Being a fan of the BBC series, I was curious to see how this author would put his mark on the Sherlock franchise.

And it was interesting! I like it. This book is like a collection of short stories about a man whose middle name is Sherlock, and his friend Mo who proposed this endeavor, and they set about solving crimes and mysteries. Each story could be a little longer but the short stories are varied enough to not make you sick of following Sherl and Mo. It's just the right bite size. It makes it ok to put the book down and pick it up again on a new story.

Hope there'll be another collection soon as this was most interesting. Towards the end though, I was trying to apply similar tactics as Sherl. Hahaha. I was close but not quite close enough. Hope they are able to sustain the business, as money is never discussed here...that would simply not do.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for introducing this author and book to me.

I received a digital copy from NetGalley for an honest review.

I am a self-proclaimed Sherlockophile. I have to get my hands on any book Sherlock-related, so was psyched to have this be my first read from NetGalley. But sadly, I was disappointed by this novel. It is a modern day take on the Sherlock Holmes canon - placing him in present-day London and working with a marketing focused friend, Mo - where Christopher Sherlock Webster starts the Baskerville Agency, aimed at investigating a myriad of crimes (we read about four cases). My primary gripe with the cases was that they were often too easy - I found myself solving them before our detective - which NEVER happened with Mr. Sherlock Holmes. I appreciate the obvious affection for the original Holmes stories, but this outing did not live up to my (high) expectations.

A very good and solid traditional mystery. Well written, good plot, with well described characters.
I really enjoyed and recommend it.
Many thanks to Netgalley and Thistle Publishing

When there is old good Sherlock involved, all detective story fans line up - to read, to crack a mystery and by all means to enjoy a good case. And this book provides you with a good read - cases are lined up in five short stories, so no need to rush to read it in one night. Some readers are disappointed by the fact that stories are written from the perspective of the detective himself and his partner in crime is just a mere mention in the book, but I would say it allows a story to stand out from all other forms and means of Sherlock adaptations. The detective doesn't spill out all the beans, and you're not mere observer of the case - you can actually feel like the modern Sherlock and have your Eureka moments just before he does (which is even too easy most of the time).

Plot is easy to follow, somewhat witty but nevertheless cases are serious. Another star, from me, thriller book fan, is for the soft content After numerous thriller stories with violence and serial crimes, this book will be quite a short beachy vacation.

Why not 5? Because 5s from me are for the cruel and intriguing serial killer cases, which I hope will never happen in the victorian parlour of Christopher Sherlock Webster.

A cleverly written easy read that is a tribute to Sherlock Homes. Christopher Sherlock Webster and his friend Mo Rennie solve 5 cases. This is an enjoyable read with a good concept.

The book is a page turner. Starting with the sorrow of being named the same as famous detective, thankfully only middle name, the row with his father and lastly become the namesake itself.

As a fan of Sherlock in the HBO series, it offers me other story about private detectives. The crime itself is not always gruesome-murder, instead it also offer a refreshing tale of millionaire whose wary of his fiance and what happen behind his back.

Consisting of 5 cases, the plot sometimes easily predicted but sometimes there’s twist that will surprise us. Overall it is a very enjoyable reading. I recommend this for reader who love light mystery.


Thanks netgalley and thistle publishing for providing the copy.

Love this book, I was so fresh and new, yes it is based on Sherlock Holmes, but not really. Set in modern times, but with a nod to the past, I really enjoyed it - I hope there will be more.

This book is a series of five cases - short stories - led by Christopher Sherlock Webster and his long time friend Mo Rennie. The idea of the book was intriguing and pulled me in immediately, but it didn’t play off as well as I thought it would.

Mo pulls “Sherl” into the idea of using his middle name and his love of mystery solving to opening up a detective agency based around the infamous Sherlock Homes, decorating their office in Victorian era bobbles and even giving Sherl a wardrobe complete with deerstalker- all in order to market their business. Not such a bad idea!

