Description (from cover):'In the spring of 1932, with Londoners terrorized by a series of brutal murders, the private detective agency of Messrs. Singleton and Trelawney quietly opens its doors in Bloomsbury.
The first person to call on their services is a worried Lady Arthur Conan Doyle. She tells of mysterious events at 221 Baker Street--and a premonition that the London murders signal terrible danger for mankind.
Their investigation will take our intrepid heroes into a world of seances and spirits. Aided by the most famous detective of all time, they must draw on their knowledge of the imaginary to find the perpetrators of some very real and bloody crimes before they strike again...'
My thoughts:
This book started out fantastically and then went downhill from there. It wasn't the paranormal element that threw me off, it was that the ending was a little jumbled and disoriented. This book is the debut of the Singleton and Trelawney mystery series and it features Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and his famous Sherlock Holmes. Singleton and Trelawney have just opened a detective agency in London and they are surprised to find that their first client is none other than the widow of the late Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Lady Conan Doyle is distressed by some paranormal disturbances that have been taking place at 221 Baker Street. Singleton and Trelawney set out to discover exactly what is going on and they find themselves in the midst of the investigation of several brutal murders.
This book focuses heavily on the spiritual movement and seances. If you know anything about the life of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, you will know that he was a prominent figure in the spiritualist movement. He attended a lot of seances and believed heavily in speaking to dead after they have passed on. The author uses those facts about the real life author and weaves them into this story. I adore Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Sherlock Holmes so that was a real treat for me as a reader. What disappointed me about this book was the fact that the ending felt overly rushed and chaotic. There was a lot happening at the end and I think that it took away from the fact that the first half of the book was actually really good.
There is another book following this one and I am curious to read it. I wonder if Sherlock Holmes and his creator turn up in that one. I am willing to give this author and this series another shot, but if the ending is inconclusive and rushed like this one, I am afraid that it will not exactly be my cup of tea. If you love Sherlock Holmes, I am curious to see if you enjoyed this book or felt that it did an injustice to the famous literary detective. I would love to hear your thoughts on this book and whether you enjoyed it or felt the same as I did.
Overall Rating: 2.5
Title: The Baker Street Phantom
Author: Fabrice Bourland
Series: Singleton & Trelawney Mystery #1
Publisher: Gallic Books
Publication Date: August 2, 2010
Pages: 352
Genre: Historical Mystery
Get It: Amazon
Disclaimer: This book was given to me by the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for my honest review. I reviewed this book without compensation of any kind. All thoughts and opinions are solely mine.
