between the worlds, greatest consulting detective and various other characters, both real and imagined. It is interesting to see Holmes and HG Wells, Raffles, or Captain Sir Richard Francis Burton together. (By the way, if you are unfamiliar with Burton, there is an excellent eponymous biography of him by Edward Rice. No idea if it is still in print. Burton is a real life explorer and scholar who is at least as interesting as Sherlock.) Four stars.

[Kieran McAndrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Some interesting stories, where Holmes is thrown up against other characters of the era. The Raffles story is especially well written where both characters come off well.

A mixture of writers keeps things fresh, but the collection works well.

[Johan Haneveld · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some mildly entertaining stories about the famous detective by mostly steam punk/victoriana authors. I think that fanfiction works best when putting characters in alternate universes/situations, describing them from alternative viewpoints, or in other ways shining light on their characters (but also their function in literature) - which to me is what the BBC-series Sherlock is doing. There are a couple of stories in here that do that, but not too many. Most were diverting, but didn't provide new insight in the Master, and the cases presented for Holmes to solve were not on the level of those concocted by Doyle. Collections like these mainly serve to remind one of what a writier Conan Doyle really was. I think he was a genius, and it takes a genius to write about Holmes after him. (I think Neil Gaiman's A Study in Emerald is of that level. It's not in this book, though).
I'm a huge Sherlock Holmes fan and even wove in a homage to Holmes in my own novel 'De Derde Macht', to be published soon ...

[Jeff Raymond · Rating 2 out of 5]

I guess I call myself a Sherlock Holmes fan, although I've not read a lot of the original stories and tend to like the concept more than the execution. I got a copy of this volume of Holmes stories, most of which are Holmes mysteries with a splash of fantasy (and one science fiction story as well), and I figured it'd be worth the time.

The good news is that there are a lot of solid authors here. You have television writers, genre stars, and so on. The writing is pretty good, and the concept works.

The bad news, unfortunately, is that the stories don't. They're mostly unmemorable, I found, with many of the stories blending together rather easily. The handful that stood out (like the Martian encounter story) aren't nearly as good as the concept they start out with. It's unfortunate.

This didn't really work for me in a way I had hoped it would. Maybe a different concept or conceit would have helped?

[Glasdow Teacosy · Rating 3 out of 5]

An anthology is only as good as its whole, and this one had a few clunkers that pulled down the others (see my comments on each story). I'd give this book 3 1/2 stars if i could. I found myself enjoying almost every single straight, new Sherlock Holmes tale, but had mixed feelings about the ones that crossed genres. I felt they were marred by the authors' penchants for staging their own creations as the main characters. Sherlock was often a side character in these tales. IMO, the genre was too far afield from classic Holmes and he no longer fit in them. The effect was akin to reading fanfic.

Still, if you ever wondered what it would be like to see Holmes deal with devils, steampunk, monsters, and aliens, then many of these stories will thrill you. Regular Holmes fans should prepare themselves to skip a story here and there. The effort will be worth it because the straight Sherlock Holmes tales have cracking good mysteries and are well written.

[Fred Hughes · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great compendium of stories based on Sherlock Holmes pastiche.

Staying true to the language, and process, used by Sherlock the stories range far and wide. We even have Dr Watson and Mrs Hudson solving mysteries. With Sherlock taking the credit of course.

The various authors have also brought into play characters that they have developed and which have appeared in their books, particularly George Mann's great series Newbury and Hobbes (of which I have read all).

Other authors include Mark Hodder; who I have read and enjoyed; Paul Magrs, Eric Brown and several more.

A nice cross section of ideas and mysteries means each page is a delight.

Recommended.

And coming in early 2014; the Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes

[Ed Nemo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall I liked the individual stories in this book. However, I found the occasional alternate voice to completely take me out of the narrative. I know everyone has a clever idea for Holmes and Watson, but his character is extremely well known, moving away from that concept kills the story. I have no problems with Holmes dealing with Martians but when he acts like an idiot it irritates me to the point I want to stop reading the book.

