Sherlock Holmes: Further Adventures for The Twelve Days of Christmas
Roger Riccard, has once again delved into his imagination to create short Christmastime stories for the famous detective, Sherlock Holmes and his faithful companion, Dr. John H. Watson. This volume contains another set of six, to continue the collection for the Twelve Days of Christmas.
A Partridge in a Pearl Tree – A crown containing the famous Partridge Ruby of Burma goes missing before Christmas, and so does the nun who was wearing it.
The Two Turtledoves – Will the famous photograph and its subjects have a negative effect on Holmes’s success as a detective?
The Three French Henchmen – Watson works with Mycroft Holmes and his agents to foil Professor Moriarty’s gang, after Holmes’s ‘death’ at the Reichenbach Falls.
The Four Calling Birds – An American Men’s Quartet, on a visit to London, seek the detective’s help to prove their innocence of a murder.
The Five Gold Rings – Holmes and Watson seek the stolen gift of Olympic Rings from King George to the King of Belgium.
The Six Geese at a Gander – Holmes must stop an assassination attempt at a Christmas Eve dinner where British nobility are the primary guests, but the target is unknown.
Reviews
At last, we have the sequel to Riccard’s first six stories in Sherlock Holmes: Adventures for the Twelve Days of Christmas. In this 2nd volume he continues to bring us the other six tales with wit, intrigue and the deductive reasoning that the Great Detective is so well known for. The Holmes/Watson relationship rings true. Mycroft Holmes and Mary Watson have excellent supporting roles, and the historical and geographic detail is spot on.
I especially enjoyed the story of The Three French Henchmen, with a surprise I’ll not reveal here. Other stories include: The Partridge in a Pearl Tree, about a stolen crown used in a church pageant. The Two Turtledoves, A famous photograph by that name has gone missing. Four Calling Birds An American Barbershop Quartet is accused of murder and Five Gold Rings A Gift of Golden Olympic Rings from Britain to Belgium for the 1920 Olympic Games has been stolen and the son of a Baker Street Irregular assists in the chase. All in all, a fine edition for any collector of Sherlock Holmes pastiches. Merry Christmas!
