The Sign of the Four (Sherlock Holmes #2)

[Mary Pat]

This thread is to discuss Arthur Conan Doyle‘s book, The Sign of Four.


***Please remember to mark spoilers.***

Participants: Randy, Suki, Ilona, Ashley

P.S. We are starting with the second book because the first book was read as a group read in June.

[Mary Pat]

Suggested break down of reading so that you can check in and let us know how you're doing. The following breakdown is purely a suggestion and is therefore not set in stone.

Rather than putting dates for each section I've done it so that it takes into account that not everybody will necessarily have the book at the same time.

Week 1: 32
Week 2: 32
Week 3: 32
Week 4: 32

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls]

I finished this one already, mostly because I was going out of town for about a week and didn't want to drag the whole Sherlock Holmes omnibus with me. I'll save spoiler comments for later but I did want to mention how strange I thought the first few pages were. I won't say anything more until a few other readers have checked in...

[Ilona]

I finished it as well as I read it in a couple hours on Sunday while sitting in the sun and enjoying a glass of wine. The good life :)

I don't recall anything strange about the first couple of pages, but I'll check the book when I get home from work this evening.

[Ashley]

I am almost halfway done. The first pages really didn't have anything to do with the story.

(view spoiler)[ The first few pages were Watson and Holmes talking. Watson was basically testing Holmes and had him look at a watch and try to figure out information about a watch.
I was surprised to find that I agreed with Holmes about what Watson wrote regarding "A Study in Scarlet," in that Watson romanticized Holmes's skills. Holmes could do no wrong. (hide spoiler)]

This story is different than the first. (view spoiler)[ The mystery that came to Holmes seemed solved in the first few chapters. Ms. Morstan's mystery seemed more focused on her father but that was solved when they met with Mr. Sholto. Now the mystery is turning into something else as strange things keep happening and the mystery is more about the treasure. (hide spoiler)]

[Ilona]

Thanks for the reminder Ashley :)
I mostly saw it as an intro to the story, and wouldn't mind to see more random interaction between Sherlock and Watson!

[Ashley]

Ilona wrote: "Thanks for the reminder Ashley :)
I mostly saw it as an intro to the story, and wouldn't mind to see more random interaction between Sherlock and Watson!"

I agree that it was an intro as (view spoiler)[ Ms. Morstan showed up the the end of the chapter. It didn't really add anything in my opinion. I think it could have been done a little differently to make is a smoother transition and I would have liked it better. I think it would be interesting to see an interaction between Sherlock and Watson in which they do not test each other. Maybe a look at their friendship or how they live. Get away from the reasoning and testing Holmes. (hide spoiler)]

[Ashley]

I just finished. I like how this story goes in full circle. (view spoiler)[ It ends where it began. Makes the beginning fit in a little more. (hide spoiler)]

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls]

I guess I was referring to Sherlock Holmes' drug use in the first chapter. Holmes injects himself with a solution that contains 7% cocaine and alludes to using cocaine and, if I recall correctly, opium or heroin in the past. A book and movie from the 1970s, The Seven Per-Cent Solution, imagines Holmes as drug addict. I found the reference jarring and I wasn't expecting it at all.

[Kelly]

I haven't read The Sign of Four in a very long time. I'm trying to remember if it was my favorite... or least favorite of the Sherlock stories. I need to re-read The Sign of Four, though, because I don't really remember it well.

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls]

Anyone still reading this? Final thoughts anyone? How did you think it stacked up to the first book in the series (A Study in Scarlet)?

[Suki]

I'm going to start reading in the next day or two-- my roommate got really sick and things have been pretty hectic around here, but they seem to be settling down now. It's not a long book, and should be a quick read.

[Ashley]

I finished this already. I this better than A Study in Scarlet. I liked how the back story fit into the story instead of being another section of the book and jumping into it. There was a better flow in this book.

[Suki]

I enjoyed the story a bit more than A Study in Scarlet, and on the whole it was quite straightforward, but there were a couple of weird side details in it.

(view spoiler)[
Early in the first chapter, after Holmes has given himself the injection, Watson speaks up:
"Which is it today," I asked, "morphine or cocaine?"
I found it a little strange that Watson was so upset about Holmes' use of these substances because at the time they were both perfectly legal-- they could be purchased at the neighborhood chemist's shop as easily as we would run into the drugstore today for a bottle of aspirin. The mention of Holmes using morphine did surprise me-- I had read The Seven-Percent Solution by Nicholas Meyer many years ago, so I was somewhat familiar with his cocaine use. Holmes seemed to experience almost manic-depressive mood swings; maybe they can be explained by use of these substances. It is interesting that Watson is looking at Holmes through more critical eyes; in Scarlet, Holmes could do no wrong. In The Sign of Four, Holmes seems to be more human.

Watson seemed to fall for Mary Morstan very quickly, and she for him. Holmes' reaction to the news of their engagement is distinctly odd. Does he know something that Watson doesn't, did he secretly want Miss Morstan for himself but Watson got there first, or was he simply pouting over losing his roommate and sidekick? Did their sudden engagement at the end of the book surprise anybody else, or just me? I always think of Holmes and Watson living together at 221B Baker Street-- it surprised me that they were already going their separate ways.

I'm not even going to get into British rule in India; it's a pretty brutal piece of history.

I almost felt sorry for Jonathan Small, having that treasure hanging in front of him for all those years, and then to lose it in the end, when it had literally been in his grasp!
(hide spoiler)]

I have never read the entire Holmes canon; The Sign of Four is one that I have not read before. From what I remember of what I have read, I think I prefer my Holmes in the short story format. There were parts in the first two books where I felt my interest lag, and I had to take a bit of a break and read something else before I went back to them. I am definitely looking forward to going back and rereading the short stories. It's been a long time since I've read them; The Speckled Band is the only one I remember clearly.

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls]

Suki wrote: "From what I remember of what I have read, I think I prefer my Holmes in the short story format."

I'm definitely looking forward to getting to the short stories next month!

[Ilona]

Me too!