Death Cloud

Sherlock Holmes: The Legend Begins

By: Andrew Lane

Narrated by: Daniel Weyman

Length: 7 hrs and 16 mins

Publisher's summary

It is the summer of 1868, and Sherlock Holmes is 14. On break from boarding school, he is staying with eccentric strangers - his uncle and aunt - in their vast house in Hampshire. When two local people die from symptoms that resemble the plague, Holmes begins to investigate what really killed them, helped by his new tutor, an American named Amyus Crowe. So begins Sherlock’s true education in detection, as he discovers the dastardly crimes of a brilliantly sinister villain of exquisitely malign intent.

©2010 Andrew Lane (P)2011 Macmillan Audio

Sherlock's teen adventures, a blast!

It's so much fun to see how Sherlock learned how to read all the clues that are everywhere. This is the story of a teen detective but it's got way more history and adventure that your average Nancy Drew or Hardy Boy mystery. It's from a British author but since JK Rowling is a Brit, I thought I would give it a listen and I'm an Andrew Lane fan now. Give it a listen, you won't be disappointed.

Good attempt at a prestory

It was a quick, good read. Sherlock was missing depth and many of his quirks. Story was interesting if unrealistic.

Suspenseful tension through last word to next book

Andrew Lane has launched a literary fictional giant from a solid foundation. This first novel has proven he has the quality of storytelling to place us inside the youthful mind of Sherlock Holmes. What is remarkable is that Lane avoids the temptation to make Sherlock older than he is, which is to say, while he remains heroically ingenious, he courts luck and shocks himself with his own perceptibility or lack thereof. Five stars to Mr. Weyman, who breathes life into Sherlock's tutor in a most respectable way. Please keep making audible recordings of the other books in the series.

And so begins the detective's career

I so much enjoyed the Sherlock Holmes novels written by Arthur Conan Doyle that I thought I would give Andrew Lane's younger version a try. As a teenager, this version of Sherlock was not as I expected. Perhaps I was leaning too much on the adult character, but I thought young Sherlock would be a boy genius. Instead, he is portrayed as a lad with an above average intelligence and a seemingly boundless curiosity. We therefore see the progression in Sherlock from his formative years to the astute detective made famous by A.C. Doyle.

The novel begins with 14 year old Sherlock waiting for his father to collect him from boarding school for the summer holiday. Instead he finds his brother, Mycroft, waiting in the headmaster's office. Mycroft informs Sherlock that their father has been sent to India and arrangements have been made with Uncle Sherrinford and Aunt Anna in Farnham to care for him during the summer.

Resigned to his fate, Sherlock tries to make the most of his situation. He meets a young orphan, Matty Arnatt, and the two boys become quick friends. Matty tells Sherlock of the Death Cloud he saw coming from a house in town. It came out of the window and went up the drain pipe. The man in the house had large boils on his face and hands reminiscent of the plague. This peaks Sherlock's curiosity and the two boys begin investigating.

About this time, Sherlock discovers that Mycroft has hired a tutor to help further his education. The tutor in question, Amyus Crowe, has come from America with his daughter Virginia, who Sherlock immediately becomes infatuated with. Later, while Amyus and Sherlock are hiking through the forest to learn about edible plants, another body is discovered bearing the same characteristics as the previous one. This time, it is Sherlock that witnesses the Death Cloud. He also finds some yellow powder near the body, which he collects in an envelope.

With the discovery of the second body, the community becomes worried about another outbreak of the bubonic plague, But Sherlock is not convinced. He had seen the second man earlier the same day the body was discovered, with no signs of any disease present. He and Matty's investigations lead to a secluded warehouse and a mysterious foreign Baron. With the help of Amyus and Virginia Crowe, the two boys are able to make sense of the clues and solve the case.

It is not surprising that Amyus Crowe reminded me of the grown Sherlock. With his vast amount of knowledge and deductive reasoning, he is the man Sherlock will become. At one point during the story, Sherlock notes that Amyus is trying to "teach me how to think," and indeed this is the case. Amyus would ask questions in such a way as to lead the young man in the direction of the solution without actually giving it to him.

The mystery set forth in the story is very clever, and while the villain is not typical of Doyle's Holmes character, I found the novel to be quite entertaining. If you are willing to believe that Holmes was not always the man he was portrayed as by Doyle, then I think you will enjoy this novel as much as I did.

Death Cloud

I was disappointed with this book. I was expecting something else I think. Perhaps getting more into the mind of the young Sherlock to explain why he thought the way he did and detailing his thought processes as he solved his first mystery.

Learning about Sherlock

Where does Death Cloud rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I enjoyed getting to know Sherlock Holmes before he became the adult version that knows everything

What about Daniel Weyman’s performance did you like?

Very good. He kept you interested.

Great story and very well read!

This is my first young Sherlock novel; great story and very well read! I hope for many more in the series?!?

Dark Cloud, Bright Beginning

Any additional comments?

I have always been a fan of Sherlock Holmes and Lane's adaptation/prequel, to the stories I know, was wonderful. I was engaged from the start and did not turn it off until it had finished. I'm hooked and looking forward to the next installment.

Adventurous!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, I loved the way the author took on the aspect of Sherlock Holmes and wrote him in his own manor. We finally get to know how Sherlock became who we all know and love!

What did you like best about this story?

I enjoyed that Sherlock wasn't ever quite sure what he was doing....It slowly pieced together bits of his personality that you see in all of his later adventures!

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

What moved me the most is at the end Sherlock looking back at the fire and watching the men jump into the water some of them on fire and hating himself because he caused that death, he caused that pain.

Any additional comments?

Welcome to the Young Sherlock Addiction!

Death Cloud Review

This was an intriguing story about murder and thinking and I can't wait to read the other books on this series.