Moriarty Meets His Match - Anna Castle

   2016; 290 pages.  Book 1 (out of 4) in the “Professor & Mrs. Moriarty Mystery” series.  New Author? : No.  Genres : Historical British Mysteries; Sherlock Holmes.  Overall Rating : 8½*/10.

 

    You could call it “Professional Jealousy”.  Professor James Moriarty admits that.

 

    But he has a degree in mathematics.  And a job as an assistant patent examiner.  And he’s frankly convinced that Teaberry & Company’s new-fangled, recently patented “Compact Spherical Engine” has some serious flaws, particularly as far as fuel efficiency goes.

 

    So when it’s announced the engine will be showcased at the 1885 London International Inventions Exhibition, Moriarty sneaks in the night before and secretly “adds” a little fuel gauge to it.

 

    Unfortunately for him, the next day, when the Compact Spherical Engine is fired up, it explodes, killing its operator.  Was that due to a design flaw, or did someone sabotage it?  Unfortunately for Moriarty, Scotland Yard is bringing in a consulting specialist to investigate.

 

    Whose name is Sherlock Holmes.

 

What’s To Like...

    Moriarty Meets His Match is a reimagining of two of the main characters in Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes series, but this time around, top billing is given to Moriarty.  Holmes still plays a prominent role, and there are at least three others that reprise their roles here: Dr. Watson, Mrs. Hudson, and Inspector Gregson.  Both Moriarty and Holmes are still incredibly brilliant, and I liked that Anna Castle makes both of their characters a bit more “gray.”

 

    There are three main storylines.  First and foremost is the parallel investigations by the two protagonists into the exploding spherical engine.  The second involves a new character, Angelina Gould, and her efforts to find and recover some incriminating letters penned by her brother, Sebastian.  Those sound like very disparate plot threads, but the author manages to deftly make them converge.

 

    The third plotline is hinted at in the series title.  There is no “Mrs. Moriarty” at the start of the story, and it is quite entertaining to watch as the super-nerd Professor Moriarty struggles to cope with his own feelings and the delightful attentions of a attractive woman.  We won’t reveal who she is, but it doesn't take very long to figure it out.

 

    I thought the world-building was expertly done.  Like a Conan Doyle episode, I got a great “feel” for London in the 1880s.  The “musical jump-rope” was a fascinating (and presumably factual) recreation, and I had to look up who “Sheridan La Fanu” was.  I learned the correct pronunciation of “Miswell” (it rhymes with ‘drizzle’) and am still trying to figure out what a “front-sheeter” is.

 

    The ending is suitably logical, which I expected since two geniuses are investigating.  Holmes and Moriarty still don’t like each other, but at least they respect each other’s sleuthing.  A couple of dei ex machina provide key breaks, but it’s still a challenge to properly evaluate them.  Things close with a crafty impersonation plot twist.

 

Ratings…
    Amazon: 4.2*/5, based on 1,640 ratings and 211 reviews.

    Goodreads: 3.95*/5, based on 1,034 ratings and 115 reviews.

 

Kewlest New Word ...

Grizzled (adj.) : having or streaked with gray hair.

Others: Moil (n.); Delimited (adj.); Spunks (n.); Frowsty (adj.).

 

Excerpts...

    “Why the deuce did you let Hainstone trick me into judging that plump baby contest, Ramsay?  Can’t abide the little buggers!  How am I to tell one from the other?”

    The secretary answered him in soothing tones.  “The name of both mother and baby are right here in this envelope, my lord.  You need only read them off.  The village doctor selects them in advance.  Part of the British Mothers Health and Wellness Program.  It’s good for you, politically, my lord.  It shows your concern for the people.”

    Nettlefield snorted.  (pg. 196)

 

    Moriarty kissed the little curl on her temple.  He worshipped that curl.  “You should marry me because without you my life can never again have a meaning.  You are more beautiful than the arrangement of binomial coefficients in Pascal’s triangle.  You mean more to me than Euclid’s postulates of plane geometry.”

