More Rivals of Sherlock Holmes

Rivals of Sherlock Holmes #2

by Hugh Greene (Editor)

She drew off her left glove, a delicate, crinkled suede affair, and offered her bare hand to the surgeon...from the polished pink nails of the tapering fingers to the firm, well-moulded wrist, it was distinctly the hand of a woman of ease - one that had never known labour, a pampered hand, Dr Prescott told himself.

"The forefinger," she explained calmly, "I should like to have it amputated at the first joint, please." - from Jacques Futrelle's The Superfluous Finger, just one of the stories from this first-rate collection of Edwardian tales of cosmopolitan crime.

Cover design: Ivan Holmes

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Anthologies, Short Stories, Crime, 19th Century

331 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1971

About the author

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

Sir Hugh Carleton Greene, KCMG, OBE was educated at Berkhamsted and Merton College, University of Oxford and became a journalist. He served as Director-General of the BBC from 1960-1969. One of his brothers was the novelist and screenwriter Graham Greene, OM, CH (1904-1991) and together they collected and edited 'The Spy's Bedside Book' (1957).

Reviews

[Adelais · Rating 4 out of 5]

Збірка розповідей про сучасних Холмсові злодіїв і сищиків, тільки з європейським ухилом, бо не однією Великою Британією.
The Episode of the Mexican Seer та The Episode of the Diamond Links: про так званого полковника Клея, який ювелірно (і фігурально, і буквально) обдурює магната і його секретаря, та ще й так, що поліція тільки може розводити руками і прицмокувати від захвату. Треба буде інші з ним почитати, бо краса ж і фейспалм.
Five Hundred Carats: що з людьми роблять діаманти, особливо великі, особливо якщо вкрасти з родовища в Південній Африці. Інспектор Ліпінський хизується досвідом і розумом.
A Bracelet in Bruges: His bow was a vertebrate poem - це про світського злодія, який стирив браслет, але щось мені вчувається таке вічне в цьому виразі.
Absent-Minded Coterie: як нажитися на забудькуватих багатіях і викрутитися з лап детектива, бо він француз, а таке в Британії не годиться.
Arsene Lupin in Prison: як Люпен трохи відпочив у тюрмі і одночасно пограбував колекціонера за допомогою інспектора, який його і арештував. Sustainable production as is."
The Superfluous Finger: спроба отримати титул і гроші закінчилася невдало, бо навіть відрубати палець вродливі дамі не допоможе, якщо за справу береться Мисляча Машина. Симпатично, але сюжет трохи притягнутий за вуха.
A Sensible Course of Action: графиня Волконська з Волині, а точніше з Житомира у Київському районі (це я цитую) наполягає, що за нею в Копенгагені полює брат покійного чоловіка і хоче вбити. "Як уб'є, тоді й приходьте", каже поліція сто років тому, але один інспектор вирішує діяти на свій ризик. Не дуже зрозуміла кінцівку, але цікава історія данського письменника, не одним туманним Альбіоном.
Anonymous Letters: дві справи про анонімки у одній розповіді. Австрійський детектив початку століття (я вперше такий читаю) на ім'я Дагобер йде по сліду і викриває недоброзичливців у вищому світі Відня.
The Red Silk Scarf: як Арсен Люпен здобув собі коштовний камінчик за допомогою свого найлютішого ворога - інспектора Ганімара. Аж поспівчувала інспекторові, така ювелірна авантюра.
The Secret of the Magnifique: про одного дуже наївного мільйонера, одного розумного шахрая і один воєнний корабель, який може стріляти на пять миль, і це загрожує світовому порядку. Так і хочеться сказати: а двісті не хочете? Але це ще нелякані роки перед першою світовою, що поробиш.
The Murder at the Duck Clib: рідкісна птиця на просторах детективу, слідопит Джо Листопад з Квебеку розкриває вбивство багатія під час полювання на качок. Застаріле трохи оповідання, але щось в ньому є.

[Ana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved these. In fact, I think that I might like these better than the first Rivals of Sherlock Holmes book. I think the thing that I love the most is that it's less detectives, and more detection that is going on. Thus, it's not just detectives, but also thieves that are featured, and I just love it.

Now off to see what free books I can get from Amazon. :D

[Charles · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting collection of Victorian imitators of Sherlock Holmes. If you didn't think about it, you might imagine Doyle was writing unimitated, unchallenged. As this book shows Sherlock had a host of imitators, solving devilish crimes, with insight, brilliance, and panache.

