In the Company of Sherlock Holmes

Stories Inspired by the Holmes Canon

By: Laurie R. King, Leslie S. Klinger

Narrated by: Malcolm Hillgartner, Peter Berkrot, Simon Vance, Steve West, Ralph Lister, Johnny Heller

Length: 8 hrs and 35 mins

Publisher's summary

This follow-up to the national best seller A Study in Sherlock is a stunning new volume of original stories compiled by award-winning Sherlockians Laurie R. King and Leslie S. Klinger.

The Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle were recently voted the top mystery series of all time, and they have enthralled generations of readers - and writers.

Now, Laurie R. King, author of the New York Times best-selling Mary Russell series in which Holmes plays a costarring role, and Leslie S. Klinger, Edgar Award - winning editor of The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes, have assembled a stellar group of contemporary authors from a variety of genres and asked them to create new stories inspired by that canon. Authors included here are Michael Connelly, Jeffery Deaver, Michael Dirda, Harlan Ellison, Denise Hamilton, Nancy Holder, John Lescroart, Sara Paretsky, Michael Sims, and more.

Inside you'll find Holmes in times and places previously unimagined, as well as characters who have themselves been affected by the tales of Sherlock Holmes. The game is afoot - again!

©2014 Laurie R. King and Leslie S. Klinger (P)2014 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

A misleading title

The title led me to believe that the stories would mirror in some way, the Holmes style of stories by ACD. That, I think is what is meant by
Stories inspired by the Holmes Canon.
Not so. This is a collection of random stories.
Few of them have any relation to the mystery, plot, characters and summation we know and appreciate in the Holmes stories. What was somewhat appealing was that a number of outstanding narrators are listed....
Simon Vance.Gildart Jackson. Ralph Lister Steve West.
This is not the first book I’ve found that hooks itself unfairly to Mr Holmes.
The AAA narrators are always a joy to listen to and in this book saved the day.
I am going to exchange this book.

So proud of the Authors tribute to Doyle!

A fitting tribute to Arthur Conan Doyle. Each reader expressed their own spin on the mysteriously familiar Sherlock character in their own carefully crafted way. Pleasure listening to exciting wordsmiths each.

More authors that just the two Audible has listed

Like most anthologies, this has some stories that appealed to me and some that didn't. Of course, people's tastes differ, so what I liked isn't necessarily what you will like. I found this because it had a story by an author I have enjoyed reading before (Michael Sims).

To help you judge whether this collection is for you, here are the stories and their authors:
The Crooked Man, by Michael Connelly
The Curious Affair of the Italian Art Dealer, by Sara Paretsky
The Memoirs of Silver Blaze, by Michael Sims
Dr. Watson’t Casebook, by Andrew Grant
The Adventure of the Laughing Fisherman, by Jeffery Deaver
Art in the Blood, by Laura Caldwell
Dunkirk, by John Lescroart
The Problem of the Empty Slipper, by Leah Moore & John Reppion
Lost Boys, by Cornelia Funke
The Thinking Machine, by Denise Hamilton
By Any Other Name, by Michael Dirda
He Who Grew Up Reading Sherlock Holmes, by Harlan Ellison
The Adventure of My Ignoble Ancestress, by Nancy Holder
The Closing, by Leslie S. Klinger
How I Came to Meet Sherlock Holmes, by Gahan Wilson

It will put you to sleep

What would have made In the Company of Sherlock Holmes better?

I love Sherlock Holmes and was excited to get this book but then I could not finish the book. The narrator was terrible and did not hold my interest. If it had been narrated in a different manner the story line would have been good.

Would you be willing to try another book from Laurie R. King and Leslie S. Klinger ? Why or why not?

Not unless it was narrated with more enthusiasim

How could the performance have been better?

. See above.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

Story line was good if you were reading the book. However, narration plays a big the biggest part when I am listening to audio books and this was terible.

not made for listening

This compilation rarely features the original Sherlock character, vs an updated or spin off adaptation. Some stories, like the script/play complete with scene direction and cues like "Sherlock Holmes doesn't like this" before each line, were not made to be read out loud in novel form. I enjoyed perhaps two of the stories. The best being Silver Blaze from the horse's POV. Yes, the most enjoyable story was featuring a horse narrator.

A real mixed bag, not recommended.

I quite enjoyed the other two books in this series [Echos of SH, & For the Sake of the Game] overall--tho not every single tale, of course. However, except for two of the stories herein, this book doesn't hold a candle to those. Wish I hadn't wasted a credit on this one.