Mycroft and Sherlock: The Empty Birdcage

By: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Anna Waterhouse

Narrated by: Damian Lynch

Length: 8 hrs and 45 mins

Publisher's summary

The new novel by NBA All-Star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, starring brothers Mycroft and Sherlock Holmes.

It is 1873, and as the economies of Europe threaten to crumble, Mycroft Holmes finds himself in service to the Crown once again. A distant relative of Queen Victoria has been slain by the Fire Four Eleven killer, a serial murderer who leaves no mark upon his victims, only a mysterious calling card. Meanwhile, Sherlock has already taken it upon himself to solve the case as his interest in the criminal mind grows into an obsession. 

Mycroft begrudgingly allows Sherlock to investigate, as Ai Lin--the woman he is still in love with--needs his aid. Her fiancé has been kidnapped, and the only man who might know his fate is a ruthless arms dealer with a reputation for killing those who cross him. Mycroft persuades his friend Cyrus Douglas to help find the young man, but Douglas himself is put in harm's way. 

As Sherlock travels the country on the hunt for the Fire Four Eleven murderer, both he and Mycroft will discover that the greed of others is at the root of the evil they are trying to unearth....

©2019 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Anna Waterhouse (P)2019 Audible, Inc.

Awesome!

I loved all 3 of these books. Normally I only listen to audio books at work but I was so engrossed in this most recent story I listened in the car and continued listening at home. Now I’ll have to wait who knows how long for the next one!

Better than some classic Sherlock stories

I've read/listened to a lot of Sherlock. Dozens of hours worth. I have to say this trilogy is more adventurous than most traditional Sherlock novels. I hope they do a fourth. I can't wait to read more stories about Mycroft, Douglas and Juan!

Very enjoyable. Great writing, good reader.

It's quite refreshing, frankly, to have new stories about the Holmes that do not purport to have been written by Watson, or Doyle. I love having novels ABOUT the Holmes brothers, and Kareem does a great job of telling his very creative tales of their early years, anteWatson. I suspect these will become the Canon for Holmes youth.. Adding a version of himself (i.e.the awesome black athlete) into the stories as Mycroft's sidekick Douglas is pretty cool. He recalls the Lew Alcindor I watched at UCLA way back in my high school years in LA.
This particular story describes parallel investigations by the brothers Holmes. There is good character development along the way especially of Mycroft, laying the back-story and reasons behind Doyle's description of their character traits. The crime spree(s) and thier investigations are creative, and provide a good framework for seeing their character growth.
I look forward to reading the next book in the series.

Truly entertaining

Of all the Holmes fiction out there, these books are the best short of Doyle.

Sharp, fast moving, marvelous complexity

This is my favorite Sherlockian series --- or should I say Holmes series. Very good complexity and never tedious. There are interesting characters who accompany Mycroft and Sherlock, adding a further dimension to the story. This series is far and above the others.

A really nice prequel trilogy sans (Jar Jar Binks)

I typically re-read or listen to the 56 short stories that make up the classic Holmes Novellas,but once in a while venture into other Holmesian stories. I have read several books full of non-Doyle Holmes stories. Some are good, but even the best ones are only close because they are Sherlock not Mycroft, so I prefer of course Doyle. I have a more open mind to reading about Mycroft, Irene Adler, Professor Moriarty, and others.
This trilogy about MyCroft, introducing his brother along the way, was not only well-written, but the narrator did a very good job with all of the characters.
It would be nice to see this team squeeze in a couple more Mycroft/Sherlock books, but the timeframe is starting to overlap with Doyle so perhaps this is where it ends. But if Abdul-Jabbar, Waterhouse, and Lynch get together for another performance, I would purchase the Audible book.
I hope others give this series a chance and find they enjoy it as much as I did.

Slow start, but a good story!

I really can’t wait for these books to come out! I find them very engaging. I immediately used a credit when I saw this book was released and I was not disappointed. It did start off slowly and I had a hard time getting into it, but I stuck with it and I am glad I did.

These stories are always enjoyable and I look forward to the next installment. 😀

I'd like book 4 now, please.

I listened to all 3 books in the series in rapid succession, downloading the next as I was wrapping up the prior. They are lovingly written with faithfulness to the original characters of Arthur Conan Doyle. They also give the reader an opportunity to experience the life of black man in Victorian era England. Cyrus Douglas, as closest friend and mentor in the stories, is the yin to Mycroft Holmes' yang and vice versa, making the two together the star of the stories. The juxtaposition of their experiences, societal positions and power, and world views are very well illustrated throughout the stories. As would be expected in Victorian England, racism, classism, and socioeconomic distinctions are par for the course, and thoughtfully incorporated into the storytelling. Abdul-Jabbar and his writing partner, Anna Waterhouse, navigate these realities without sugarcoating their ugliness, while being a celebration of friendship and the happy truth that right minded people have always existed, and yet showing that even right minded people have room for growth and thoughtful introspection and ignorance can be remedied by people who wish to not remain so. I already miss not being wrapped up in their world.

Still not teaming up

This is the second book where I expected them to team up, but there was a secondary plot that separated the to again. The two plots had nothing to do with each other, so was just a distraction from the real cat and mouse drama we are used to in a Holmes novel. It's not bad, but I was hoping for much more.

Another stellar performance!

This is one of the best original audible series, Abdul-Jabbar is a true Holmesian and the reading by Damian Lynch is the icing on the cake.