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Spoilers: No
I hate to give this such a low rating, but 2 stars equates to "it was okay". And this book certainly was okay. It was totally fine and I'm thrilled so many have given it 5 stars, but for me, I wanted more from it.
I think this will be a long review, because I have a lot of thoughts.
I'm very confused how I feel about this book.
This was not what I was expecting at all....at first.
The blurb gives little indication as to what this is actually about.
For some reason I envisioned this as a YA version of Anno Dracula, but I'm quite wrong there. This is neither YA, nor Anno Dracula.
This is Sherlock Holmes.
But the thing is, the blurb hypes this up to be something mysterious and exciting and out of this world.
This is not the story you think it is These are not the characters you think they are. This is not the book you are expecting.
Actually, no. I know exactly what to expect because I've read a lot of Sherlock Holmes books. And besides the supernatural element, very little originality has been injected into this story.
After the initial surprise of learning this is a new version of Sherlock Holmes (minus Sherlock Holmes himself), it very quickly lost its sparkle when the crimes started to play out almost identically as those in Conan Doyle's original books.
...sorry, wut?
Characters
As this is literally a Sherlock Holmes retelling, Crow and Doyle may as well have just been called Holmes and Watson to make it feel more deliberate. Considering most of the basic principles of Sherlock Holmes is present here, I'm not sure why their names are changed.
It would make more sense for their names to just straight up be Holmes and Watson, but of course with their very obvious differences that makes this story such a unique version of the classic tale.
Crow is an angel and a consulting detective living on Baker Street. Doyle an injured ex- army doctor, and something else entirely, and lives with him.
Their personalities very accurately represent Homles and Watson, which on one hand is fantastic, cause it really makes me feel like I'm reading a new version of Sherlock Holmes. Until I remember ... this isn't Sherlock Holmes.
Which bring me to the other hand. Why aren't they Holmes and Watson?
This author is clearly a big fan and has studied their idiosyncrasies enough to depict them perfectly. This is the perfect opportunity for a straight up alternative world, supernatural retelling of Sherlock Holmes.
And yet it's not. It feels almost like a wasted opportunity.
Crow and Doyle were so similar to the original characters that it caught me off guard every time Crow introduced himself as Crow and not Holmes.
Though I like Crow and Doyle, I find I like them only because they are Holmes and Watson under different names. Their personalities, natures, temperaments, and dynamic as a duo is what I love in Holmes and Watson, so it's difficult for me to extend that love into Crow and Doyle as they aren't individualistic enough to stand on their own.
The characters are a perfect emulation. But still only an emulation. And it leaves me a little confused as to why.
Plot
It's very difficult to review the plots of this story. On one hand I like them because they are the plots to various Sherlock Holmes tales, but on the other hand, this isn't Sherlock Holmes and these plots have been lifted entirely from the original text with a few supernatural elements thrown in. The scenarios are more or less the same, the supporting characters are more or less the same.
It's basically just supernatural Sherlock Holmes... except IT'S NOT.
I found that the more I read, the more I questioned why the hell this wasn't just Holmes and Watson.
Basically, what I'm saying is, I'm struggling to review the plot because it isn't an original plot created by this author. She's lifted Arthur Conan Doyle's work and stuck a couple of original characters in it (by original I mean they have different names because everything else about them is the same).
Writing Style
The writing is without a doubt the best thing about this book. It's authentic and very true to Conan Doyle's original text.
A lot of research has clearly gone into, not only replicating the stories of Sherlock Holmes, but also the depiction of the historical setting.
I had few complaints about the writing and that was how I knew straight away this was an adult book and not a YA. It just reads like an adult book. It reads like a Conan Doyle book. It's mature and sophisticated.
Taking into consideration how good the writing is, I'm going to say that the faults in this book lie primarily in this story and not in the author. This author is quite clearly a very capable writer and I have little doubt her other books are fantastic.
Possibly the only complaint I did have with the writing was the sheer amount of adverbs. I counted them for a while when I started to notice them (if a reader notices it, there's too many). I counted between 5 and 9 adverbs on a single page, on an ebook page no less. On a physical page there was probably more. Now I'm not against adverbs, I think they are highly necessary at times, but I don't like to notice them everytime they're used.
Final Impression
This is just Sherlock Holmes, but without Holmes or Watson, and a few vampires and werewolves thrown in.
The frustrating thing is, if this author had simply written a supernatural retelling of Sherlock Holmes and marketed it as such, I probably would have loved it.
But it wasn't meant to be Sherlock Holmes, and I just can't understand why.
I imagine that if you've never read a Sherlock Holmes book, then you'll probably love this, and I'd would whole heartedly suggesttrying it if you haven't. There's nothing ardently wrong with it. This book just wasn't for me.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.
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