The Sign of Fear

By: Robert Ryan

Narrated by: Richard Burnip

Length: 13 hrs and 12 mins

Publisher's Summary

The skies above London hum with danger. And in the Channel, enemies lie in wait....

Autumn, 1917. London is not the city that Dr. John Watson and Sherlock Holmes once bestrode like giants. Terror has come from the sky, and Londoners are scurrying underground in fear.

Then a twin tragedy strikes Watson. An old friend, Staff Nurse Jennings, is on a boat-ambulance torpedoed in the Channel with no survivors. And his concert-going companion, Sir Gilbert Hardy, is kidnapped.

Then comes the gruesome ransom demand for Sir Gilbert and four others, which will involve terrible mutilation unless the demands are met.

Help comes from an unlikely source when Watson finds himself face-to-face with his old ruthless adversary, the "She Wolf", Miss Pillbody. She makes him a remarkable offer, and so an unlikely partnership is formed - the enemy spy and Sherlock Holmes' faithful companion, a detective duo that will eventually uncover a shocking case of state-sponsored murder and find Watson onboard a German bomber, with a crew intent on setting London ablaze.

©2016 Robert Ryan (P)2016 Simon & Schuster

Watson shines as a beacon of sanity in horrible times.

Robert Ryan is such a gifted writer and his ability to bring Watson and Sherlock to us in such a unique way is genius. There are floods of books being written now using the wonderful characters of Watson and Holmes. Most are pathetic attempts to sell books that have no relation to the original characters so beautifully conceived by Arthur Conan Doyle. Robert Ryan's book are the exception. His ability to get inside the original characters personalities and present them at a different time and place is amazing. I could listen to his books for hours, oh yes, I have. All of them. Richard Burnip is the perfect narrater. He sounds like Watson. He gives him just the right tone and emotion of a perfect English gentleman of his time. He makes Watson sound like what he is, a really good man. Dealing with terrible people with honesty and integrity. I do wish he and Holmes shared more time together in the books. There is nothing like the two of them working together. I also wish there was a bit less graphic violence. But the rest is perfection. Let's hope Ryan brings us another novel with Watson and Holmes. They should live forever!

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Dr Watson and Holmes continue their adventures.

I've read all the Robert Ryan stories of Dr Watson, set during the List World War and can really recommend them. Yes, Sherlock Holmes fans will enjoy these continuations of their lives but they are also excellently written thrillers with a degree of violence in the crimes. The historical background is authentic and interesting and Dr Watson is portrayed as the intelligent and sympathetic medical man that he obviously was. The readings of all four books by Stephen Burnip are brilliant - his voices for each character really clever, particularly the smooth tones of Holmes who Watson hears prompting him on through the cases. A five star listen. One suggestion - each story stands alone but listening to the books in order will give you a lot of Watson and Holmes's experiences and references.