All in all, a good selection of stories. Some were truly excellent.

[Mark Sohn · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've read some of the stories here and after the Frankenstein's Monster one am shelving this anthology. The tales vary in consistency from quite good to awful and I'm sorry to say I probably won't bother completing it. I hate to be dismissive of people's work, as a writer I've had it done to me and it hurts - believe me. I found a few grammatical errors and, whilst we all make them (I was accused of this, unfairly as it happened.) It let the book down further for me. If I get around to completing it, I shall review it again, but there's only so much you can take before you give up.

[Rob Messenger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Holmes and Watson meet Frankenstein's monster, Dr Jekyll, H G Wells and some Martians; and who would have guessed that Mrs. Hudson was the clever one after all? Good fun...

[Jason Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Way back in the 90s when the original dr who series finished, the novel and audio ranges that filled the gap gave some aspiring and fan writers a leg up to professional authorship. A lot of this was for the better: the programme was stretched conceptually and this fed back into a rejuvenated series. Sometimes however , the result was what fans term , if the expression may be pardoned, fanw**k, an obsessive wallowing in continuity that does nothing but obsessively plug minute gaps and bring things back for the sake of it ( hereafter FW) .

I say this because this Holmes collection features a lot of these writers. Generally this is a good thing: there are strong and innovative stories here . Holmes meets steampunk and its generally fine. However, Holmes being threatened by Edward Hyde then being rescued by Frankenstein’s creature (not monster ) is sheer gothic FW. Fun, but too much to be credible. Better is a flip siding of War of the Worlds that depicts an uneasy peace resulting in Martian ambassadors living in London. Holmes teams up with H G Wells (natch) to solve the murder of said ambassador while it was. ... visiting a Victorian brothel. Well, of course. Apparently Martians like blondes ....and we’ll just leave that there . It’s still a good tale though.

Away from the fantasy mesh there is more good stuff. Doyle’s knack of questioning some contemporary prejudices is well resumed, though I’d like a more realistic portrayal of early socialism than utopian fantasists. Fun and good stuff.

[Sandra Guzdek · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another Holmes pastiche anthology, this time featuring lesser-known authors. Overall not a bad collection, possibly even better than the previous collection (The Improbable Adventures of Sherlock Holmes) in terms of plot and writing. One story that stood out to me with regards to a topic I've never seen covered in Holmes pastiches is "The Pennyroyal Society" by Kelly Hale (about birth control and abortifacients at the end of the 19th century). "The Loss of Chapter Twenty-One" by Mark Hodder is also a very good read. The Frankenstein one and Martian one, though, I could have done without.

[Deirdre · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting As always with a set of stories this is a mixed bag, but there's a love of the stories of Sherlock Holmes that comes across from all of the stories.  Little details like the Persian Slipper become stories.  There's mashups from other stories (H G Wells War of the Worlds for example) and they often take an interesting twist.
 
None of the stories are terribly memorable or made me want to hunt up more by the authors but none were terrible and would suggest to me to avoid those authors.

[Sue Foster · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short stories

A collection of Sherlock Holmes short stories written by modern authors.
They are well plotted. In one Holmes meets Raffles the gentleman thief originally created by Conan Doyle brother in law E W Hornung.
In another we see a new side to the loyal Mrs H.
Well worth reading.

[Chantelle J. · Rating 5 out of 5]

A limited time deal from @bookbub list. Iam a fan of the adventures of Sherlock Holmes this book was much a treat to read. I had to grab this for my collection and Iam greatful to Bookbub for the saving deals. Thanks again @bookbub

[Carolyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m a Sherlock Holmes fan and enjoy the Conan Doyle stories immensely.
This anthology has a couple of pretty good stories but unfortunately also a couple of really weak ones. It’s an enjoyable enough read but so are a bit predictable to be in the same league as the originals.

[Maria Coro Arruti · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had read this book years ago, so I was just re=reading it, and as always I enjoy Sherlock Holmes stories, old and new. They are quite entertaining, as this one was, is. Easy to read, easy to enjoy.

