The Return of Moriarty
Jack Anderson. Crooked Lane, $19.99 trade paper (320p) ISBN 979-8-89242-282-6
British crime and horror novelist Anderson (The Grief Doctor) delivers a wobbly Sherlock Holmes spin-off focused on the detective’s nemesis, professor James Moriarty. Picking up immediately after the events of Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Final Problem, Anderson builds a world where Holmes has perished and Moriarty has evaded prosecution by assuming the persona of the wealthy Hugo Strahm. As Strahm, he accepts an invitation to visit Lord Alber’s ancestral estate in Bavaria. Another, less welcome guest is 24-year-old medical student Clara Mendel, stepdaughter of Alber’s deceased eldest son. The lord’s remaining children are suspicious of Clara’s return to the fold, fearing she may want to stake a claim to the family’s most valuable heirloom: a ceremonial, jewel-encrusted saber made of solid gold. When Alber is poisoned at dinner, Moriarty (maintaining the Strahm facade) warily allies with Clara to ferret out the murderer. Anderson, who tells the tale primarily through witness statements, letters, and diary entries, gets points for ambition. The pacing, however, is jerky, with a protracted climax and too much perspective-switching throughout. It’s a mixed bag. Agent: Marilia Savvides, Plot Agency. (Sept.)
Details
Reviewed on: 07/01/2025
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Hardcover - 320 pages - 979-8-89242-101-0