Book Review: THE SHERLOCKIAN by Graham Moore

Those who were watching the 87th Academy Awards (The Oscars) on Sunday–or if you’re just culturally aware, like I’m usually not–you’ll know that the Best Adapted Screenplay award went to Graham Moore for “The Imitation Game.” Moore loosely adapted Andrew Hodges’ book ALAN TURING: THE ENIGMA about the life of Alan Turing, the British computer scientist, mathematician, cryptanalyst, and all-around genius who was famous for using his computer and cryptanalytical skills for breaking Nazi codes during World War II.

Five years ago, Graham Moore wrote a novel called THE SHERLOCKIAN that I thoroughly enjoyed. So, in honor of Graham’s win, here is my review of his novel. I originally posted this on Goodreads.

As every Sherlock Holmes fan knows, Conan Doyle intended to kill his detective at the end of “The Final Problem.” He and Moriarty tumble over the Reichenbach Falls, never to be seen again. Then Doyle would be free to enjoy the fruit of his literary success, and devote his time to what he considered to be more worthy subjects. Inexplicably, a few years later, Holmes returned. What made Conan Doyle return to a character that he admitted was becoming the death of him?

This question has plagued Sherlockians–Sherlock Holmes geeks–for over a century. And it’s this question that lies at the heart of this novel.

THE SHERLOCKIAN is, in fact, two stories. One involves Sherlock Holmes enthusiast Harold White. At his first meeting of The Baker Street Irregulars, he encounters Alex Cale, who claims to have found perhaps the most important Sherlockian artifact: the lost diary of Conan Doyle, covering the period of Holmes’ hiatus–the diary that would explain everything. When Cale is found murdered in his hotel room, with no trace of the diary, Harold takes it upon himself to employ his knowledge of Holmes’s techniques, along with his own sharp wits and tenacity, to solve the mystery and find the diary.

Intertwined with this story, we have the tale of Dr. Arthur Conan Doyle and his good friend, Bram Stoker. Doyle was known to help the police on some of their investigations, but when he narrowly escapes a letter bomb sent to his residence, he takes it personally. Doyle and Stoker begin a Holmes-and-Watson-style investigation into the incident, made more compelling by a series of murders that seem to be related.

Who killed Alex Cale, and who attempted to kill Doyle, along with a couple of seemingly innocent young women? And how are these cases related…?

I have very little to fault with this novel. The writing is top-notch; good pacing, easy to follow–even for non-Sherlockians, but with plenty of nods to the Holmes canon for the enthusiast. Harold White is a very likeable character; clearly a Holmes fanatic, but not so much that you can’t relate to him. The supporting characters are also well-defined and skillfully drawn.

If you’re a Holmes fan, this story is definitely a must. Yes, it takes some liberties with the facts (and Moore separates the fact from the fiction in an Author’s Note at the end), but this by no means detracts from the story. The only complaint I have is that Moore’s American vocabulary shows through from time to time (e.g., Doyle would never have used “gotten”), but such incidents are rare, so I wouldn’t hold this against him or the novel.

I give this a well-deserved five stars. There’s some profanity, but aside from that, I would rate the novel PG-13. As I said, it’s a Holmes fan’s delight, but I would also recommend it to anyone who loves a good murder mystery. You don’t need to be a Holmes fan to appreciate both the writing and the plot.