Sherlock Holmes and the Giant Rat of Sumatra

Review: In this pastiche, Holmes and Watson investigate the death of Watson's distant relative. It takes them from London through the Middle East, India, and on to Singapore. Along the way, they encounter more odd deaths, an ancient tomb, and a mysterious sea captain. In Singapore they face both a corrupt official and a fantastic menace that threatens all of humanity.

The story begins well and captures some of the feel of the original tales. However, once Holmes and Watson leave London it becomes more of a "Doc Savage" pulp thriller than a detective story. There is plenty of action and adventure as well as a healthy dose of science fiction. This makes for escapist reading but it is not classic Holmes.

Other reviewers on Amazon and the Hounds of the Internet seem to either love or hate this book. It does work on the level of a popular Victorian fantasy adventure written for 21st century readers. Several of the action sequences are exciting, the locales are exotic, and the villains are fantastic.

But that's "fantastic" as in unbelievable. Many of the characters are not well developed and lack reasonable motivation. Their actions and explanations are not convincing. Holmes has a few interesting deductions, but his investigation is disjointed and mostly unexplained. For a detective that does not believe in the supernatural, this Holmes too quickly accepts notions of science fiction and fantasy.

We do see more of Watson as both a doctor and a successful writer than appears in the original stories. This adds a welcome touch and provides an interesting extension of the character. His frequent romantic liaisons, however, are more comedy cliché than essential elements of the story.

The book is only loosely based on the original Sherlockian reference to a firm that assesses machinery and a ship called the Matilda Briggs. Neither the firm nor the ship appears in this story. Instead, only the reference to "the giant rat of Sumatra" is used.

It is possible to place Holmes in science fiction and fantasy stories. That is not done well here. This book doesn't provide much detection or add to the Holmes genre. It can be a decent read for someone looking for a few hours of escapist action.

Reviewed by: Randall Stock, 2003