The cases themselves were not that bad. They were mostly believable, sometimes predictable, and sometimes not solved in time. I liked the idea that Sherl isn’t as much of a genius as his namesake and Mo is more focused on marketing than crime solving. It separates them as individual characters and not incarnations of Sherlock and Watson.

What I didn’t like was that the characters didn’t have a life of their own. They fell flat when it came to any type of growth or development. Both characters are new to detective work, but seeing a dead body, being chased, or having a gun pulled on them doesn’t effect them for long. Especially with Mo, I would have liked to have seen more second thoughts or maybe a greater resolve for the job, not a continuation of the same attitude.

I really enjoyed this book and felt it was a great modern take on Sherlock Holmes. The first thing that caught my attention was the cover. As a lover of Sherlock, the cover immediately grabbed my attention and I'm glad I requested it. The reason I am not giving this book 5 stars is because I think it would have felt more at home if it was written in Mo's POV rather than the first person narrative with Sherl himself. I always enjoyed hearing things from what was inside Watson's head but it's probably just my preference. This was more of a collection of short stories which I LOVED! I was able to squeeze one in here and there when a Holmes fix was needed! I enjoyed the characters and thought the mysteries were fun! This book definitely has all those nice Holmesian feels and would recommend it to other fans!😄

While this does not live up to the Sherlock stories I adored growing up, this new modern take on Sherlock was a pleasant enough read. I liked the short story aspect of it which make it a quick read.

A Fine Holmesian Diversion

Since it seems that anyone nowadays can write a story or book featuring "Sherlock Holmes" there are a dizzying number of choices out there. To me, most of these copycats and knockoffs suffer from trying way too hard to capture and copy the lightning in a bottle that was Doyle's actual Sherlock Holmes character.

This book follows a different and wiser course. It is set in modern times, (well, the 1990's, when the book was originally written). It features a character who more or less falls into a marketing scheme to set up a Holmes-style detective agency. (His middle name is Sherlock and his Dad was an obsessive fan.) Allied with his pal Mo, this Sherlock adopts Victorian era clothing and starts to play detective. The fun here is that as the action progresses our Sherlock develops more Holmesian characteristics, and the cases taken on by the duo begin to feel more and more like legit Holmes casebook cases, (murder, deception, fraud, blackmail, sometimes a red herring hint of the weird or occult).

This is all worked on a few complementary levels. Each case is a fair enough mystery, with suspects, clues, sometimes a bit of action or a twisty touch. Sherlock and Mo work well as a Holmes/Watson team, or at least their version of such a team. The supporting characters feel very much like the sorts you would find in an original Conan Doyle story. Even the reliance on the deductive method, (which is a bit shaky in the earlier cases), gets better over time.

So, these ended up being tasty morsels, (there are five cases in the book). The lead characters were engaging and the Holmes part was fun without being tedious, heavy-handed or false-feeling. The writing was fine, and served well the generally fast pace. Touches of humor some clever banter spiced things up. All in all this was a fun find.

(Please note that I received a free advance ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)

I just couldn't with this book. I love Sherlock Holmes mysteries and I am also, usually, a big fan of Holmes retellings but this was bad. When I read the description it seemed right up my alley, but I quickly realized this was not for me. I literally couldn't finish reading it because it was so generic and uninspired. It was missing that element of genius and remarkability seen in the original mysteries. While the main character shares a name with the famous Holmes, he shares little else. His character is bland and unremarkable. Each story was boring and predictable...the exact opposite of what a Holmes mystery should be. Overall, I would pass on this retelling.

I recieved an ARC of this novel via Netgalley in excahnge for an honest review.

