Ashley’s Reviews > The Complete Sherlock Holmes > Status Update

"The Adventure of the Retired Colourman" — A nice one to end on. Holmes doing actual detection, getting Watson mixed up in it unbeknownst to him. Trickery. — 4/5 stars

And with that, I'm officially done with The Complete Sherlock Holmes. I feel accomplished.

"The Adventure of Shoscombe Old Place" — Holmes and Watson investigate a man who has been doing very odd and out of character things. Good, but not great. — 3.5/5 stars

"The Adventure of the Lion's Mane" — The final of three stories narrated by Holmes instead of Watson, and this one post-retirement! A man drops dead right in front of Holmes, so of course he has to investigate. The beginning and end were good, but the middle lacked the magic. — 3.5/5 stars

"The Adventure of the Creeping Man" — This was fun to read but it was ultimately ridiculous, the ending unsatisfying. It's basically sci-fi, and not the realism we normally associate with Holmes stories. It was probably written about the time ACD started believing in fairies. Still, it's got some great lines ("Come at once if convenient — if inconvenient come all the same. S. H.") — 3/5 stars

"The Problem of Thor Bridge" — Pretty good one. The Victorian conception of foreign women is messed up, though. Especially where Central and South America were concerned. This isn't really new information though, and it's the third or fourth of these stories to feature a woman of "foreign temperament". — 3.5/5 stars

"The Adventure of the Three Garridebs" — I was really digging this until I realized that Conan Doyle had already used this same plot structure in two other stories (he used it in "The Red-Headed League" and "The Stockbroker's Clerk"). Still, this was my favorite of those three. Holmes and Watson have a sweet moment at the end. Friendship <3 — 4/5 stars

"The Adventure of the Sussex Vampire" — This one was wacky and I was thoroughly enjoying it, until I figured out what was going on, that is. I'm so used to not being able to do that, it was a little disappointing when I did. But seriously: wacky. — 4/5 stars

"The Adventure of the Three Gables" — The mystery here was okay, although I think Holmes was too easy on the perpetrator there at the end. But this one really has not aged well. It's pretty racist. — 3/5 stars

"The Adventure of the Mazarin Stone" — One of only two Holmes stories told in the third person, to hide a trick. It was okay, but I missed Watson's voice. Holmes does get extra tricksy here, though, so that's fun. — 3.5/5 stars

"The Adventure of the Blanched Soldier" — Another one of the few narrated by Holmes himself, and this one was written because Watson goaded Holmes to "Try it yourself!" because of excessive criticism of Watson's methods. Holmes doesn't do much, but it has a happy ending, and is suitably creepy in places. — 4/5 stars