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Sherlock Holmes and the Copycat Murders  By  cover art

Sherlock Holmes and the Copycat Murders

By: Mr. Barry Day
Narrated by: Mr. David Ian Davies
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Editorial reviews

In Sherlock Holmes and the Copycat Murders, grandfatherly British narrator David Ian Davies ably performs the role of the iconic fictional detective and his famous partner, Dr. Watson, and deftly transports the listener back in time to the foggy streets of turn-of-the-century London. There, a series of gruesome murders with a similar modus operandi all attempt to frame none other than Holmes himself!

It is yet another riddle-wrapped-within-an-enigma case for our Sherlock to somehow crack and solve. But this time, it’s personal.

Publisher's summary

London 1900 and Sherlock Holmes finds himself investigating a string of murders that have one common thread -- each of them recalls one of his earlier cases. Has that great mind finally cracked - Watson wonders - and how is all this connected to Britain's latest secret weapon and the doings of the enigmatic Graf von Bork and the mysterious Society for Anglo-German Solidarity?
©1997 Barry Day (P)2006 One Voice Recordings

Critic reviews

"The most incredible one-person audio you have heard. Has to be heard to be believed. David Ian Davies creates theatre in a book." (Charles Prepolec, one of the most respected Sherlockians)

What listeners say about Sherlock Holmes and the Copycat Murders

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    3 out of 5 stars

The Game's A-Fleet

I found it almost impossible to listen to this book due to the bizarre narration (or, perhaps, the bizarre editing of the narration). Although the narrator voices Sherlock and Mycroft Holmes as if they were effeminate upper class British twits (not that there is anything wrong with that), I was able to overcome my expectation that they should sound like Basil Rathbone or Simon Vance. But I was unable to focus on the story because of the odd pacing – there were virtually no pauses at the end of the sentences, between paragraphs, and between one character and another. Watson narrated the story with run-on sentences and one character's voice would jump on the previous character sentence with virtually no break. The entire effect was like listening to a 10-year-old returning from his first amusement park breathlessly describing the rides.

I reduced the narration speed to .9, which helped a bit because it slowed down the pell-mell narration. But it couldn't cure the lack of pauses between sentences.

I can't account for the impossible pacing ... unless in post-production, they digitally set the time for pauses to be no different between a sentence or paragraph or another character's voice. I hesitate to blame the narrator because no one is capable of talking like that.

I don't have an opinion on the story because the narration was so distracting. I suppose my opinion is no different than asking that 10-year-old what he thought of the landscaping in the amusement park when he was hurling down the roller coaster.

Please, please listen to the sample before committing yourself to the book. if the breathing space (or lack thereof) is acceptable to you, and if you don't mind Sherlock and Mycroft sounding like pre-pubescent, pre-Eton public school students, the book may be for you.


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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Too Obvious

What did you like best about Sherlock Holmes and the Copycat Murders? What did you like least?

I the narrator voices I found quite polished. While not English myself I have both English family and friends who are Londoners and thought the accents were fine. His skills were the most impressive part of the show.


The story foreshadowing was so heavy handed even the good inspector would have know what was going on from the first 10 mins much less Mycroft or Watson.


Has Sherlock Holmes and the Copycat Murders turned you off from other books in this genre?

Not at all into every life etc....

Which scene was your favorite?

No scene but the voices of Sherlock (think Peter Cushing) and Watson were very good if not expected.

Could you see Sherlock Holmes and the Copycat Murders being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

Not without complete rewrite.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

C+ Version of Sherlock

Not my #1 choice mostly due to the horrible accents, but better than some of the others.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great reading with all accents + amusing story

Loved every minute! The reader did an excellent job using believable accents for each character and there were many! The story itself is so amusing to listen to with small nuggets to catch around every corner. Just an all around great listen!

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Ok for a free read

I noticed early on that the reader made the story feel rushed. It was hard to follow with the characters sounding somewhat the same. Again, it wasn’t bad for free, but wouldn’t have paid to read it.

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Disjointed, Boring Story

Story is disjointed and boring. Easy to lose interest and lose track of the plot. Ends half way through and picks up another plot line. Do not recommend.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Decent read for free

Glad I had Audible plus so I could listen for free

I enjoyed the narrator- he was a perfect Watson

The first “mystery” is so simple that the characters must be morons to not figure it out

If you can get past that, the second mystery is more convoluted and holds the interest better

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Performance voices questionable

The voice of Watson was pretty good. The voices of the Holmes brothers were way too effeminate.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Slowed the Speed

I generally like Mr Davies voice and rapid delivery, but for Holmes and especiallyWatson, it was too much. I slowed the audio speed to .9 and it was so much better.

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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Couldn’t make it thru the narration

Sherlock’s voice is annoying and has a strange rhythm with pauses at odd places, Watson’s is a la Nigel Bruce…but sounds less intelligent. The sound is not mixed well…as if it were recording on a phone. I just couldn’t make it thru the book so I really can’t critique the story itself….

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