[Graham · Rating 4 out of 5]

THE RIVALS OF SHERLOCK HOLMES was an excellent anthology by Hugh Greene that spawned numerous sequels, of which this is the first. A TV series also followed, and my only complaint is that they didn't produce more anthologies to cover the wealth of detective short fiction in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Still, we have to make do with what we have, and COSMOPOLITAN CRIMES is another interesting look at the genre.

Grant Allen's opening two stories, THE EPISODE OF THE MEXICAN SEER and THE EPISODE OF THE DIAMOND LINKS, are both part of the same series and see a rich businessman being fleeced by a criminal mastermind. They're well written and highly entertaining, a fine start. FIVE HUNDRED CARATS sees George Griffith heading off to the diamond mines of South Africa, exploring briefly how a seemingly impossible heist was pulled off (with no small measure of ingenuity, as it happens). A slighter piece, but interesting enough. Arnold Bennett was best known as a popular novelist of the era, but A BRACELET AT BRUGES sees him dipping his toe into the mystery genre with good effect in a story mildly reminiscent of the intrigue of Wilkie Collins.

THE ABSENT-MIND COTERIE is by Robert Barr and rather long and complex for a short mystery story, although it also has far more depth than you'd expect and is engaging as a result. It feels much deeper than something Conan Doyle would attempt. There are two adventures for Jacques Futrelle's Thinking Machine, a crazy professor who turns out to be a genius. THE PROBLEM OF CELL 18 is the best of these and also the best story in the book; the story of a week-long prison escape that keeps you fully engaged and entertained in every paragraph. THE SUPERFLUOUS FINGER is slightly weaker but memorably macabre and readable with it. Maurice Leblanc also features via a pair of Arsene Lupin adventures. The first, ARSENE LUPIN IN PRISON, features an impossible crime committed from behind bars; I worked out the solution early on but that doesn't lessen it in any way. THE RED SILK SCARF is slighter but still an amusingly-written battle of wits between master criminal and master detective.

There are two continental stories present here, and both are of their era. A SENSIBLE COURSE OF ACTION is by Baron Palle Rosenkrantz and features a woman hiding out with a Danish detective, claiming that no less than her own brother-in-law is trying to kill her. A little complex, but with some good political background to it. Balduin Groller's ANONYMOUS LETTERS tells of a poison pen and seems to be all narrated back story with very little detection, but I enjoyed it for the depth all the same. E. Phillips Oppenheim was a popular spy writer of the era and THE SECRET OF THE 'MAGNIFIQUE' feels more spy story than detective, but it's very involving with a big cast of characters and lots of little twists along the way. The anthology closes on a high with THE MURDER AT THE DUCK CLUB, in which H. Hesketh Prichard tells of Canadian trapper November Joe and his skill at solving crimes using his outdoorsy abilities. Great fun, with a villain very much of the era.

[Mark Higginbottom · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great collection of Victorian detective stories.I hadn't read the majority of them before but had definitely heard of all the various detectives involved in the stories.I don't think there was one bad story really,they all had something about them that was interesting or fascinating.It was refreshing that these stories weren't the same usual ones you find in these sorts of collections but were a little more rare and obscure.I am definitely looking forward to the next one ( I think Hugh Greene did four altogether?!? )....

[Robert Hepple · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hurst published in 1971, 'More Rivals of Sherlock Holmes - Cosmopolitan Crimes' is a second volume of early detective stories following the previously published 'The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes'. This volume contains 13 short stories, this time featuring mainly foreign detectives including some newly translated items, all originally published over the years 1897-1913. As before, the editor has made a terrific selection of quality items in a bygone style, and very enjoyable for that.

[Doug Frizzle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I agree with both the two previous reviews. These are great vintage detective stories. Most involve European cities. Being a Canadian, I liked 'The Murder at the Duck Club' by the adventurist, author, Hesketh Prichard who traveled and wrote about Labrador. I will put that short story on my blog Stillwoods.Blogspot.Ca.
Doug

[Davidg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like the first book, this contains enjoyable crime novels of the Victorian/Edwardian era. In some we are on the side of the 'villain' rather than the detective. And the only character to rival the great detective is the wonderful Arsenal Lupin.

[Miriam · Rating 2 out of 5]

Again, some fun stories - like the Arsène Lupin story - but also some quite bad ones, with a generous sprinkling of racism in some of them. Some are definitely worth reading, but it's quite a mixed selection.

[Jessica Agostinelli]

probably could have snipped the horrifically racist story off the end there but i’m not the editor i guess

[Outlander · Rating 2 out of 5]

There are no real rivals for Sherlock Holmes, he's unsurpassable.