    She frowned.  He loved it when she frowned.  She licked her rosy lips and said, “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

    “It’s the highest praise I have to offer.”   (pg. 261)

 

Kindle Details…

    Moriarty Meets His Match sells for $4.99 right now at Amazon, as do the other three books in the series.  Anna Castle’s “Francis Bacon Mystery” series has eight volumes with prices ranging from free to $4.99.

 

“A secret can only be kept by two people if one of them is dead.”  (pg. 145)

    There’s very little profanity in Moriarty Meets His Match; I noted only four instances in the first 33% of the book, and all of them were of the milder eschatological ilk.  One adult situation is mentioned later on.  I noted just one typo: entrée/entry, so kudos to whoever did the editing.

 

    Some reviewers didn’t like that Sherlock Holmes is cast in a somewhat unfavorable light, but I thought it was a refreshingly new angle.  At one point in the story, Holmes admits that Dr. Watson has a habit of portraying his detective prowess far more brilliantly that it actually is.  To boot, this is a four-book (and presumably completed) series, and I'm anticipating that Moriarty and Holmes will develop a closer professional relationship as the series progresses.

 

    I’ve read two of Anna Castle’s “Francis Bacon Mysteries” series; and liked them both.  I was curious to see how her “Professor and Mrs. Moriarty” books would measure up against Sir Francis Bacon’s endeavors, and I’m happy to report that both series are page-turners for anyone who, like me, loves to read Historical Mysteries.

 

    8½ Stars.  One last quibble.  While I loved the inclusion of several characters from the Arthur Conan Doyle series, there was one glaring omission.  There’s no Mycroft Holmes!  He's Sherlock’s brother and makes his sibling look like an observational amateur.  Here’s hoping he shows up at some point in the next three books, even if it’s just a cameo appearance.

Inspector Hobbes and the Blood

   2013; 308 pages.  Book 1 (of 4) in “Unhuman” series.  New Author? : Yes.  Genre : Dark Humor; Crime-Mystery; Paranormal; Culinary (Culinary?!  WTF, Amazon? Where’d ya come up with that one?).  Laurels: Shortlisted for the “Impress Prize for New Writers” (2012).  Overall Rating : 9*/10.

    There’s been a strange breaking-and-entering at Mr. Roman’s estate.  Someone smashed open one of the windows, climbed through, and stole one of Mr. Roman's violins.

    It was a good violin; you could even call it an expensive one.  But it wasn’t a collector’s item, and there were many more valuable items in the house that were left untouched.  Apparently Mr. Roman was quite upset about all this; he hanged himself shortly thereafter.

    The police have assigned Inspector Hobbes to investigate the case.  He’s quirky, can be heavy-handed at times, but has an excellent record for solving these kind of perplexing crimes.  And tagging along will be Andy Caplet, a journalist with the local Sorenchester and District Bugle, known for his poor record as a reporter.  It seems no one else at the office wanted this assignment, so they sent Andy.

    It seems this heist is just the start of a string of robberies in the Sorenchester area.  A short time later, cups and knives, and even people are going missing.  Will Inspector Hobbes be able to figure out what’s going on, and will Andy’s assistance, help or hinder him?

What’s To Like...

    Andy and Hobbes are an entertaining pair of protagonists – somewhat reminiscent of the Sherlock Holmes & Dr. Watson team.  But there are lots of differences too, and Wilkie Martin is to be commended for not slavishly duplicating the famous duo.  I’ve read some of the modern-day authors who write “new” Sherlock Holmes series (they can do this because the copyright on that name has expired), none of them yet has come close to matching Arthur Conan Doyle’s writing skills.

