A Collector’s Lot

[HerlockSholmes]

The client was John Openshaw in The Five Orange Pips. 👍

[Hikari]

On ‎3‎/‎28‎/‎2018 at 4:55 PM, HerlockSholmes said:

Hi Hikari, 

I just thought that I’d let you know that I’m working my way through David Marcum’s blog. I’ve read all of this years entries. His enthusiasm for all things Holmes (and Pons) leaps out at you. He obviously knows his subject too. I wonder if he’s ever considered publishing his entire chronology of Holmes cases? I’m certain that collectors would snap it up. It might also serve as a ‘guide to Holmes Pastiches.’ I could be wrong Hikari but I don’t know of a ‘guide to pastiches’ like the ones available for movies, tv and radio? There might be a gap in the market there?  I read your comments too by the way.I assume though ( Herlock the Caveman again😀) that even though I’ve bookmarked the link that you gave me so that I can locate it easily this doesn’t mean that his next post will appear? I haven’t a clue how these things work. Can you enlighten me please?

I just began ‘A Garment Of Shadows,’ But I’ve realised that there are still earlier books that I’ve yet to read. To be honest, I find it difficult to work up the necessary enthusiasm. I lost my way after around 3 or 4 books. In ‘A Garment Of Shadows’ Holmes and Russell are separated at the beginning just as they were at the beginning of the last one that I started (and never finished.) Is this always the case? As you know, the reason that many people criticise the four Holmes novels is that they lose interest during the large chunks where Holmes is absent from the plot. I feel the same about the Mary Russell books. I know that she is the main character but for me, and I think that you feel the same (but please correct me If im wrong [I’ve been wrong before....June 14th 1987 I think it was😀]) whenever Holmes is in a story he has to be the main character. Mary Russell on her own doesn’t interest me much I’m afraid. Anyway, even if I do decide to begin a Russell book it will be cast aside if your generous gift arrives.

That reminds me, I must have a look on eBay and see if there are any Pons books for sale that I would need to sell a kidney for to buy.👍

Hi, Herl,

I've been offline for four days over the Easter holiday and am just now getting back into the swing.  It's been a really weird weather year.  On Easter Sunday, it was sunny, though brisk enough for a winter coat.  Sometime after the sun went down, it began snowing and we got several inches.  It warmed up enough yesterday to melt the snow, though still very cold for April.  Today we have heavy rain, soon to become thunderstorms, and it is supposed to climb to 63 degrees (17 C), which is very warm for this time of year even when things are normal.  I took the opportunity to wear my newly-purchased raincoat which is a cheery yellow but too lightweight to wear when it's colder.  I will have to put it away tomorrow, when the temperature is supposed to plummet to 38 degrees (3 C) and it will be raining again, only this time mixed with sleet.  You have to admit that a 30-degree differential in a 24-hr period is unusual.  In the Midwest, such erratic weather is not uncommon . . there's an ongoing joke about 'If you don't like Ohio weather, just wait for 15 minutes' . . but this year has been extreme.

Anyway, re. your query above, I am not really sure how to set up notifications for new posts on David's blog.  It seems like there must be a way to do this, but he posts so seldom (nothing new since November), it's not like you'd be missing a ton of posts if you didn't have it.  I just check back on his blog every few weeks to see if there is anything new . . and there never is.  It's still his homage to Hercule Poirot from before Thanksgiving . . .but as far as I know, he is in the throes of editing three (3) MX volumes for simultaneous release very soon, plus a bunch of other projects.

I have never personally warmed to Dame Agatha Christie's signature detectives, though I do think And Then There Were None is a ripping good read.  They made a fantastic miniseries event on the BBC out of that for Christmas 2015, and I can heartily recommend it.  They restored Christie's original bleak novel ending, which magically (by Dame Agatha's active agency) got transformed into more of a romantic happy ending in the stage play and the several films that resulted from it.   The cast is first-rate.  I have seen the 1970s film of Murder on the Orient Express and while the travelogue aspects appeal for another big screen version, I have a feeling of 'been there, done that' already.  I really can't get past Ken's Ridiculously Gigantic Mustache.  Given DM's laser focus on All Things Holmes (and Pons), I confess I was very surprised that he was that into another writer's detective.  Dame Agatha seems to have developed a similar hateful regard for Poirot as ACD had for his signature creation . . Christie admitted that she often fantasized about killing off that annoying, fussy little know-it-all.  Which is droll seeing as *she wrote him that way.*  I've never cared for Poirot's fussbudgety ways and his penchant for always speaking of himself in the third person--a Napoleonic complex, what?--but at least I can respect his credentials as a trained officer of the law.  There's no excuse for Miss Marple to go rooting through everyone's business other than she's just a perpetually nosy and under-occupied old biddy.  Though I am very fond of the late Geri McEwan's interpretation of her and own all those telefilms.  On the page . .or in the considerably more austere presentation of Miss Joan Hickson, Miss Marple is not a person I would clamor to spend a great deal of time with.  As an online acquaintance once observed, if she saw Miss Marple coming up her path to ring her bell, she'd cower behind the couch until MM went away.  I concur.  That withering gimlet gaze . . .the sensible shoes . . I would feel decidedly under inquisition, even if I were innocent!

