Sherlock Holmes: The Adventure of the Pigtail Twist

By: M J H Simmonds

Narrated by: Joff Manning

It is June 1884, a grey period for both the weather and Sherlock Holmes' mood. A lack of compelling cases has left him bored and close once again to the dull embrace of the needle. Less than a month earlier, however, he had astonished Inspector Lestrade and everyone around him by solving no less than six crimes in consecutive days.

At the 11th hour, Inspector Gregson arrives, with the promise of an impossible crime to solve. A murder has shattered the bucolic peace of the sleepy arable farmlands of Bedfordshire. The owner of a small stately home has been brutally killed while hosting a dinner party. But what and where is the murder weapon?

What follows is an epic, sweeping tale. From England to Africa, from poverty to wealth, the story spans decades. Hardship and friendship are followed by betrayal, deception, and murder.

©2018 Matthew Simmonds (P)2019 MX Publishing

Clever Story, Enjoyable Listen

This Holmes & Watson escapade is one of the better non-Conan Doyle stories, with a unique approach. The book starts with Sherlock solving a series of small cases before getting in to the main story. The main story is very interesting, with plot twists and a solution that were not as obvious as some other Sherlock Holmes books. I also liked the digression of a whole other case that Holmes describes to Watson while passing time.

Two things I didn't like...without giving it away, the case goes from several suspects to just one very abruptly. And, the narrator's voice for Holmes is horrible. I don't know why so many narrators struggle to voice Holmes after their regular voice serves Watson well.

Overall, the compelling story makes this a good choice for Sherlock fans, while the voice of Watson is well done to compensate for the grating voice of Holmes.

Good set of stories

Sherlock Holmes solves 5 or 6 short stories before the title story. The stories are engaging and entertaining. The narration is also good. I received a free audiobook for my honest review.

Checks all the boxes for classic Holmes adventure

A quality pastiche. A set of short stories followed by a somewhat longer mystery. The framing of the short stories as an effort to provide a bored Holmes distraction over a single week was a clever device. I especially enjoyed the lost cat case Holmes didn’t even leave his bedroom to solve. The titular mystery proved to have a clever and satisfying solution. In classic Doyle fashion the audience is left guessing until the very end and once we learn all the facts it’s simplicity itself. Recommend.

Great

By chapter a different case, loved the narration clear and added to the story. One could easily be drawn in to each case, the settings. Especially that of Holmes. Loved it. Given audio for my voluntary review and my honest opinion

Not meant as a book length story

The trouble with turning Holmes-style plots and detection into a full-length story is that story line becomes forced after a while and Holmes becomes a parody of the Conan-Doyle original. In this tale, Holmes could not even come up with enough evidence to get the guy arrested. Instead we are asked to believe that Holmes was so persuasive that the guy just confessed. And Holmes comes across as smug and conceited and unbearable chapter after chapter. Such a disappointment.

An interesting collection of stories

This was a novella cunningly merged with some short stories, including one interstitial to the novella. Some were satisfying, some not so much. The author didn’t make me cringe at any point, but it just wasn’t as Holmesian as some other pastiches I have read.

The narrator did an okay job, but it was not always easy to discern which character was speaking. There were also a glaring number of mispronounced words, and many that were either misread by the narrator or miswritten by the author.

In either case, I can only give this book a lukewarm recommendation.

Could have been written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle!

The well-developed story held my attention throughout!

Joff Manning did a great job narrating!

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Interesting Sherlockian Adventure

This book has a few very short appetizers that were just okay, but I found the main story to be very interesting. Though no one has matched Doyle, I thought this story was a very good imitation. They narrator did an outstanding job doing the voices you expect in a Sherlock Holmes audio.

Good

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

The beginning of this can be hard to follow. Many times I had to remind myself that Dr Watson is narrating. Joff did a good job reading this book but many times I could not tell what character was talking as there was not a distinguishing voice change. They story was still great and I do recommend this book.

good read

Iiked how the two (Watson and Holmes) played off each other. It was very interesting seeing how ingenious Holmes"s mind worked with clues that others couldn't even see. His deductive reasoning was nothing short of miracles at work and his attention to detail - flawless!! I enjoyed it. I voluntarily listened to a free copy of this and am giving an honest review. The narrator did a great job.