Ugh, I hate writing multiple "I didn't like it/I couldn't finish it" reviews in a row, but this is my third this morning (so it'll probably be extra brief). This sounded like a fun read - another modern-day application of Holmes and his methods (and particular madness). I don't have any problem with the interpretation/adaptation of classics into other time frames and settings - I quite enjoy them, when well done. And the modern-day world holds a lot of possibility for Sherlockian story-telling, so a modern-day spin-off is a fine concept for me. But this one was just modern. As in set today. Not as in original or novel or any of the other synonyms... Christopher Sherlock Webster just never jumps off the page; he's named after the Great Detective but shares nothing else with him. There's none of the brio of Holmes - no quirks or foibles, no bizarre demonstrations of unimaginable deduction, no madness... He's just a guy, named by his dad for a literary hero - and not even first-named, middle-named - remarkable only for his average-guy nature. He's not uninteresting, he's just regular. And that's not enough to sell him and his "cases" as Holmesian mysteries of deduction. I read the intro/setup and the first story, then couldn't read any more. It is possible that things picked up in tone or style, but it seems unlikely - and I couldn't gin up the enthusiasm to continue long enough to find out...

I didnt know what to expect from this book, being a Sherlock fan I hoped it wouldn’t disappoint and over all it didnt. A nice selection of stories all quiet different from each other with a nice Victorian feel to them.

I have been an ardent fan of Holmesian literature nearly all my life, ever since I picked up 'The Complete Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (in 2 volumes)' from my mother's library when I was 11 or 12. I have watched nearly all the dramatizations on film based on the characters Sherlock Holmes and John Watson. I still read through the books at least once a year, every year, when I'm conflicted about what to read. Needless to say, I am a reasonable authority when it comes to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's fictional sleuth. This almost obsession is what led me to choose 'The Sherlock Effect' by Raymond Kay Lyon from the vast array of books at Netgalley.
The book brings to life, 4 chapters from the adventures of Christopher 'Sherl' Sherlock Webster (Holmes) and his college friend and business partner (-in-crime, forgive the pun please) Morris 'Mo' Rennie (Watson, of course) who live and solve crimes in present day London (the novel was originally published in 1997, so present day might be stretching it a little). Mr. Webster, who grew up and advanced into adulthood resenting his conspicuous middle name given by a Holmes-obsessed father throws himself into everything-Holmes after his father's demise. Along comes Mo with a plan to open up an agency of consulting detectives (which he offers to bank roll), with the hope that Sherl's unique middle name will fetch them some clients. It does, and work starts coming their way in due time.
The Sherlock Effect is interesting enough. It is an easy read, written simply and concisely. What is lacking is Conan Doyle's deductive brilliance, which is the highlight of the original. While the plots are somewhat distinctive, they lack the depth and intrigue that keeps the reader on tenterhooks until the very end. The stories and characterisations are rather transparent. The premise itself isn't exactly new (it might have been in 1997, but not so much in 2018. There are literally countless works, both in literature and on film, derived from Conan Doyle's Holmes available today). All in all, I'd characterise 'The Sherlock Effect' it as an average, enjoyable read that entertains but doesn't offer much of a cerebral challenge.

If you like Sherlock Holmes, you will like this book. The stories are told in the same manner as the original stories, and every other Sherlock tv show I can recall. The set up is a little clunky, of a son who hates Sherlock Holmes until his fanatic father dies and he reads the books, and his friend sets up the agency in Victorian style for marketing value, but if you get past that, the stories are amusing. A good read for Sherlock Holmes fans, but maybe too much of a stretch for non-fans.

Review

After his father gave his son the middle name of Sherlock it did not bode well for Christopher Webster at school. The book opens with hoe Christopher and his father became estranged and then, after his fathers premature death, Christopher is drawn to Sherlock Holmes. Years later he meets an old school friend, Mo, who proposes they set up a detective agency in the mode of Sherlock Holmes. Christopher agrees. And so comes into being The Baskerville Detective Agency.

We are then treated to five stories, or files, each one tells of Christopher and Mo’s adventures into the world of private investigation. The stories are terrific, a bit quirky as you would expect from the Holmesian style, and each builds on the other with regard to the character and relationship of Christopher and Mo.

The tales and characters are delightful and well written. They evoke Sherlock Holmes, and Dr Watson, whilst being given a modern setting. Enjoyable and well worth a read.

Rating: 4*

With thanks to Thistle Publishing for this eARC via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

☆read a book published in 2018☆

Dive into a world of Sherlocky-Homes (see what I did there?)