Did you know that Dame Agatha was the #1 choice of reading material for Britons in London during the Blitz? 

"Garment of Shadows" is one of the weaker entries in the series despite a great title and intriguing cover.  Its chief flaw is the same that hobbles *all* the lesser entries:  SH does not appear nearly enough.  Despite great titles, engaging covers, a great premise and stellar travelogue descriptions and promising plots, Laurie stumbles badly when she ignores Sherlock in favor of fawning on Russell exclusively.  I wouldn't say GoS is the very bottom of the series (in my opinion, that dubious honor goes to Locked Rooms . .but the two that immediately follow GoS are close contenders, too--The Language of Bees and God of the Hive.  Based on the titles alone, I expected these to be great.  Not so.  Sadly.  As I mentioned to Carol on the last page, the only one of the (soon to be) 15 that I wholeheartedly liked all the way through was #4, The Moor, Laurie's homage to HOUND.  The quality falls way off after the first 4 books . . but for at least 4 books, Laurie conveyed the idea that she was actually interested in writing about the older Sherlock Holmes, not using him as intermittent wallpaper for a backdrop for her true super-Heroine.

 

[HerlockSholmes]

22 hours ago, Hikari said:

Hi, Herl,

I've been offline for four days over the Easter holiday and am just now getting back into the swing.  It's been a really weird weather year.  On Easter Sunday, it was sunny, though brisk enough for a winter coat.  Sometime after the sun went down, it began snowing and we got several inches.  It warmed up enough yesterday to melt the snow, though still very cold for April.  Today we have heavy rain, soon to become thunderstorms, and it is supposed to climb to 63 degrees (17 C), which is very warm for this time of year even when things are normal.  I took the opportunity to wear my newly-purchased raincoat which is a cheery yellow but too lightweight to wear when it's colder.  I will have to put it away tomorrow, when the temperature is supposed to plummet to 38 degrees (3 C) and it will be raining again, only this time mixed with sleet.  You have to admit that a 30-degree differential in a 24-hr period is unusual.  In the Midwest, such erratic weather is not uncommon . . there's an ongoing joke about 'If you don't like Ohio weather, just wait for 15 minutes' . . but this year has been extreme.

Anyway, re. your query above, I am not really sure how to set up notifications for new posts on David's blog.  It seems like there must be a way to do this, but he posts so seldom (nothing new since November), it's not like you'd be missing a ton of posts if you didn't have it.  I just check back on his blog every few weeks to see if there is anything new . . and there never is.  It's still his homage to Hercule Poirot from before Thanksgiving . . .but as far as I know, he is in the throes of editing three (3) MX volumes for simultaneous release very soon, plus a bunch of other projects.

I have never personally warmed to Dame Agatha Christie's signature detectives, though I do think And Then There Were None is a ripping good read.  They made a fantastic miniseries event on the BBC out of that for Christmas 2015, and I can heartily recommend it.  They restored Christie's original bleak novel ending, which magically (by Dame Agatha's active agency) got transformed into more of a romantic happy ending in the stage play and the several films that resulted from it.   The cast is first-rate.  I have seen the 1970s film of Murder on the Orient Express and while the travelogue aspects appeal for another big screen version, I have a feeling of 'been there, done that' already.  I really can't get past Ken's Ridiculously Gigantic Mustache.  Given DM's laser focus on All Things Holmes (and Pons), I confess I was very surprised that he was that into another writer's detective.  Dame Agatha seems to have developed a similar hateful regard for Poirot as ACD had for his signature creation . . Christie admitted that she often fantasized about killing off that annoying, fussy little know-it-all.  Which is droll seeing as *she wrote him that way.*  I've never cared for Poirot's fussbudgety ways and his penchant for always speaking of himself in the third person--a Napoleonic complex, what?--but at least I can respect his credentials as a trained officer of the law.  There's no excuse for Miss Marple to go rooting through everyone's business other than she's just a perpetually nosy and under-occupied old biddy.  Though I am very fond of the late Geri McEwan's interpretation of her and own all those telefilms.  On the page . .or in the considerably more austere presentation of Miss Joan Hickson, Miss Marple is not a person I would clamor to spend a great deal of time with.  As an online acquaintance once observed, if she saw Miss Marple coming up her path to ring her bell, she'd cower behind the couch until MM went away.  I concur.  That withering gimlet gaze . . .the sensible shoes . . I would feel decidedly under inquisition, even if I were innocent!

Did you know that Dame Agatha was the #1 choice of reading material for Britons in London during the Blitz? 

