⋙ PDF Free For the Sake of the Game Stories Inspired by the Sherlock Holmes Canon Laurie R King Leslie S Klinger 9781681778792 Books

For the Sake of the Game Stories Inspired by the Sherlock Holmes Canon Laurie R King Leslie S Klinger 9781681778792 Books

Download As PDF : For the Sake of the Game Stories Inspired by the Sherlock Holmes Canon Laurie R King Leslie S Klinger 9781681778792 Books

For the Sake of the Game Stories Inspired by the Sherlock Holmes Canon Laurie R King Leslie S Klinger 9781681778792 Books

It was painful, but I suffered through the stories- waiting for something to save this awfully written collection of stories. A redeeming moment never arrived and I’m left with the knowledge that I completely wasted my time - and my $12.


Tags : For the Sake of the Game: Stories Inspired by the Sherlock Holmes Canon [Laurie R. King, Leslie S. Klinger] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. <strong>In a sensational follow-up to <em>Echoes of Sherlock Holmes</em> and <em>In the Company of Sherlock Holmes</em>,Laurie R. King, Leslie S. Klinger,For the Sake of the Game: Stories Inspired by the Sherlock Holmes Canon,Pegasus Books,1681778793,Detective and mystery fiction,Detective and mystery stories, American,Detective and mystery stories, American.,Detective and mystery stories, English,Detective and mystery stories, English.,Holmes, Sherlock,Short stories,Short stories, American,Short stories, American.,Short stories, English,Watson, John H,FICTION Anthologies (multiple authors),FICTION Mystery & Detective Collections & Anthologies,FICTION Mystery & Detective General,FICTION Mystery & Detective Traditional,Fiction,Fiction-Mystery & Detective,FictionAnthologies (multiple authors),GENERAL,General Adult,MYSTERY AND SUSPENSE FICTION,MysterySuspense,ReadingsAnthologiesCollected Works,United States

For the Sake of the Game Stories Inspired by the Sherlock Holmes Canon Laurie R King Leslie S Klinger 9781681778792 Books Reviews

Struck me as being a series of stories the authors had collecting dust in their trunk. After shoe-horning in a brief mention that a character liked to read Sherlock Holmes, a sale was made.
Following two earlier anthologies, Echoes of Sherlock Holmes and In the Footsteps of Sherlock Holmes, this new anthology features stories inspired by the Holmes Canon. It features stories by some of the best-known authors of today. Peter S. Beagle, Reed Farrell Coleman, Jamie Freveletti, Alan Gordon, Gregg Hurwitz, Toni L.P. Kelner, William Kotzwinkle and Joe Servello, Harley Jane Kozak, D.P. Lyle, Weston Ochse, Zoe Sharp, Duane Swierczynski, and F. Paul Wilson all put their own stamp on the Sherlock Holmes character. This is not an anthology for Holmes purists, placing Holmes not only in multiple times and genres, as well as genders. I am not one of the purists as far as Holmes is concerned.

I enjoyed some of the stories more than others so I will concentrate on three that I found particularly delightful. The Case of the Missing Case by Alan Gordon places a young Sherlock and brother Mycroft in London before their respective careers really took off. Sherlock is trying to justify his choice of career to disapproving parents and barely getting by, but actually finds himself taken in by the theatrical wiles of a young woman. Hounded, by Zoe Sharp is inspired by my favorite of all Holmes stories, The Hound of the Baskervilles. Set in the modern day, it has all the spooky atmosphere of the original with several new twists. Third of my favorites is The Ghost of the Lake by Jamie Freveletti, which puts Holmes into the 21st century with a female Watson. The two are trying to recover a missing security operative from a terrorist group and our female Watson equals Holmes in brains and skill.

This is a very enjoyable anthology and I thank Pegasus Books and NetGalley for an advance digital copy. The opinions are my own.
With their fourth Sherlock Holmes short story collection, authors Laurie R. King and Leslie S. Klinger have put together something special. FOR THE SAKE OF THE GAME features stories inspired by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's famed detective, but not necessarily starring him. This allows for the writers of these tales to be as creative as possible, and the end result is some wonderful and quite unique entries.

The book’s title comes from "The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans," in which Holmes informs his older brother Mycroft that he is not interested in being honored or recognized for his work. Instead, he plays the game for the game's own sake. I am happy to say that these authors really took that quote to heart. I will now highlight a few of the tales that particularly stood out for me.

F. Paul Wilson gives us “The Adventure of the Abu Qir Sapphire.” Unlike most Holmes stories, Dr. Watson does not serve as the narrator; instead, the story comes directly from the mouth of the detective himself. The international intrigue presented by the Abu Qir Sapphire provides a lot of fun. In “The Walk-In” by Harley Jane Kozak, the narrator walks into her brother's apartment to find a dog she does not recognize. This canine becomes the center of a tale involving a charlatan psychic who has done something to the gentleman that his sister will have to puzzle out to save the day.

Rhys Bowen’s “Sherlocked” introduces us to the concept of a robot detective named Sherlock, who is assisting the police force and CSI team. However, Sherlock may end up providing help in areas originally not thought of, making for an interesting crime fighter. Reed Farrel Coleman uses a variation of A STUDY IN SCARLET for “A Study in Absence,” in which Holmes is dealing with a book titled The Absent Man by Isaac Masters Knott. He offers up that the writer is I.M. Knott, thereby discovering that the actual author remains a mystery. This ruse called to mind the name “U.N. Owen,” or “Unknown,” utilized in Dame Agatha Christie's AND THEN THERE WERE NONE.

A unique entry here is the story told in the form of a comic book, “The Case of the Naked Butterfly,” by William Kotzwinkle and Joe Servello. In this illustrated tale, Holmes is represented as a praying mantis, and all the supporting players are from the insect world. In “Buy a Bullet,” Gregg Hurwitz uses characters from his Orphan X series and sets them up with a complex situation that provides a solution worthy of the great Sherlock Holmes. “Tough Guy Ballet” by Duane Swierczynski is set in 1987 Los Angeles and finds a tough guy police detective called out to assist his partner. Instead, he spots a 19-year-old girl taking down a bad guy in swift fashion. What our narrator does not realize is that this super teen is not all who she claims to be.

Being a huge Holmes fan myself, I was especially wowed by the last story, “Hounded” by Zoë Sharp, who brilliantly inserts her protagonist, Charlotte "Charlie" Fox, directly into THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES. It's great fun to see Charlie interacting with Holmes, Watson, Lord Baskerville and all the characters from the original tale. Charlie is no slouch and has been referred to as Jack Reacher if he was a woman. This is a terrific final entry in a worthy collection that should please all Sherlock Holmes enthusiasts far and wide.

Reviewed by Ray Palen
Stories in general had little or nothing to do with Sherlock Holmes besides a casual mention, although one or two actually did. Some stories were good, some were poor, some were mediocre, so I rated it three stars.
It was painful, but I suffered through the stories- waiting for something to save this awfully written collection of stories. A redeeming moment never arrived and I’m left with the knowledge that I completely wasted my time - and my $12.