The Early Case Files of Sherlock Holmes by Liese Sherwood-Fabre

The Early Case Files of Sherlock Holmes by Liese Sherwood-Fabre
Publisher: Little Elm Press
Genre: Historical Mystery/Suspense
Rated: 4 stars
Review by Rose

A murdered midwife. A body in the stable. At the age of thirteen, Sherlock Holmes is thrust into his first two cases. At stake: the lives of his own family.

Before Sherlock Holmes met Dr. Watson in 1895, he had already developed his skills as the world’s most famous consulting detective. Arthur Conan Doyle provided little information about his detective’s formative years or how he created his singular profession. These first two books in The Early Case Files of Sherlock Holmes series reveal how Sherlock’s past shaped the sleuth he became.

Faced with the possibility of losing his mother to the gallows for a murder she did not commit, Sherlock must uncover the true killer before she hangs in The Adventure of the Murdered Midwife.

In Case Two, unexpected guests and a murder arrive in time for the family’s Christmas celebrations. For the safety of his family, Sherlock is compelled once again to bring the perpetrator to justice in The Adventure of the Murdered Gypsy.

Fans of Sherlock Holmes and traditional historical British detective mysteries will love The Early Case Files of Sherlock Holmes as a welcomed addition to the originals.

What a really neat look at what Sherlock’s early life might have been like. I loved the fact that he is a normal, albeit very intelligent, thirteen-year-old. He has emotions he is learning how to process, and he’s also showing signs of the man he will become as he learns that emotions need to be kept in check as he investigates, i.e. “Once again, I observed the unemotional detachment required for such work.”

The characters are richly drawn and are true-to-life… nobody, including Holmes… is perfect. They are all a mixture of positive and negative qualities, all the while being true to the time they live in.

The mysteries are interesting and showcase Sherlock’s growing skill at investigating and observation, encouraged by his mother – a woman I would love to find out more about and one that is barely touched on in the canon. I’m looking forward to seeing her more in future volumes of this work.

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