Moriarty: A Novel

Fun read through the times of Holmes and Watson and solid story. Only 4 stars because nostalgic for the master's touch in writing, just a bit less, but still impressive. By far the best modern day Doyle-based book I have read.

Sherlock Holmes, the well-known detective created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in the late 1880s, has long been a favorite of mine. Of course, I read most of the novels and short stories many years ago and continue to "follow" his adventures in every motion picture and TV show that turns up (actor Benedict Cumberbatch's portrayal in TV's "Sherlock" is a favorite). But until recently - when it was a special Kindle offer - I had no idea this book (or its predecessor, "The House of Silk," existed. In fact, it was an the store Best Book of the Month in December 2014, and I learned that both books were approved by Doyle's estate.

It was the description, though, that reeled me in: The mystery "explores what really happened when Sherlock Holmes and his arch nemesis, Professor Moriarty, tumbled to their doom at the Reichenbach Falls." I stayed on hooked all the way to the end - an end that, for the record, pretty much blew me away.

The story begins not long after the two enemies tumbled over the falls, effectively eliminating one of the criminals sought by both the Pinkerton agency and Scotland Yard. Now, another one has moved to the top of the most-wanted list, and it appears he fancies himself a worthy successor to Moriarty. Pinkerton agent Frederick Chase, who provides a first-person narration here, has come to Europe from New York in hopes of tracking down the criminal, named Clarence Devereaux. Chase meets up with Scotland Yard Inspector Athelney Jones, a dedicated Holmes aficionado, and they join forces on a search that takes them through unsavory parts of London and puts their lives at risk with regularity.

The writing style mirrors that of Doyle (that is to say a little bit stuffy, but totally fun), and references to that author's works are too numerous to mention. I don't think it's necessary to have read Doyle's works to enjoy this book, but on the other hand, a little familiarity with them certainly enhanced my enjoyment. I'll also emphasize that this is not a book about Sherlock Holmes or Dr. Watson per se; the references to both are many, but neither makes a personal appearance (Sherlock, of course, was lost at the Swiss falls before this book begins).

In summary, this is the first book in a while that elicited a "Wow!" from me when I got to the end. I also learned that author Horowitz has written a James Bond novel (another all-time favorite character of mine) set for release in the United States in September 2015, titled "Trigger Mortis." Big surprise - I'm heading to the store to pre-order a Kindle version as we speak.

In his second Sherlock Holmes novel, Anthony Horowitz explores the period between Holmes' "death" in "The Final Problem" and his return in "The Adventure of the Empty House". Horowitz approaches the story from a unique perspective: a Sherlock Holmes story with neither Holmes nor Watson. Instead, Scotland Yard Inspector Athelney Jones (from "The Sign of the Four") fills the Holmes role while partnering with a Pinkerton detective, Frederick Chase, who takes the place of Watson. Together, these two attempt to track down an American master criminal named Clarence Devereaux.
Jones and Chase believe that Devereaux had been in contact with the late Professor Moriarty just prior to his death and, following news of both Moriarty's and Holmes' death, the American will attempt to seize control of London's criminal underworld, filling the vacuum left by Moriarty. The story continually contrasts the gentlemanly criminality of Moriarty with the gangster-like work of Devereaux, setting up Horowitz's twist ending.
Horowitz demonstrated his affinity for Moriarty in his previous novel, "The Silk House", in which the Napoleon of Crime has a minor cameo and actually aides Watson and Holmes to rid England of a criminal enterprise even he finds reprehensible. "Moriarty" continues this trend of elevating the Professor's character while retaining his status of criminal mastermind. The story, while interesting in its own right, feels tangential to the Holmes canon at times, despite minor cameos from Inspector G. Lestrade and Inspector Tobias Gregson. Only when Horowitz reveals his twist ending, which I shall not divulge here, does the reader suddenly find this story immediately fitting into the canon with goosebump-inducing results.
"Moriarty" is a worthy successor to "The House of Silk" while featuring a different enough story that it can stand on its own. Both works demonstrate Horowitz's commitment to the canon, as evidenced by the Conan Doyle Estate's official endorsement of this work. In short, "Moriarty" is sure to entertain new and old fans of Sherlock Holmes and his world.

Anthony Horowitz has written a couple of new books based on the Sherlock Holmes canon. His earlier tale, The House of Silk: A Sherlock Holmes Novel sported all the expected features: a story of deduction featuring Sherlock Holmes, narrated by his faithful amanuensis, Dr. Watson. Moriarty, however, is an alternate or parallel novel in the Conan Doyle world- set in the period between Holmes' seemingly fatal encounter with Moriarty at Reichenbach Falls ("The Final Problem") and his startling reappearance in "The Adventure of the Empty House." The detective in this case is Athelney Jones, a Scotland Yard detective who appears in _The Sign of Four_; the narrator tells us he is Frederick Chase, a Pinkerton detective.

Both novels, while closely resembling Conan Doyle's style of narration, are clearly written for contemporary audiences. The nature of the crimes, and the viciousness and brutality of the perpetrators, are far more explicit and inexplicable than those in the original novels. At some points, I could almost see the movie set and the camera angles that would be used.

Still, Moriarty sucks you in and moves quickly from scene to scene and through an escalating series of crimes, murders, and torture to the climactic moment. It is well worth reading- the author spins a complex and engaging yarn.

[potential spoiler alert]

When I came to said climax, I wasn't sure whether I: 1. felt impressed by the skill of the author to misdirect my attention so thoroughly and continuously; 2. felt cheated by an ending that was more cynical and brutal than I would expect in a Sherlock Holmes novel. That said, I'd still recommend the book, unless you are easily offended by blood and gore.