"Garment of Shadows" is one of the weaker entries in the series despite a great title and intriguing cover.  Its chief flaw is the same that hobbles *all* the lesser entries:  SH does not appear nearly enough.  Despite great titles, engaging covers, a great premise and stellar travelogue descriptions and promising plots, Laurie stumbles badly when she ignores Sherlock in favor of fawning on Russell exclusively.  I wouldn't say GoS is the very bottom of the series (in my opinion, that dubious honor goes to Locked Rooms . .but the two that immediately follow GoS are close contenders, too--The Language of Bees and God of the Hive.  Based on the titles alone, I expected these to be great.  Not so.  Sadly.  As I mentioned to Carol on the last page, the only one of the (soon to be) 15 that I wholeheartedly liked all the way through was #4, The Moor, Laurie's homage to HOUND.  The quality falls way off after the first 4 books . . but for at least 4 books, Laurie conveyed the idea that she was actually interested in writing about the older Sherlock Holmes, not using him as intermittent wallpaper for a backdrop for her true super-Heroine.

 

Hi Hikari,

I haven’t been posting much myself over the last few days for various reasons. It seemed a bit ‘quiet’ the few times that I did log on. Holiday period no doubt.

Im really enjoying the Pons stories. 👍 When I finish them I think that I’ll just leave a short message on the blog to say how much that I enjoyed them. I wonder if he’s ever considered writing a pastiche that features both Holmes and Pons? In one of the stories in this collection he mentions Holmes asking for Pons assistance once in the past. Might be an interesting exercise.

I left ‘A Garment Of Shadows’ for Pons but I’m unsure whether I’ll return to it as I’ve ordered another Pons collection and I’ll probably order the next MX volume in the next few days. It will probably end up on the shelf (your review doesn’t fill me with an overwhelming desire to read it.)

As for Piorot I’ve actually never read any of them. It’s one of those many things that I ‘intend’ to do because I did enjoy the David Suchet series. I think that I can say that in my lifetime I’ve seen the best on screen Holmes, heard the best radio Holmes and seen the best on screen Poirot. I might see the Branagh version one day.

Ive never really been one for Marple though. I could never get past the ‘why would the police allow an old lady into their investigations?’ question. A bit like ‘Murder She Wrote,’ which I hated. In the UK we had a crime show called Rosemary and Thyme which had the same problems. Wherever these two gardeners went they found a body or a mystery and police always took little persuasion to allow them to ‘help out.’ If I had to choose a Mattel to watch it would be Margaret Rutherford I suppose.

I didn’t know that AC was so popular during the war? It reminds me that I have a great framed war time poster which says something like ‘watch out Adolf. Look at our latest recruits.’ There’s a picture of Rathbone and Bruce as Holmes and Watson.

ive recently started collecting Holmes/Doyle postcards. I’ve got over 100 already😀 

It never ends......

[Hikari]

43 minutes ago, HerlockSholmes said:

Hi Hikari,

I haven’t been posting much myself over the last few days for various reasons. It seemed a bit ‘quiet’ the few times that I did log on. Holiday period no doubt.

Im really enjoying the Pons stories. 👍 When I finish them I think that I’ll just leave a short message on the blog to say how much that I enjoyed them. I wonder if he’s ever considered writing a pastiche that features both Holmes and Pons? In one of the stories in this collection he mentions Holmes asking for Pons assistance once in the past. Might be an interesting exercise.

I left ‘A Garment Of Shadows’ for Pons but I’m unsure whether I’ll return to it as I’ve ordered another Pons collection and I’ll probably order the next MX volume in the next few days. It will probably end up on the shelf (your review doesn’t fill me with an overwhelming desire to read it.)

As for Piorot I’ve actually never read any of them. It’s one of those many things that I ‘intend’ to do because I did enjoy the David Suchet series. I think that I can say that in my lifetime I’ve seen the best on screen Holmes, heard the best radio Holmes and seen the best on screen Poirot. I might see the Branagh version one day.

Ive never really been one for Marple though. I could never get past the ‘why would the police allow an old lady into their investigations?’ question. A bit like ‘Murder She Wrote,’ which I hated. In the UK we had a crime show called Rosemary and Thyme which had the same problems. Wherever these two gardeners went they found a body or a mystery and police always took little persuasion to allow them to ‘help out.’ If I had to choose a Mattel to watch it would be Margaret Rutherford I suppose.

I didn’t know that AC was so popular during the war? It reminds me that I have a great framed war time poster which says something like ‘watch out Adolf. Look at our latest recruits.’ There’s a picture of Rathbone and Bruce as Holmes and Watson.

ive recently started collecting Holmes/Doyle postcards. I’ve got over 100 already😀 

It never ends......

Herl,

I would be tickled if you posted on DM's blog and he answered you.  David must get notifications when new posts come in on his blog because he seems to be quite prompt in responding to new commentators.  After one ceases to be 'new', he tends to ignore you for 2 or 3 months at a time (har) but he is very welcoming to new visitors.

I think you should definitely suggest the Pons-Holmes pastiche idea and see what he says. I'd also like him to know that you are 'the' Herlock Sholmes--one way or the other, I see it as my mission in life to bring you two Pons enthusiasts together.  You can call me 'the Facilitator' . . LOL.

I think DM would be very interested to learn of your hobby of collecting SH postcards.  He is an avid collector of Everything Holmes, not just books and stories--he's got movies, screenplays, radio plays, various props . .I would be very surprised if he didn't have postcards, too.   Let me know when and if you post something on 17Step so I can be sure to read it.  If you want to sing the praises of your mutual friend, go right ahead . . haha!

