Synopses & Reviews
When literary researcher Harold White is inducted into the preeminent Sherlock Holmes enthusiast society, The Baker Street Irregulars, he expects good sherry and stimulating conversation. He receives a bonus: the world's leading expert on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle announces that he's found the author's fabled missing diary. But when the man is found murdered in his hotel room — it is Harold who must take up the search: both for the killer, and for the invaluable missing diary. With only his immense knowledge of the Doylean canon — and the help of a beautiful young journalist — Harold embarks on a dangerous translatlantic investigation, making deductions worthy of his literary idol. At the same time, author Graham Moore tells the story of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle himself, a story which his remained hidden in Conan Doyle's missing diary for a hundred years. In an attempt to prove himself the better of his most famous character, Conan Doyle hunts a serial killer through the streets of 1890's London. But what he finds is that in a world of real crime, and real evil, the world does not need Arthur Conan Doyle — the world needs Sherlock Holmes.
Review
"Moore cleverly alternates his chapters between White's story in the present and Conan Doyle's activities in the fall of 1900....Moore's fiction provides a shrewd take on the noted author and his legendary scion." Kirkus Reviews
Review
"Moore spins his tale in prose that shifts easily from exposition to pathos to sly comedy....Mystery fans should love the mix of historical fiction and contemporary puzzle-solving." (Starred Review) Booklist
Review
"This debut literary thriller...weaves together two very different perspectives and time periods....but Moore does an excellent job of making his characters and settings feel real." School Library Journal
Review
"The Sherlockian is a superb entertainment....For mystery lovers, this book is a treat. For Sherlock Holmes lovers, it is indispensible." Huffington Post
Synopsis
In December 1893, Sherlock Holmes-adoring Londoners eagerly opened their
Strand magazines, anticipating the detective's next adventure, only to find the unthinkable: his creator, Arthur Conan Doyle, had killed their hero off. London spiraled into mourning — crowds sported black armbands in grief — and railed against Conan Doyle as his assassin.
Then in 1901, just as abruptly as Conan Doyle had murdered Holmes in "The Final Problem," he resurrected him. Though the writer kept detailed diaries of his days and work, Conan Doyle never explained this sudden change of heart. After his death, one of his journals from the interim period was discovered to be missing, and in the decades since, has never been found.
Or has it?
When literary researcher Harold White is inducted into the preeminent Sherlock Holmes enthusiast society, The Baker Street Irregulars, he never imagines he's about to be thrust onto the hunt for the holy grail of Holmes-ophiles: the missing diary. But when the world's leading Doylean scholar is found murdered in his hotel room, it is Harold — using wisdom and methods gleaned from countless detective stories — who takes up the search, both for the diary and for the killer.
About the Author
Graham Moore is a graduate of Columbia University, where he received his degree in Religious History. He was born and raised in Chicago, the son of a criminal defense attorney and a political lawyer. He read his first Agatha Christie novel in second grade and has been obsessed with suspense fiction ever since. He currently lives in Los Angeles.