The Fifth Heart

Starred review from January 19, 2015
In Paris in 1893, Sherlock Holmes and Henry James join forces in this outstanding novel from Simmons, who has concocted something far from the usual pastiche, with a historical figure standing in for Dr. Watson. James, the distinguished American author, is about to kill himself by plunging into the Seine, overcome by crippling depression. Just before stepping off le pont Neuf, he notices a man with an aquiline profile standing nearby; he quickly ascertains that the man is actually Holmes, believed to have perished with Professor Moriarty at the Reichenbach Falls two years earlier. James is shocked to learn that Holmes was himself on the verge of taking his own life—because the detective has discovered that he’s merely a “literary construct.” His evidence? The same inconsistencies in the original Conan Doyle stories that have provided fodder for Sherlockians for a century. This chance meeting dissuades both men from committing suicide, and they resolve to travel to America and investigate the purported suicide of diplomat Henry Adams’s wife, Clover, in 1885. Simmons (Drood) knows the Holmes canon and uses that expertise in the service of a highly original reimagining of the beloved sleuth. Five-city author tour. Agent: Richard Curtis, Richard Curtis Associates.

June 29, 2015
Reader Pittu fully realizes his role as narrator in this highly entertaining historical mystery. In 1893 Paris, a despondent Henry James is standing on a bridge overlooking the Seine, contemplating suicide, when he is detained by the legendary Sherlock Holmes. Both men are at moments of crisis in their lives, James by his lack of real artistic or financial success, and Holmes by his conclusion that he is not real at all, merely a literary construct. But the two men join forces and travel to America to investigate the purported suicide of diplomat Henry Adams’s wife, Clover, in 1885. The result is a romping good adventure, full of intrigue, narrow escapes, and murder most foul. Pittu does a wonderful job bringing this Victorian tale to life. He uses numerous voices for all the side characters, whether a two-bit New York Street tough talker or upper-crust politico. But it is his interpretations of Holmes and James that is the heart of this story. Holmes is true to form, obsessively determined and arrogant, while the poor, put-upon James is often befuddled and humorous, but never a buffoon. There is something for everyone to like in this book, Holmes fans or not. Pittu and Simmons form a dynamic duo of their own. A Little, Brown hardcover.