Young Miss Holmes, Casebook 1-2 in Josei and Seinen Readers

Feb 10, 2013 Selena Pigoni rated it really liked it

Shelves: japan-stuff, favorites, mystery, dogs, first-in-series-manga, manga-manwha, british-stuff, z-to-read-manga-challenge, vampires

This is definitely written by a Holmesian. So much Sherlock, so little time. It's actually very good for that.

Christie's Sherlock's niece, and just as intelligent. She doesn't always get to the answer as quickly as Holmes, but hey, she's what, ten? Imagine what she'll be like in ten years. She'll be kicking his butt.

The art feels like 80-90s shoujo, but it doesn't feel outdated, more retro. There are a few cases of "wait, what?" with background toners using obviously Japanese patterns (Maneki Ne ...more

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May 22, 2012 Kayt O'Bibliophile rated it really liked it

Shelves: graphic-novels, sherlock-holmes

To be honest, I wasn't expecting this to be very good. Look at Christie on the cover: she looks fragile and breakable and possibly annoying. I couldn't imagine how they could insert a new character into existing cases.

Luckily, they did it well. Christie has Holmes' mental abilities, but she's still a ten-year-old girl, slightly immature, and doesn't bump Sherlock out entirely. Instead, she often arrives at the same conclusion as him, or they collaborate.

The secondary characters are interesting a To be honest, I wasn't expecting this to be very good. Look at Christie on the cover: she looks fragile and breakable and possibly annoying. I couldn't imagine how they could insert a new character into existing cases.

Luckily, they did it well. Christie has Holmes' mental abilities, but she's still a ten-year-old girl, slightly immature, and doesn't bump Sherlock out entirely. Instead, she often arrives at the same conclusion as him, or they collaborate.

The secondary characters are interesting as well, which is good--secondary characters often get the shaft but can be one of the best things about a book if they're well-done. Christie's maids get good treatment, and Nora's irreverence and perpetually-bored look in particular made me wish we got even more time with them. Plus, they have surprises that are spoilery but oh-so-awesome.

The art as well...I admit, I love big-eyed shoujo girls, and I haven't seen bigger eyes than these in a while. Backgrounds are not scarce, thankfully, and so there's no chance of losing track of places.

There was really only one part where I felt it slipped for a moment, and it was near the end when Mina shows up: (view spoiler)

Overall, though, an excellent manga, much better than I was expecting. It's joined the ranks of the few that I'd actually like to own, but it's definitely a library-read if you're unsure. ...more

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Nov 08, 2012 Nicole rated it it was ok

Shelves: historical-fiction, manga, reviews, will-not-continue-series, shoujo, mystery

Whether or not you enjoy Young Miss Holmes will depend on why you like other Sherlock Holmes stories. If you like them for the cases he has to solve, then you'll probably like this manga. If you enjoy them for the characters, then you'll probably find Young Miss Holmes underwhelming.

This is a solid mystery/detective series. The art has a very polished classic shoujo look. The cases are interesting and entertaining to unravel. The only problem with this aspect of the story is that there's no ove ...more

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Nov 30, 2012 Mike rated it really liked it

Shelves: manga, starters-sequential-art, mystery-and-crime

This collection contains volumes 1 and 2 of Young Miss Holmes (as originally published).

Crystal "Christie" Margaret Hope is a ten year old with an array of knowledge far beyond her years, an insatiable curiosity, and an intellect on par with her famous uncle, Sherlock Holmes. With her parents away in India the Count's inquisitive daughter specializes in getting involved in her uncle's cases, whether he or the numerous maids and attendants trying to turn her into a "proper lady" like it or not.

T This collection contains volumes 1 and 2 of Young Miss Holmes (as originally published).

Crystal "Christie" Margaret Hope is a ten year old with an array of knowledge far beyond her years, an insatiable curiosity, and an intellect on par with her famous uncle, Sherlock Holmes. With her parents away in India the Count's inquisitive daughter specializes in getting involved in her uncle's cases, whether he or the numerous maids and attendants trying to turn her into a "proper lady" like it or not.

The first volume contained here introduces Christie, establishes a solid supporting cast and retells some classic Sherlock Holmes stories. The second volume is primarily devoted to a crossover story with Dance in the Vampire Bund (which I liked despite not having read any of Dance, supernatural elements, and a slightly disappointing resolution) and is filled out with another retelling.

The stories range from two to five chapters long as Shintani allows the material to dictate the proper length. I found the characters to have well defined, interesting personalities and the stories engaging as they unfolded. There are nice touches of humor skillfully blended throughout. The art here is excellent and compliments the subject matter beautifully whether in action scenes or the numerous explanation scenes all mysteries have.

However this manga isn't without it's issues, and honestly this collection should probably clock in at 3.5 stars. It's not quite on par with the source material or original mystery manga like Kindaichi, and there are occasional pacing issues revolving around Sherlock and Christie figuring out the same things in parallel, leading the reader to get the same explanations twice. Purists will also definitely be bothered by Christie's prowess and the way she is shoehorned into familiar stories. Holmes' characteristic bluntness can also come off as rather harsh since it now is targeted at a ten year old trying to earn his respect as often as at Watson.

But I personally have no problems with re-imaginings, the key points of the mysteries are ingeniously adapted, and despite the minor flaws as a whole I really enjoyed Christie's adventures. So my ratings tilt goes slightly upward here, resulting in 4 stars. Know what you're getting going in, but if Young Miss Holmes sounds like something you might like Christie's adventures probably won't disappoint.

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Jul 17, 2014 Miri Gifford rated it liked it

Shelves: young-adult, japan, graphic-novels, manga

Love the premise and all the fantastic female characters - would definitely recommend to my nieces and any kids in that age group - but all the Victorian affectations are just too annoying for me to read any more.

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