It started off promising but unfortunately, it didn't live up to expectations. The story is well written and it is entertaining enough to keep one reading. But hard as I tried I could not bring myself to care about the main characters I just couldn't. I figured out the ending early on in the story, as some of the events early on didn't make sense. The plot seemed forced and uninspired. I won't be like another reviewer and ruin it for those who are currently reading or thinking about purchasing the book, because that is a rather juvenile thing to do. However, given my disappointment in this book, I will go on and read "House of Silk" as it received higher praise. This isn't by any means a bad book. Trying to follow in the footsteps of ACD is not an easy undertaking and one that is rarely done successfully. I think Mr. Horowitz did a fair job, but didn't quite manage to make it work. From the reviews I've read, I believe "House of Silk" will be a more enjoyable read.

It started off promising but unfortunately, it didn't live up to expectations. The story is well written and it is entertaining enough to keep one reading. But hard as I tried I could not bring myself to care about the main characters I just couldn't. I figured out the ending early on in the story, as some of the events early on didn't make sense. The plot seemed forced and uninspired. I won't be like another reviewer and ruin it for those who are currently reading or thinking about purchasing the book, because that is a rather juvenile thing to do. However, given my disappointment in this book, I will go on and read "House of Silk" as it received higher praise. This isn't by any means a bad book. Trying to follow in the footsteps of ACD is not an easy undertaking and one that is rarely done successfully. I think Mr. Horowitz did a fair job, but didn't quite manage to make it work. From the reviews I've read, I believe "House of Silk" will be a more enjoyable read.

Moriarty by Anthony Horowitz is as powerful, as elusive, and as tactical as the famous arch-nemesis of Sherlock Holmes. Readers will inevitably fall into the snare that Horowitz has set for them. But, I should not say any more about that. Besides Horowitz incredible writing (which is as close to flawless as they get) a lot of the power of the novel comes from setting it in the “Great Hiatus” (the term given to the time between Sherlock’s death in “The Final Problem” and his return in “The Adventure of the Empty House”). The protagonists are not Watson and Sherlock this time around for Horowitz (as they were in the very successful The House of Silk), but instead a Pinkerton Agent, Frederick Chase, and a Scotland Yard Officer, Athleney Jones. And with these two characters, you never know what’s coming next.

Athleney Jones is a particularly good fit for the main detective in this novel, as he is a minor character who did exist in Doyle’s original work. Jones is best known for his role in “Sign of the Four.” In which, he arrests an entire household on a murder crime but is shown to be embarrassingly wrong through Sherlock’s expertise. He is called “an imbecile” and “tenacious as a lobster” in a later story. The premise of the current novel is that Jones has taken to heart the criticism given to him by Sherlock and Watson, and has studied and studied until he has achieved a level similar to Sherlock. Frederick Chase seems to prefer Jones’ work and skill over that of Sherlock’s, but this may or may not be influenced by his bias.

If you are worried that someone other than Doyle is writing Sherlock stories, let me calm you. Horowitz is not writing “fan fiction,” but he is writing something called a pastiche (which means an imitation of someone else’s writing). And his pastiche (his first, being The House of Silk, and now his second, Moriarty), is the first pastiche ever officially approved by the Conan Doyle estate. At this point it is basically canon.

Also, it is known that Doyle wanted to focus on his historical novels and did not like writing Sherlock stories. Doyle wanted Sherlock dead, and so he tossed Sherlock off the edge of Reichenbach Falls. He only brought him back because of the immense pressure coming from the public, and even then he resented the famous detective. Horowitz, on the other hand, has no such ill-will. Maybe readers will enjoy Sherlock more from an author who is not only capable but also loving; I know I did.

Read this book if you are a fan of Sherlock, because it will not disappoint. Read it if you want the legend and lore of Moriarty to achieve a new level in your mind, and to gain a completely new perspective on whether or not Sherlock and Moriarty are truly equals. Can you follow the clues, or will you be deceived? The game is afoot!

Too easy to figure out...characters not believable...the Holmes characters mostly filler material. Only kept reading because I paid for it and had nothing else to read. Took way more time than if I was interested or liked it.

I enjoyed this book until the final two chapters, although some of the Holmes parallels were a bit contrived. But like so many reviewers, the ending ruined this for me. I don't mind surprise twists, even real mind-benders like that in "The Sixth Sense." The problem here is that the twist betrays - mocks, really - whatever emotional investment the reader has made in the characters, leaving a bad taste in the mouth. My reaction was not, "Wow, I didn't see that coming!" so much as, "You're fracking kidding me." Yes, at the end the author laboriously spells out all the clues left throughout the narrative. But the feeling is all wrong. It just doesn't work, and so I say the author doesn't play fair with the reader. There is an old saying in Latin, "finis coronat opus" ("the ending crowns the work"). Well, in this case, "finis destruit opus" ("the ending destroys the work"). I felt like my time had been wasted.

"Moriarty" appropriates an interesting period in the Holmes canon -- the interval when Holmes is presumably dead after his encounter with Professor Moriarty at Reichenbach Falls. Horowitz introduces a Pinkerton agent to fill the void, and allies him with a Scotland Yard detective we've seen before in the Holmes stories. Together, they are on the trail of an American crime boss, Charles Devereux. The spectre of Moriarty looms large in the story, as all the threads emanate from the corpse recovered from the Falls.

I enjoyed it as much as "House of Silk," even if it is an entirely different take on the period and the stories, filling in an interesting gap with an imaginative and plausible mystery. There are plenty of twists, a nice integration of actual historical figures, and many exciting scenes. I finished it within 48 hours. It's hard to put down.