[Hikari]

2 hours ago, HerlockSholmes said:

Ive never really been one for Marple though. I could never get past the ‘why would the police allow an old lady into their investigations?’ question. A bit like ‘Murder She Wrote,’ which I hated. In the UK we had a crime show called Rosemary and Thyme which had the same problems. Wherever these two gardeners went they found a body or a mystery and police always took little persuasion to allow them to ‘help out.’ If I had to choose a Mattel to watch it would be Margaret Rutherford I suppose.

Exactly.  I get that Miss Marple is astute, but she has absolutely no credentials to be ingratiating herself into murder inquiries.  And, since AC plunked MM down in a tiny village, she had to resort to increasingly strained and repetitive attempts to get her spinster sleuth out of St. Mary Mead into the wider world so she could investigate crimes among the well-heeled.  Hence, Miss Marple seemingly has an inexhaustible supply of hospitable nieces/nephews/young people who regard her as an honorary auntie, who will put her up in their spare rooms on a whim, and an equal number of wealthy aristocratic friends with stately piles to also supply room, board and weekend house-party/murder entertainment for Jane.  How does a retired schoolmistress who never married and squeezes teabags and pennies until they scream, and hires young girls from the local orphanage as maids to save on housekeeping fees come to be hob-nobbing with the moneyed elite who go out sailing and dress for dinner?  It does not compute.

I enjoyed most of the Geri McEwan outings due to the lead actress's impish looks and demeanor.  She brought a warmth and friendliness to the role that is most definitely not there in the books.  Miss Marple's normal demeanor is akin to pouring antiseptic on an open wound--it stings like hell but it is good for you in the end.  Geri created a lively senior sleuth who was fundamentally interested in people, not just in winkling out their nefarious business--and it was easy to believe that this MM would be treated as a confidante and wise friend of everyone she met.  My favorite police inspector of her tenure was in the first outing, Murder at the Vicarage, DI Slack, played by Stephen Tompkinson.

Slack is not sold on the efficacy or perhaps full mental faculties/hearing of his unpaid and very persistent civilian consultant.  MM sets him straight.

Slack: (sotto voce to his sergeant, as they watch MM stump away with a cane because she has received an injury)  I'm not sure whether to knock the cane away or buy her a box of chocs.

(Several beats pass.  Miss Marple is significantly far away now.)

MM (on the move, calling over her shoulder)  I'd rather  have the chocs!

***********

I watched a couple of episodes of Rosemary & Thyme, owing to a friend having raved about it to me.  While I liked the actresses well enough, the writing was so cosy and fey I just could not press on any further.  Surely there must be a limit to means of homicide via gardening implements/poisons.  The bucolic scenery did look very nice but the content felt like the visual equivalent of a lobotomy.  When I want gorgeous scenery of the English countryside, I watch Midsomer Murders . . and that's as cosy as I get.

Evidently auto-correct has turned "Marple" into "Mattel" . . how droll.  When I think of Mattel I think of Barbie dolls . . the polar opposite of Miss Marple in every conceivable way!

BTW, Murder at the Vicarage features Mark Gatiss in the supporting role of a tormented clergyman.

[Hikari]

P.S. Herl,

I've given it some thought, about my 'payment' for your book.

I find Mr. Jeremy Brett pretty winsome in his deerstalker.  You might consider doing that for me, unless you have another idea. 

Like you, I find Mr. Brett's portrayal of SH nearly pitch-perfect in every particular.

[Hikari]

I reproduce my Amazon review of And Then There Were None (mentioned above), if anyone is interested in reading it.  In my opinion, this is Miss Christie's best work.  Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot are entirely absent and for me that is what makes it her best.  Endless Night has a few chills and thrills but degenerates sadly into Whoo-whoo land.

*****************

Since I had already read the novel by Agatha Christie, seen the 1945 film version & been lucky enough to see this performed onstage last year, I thought at first blush that yet another film adaptation of this very well-tread material would be redundant. I took a look at the cast list and reconsidered. I'm so glad I did. If, like me, you thought you knew "And Then There Were None" as well as it was possible to, I say 'think again!' and take a gander at this 3-hour adaptation, in three parts, that was broadcast in the UK over the Christmas season last year. Because what says "Peace on earth and good will to men" than a juicy murder? Or in this case . . . 9 of them?

To recap briefly: Eight disparate people who are all strangers to one another are lured to a remote windswept island off the Devon coast, where a grand house sits in isolated splendor on this rock rising out of the ocean. Each had received an invitation, personally crafted for and addressed to them by their mysterious hosts, a Mr. U.N. Owen and his wife (initials also U.N.) No one can claim they actually recall meeting their hosts, but their hosts seem to know each one of them very well. Our attendees are invited to the island with offers of employment, money, reunions with mutual friends or just a grand house party weekend with some 'bright young things', depending on the personality/needs of each recipient. They all make their way to Soldier Island, where it soon becomes apparent that this house party is exceptionally odd. Their mysterious benefactors are absent; the only (strained) welcome the guests receive is from the vaguely sinister butler, Mr. Rogers, and his overworked and cowed Mrs. In each room of this vast house a plaque hangs with the "Ten Little Soldier Boys" rhyme. (Changed from Ms. Christie's original use of 'Ten Little Indians' as both poetic device and title. The poem and title were changed because the use of 'Indians' is considered racist these days.)

