Sherlock Holmes and the Four Corners of Hell

Starred review from July 27, 2015
Duffy (Sherlock Holmes in Paris) springs into the first rank of Sherlock Holmes pasticheurs with this superior collection. The contentsâa novella and two short storiesâare faithful to the originals, meld clever plotting with accurate characterizations of Holmes and Watson, and effectively evoke the mean streets of Victorian London. "The Adventure of the Soho Picture Gallery," the longest entry, impressively breathes life into a tired trope. In 1895, Scotland Yard consults Holmes about a series of Ripper-like murders. The female victims were not butchered this time, but the presence of five shillings under each corpse, and ears of corn in their left hands, invests the slaughter with a ritual element. Duffy does a good job of misdirecting the reader, and the resolution validates Watson's downbeat prologue, in which he observes that "the story of criminal detection is but rarely conducive to happy endings." The well-crafted "The Adventure of the Edmonton Horror" features an apparent murder by a vampire who left his victim's bloodless corpse in her bed, wearing a bridal gown. The equally adept "The Adventure of the Rotherhite Ship-breakers" focuses on an inexplicable attempt on the life of a ship-breaker. Sherlockians will be delighted by the emergence of this new talent.