Singular Case of the Duplicate Holmes

by Jan Walker

Sherlock Holmes and his biographer, Dr. Watson, are taken aback when a young lady arrives in their Baker Street rooms, demanding that Holmes should forthwith desist from writing her poison pen letters and harassing her in other ways. Holmes, naturally, denies the charge and convinces Elizabeth Penrose that he has no knowledge of the affair. To defend his good name, however, he feels impelled to look into the matter and his investigations lead to a tangled family trust which has prompted the current situation. Matters are confused by an American who is not quite what he seems, an old lady with definite views and a butler who chases Holmes, while Holmes in his turn is chasing a duplicate Holmes!

160 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1994

Reviews

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson are between cases. They have finished breakfast and are settling in for a relaxing day reading the Times when Mrs. Hudson enters with an attractive young woman of obvious breeding. Holmes introduces himself and Watson. "Without the trivialities of polite conversation I shall come to point, Mr. Holmes." She took a deep breath and began. "I have come to ask you to leave me alone. You have a reputation as a man of high principles. I would ask you, relying on your honour as a gentleman, to desist in your persecution of me." Holmes is astonished and rendered quite speechless, because he has never met the young woman and doesn't even know her name. Thus begins "The Singular Case of the Duplicate Holmes." It was recommended to me by a Goodreads friend and I agree with her that this just might be the pastiche that most closely captures the language and style of Conan Doyle. It is an interesting case with several twists and turns, and it is unusual in that in the minds of the police and public Holmes is the villain, however falsely. I also congratulate the author for her very clever and amusing gift at the end. I would highly recommend this to all my Sherlockian friends.

[P. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Strangely uninvolving story, all tell not show, while the characters, esp Holmes, just aren't credible.

[Visakh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Being a hard-core Sherlock Holmes fan, the story line of this book was interesting enough for me to pick up this book. And I was not disappointed. This is one of the best stories of the great detective that I have read (other than the ones by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle). I was impressed with The House of Silk (which is officially endorsed by Doyle's estate), but The Singular Case of the Duplicate Holmes was mind blowing. The writing is typical Doyle's style, and the story line is pretty much complicated. The characters are well developed, and we even get to see a slightly romantic side of Holmes (don't fret. It's just a hint of a romantic).

The ending was too descriptive than required, and that makes me reduce one star from the rating. Overall, a fantastic read for a Sherlock fan.

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you like Sherlock Holmes, you can't do much better than this outside the Doyle canon. Jan Walker cheats a bit in terms of the villainry, but without spoilers, I can't say more than that.

I've read most of Doyle, but am not a true Sherlockian. That said, I thought Walker captured the style of Doyle better than most other non-Doyle Holmes I've read. She's more true to the actual characterizations and the relationship between Holmes and Watson in the books than many other writers, who tend to follow the movie roles and make Watson a bit of a rube.

Very enjoyable read!