Ten little soldier boys went out to dine; One choked his little self and then there were Nine.
Nine little soldier boys sat up very late; One overslept himself and then there were Eight.
Eight little soldier boys traveling in Devon; One said he'd stay there and then there were Seven.
Seven little soldier boys chopping up sticks; One chopped himself in halves and then there were Six.
Six little soldier boys playing with a hive; A bee stung one and then there were Five.
Five little soldier boys going in for law; One got into chancery and then there were Four.
Four little soldier boys going out to sea; A red herring swallowed one and then there were Three
Three little soldier boys walking in the Zoo; A big bear hugged one and then there were Two.
Two little soldier boys sitting in the sun; One got frizzled up and then there was One.
One little soldier boy left all alone; He went and hanged himself

And then there were None.

-Frank Green, 1879

******************

The first night, after a sumptuous dinner prepared by Mrs. Rogers, the guests are startled when a recorded voice charges them each with an indictment of murder, naming a person from their respective pasts they are responsible for killing. Each 'accused' protests his/her innocence of the charges . . but in fact, each has a secret that they have never told anyone--and Someone has apparently found them all out. Within minutes after the reading of the 'indictments', the first guest will fall victim to poison. Over the course of the next several days, as a storm ravages the island, cutting them off completely from any hope of rescue or help, the houseguests are picked off one by one for their crimes. Either a homicidal ghost is loose on the island--or one of their number is a murderer. In the books of the elusive killer, those whose crimes were the least heinous are picked off quickly, leaving those responsible for the most heinous killings in their executioner's eyes, alive longer to suffer the burden of increasing mental terror as the bodies pile up. A centerpiece of figurines representing the soldier boys on the dining table gets incrementally smaller with each death, keeping the sinister tally of the diminishing numbers left standing.

If you don't yet know how this all unfolds, I envy you, because you are in for a treat. But even if you are very familiar with this story, this is a moody and atmospheric retelling that adds new layers of psychological terror and insight into the murky pasts of each of our characters. We get to have access to their memories and nightmares and can determine for ourselves if they are indeed as guilty as charged.

Our house party is as follows . .check out this esteemed cast:

The Secretary: Maeve Dermody (a new face to me, she strongly resembles an Irish Emily Blunt)
The Doctor: Toby Stephens
The General: Sam Neill
The Adventurer: Aidan Turner
The Religious Bigot: Miranda Richardson
The Judge: Charles Dance
The Detective: Burn Gorman
The Careless Young Man: Douglas Booth
The Butler: Noah Taylor
The Cook: Anna Maxwell Martin

The locations, costumes and period mood are all fantastic but it never becomes precious, moving always relentlessly forward to the next 'execution'. I call the increasingly-unsettling yet starkly beautiful production design a mix of 'Downton Abbey meets Turn of the Screw'. This visually luxurious adaptation of Dame Agatha's most complex novel is worth the buy. You will want to revisit this murderous island with the exceptional cast again and again.

[HerlockSholmes]

4 hours ago, Hikari said:

P.S. Herl,

I've given it some thought, about my 'payment' for your book.

I find Mr. Jeremy Brett pretty winsome in his deerstalker.  You might consider doing that for me, unless you have another idea. 

Like you, I find Mr. Brett's portrayal of SH nearly pitch-perfect in every particular.

Brett in a deerstalker it shall be. I hope to make a start pretty soon. I just have a few issues to get over which resolve around my dad’s health and the fact that work is being done on the house to facilitate his illness. As soon as it’s near done I’ll let you know and you can pm the address for delivery. I was going to bring it over in my private jet but I decided against it😀

[HerlockSholmes]

Has anyone on here seen the new Murder On The Orient Express yet? Is it possible to get past the moustache?🙂

[HerlockSholmes]

On 04/04/2018 at 3:04 PM, HerlockSholmes said:

Hi Hikari,

I haven’t been posting much myself over the last few days for various reasons. It seemed a bit ‘quiet’ the few times that I did log on. Holiday period no doubt.

Im really enjoying the Pons stories. 👍 When I finish them I think that I’ll just leave a short message on the blog to say how much that I enjoyed them. I wonder if he’s ever considered writing a pastiche that features both Holmes and Pons? In one of the stories in this collection he mentions Holmes asking for Pons assistance once in the past. Might be an interesting exercise.

I left ‘A Garment Of Shadows’ for Pons but I’m unsure whether I’ll return to it as I’ve ordered another Pons collection and I’ll probably order the next MX volume in the next few days. It will probably end up on the shelf (your review doesn’t fill me with an overwhelming desire to read it.)

As for Piorot I’ve actually never read any of them. It’s one of those many things that I ‘intend’ to do because I did enjoy the David Suchet series. I think that I can say that in my lifetime I’ve seen the best on screen Holmes, heard the best radio Holmes and seen the best on screen Poirot. I might see the Branagh version one day.