This book was a great read and I loved how different each story was from each other. I must confess unlike Christopher Webster I'm sad to say I've never actually read any of Holmes adventures. I know what's wrong with me? But luckily (at least it doesn't seem too) you don't need any knowledge in the adventures of Holmes and Watson, as these stories are inspired by the literary detective and go with there own flair.

Each story became progressively "less obvious" as I made my way through the book. Though my favorite was still one of the early ones about Ufology. I should say for the record I never conclusively figured out the case before Sherl, not sure what that says about me or the author? The characters were really likable and not as I thought they'd be assholes, full of themselves which is always a nice turn of events.

I guess I should actually talk about the characters I keep going on about. The setup of the story is similar (of course) to Sherlock Holmes; you have Christopher Sherlock Webster (yes his name really is Sherlock, dad was a tad bit obessed) he starts an Detective agency with his mate Morris "Mo" Rennie (who is the stories Watson) and each story is the two of them solving each case, simply as that! though I will say every case is thought out and approached differently.

For example, my favorite case The Warminster Assignment Sherl (as Webster is called) has a terrible flu and send Mo to do the case, until a problem arises and Sherl is forced to go. Each case (for the most part) deals in the practical universe and every case no matter the scenario has a bases in reality and the here and now. With that said there are points when some of the stories dip into the shall we say, deep end of what is believable. But the characters do acknowledge that there are limits that are probably not going to be provable. Usually.

Each story is really enjoyable, plus this book is a quick read even if you're like me and have never read a single tale about Sherlock. Oh, and on a said note I was curious about the qualifications of becoming a private eye were, and to my surprise you don't have to have a background in law enforcement or have any degree other than your high school diploma as well as a license, cause I was wondering how Webster and Rennie were able to legally do this job without years of experience.

The more you know!☆

A collection of five short stories, of a British consulting detective with a middle name of Sherlock, whose business partner has styled their agency in the aesthetic fashion of a Victorian 221B, complete with deerstalker cap and tail coats. Except the bizzareness of the intentional aesthetic costuming, these are decent tales in the spirit of classic Sherlock Holmes adventures without being a direct retelling. I found this a rather enjoyable light read.

Content note: drug addiction, pornography industry, hypnotherapy, blackmail,

Now I know I have so many other books to review before this one but when I saw this on Goodreads and the fact it was available on NetGalley, I knew I had to read it.

I am a complete and utter Sherlock Holmes fan girl. I have been since I was four or five and watched Jeremy Brett in the ITV adaptations with my mum (I later read the books too), so a character who’s obsessed with Sherlock Holmes was right up my alley.

They story starts with a brief history of how Christopher Sherlock Webster was saddled with his unusual middle name by his father and how he and Morris Rennie end up setting up Baskerville’s private detective agency.

It’s followed by five short stories written in a similar style to The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes or The Casebook of Sherlock Holmes but they are written by through Christopher or Sherl (Morris’s nickname for him) point of view rather than his Watson Morris Rennie.

Fur Trade - Famous singer Vicki Vine’s boyfriend is kidnapped by extremist animal rights activists, twice, after she was pictured posing in fur.

The Warminster Assignment – A star journalist goes missing after investigating UFO sightings

The Persistent Admirer – A young woman is being stalked by someone who claims to be in love with her.

Gardeners Questions – Millionaire and gardening enthusiast George Beaumaris asks the duo to investigate his fiancée after she starts acting strangely.

The Balcony Scene – Kevin Tripp, managing director of X.E media (an adult entertainment business) receives a death threat from someone called the Mad Monk, he asks the detective pair to provide him with 24 hr protection but will it stop the Monk?

I absolutely loved this book. Would I have liked it as much if it hadn’t been Sherlock themed? The answer is probably yes. Each story is so different, with humour throughout and doesn’t take itself too seriously
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I found out it was originally published in 1997 and there has been an attempt to modernise it a little bit but there’s still a bit of old style language like Ghetto-blaster or video recorder. Also I did figure out most of the endings but it was still an immensely enjoyable read.

I really hope the author has more of these stories to be published!

Overall a perfect book for Sherlock fans and people who love a cozy mystery.