Sherlock Holmes and the Houdini Birthright

Sherlock Holmes #6

by Val Andrews

Here's another Sherlock Holmes pastiche from the fertile pen of Val Andrews. Again two areas of mystery are the exploits of Sherlock Holmes and the secrets of master escapologist, Harry Houdini. Doctor Watson's collaborator, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, finds himself drawn into the world of the fake psychics and Houdini is anxious for Holmes to unmask the perpetrators who prey on the innocent believers.
Once he has been torn away from his bee-keeping activities, Holmes's investigations lead him to some surprising locations including a Ruritanian castle. Sherlockians, historians and magic buffs will all be intrigued and delighted with this classic detective story which links fact and a little fiction to suggest what may have happened to Houdini after his death.
Again .... the game is afoot.

Genres: Mystery

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Val Andrews was a music hall artist, ventriloquist and writer.
Andrews was born in Hove, Sussex, England a few hours after Valentine's Day, hence his name. Son of an architect, he was introduced to magic by his father. Andrews was a prolific writer on magic, having published over 1000 books and booklets from 1952. He also authored Sherlock Holmes pastiches and Houdini's novels. He lived for a number of years in Brighton, then in London (from 1943 onwards) where he joined the London Society of Magicians.

Reviews

[Josh Hitch · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fairly well done pastiche of Doyle's Sherlock
Holmes stories. Not a great mystery by any means but it has all the elements and reads well and is just good comfort reading for fans of Holmes. Basically it's 2 different stories, one where Holmes and Watson helps their friend Houdini with some spiritualists who were trying to take money from the Doyles. Next Holmes and Watson are asked by Houdini's widow to investigate the great magician's death.

Recommended for big fans of the Holmes oeuvre. Again it has the feel right and is interesting since Homes aand Watson are much older in this book, around 70.

[Ronn · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 & a half actually. The writing is quite true to Conan Doyle, and that's nice to find. The story is divided into three parts. The first involves Holmes & Watson helping Houdini prove that Conan Doyle is being scammed by a spiritualist, and is really pretty good.. The second, taking place a few years later, has H&W investigating the possibility that Houdini was murdered, and is OK but weaker that the first. The third part, about which I will say nothing as it would give major spoilers, is pretty far- fetched, but is a fair conclusion to the story.

[Outlander · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yet another SH tale from Val Andrews, this one has it's moments - as written by the wraith of A C Doyle ! The first section, set in 1922 is the best of the whole tale, very well written. The second section set in 1827 must be set into the realms of fantasy, not in the "no ghosts need apply" but in the improbable sense.

[Bonnye Reed]

Endeavor Media Sherlock Advent Calendar 99

[Keith Brooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read

[frederick d. ziegel · Rating 2 out of 5]

not one of his best

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

1922. Houdini persuades Holmes to investigate a medium to stop the Doyles being deceived. Years later after Houdini's death his wife wants Holmes to prove he was murdered. But what will Holmes discover.
An enjoyable Holmes mystery

[Dale · Rating 4 out of 5]

Holmes and Houdini

Sherlock Holmes and the Houdini Birthright by Val Andrews

It is summer, 1922. Harry Houdini calls Doctor Watson in an attempt to get in touch with Sherlock Holmes. The detective has retired to Sussex and values his privacy. Watson has to make sure any case that disturbs Holmes’ self-imposed retirement is worth the great detective’s time.

Houdini is out to prove that a pair of Spiritualists named Doctor Robert Blackthorne and Mrs Marina Blackthorne. Houdini knows how they do most of their tricks, but some he isn’t sure how they accomplish.

Worse, Houdini’s friendship with Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is suffering, because Doyle is convinced of the genuineness of Spiritualism. For Houdini to expose these people as fakes, he needs to be able to to produce exact evidence of how all the effects were faked.

Holmes agrees to go to the séance disguised as Reverend Septimus Carstairs. Between himself and Houdini, Holmes discovers the trickery. He then pulls some trickery of his own to force a confession.

The death of Houdini on October 31, 1926, was caused by a McGill University student, J. Gordon Whitehead, who delivered a surprise attack of multiple blows to Houdini's abdomen. Houdini was in the habit of resisting such blows, but unprepared for them it ruptured his appendix. Houdini not only refused treatment, he refused to stop his tour. He died of peritonitis, secondary to a ruptured appendix. Afterward, Bess Houdini contacts Holmes.

It is her request that Holmes investigate the death of Houdini. It is her specific request that he discover that Houdini was murdered. What Holmes discovers is something else…

This is a good mix of history and fiction, making the most of several rumors that went around about Houdini. By taking facts and then building on them to create the circumstances of this mystery, Val Andrews makes the account seem credible.

I have to give Val Andrews points for including Houdini’s friend Walter Gibson in the story. Gibson was a magician himself, and was ghost-writer for Houdini and other magicians. He is also famous for the creation of one of Pulp Fiction’s most iconic characters, The Shadow!

I give the book four stars…

Quoth the Raven…

[Nancy Oakes · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are actually two stories here, the first of which is okay, the second of which is not so great. The first story finds Sherlock Holmes enjoying a quiet retirement after WWI. He does leave his apiary long enough to take on a case brought to him by Harry Houdini, who is trying to expose a pair of spiritualists who have suckered Arthur Conan Doyle and his wife into believing that they can communicate with the dead. This one's kind of fun.

The second story is relegated to the world of "what-if," in which Holmes & Watson are visited by Bess Houdini after her husband's untimely death. She wants the duo to prove that Houdini was murdered. Holmes and Watson have to journey to America, then find themselves in trouble in Hungary as the case takes on some bizarre twists. Not quite as good as the first story; however, it did keep me occupied for a good while.

[Gabby · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good story, I chose this one because of Houdini being in the story. I recently watched the TV series Houdini and Doyle this past summer, loved it, and wanted to read something that paralleled that. I love Holmes, anything Holmes really so this was fun.

[Lynn Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely not Sir Arthur

[blushenka · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entertaining, funny little story.
3.5/5

[Ronald · Rating 3 out of 5]

read SOMETIME in 2002

[Bonnie Dale Keck · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kindle Unlimited One of several Sherlock Holmes stories by an assorted group of authors, wanted to go through them all. Liked it, just didn't love it, sort of the right style and all but....