Ive never really been one for Marple though. I could never get past the ‘why would the police allow an old lady into their investigations?’ question. A bit like ‘Murder She Wrote,’ which I hated. In the UK we had a crime show called Rosemary and Thyme which had the same problems. Wherever these two gardeners went they found a body or a mystery and police always took little persuasion to allow them to ‘help out.’ If I had to choose a Mattel to watch it would be Margaret Rutherford I suppose.

I didn’t know that AC was so popular during the war? It reminds me that I have a great framed war time poster which says something like ‘watch out Adolf. Look at our latest recruits.’ There’s a picture of Rathbone and Bruce as Holmes and Watson.

ive recently started collecting Holmes/Doyle postcards. I’ve got over 100 already😀 

It never ends......

The wonders of Amazon! I know that I’m going to sound like a caveman (again😀) who has just seen fire for the first time but I was stunned at the delivery speed. I ordered volume v of the MX series at 10pm last night. The book arrived at 11am! 13 hours! 

They’ll be flying to the moon next!

[Hikari]

Volume V . . is that the Christmas compendium?  Whichever one it is, you will enjoy it.

I ordered both volumes of 'Eliminate the Impossible' . . . of all the ones so far, I confess I am enjoying this group considerably less.  They are all centered around 'supernatural' cases . .which SH demonstrates are entirely human agency . ."No ghosts need apply, etc." . . These were not my favorite cases in the original casebook, either.  They are well-done still, if one enjoys that kind of thing.  I don't, as much.

[Carol the Dabbler]

4 hours ago, HerlockSholmes said:

The wonders of Amazon! I know that I’m going to sound like a caveman (again😀) who has just seen fire for the first time but I was stunned at the delivery speed. I ordered volume v of the MX series at 10pm last night. The book arrived at 11am! 13 hours!

You apparently live within spittin' distance of an Amazon warehouse -- it makes a big difference!  If I order something delivered to Mom's house, it often comes the next day, even if that's a Sunday -- whereas if I order it delivered to my house (maybe 40 miles away, on the other side of the warehouse and a bit further from it), it'll take at least two or three days.

[HerlockSholmes]

4 hours ago, Hikari said:

Volume V . . is that the Christmas compendium?  Whichever one it is, you will enjoy it.

I ordered both volumes of 'Eliminate the Impossible' . . . of all the ones so far, I confess I am enjoying this group considerably less.  They are all centered around 'supernatural' cases . .which SH demonstrates are entirely human agency . ."No ghosts need apply, etc." . . These were not my favorite cases in the original casebook, either.  They are well-done still, if one enjoys that kind of thing.  I don't, as much.

It is the Christmas one. I slipped up a little because it’s actually in hardback whereas the other 4 that I have are paperbacks (I’d have preferred to have kept the whole series in the same format.) I’ll be more careful with volume 6.

I just picked up a copy of Sherlock Holmes and The Lady In Black by June Thomson for £2. She’s written 7 collections of Holmes stories (the 5 that I have are very good.) I believe that this is her only full length novel though.

[HerlockSholmes]

19 minutes ago, Carol the Dabbler said:

You apparently live within spittin' distance of an Amazon warehouse -- it makes a big difference!  If I order something delivered to Mom's house, it often comes the next day, even if that's a Sunday -- whereas if I order it delivered to my house (maybe 40 miles away, on the other side of the warehouse and a bit further from it), it'll take at least two or three days.

It certainly surprised me Carol. I could think what it was?

Ive just ordered a book on eBay, coming from The States, which might not come until late May! You can’t trust these Americans 😀

[Hikari]

8 minutes ago, HerlockSholmes said:

It is the Christmas one. I slipped up a little because it’s actually in hardback whereas the other 4 that I have are paperbacks (I’d have preferred to have kept the whole series in the same format.) I’ll be more careful with volume 6.

I just picked up a copy of Sherlock Holmes and The Lady In Black by June Thomson for £2. She’s written 7 collections of Holmes stories (the 5 that I have are very good.) I believe that this is her only full length novel though.

I love the Christmas anthology!  What a bunch of great stories.    Probably my favorite of the collection, but I'm a sucker for Yuletide.  On the plus side, a hardback will hold up over time (and moving, and repeated visits) better.

The only two I am missing currently are Vols. II and III.  I should have gotten those instead of 'Eliminate the Impossible'.  He can't possibly keep going, one thinks . . .Au contraire!  Three more volumes are coming out this year!  Probably May.  Ish.

[HerlockSholmes]

Just got back from Hay-On-Wye with 6 books including a collection of pastiches by Donald Thomas. I very nearly bought a tattered copy of A Study In Scarlet from 1895 for £300 and a book illustrated by Dickie Doyle for £40 but I’d already spent a fair bit so I resisted the temptation. I also saw a Doyle for £1000 but there was no chance of me paying that much.☹️

[Carol the Dabbler]

I don't suppose that town has a sandwich shop called Ham on Wye?

Sorry! 

