I believe it was my mother who got me started reading Sherlock Holmes. I checked out as many of Conan Doyle's books as I could carry home from the library. LOVED him, despite his flaws. (Cocaine? Bad, Sherlock!) As a result of my addiction, I have also read way too many Holmesian pastiches. As with other mythic characters (King Arthur, vampires, and werewolves come to mind), there are lots of good, well written stories/novels out there. There is also a LOT of sheer, deplorable DRECK. (Sherlock in Love by Sena Jeter Naslund- mercifully out of print and one of the many reasons I loathe the woman- is a prime example. If you haven't read it, do yourself a favor and don't)
Just when I was ready to throw in the towel, Mom struck again. This time it was The Beekeeper's Apprentice, by Laurie R King. What an amazing read! (Come to think of it, I should post a review for that one) I love Ms King's explorations of Mary Russell and her quirky relationship with the great detective. So, seeing that she was part of this collection, I decided to give it a go. I'm so glad I did. The stories themselves vary in content. Some authors chose to feature Sherlock himself, others alluded to him. Some were set in the past, some in the present. I can honestly say I liked almost every story in this book, and it's given me a few new authors to try. The only story I didn't care for was the rather lengthy comic/graphic novelette one. I'm just not that into that style and it may be a good story- I just couldn't get into it.
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