​Mycroft Holmes

Review by Paul Fiander

Written by: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Anna Waterhouse
Narrated by: Damian Lynch
Length: 9 hrs and 47 mins 
Publisher: Audible Studios

To most the surname Holmes generally follows the rather obscure forename of Sherlock. The Deerstalker wearing detective though has always had an older brother with his own obscure name from the Conan Doyle canon. Mycroft is Sherlock's elder by seven years and has more than a few similarities to his more recognised and lauded younger sibling. The most striking of which is his deductive reasoning the biggest draw for me towards the enigmatic detective and so to Mycroft.

Deductive reasoning though can be a curse, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle the original creator and writer of Holmes was able to unravel mysteries before the reader's eyes in such an astute manner that imitation runs the risk of falling flat. In this Kareem Abdul Jabbar and Anna Waterhouse have come up trumps allowing Mycroft to analyse situations and discern the solution in his own indomitable style. There is no McGuffin style escape clauses in the story and you feel every twist and turn of the narrative as though you are actually present on this ocean spanning adventure.

​The book is set in the Victorian era and it's filled with cultural references that mark the setting as part of the narrative. From the London docks to the descriptions of tobacco consumption the world created by the writers feels true down to the offal throwing grotesqueness of the Victorian age. The English capital though is only part of the setting for this story as once the game is afoot Holmes is drawn overseas to fight an absent with supernatural overtones.

The change in location sees a 23 year old Holmes realise that although he is extremely clever he is not as worldly as he once thought. This attack on the very essence of Mycroft's psyche sets up a mental battle that gives the book a surprising and we'll thought out conflict. There are more physical battles that occur throughout the story that at times are quite gruesome. The action is fast paced and never drawn out, they realistic and completely forgo any type of heroic bravado. This again helps to draw the listener into the world the authors have created.

The narration by Damian Lynch is generally very strong, his Mycroft holds the air of an english gentleman throughout all the ordeals that are piled on our Mr Holmes. He also does well covering the mixture of accents he is given to tackle. The best example of this is the way he changes Douglas’s (Holmes friend and traveling companion) accent when he needs it to.

From the opening I think you can tell that I love Sherlock Holmes but if the duo of Waterhouse and Abdul-Jabbar keep coming up with books like this then I will be very happy to add a new Holmes to my favourite character list.