Rennison’s Game Is Afoot

Rennison’s unauthorized bio of Sherlock Holmes leaves little to the reader’s imagination because Rennison has employed his so well. As any true Sherlockian knows Watson left many frustrating gaps in Holmes’ career. One can piece together a patch work quilt of events, but there are enough holes to leave quite a draft. Rennison manages to see everything up in a nice, plausible bundle.

More a history of the Victorian era than a biography, this book is a marvellous attempt to piece together the involvement of the fictional detective in the civil and criminal life of the City over the last decades of the nineteenth and the first of the twentieth century. It almost seems believable through the book that Holmes was a historical figure. Given that the only information we seem to have about Holmes is from the few publications made by Arthur Conan Doyle as given by Holmes' friend and assistant, Watson, the difficulty is understandable and the effort in this book remarkable. From beginnings in the Yorkshire moors, to Cambridge university, detective consultancy in London, to sensitive cases for European concerns and diplomatic missions on behalf of the government to Tibet and Sudan, Holmes seems indeed to have contributed to Victorian history. A good read, this one, and not very long.

I got about halfway through and gave up. I'm sure the author put a lot of work into this book, but I just didn't like it. It was deadly boring up until the Jack the Ripper chapter, which I struggled to get to. That chapter was mildly interesting, but without much payoff, interest-wise, as to who Holmes thought the Ripper was. The very next chapter after that throws a little bit of mud of Holmes.

When you can make the life of Sherlock Holmes deadly boring, when your chapter on Sherlock Holmes figuring out the identity of Jack the Ripper is only mildly interesting, and when you dare malign Holmes even a little bit (in addition to the rest of that, anyway), then I do not care to read the rest of your book.

The most delightful thing about this book is the sheer glee the author seems to be taking in rolling around in his Holmesy geekery. That enthusiasm is enough to pull me through the slightly dull bits when he's recapping history just because he can, only loosely tied to the story he's crafted for Holmes.

Definitely quasi-academic and not really curl-up-on-a-rainy-day sort of reading, but more than amusing enough to hold my attention in the fits and spurts I gave it.

Autor ciekawie wplata prawdziwe fragmenty historii XIX-wiecznego Imperium Brytyjskiego w fikcyjną opowieść o życiu jedynego na świecie detektywa-doradcy (konsultanta). Książka jest skarbnicą wiedzy o sprawach kryminalnych i skandalach XIX-wiecznej Wielkiej Brytanii (m.in. kłopoty z Irlandią). Pomijając wzmianki o fikcyjnych postaciach wymyślonych przez sir Arthura Conan Doyle'a, można wiele nauczyć się z przekazu Nicka Rennisona.
Czytelnik gubi się w domysłach, co jest fikcją literacką, a co faktami z przeszłości. Co więcej, Rennison nagina wydarzenia tak, żeby pasowały do rzekomego życiorysu Holmesa.
Autor tak manipuluje czytelnikiem, że pod koniec książki byłam prawie skłonna uwierzyć w istnienie prawdziwego Sherlocka Holmesa z krwi i kości oraz innych, znanych z kart nowel i opowiadań, postaci.

I am speachless at the detail and history in the story that was presented. I loved it, every word, but I am sorry, I cannot believe it. I want to, more than I can say, but no, it is still fiction. Steller fiction at that.

Fascinating concept. Gets a little too descriptive in the last third, but a totally entertaining and strikingly believable alternative history.

A clever book which intertwines real-world events with extensive research done both of history and of Sherlock Holmes. A great story.

The book I listened to isn't on here: The Adventures of the Crimson Lady

I am not a Sherlock Holmes fan - read it for Book Club but it was BORING to me!

Fun, quirky fake "bio" of classic literary figure. I think i read every single Sherlock Holmes story when I was a kid, so this was a nostalgic read.

Interesting perspective - written as if he was real. and Doyle was merely someone who assisted in publishing his exploits Juxtoposition of real and fictitious names.