[Adam Chafe · Rating 3 out of 5]

A reasonably decent collection with a few stand outs. Good enough for an elibrary book between larger novels.

[Brooke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like any short story anthology, there are weak stories in this mostly very strong bunch. But overall, I enjoyed this steampunky, colorful, unusual pastiche collection.

[aem · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertaining and enjoyable anthology of stories featuring Holmes & Watson written by various authors.

[Drew · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have a deep love for everything Sherlock Holmes. This particular book is a collection of stories written by various authors. I hope you enjoyed as much as I have.

[Anne Patkau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Watson records, plus surprisingly detailed testimonies in style, Holmes secretive. Who pushed Sir Richard down stairs, stole his will, disinherit cousins for eldest, Hans.
2 Sir Bainbridge, relates how Hambley ~40, basement invention fails to preserve produce, his wife 18 gone. Typo: Fwd.p2 elude

[Monique Snyman · Rating 4 out of 5]

As soon as the Sherlock Holmes bug has bitten you, there’s no turning back. From Sir Arthur Conan Doyle‘s original stories, all the way through to the ‘pastiches’ and fan-fiction of the modern era… once the bug bites, you can’t get enough and you will devour any new adventures – be it natural or supernatural – that comes your way. Don’t believe me? Well, I once thought that Sherlock Holmes was overrated and I was determined not to become one of the sheep, yet when I was kindly forced to read and review one of these ‘pastiches’, I was hooked. I went back to read the original stories and when there was no more, I simply fell into a terrifying spiral of gathering anything Sherlock Holmes related in literature. As a result, I think I might start to resemble Watson (or at least the way he thinks), but alas that’s something I probably need to tell my therapist about, not to you…

With some exciting voices that are a part of this collection, George Mann – the editor of Encounters of Sherlock Holmes – has done an excellent job of keeping Encounters of Sherlock Holmes true to what we know and love of our favourite private investigator (with a few great twists and turns to keep the reader in their seats). With thirteen stories included in this Titan Books anthology, authors like Mark Hodder (The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man), Paul Magrs (666 Charing Cross Road), James Lovegrove (The Age of Odin), Eric Brown (Helix Wars) and Richard Dinnick (Doctor Who: The Underwater War) feature. However, these big names aren’t the only ones that have great imaginations that entices the reader with Sherlock Holmes’ further adventures.

Each story is unique in its own way, true to the franchise and well-written. With fantastic stories that will take you on a wild ride, Encounters of Sherlock Holmes is definitely the type of book you want to get your hands on. With so many variations that surrounds the world of Sherlock, you won’t be disappointed. The only thing that may be a problem to readers is how short some of the stories are… That’s it, there’s nothing else that’s bad of this book otherwise.

Mrs Hudson, Dr. Watson, Sherlock Holmes and the rest of the gang all have their place in this collection and each and every one of these stories will leave you wanting more. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle would be proud of it.

(Review originally posted on www.killeraphrodite.com )

[Ade Couper · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a big fan of the Holmes Canon, & have also appreciated many of the stories that have been written since Conan Doyle's death. The tales in this volume are (mostly) worthy additions.

Some of the tales stick rigidly to traditional format, whilst there are a number that bring Holmes firmly into the steampunk genre, notably George Mann's "The case of the night crawler", & Eric Brown's "The tragic case of the Martian Ambassador", both of which work well . The only tale that didn't work for me was Kelly Hale's "The Pennyroyal Society", which, for a short story, meandered too much for my liking.

All in all, a good collection, which should be enjoyed by Holmes enthusiasts.

[Brianna · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Encounters of Sherlock Holmes is an anthology of a series of short stories by various authors. Several of the stories are narrated by Dr. Watson(James Watson). One of the short stories that I really enjoyed was The Fallen Financier. The Fallen Financier is narrated by Watson and set when Holmes is now a retired. A women comes to him in hope that he will help her find her husband who is believed by the police to have committed suicide. I love this story because it has the classic Sherlock Holmes type of plot.