[Hikari]

1 hour ago, HerlockSholmes said:

Just got back from Hay-On-Wye with 6 books including a collection of pastiches by Donald Thomas. I very nearly bought a tattered copy of A Study In Scarlet from 1895 for £300 and a book illustrated by Dickie Doyle for £40 but I’d already spent a fair bit so I resisted the temptation. I also saw a Doyle for £1000 but there was no chance of me paying that much.☹️

I think I hate you a little bit.  A colleague jetted off to Tuscany this morning . . .you had another trip to Hay-on-Wye . .and I'm stuck here in my urban-blight hellhole.  And it's been snowing all day, I kid you not.

Congrats on your purchases.  With apologies to Mr. David Marcum, Donald Thomas is my favorite pastiche author.  He goes for quality over quantity, but I have been very impressed by all the stories and the absolutely true esprit de Holmes (and Watson, too, of course) in them.  Donald navigates the tricky midground between the short and long forms with what I would call novella-length stories.  They are more substantial than the average Conan Doyle case but are short enough so that the author doesn't get mired in some of the pitfalls than can overcome a novelist who tries to fill too many pages.

He is now in his 84th year, and his last book was published in 2013.  I sincerely hope the old boy has a few more stories left in the tank.  If he doesn't, he has earned his laurels and his rest; I have them all.  There was a bit of mystery attached to one of the titles.  Apparently 'The Running Noose' collection is the UK title; the same collection was marketed under different cover as 'Tales from the Crypt' in the U.S.  Thinking they were two different books, I bought both, of course. 

I have suggested to DM several times that he try to get Mr. Thomas, who lives in Bath, to perhaps write a story or a foreword for his collection, but he has never responded aye or nay to that idea.  Probably sped-read right over it.  David's own favorite author is Denis O. Smith . .who is also in my top tier, but he will have to settle for #2 or #3 because Thomas reigns supreme in my mind palace.  He has one that's a riff on 'The Turn of the Screw' which is very atmospheric.  SH of course proves that no ghosts were involved.

My question du jour for Mr. Marcum was if he would search his archives and his brain attic for any pastiches that have Holmes aboard the HMS Titanic.  Tomorrow marks the 106th anniversary of that fateful sailing.

[HerlockSholmes]

14 hours ago, Hikari said:

I think I hate you a little bit.  A colleague jetted off to Tuscany this morning . . .you had another trip to Hay-on-Wye . .and I'm stuck here in my urban-blight hellhole.  And it's been snowing all day, I kid you not.

Congrats on your purchases.  With apologies to Mr. David Marcum, Donald Thomas is my favorite pastiche author.  He goes for quality over quantity, but I have been very impressed by all the stories and the absolutely true esprit de Holmes (and Watson, too, of course) in them.  Donald navigates the tricky midground between the short and long forms with what I would call novella-length stories.  They are more substantial than the average Conan Doyle case but are short enough so that the author doesn't get mired in some of the pitfalls than can overcome a novelist who tries to fill too many pages.

He is now in his 84th year, and his last book was published in 2013.  I sincerely hope the old boy has a few more stories left in the tank.  If he doesn't, he has earned his laurels and his rest; I have them all.  There was a bit of mystery attached to one of the titles.  Apparently 'The Running Noose' collection is the UK title; the same collection was marketed under different cover as 'Tales from the Crypt' in the U.S.  Thinking they were two different books, I bought both, of course. 

I have suggested to DM several times that he try to get Mr. Thomas, who lives in Bath, to perhaps write a story or a foreword for his collection, but he has never responded aye or nay to that idea.  Probably sped-read right over it.  David's own favorite author is Denis O. Smith . .who is also in my top tier, but he will have to settle for #2 or #3 because Thomas reigns supreme in my mind palace.  He has one that's a riff on 'The Turn of the Screw' which is very atmospheric.  SH of course proves that no ghosts were involved.

My question du jour for Mr. Marcum was if he would search his archives and his brain attic for any pastiches that have Holmes aboard the HMS Titanic.  Tomorrow marks the 106th anniversary of that fateful sailing.

Hello Hikari,

I can report The Titanic Tragedy by William Seil on Titan Books. It’s been a while since I read it though but I know that Holmes and Watson go on board the Titanic.

I once met the last Titanic survivor Milivina Dean at a convention in Southampton which I attended with a friend who was a bog Titanic enthusiast.

The Running Noose is the only one by Donald Thomas that I own so I’m looking forward to reading these stories. My only problem is that I now have ‘gridlock’ in my queue of books waiting to be read.

I hope that the snow clears up soon. Yesterday in Hay was a typical kind of English day. We set out at 5.30 am in fog. This cleared away to sun. Then at around 3pm it was steady rain for the rest of the day. Certainly not Tuscany🙂

[Hikari]

Hi, Herl.

I've heard back from David Marcum . . such quick turn-around is very unusual.  This is what he came up with out of his archives:

**********

Sherlock Holmes Aboard Titanic stories

The Seventh Bullet – Daniel D. Victor (Actually set just before the ship sails, but . . . .)

SH and the Titanic Tragedy - William Seil--ha!  You scooped him.

