ecl@ahutb.UUCP (e.c.leeper) (04/08/85)
SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE TREASURE TRAIN by Frank Thomas
Pinnacle, 1985, $2.95.
A book review by Evelyn C. Leeper
This is the third Frank Thomas "Holmes" book I've read, the other two
being SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE SACRED SWORD and SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE
GOLDEN BIRD. The first two were really bad; this one is merely mediocre.
The structure of the novel is very unlike any Holmes story that Doyle wrote
and the result is something that just doesn't sound right. Thomas has not
yet mastered the writing style required, though he is improving. The
solution, when it comes, is also less than convincing.
The plot concerns a gold shipment stolen from a special express by use
of an unused spur going to a disused mine, etc. (There seem to be a
preponderance of unused spurs going to disused mines in mystery stories set
in Britain.) There are the usual red herrings and strange characters
involved, and Holmes and Watson are involved in more violence than one might
expect. All in all, not a *bad* book, but not something to run right down
to your local bookstore for either.
(According to the front of the book, Thomas has written a fourth book,
SHERLOCK HOLMES, BRIDGE DETECTIVE. If anyone can tell me whether this is a
novel, or merely a collection of bridge puzzles with Sherlock Holmes as the
framework--a la Raymond Smullyan's THE CHESS MYSTERIES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES--I
would appreciate it.)
Evelyn C. Leeper
...ihnp4!ahutb!ecl