Mycroft Holmes

I picked up this book to see what Kareem Abdul Jabbar would be like as an author, and was delightfully surprised. The story is interesting and the dialogue between Mycroft (what a name!) and Douglas is great fun. Loved the descriptions about London and it’s social constraints

I LOVE all thing Holmesian. That being said, I bought this book because of my love for the Holmes brothers AND the location. Being that 21B Baker Street in located in London, and most of mystery solving takes place around England, this does NOT. It takes place in the West Indie Isles of Trinidad and surounding islands. I also LOVE all things Trinidad n Tobago. One of my most favorite vacation spots is the fabulous diving in Tobago. So, I've been to and through Trinidad many times. You can't get to Tobago without first going through Trinada, and that I'm very happy for. It gave me the added chance to meet the locals and and enjoy an evening in their open aired sidewalk bars. Usually I would ask my very friendly cabbie if he would want to join me for a beer before being dropped of at my mountain top stay. The answers were always "SURE! I'm getting off for the night and then we will finish the ride up top to the mountain." This book let you meet Mycroft's friends and thus getting to know Mycroft himself at a more vurnable level. Out of all the non-Doyle Holmes books I've read (and there has been MANY), this by far has been my favorite.Here is my imbarrassing confession..... I did not even realize who the author was until the very last page of the book, and read the "About The Author" part. My Bad! I'm blown away that the successful National Basketball Association’s all-time leading scorer, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, is also an accomplished award winning writter. WOW! Thank you Mr. Abdul-Jabbar for your excellect writting and your deep love for all things Holmesian too. I can't wait to start reading book #2 Mycroft and Sherlock, and then straight on to book #3 of Mycroft and Sherlock: The Empty Birdcage. I HIGHLY recommend this book for all Sir Conan Doyle book lovers. I'm sure Sir Doyle would approve and be proud of Mr. Abdul-Jabbar writting and story telling. Thanks again.

First Sentence: The old man had heard of them, of course.Young Mycroft Holmes is fresh out of Cambridge University, engaged to the beautiful Georgiana Sutton, who was raised in Trinidad, and working for the Secretary of State for War. Holmes’ good friend Cyrus Douglas, a free black also from Trinidad, receives word that the bodies of children are being found drained of blood. Georgiana suddenly departs for her home. Mycroft and Douglas decide to follow, never expecting the danger into which they are sailing.The book surprises us from the very beginning. The descriptions are very atmospheric and mysterious. And what, one might ask, are the douen and the lougarou? Fortunately, we do learn the answers quite soon. The author creates very visual descriptions and wonderful metaphors; “Horse and rider moved as if they knew every little knot and turn of Greater London. … All the while they nosed out the cleanest thoroughfares and most deserted byways, as if they and the city were gears in the noblest Swiss watch.” We are also presented with very exciting, action-filled scenes incorporating the sights, sounds, and smells of London. We are presented with a very clear sense of place and time.This is no placid Mycroft, but neither is he a particularly effective man of action. What we do see, very early on, are his skills of observation. It is fascinating observing the details of his observations to see to how he reaches his conclusions. This is a very different Mycroft than we’ve known before. He is young, inexperienced and has the weaknesses of youth. Yet the intellect is there. Douglas is a very interesting character and one who one feels could only have been written as well by Abdul-Jabbar. The story of his family is a sad and painful reminder of this country’s history. Douglas, at 10 years older, serves to provide the maturity that Mycroft lacks.The story has plenty of action, but also provides a lesson in history that certainly isn’t part of any ordinary curriculum. While most of us assume slavery ended after the Civil War, in fact it did not. We also learn the difference between indentured servants and slaves. The plot includes an excellent twist which is very well done and part of a very interesting secondary theme; “He is Prichard’s theory of moral insanity come to life,” he mused. “A human being devoid of the common thread of human decency.”“Mycroft Holmes” is a fascinating read on so many levels; history, action, and character—with a very satisfactory ending. It will be interesting to see whether this becomes a series.MYCROFT HOLMES (Hist Mys-Mycroft Holmes/Cyrus Douglas-London-1870/Victorian) – VGAbdul-Jabbar, Kareem and Anna Waterhouse – 1st Holmes bookTitan Books, Sept 2015

I read non-fiction books pretty exclusively but I found this book to be a terrific read. I was really invested in the story of Mycroft and the mystery of his fiance. I also appreciate that Abdul-Jabbar brought a lot of history into the book, including some of the ugliness of slavery and how blacks were treated in that time period.

Well written story with an interesting historical background. A most enjoyable read. This book was very entertaining and I would recommend it to Sherlock Holmes fans.

An enjoyable read, if a little far fetched. Unfortunately a little too riddled with amercanisms - hired thugs from the London underworld would be unlikely to ever refer to their little fingers as "pinkies", to name but one, and the constant reference to "British pounds" is odd - to sound authentic. Furthermore, Mycroft and Douglas's flight from Barnes Bridge to St. Giles (over 7 miles) through Central London on horseback was unfeasibly fast. There are plenty more little irritations that distract the reader, both in detail and in dialogue, that make it difficult to immerse oneself in the plot. There is also a constant moralstic undertone, which, while laudable in itself, seems out of kilter with the time in which it is set, on the parts of both the villains and the heroes.

I enjoyed Mycroft Holmes by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, although I found the book took a while to hit its stride. The second half of the book was packed with events, and left me in a whirlwind, though a satisfying one. I've rated it three stars, and won't be continuing with the series, having found the plot a bit lumpy and the characterisation of Mycroft a bit unusual.

Good story nearly spoiled for this British reader by frequent unreflected and really quite simple to correct Americanisms/ assumptions (Sherlock "graduating" from public school; a "transfer" from Cheltenham Ladies College [a school not an American style College] to Girton - impossible] and almost innumerable others. Honestly, if you don't want to share credit, fine. I'd do it for free and anon just to spare us all. Alternatively, Do The Research.

Poor quality printing, on beige paper in tiny N6 type, too uncomfortable to read

Well worth the read. Brilliantly drawn characters. Lovely to have a Holmes bring us outside London. I read it in hours (it's that good).