     The story is set in the fictitious cities of Sorenchester and Pigton, which are situated in the real Cotswolds area of England, and which I presume is the author’s stomping grounds.  Unsurprisingly, it is written in English, not American, which meant oodles of new words for me.  You can munch on chocolate Hobnobs (I found some of these over here with some help from my friends), get your food via a takeaway, or make a slap-up meal of your own, have a top-up if your drink runs low, and hope that your manky rug isn’t pong.  There were several dozen more of these expressions in the book; a few more of them are listed below.  I was in Anglophile heaven.

    the primary plotline was well-contrived – a string of burglaries of a strange set of artifacts.  Andy and Hobbes know the purloined pieces are connected in some way, the fun is figuring out exactly how.  The secondary storyline concerns the book’s genre itself – are there some paranormal critters scampering around Merrie Olde Englande, or is Andy’s imagination just running wild?  The reader gets a pretty good idea what the answer to that is by the end, yet a sliver of doubt remains.

    I thought the humor was handled very well.  Puns, wit, and tall tales abound, yet it’s not overdone.  The end result is a funny story, but not a silly one.  The ending is suitably climactic and exciting.  The final chapter is essentially an epilogue, with the various plot threads being resolved via Hobbes explaining to Andy how the evildoers did their evil.  Shades of Holmes and Watson finales!

    I loved the use of one of my favorite words, “Daliesque”, and chuckled when “thistledown” made an appearance.  I don't recall ever running across this word before this year, and now this is the third time in 2019 it’s cropped up in books I'm reading.

     The chapters are of moderate length: 19 of them covering 308 pages.  That averages out to around 16 pages per chapter.  Amazon touts the book as being a “cozy” mystery, and for the most part it is.  But it should be noted that there is a fair amount of cussing; I thought it fit in well, but cozy purists may wince at this.  Inspector Hobbes and the Blood is a standalone story as well as the first book in a series.

Kewlest New Word. . .

Shtum (adj.; British; informal) :  silent, non-communicative.

Others: Cagoule (n., British); Hob (n. British); Myxmatosis (n.); Scarpered (v.; British).

Excerpts...

    “Right, d’you fancy a cup of tea?”

    “Yes, please,” I said.

    “Good.  Make me one as well, would you?”  A banana-sized finger pointed to the bottle.

    “Oh, right.  Of course.  Umm … do you take milk or sugar?”

    “Two lumps of each, please.”  (loc. 478)

    “What are you here for?  I’ve done nothing.”

    “Nothing?” said Hobbes.  “I’m not sure about that.  Didn’t you knock out a customer’s teeth on Wednesday?”

    Featherlight scowled.  “That’s a lie.  I did no such thing – it was on Tuesday and it wasn’t all of them.  I didn’t hear the customer complain.”

    “He was unconscious.”

    “He was out of order, whinging about a dead mouse in his beer when it was only a bit of one.”  (loc. 1471)

Kindle Details...

    Inspector Hobbes and the Blood currently sells for $2.99 at Amazon.  The other three books in the series are all in the $4.07-$4.99 price range.  Alternatively, you can buy the first three books in a bundle; it goes for $6.29 right now. Other than one short story (52 pages) that goes for $0.99, I think that’s all the Wilkie Martin books available at Amazon for now.

 “Your reputation for stupidity doesn’t do you justice.”  (loc.  4451)

    A number of Amazon reviewers totally hated Andy, consequently giving Inspector Hobbes and the Blood some extremely low ratings.  Well, Andy is certainly not the noblest of characters.  He’s insanely jealous of a coworker, even to the point of planting false evidence to implicate him.  He also repeatedly goes snooping around in Hobbes’s house, uncovering secrets he’s not meant to know about.

    Everyone’s entitled to his own opinion, but personally I like anti-heroes.  They are always more interesting than can’t-do-anything-wrong protagonists, and I have a feeling that Andy will mature a bit as the series progresses.

    9 Stars.  I’ve been meaning to read Inspector Hobbes and the Blood for quite some time now, and was pleasantly surprised by the book’s charm, particularly since it is the author’s debut effort.  Here’s hoping he puts out many more books, and that the 4-volume Inspector Hobbes series is not yet completed.