“The Adventure of the Dying Ship” – The Confidential Casebook of SH – Edward D. Hoch

The Glorious Yacht – Craig Stephen Copland

The Adventure of the Maiden Voyage – Alexander Braun

SH and the Titanic Mystery – David Luget

The Iron Mausoleum  - Stephen Lees

 

*********

He also says that Pons' Dr. Parker's first wife was aboard Titanic and perished, but apparently Holmes and Watson never encountered her.  You both would know better than me!

[HerlockSholmes]

30 minutes ago, Hikari said:

Hi, Herl.

I've heard back from David Marcum . . such quick turn-around is very unusual.  This is what he came up with out of his archives:

**********

Sherlock Holmes Aboard Titanic stories

The Seventh Bullet – Daniel D. Victor (Actually set just before the ship sails, but . . . .)

SH and the Titanic Tragedy - William Seil--ha!  You scooped him.

“The Adventure of the Dying Ship” – The Confidential Casebook of SH – Edward D. Hoch

The Glorious Yacht – Craig Stephen Copland

The Adventure of the Maiden Voyage – Alexander Braun

SH and the Titanic Mystery – David Luget

The Iron Mausoleum  - Stephen Lees

 

*********

He also says that Pons' Dr. Parker's first wife was aboard Titanic and perished, but apparently Holmes and Watson never encountered her.  You both would know better than me!

He obviously has a far better memory than I do. I have The Seventh Bullet but I can’t recall the plot. It’s another book released by Titan Books. I often see Titan Books stories in shops but I often can’t remember whether I have them or not. In the past I’ve bought books that I already owned or missed out on books that I didn’t have. I’ve now listed them all in ‘Notes’ on my phone👍

I wonder if anyone has written a biography of Pons as they have for Holmes? I think that we know the man for the job.

Is this forum slow at the moment? I’ve been typing and nothing has happened, then the letters have appeared all at once. The same when I’ve deleted. Also as I’m looking at what I’m typing at the moment  the words up to ‘the man for...’ are faint. From ‘the job...’ onward they are ok. Strange......Ah, now they are all clear.

[Carol the Dabbler]

2 hours ago, HerlockSholmes said:

Is this forum slow at the moment? I’ve been typing and nothing has happened, then the letters have appeared all at once. The same when I’ve deleted. Also as I’m looking at what I’m typing at the moment  the words up to ‘the man for...’ are faint. From ‘the job...’ onward they are ok. Strange......Ah, now they are all clear.

That happens to me now and then as well, but I don't think it's the forum's doing. Rather, I suspect my ISP gets bogged down at times, so things build up in my phone's cache until the ISP gets around to dealing with it.  Bit disconcerting, but apparently nothing gets dropped in the process.

[Hikari]

2 hours ago, HerlockSholmes said:

He obviously has a far better memory than I do. I have The Seventh Bullet but I can’t recall the plot. It’s another book released by Titan Books. I often see Titan Books stories in shops but I often can’t remember whether I have them or not. In the past I’ve bought books that I already owned or missed out on books that I didn’t have. I’ve now listed them all in ‘Notes’ on my phone👍

I wonder if anyone has written a biography of Pons as they have for Holmes? I think that we know the man for the job.

Is this forum slow at the moment? I’ve been typing and nothing has happened, then the letters have appeared all at once. The same when I’ve deleted. Also as I’m looking at what I’m typing at the moment  the words up to ‘the man for...’ are faint. From ‘the job...’ onward they are ok. Strange......Ah, now they are all clear.

The Titan books have fantastic covers . . unfortunately the contents don't always  live up to them.  I have Gods of War, which actually was very good until it fell apart at the most ridiculous cliffside denouement ever.  I felt like I was reading a script for a super-cheesy Edwardian episode of Survivor.

David's memory is impeccable for minutae about Sherlock Holmes, yes, and I assume (hope) about the details of engineering physics and such like.  I seem to recall DM mentioning a work called Solar Pons of Praed Street.  Maybe it's one of the projects among many he is working on right this minute!  I will clarify that next time I write.  I try not to harass the man with more than a couple messages a month.  I find he ignores more than two, anyway. 

The forum was acting strangely for me last night.  I was trying without success to attach a Word document.  It does not appear that one can do that.  Maybe one of the moderators will ring in.  It likes pictures and links.  Does not even allow cutting and pasting from Word--leastways it did not allow me, even though I've been cutting and pasting from Internet sources with zero problem since the upgrade.

[HerlockSholmes]

1 hour ago, Carol the Dabbler said:

That happens to me now and then as well, but I don't think it's the forum's doing. Rather, I suspect my ISP gets bogged down at times, so things build up in my phone's cache until the ISP gets around to dealing with it.  Bit disconcerting, but apparently nothing gets dropped in the process.

Cheers Carol,

There was just a much longer delay between me clicking ‘sign in’ and me ‘getting in.’

[Carol the Dabbler]

Hikari, I can't test importing from Word just now, since I'm on my phone, but it seems like you should be able to paste just about any text, though you'd probably need to strip the formatting (a capability available on the real-computer version of the forum -- I believe the button is labeled "Tx").