Sherlock Holmes and Mr. Hyde

The Classified Dossier Series, Book 2

By: Christian Klaver

Narrated by: Tom Woosnam

A deftly crafted, scintillating mash-up of Victorian mystery and horror—Sherlock Holmes and Mr Hyde encounter villains with unfathomable, terrifying abilities.

1903. A darkness has descended on London. A series of grisly murders are uncovered, trophies taken, bodies arranged, and soon there are whispers of Jack the Ripper’s return.

A new client arrives at Baker Street seeking Sherlock Holmes’s help: Dr. Jekyll claims his friend has been wrongfully accused of the hideous crimes, a friend called Mr. Edward Hyde, whose very existence relies on a potion administered by the doctor himself.

But the case becomes more complicated, more unsettling than simply proving Mr. Hyde’s innocence—for Holmes and Watson unearth beastly transformations, a killer who moves unseen, a secret organization, and then find a traitor in their midst.

©2022 Christian Klaver (P)2022 Blackstone Publishing

Wild and Crazy

A wild and crazy story I was not prepared for, surprised at every turn. How the narrator kept up with the rapid voice changes was amazing while maintaining clear dictation with multiple accents. I would not have been able to follow without his consistency.

Solid sequel

Continues the author’s clever new approach to telling Sherlock Holmes stories. Worth listening, especially if you like the previous story about Holmes and Dracula.

I tried

I was lost because I had not tread the first in the series...far to many characters that were either in the first book or will be coming in later books.

A solid entry into the series.

I don't have much to add that others haven't already stated. A fine story with all the sorts of action, thrills, and mystery the series has given readers so far.

What I'd like to address though, is only important inasmuch as there are more books to come.
Character progression.

There are few "rules" writers can rally cling to when it comes to creating characters and making them feel alive. It's all up to their imaginations of course. but still.

1. Don't make your characters annoying (unless it's a part of their personality...and even then there's a limit to what a reader will accept/digest).
2. Don't make your character stupid or obviously and repeatedly obtuse (see rule #1).

John Watson has been around now for a little while and similarly experienced his "condition" for a while. His reactions in this book, however, remains static. It's like he's still confounded by what he is and what the ramifications of his condition portends. Flexibility...adaptation....an open mind. While these things are not a given, when faced with such extraordinary circumstances you either adapt or you die.
Watson's obtuseness in reaction and reasoning with what's going on around him, his lack of personal awareness, his lack of personal growth...is presented less as a challenge for him to overcome but is used as a mechanic. A stumbling block that will dictate how he responds...again and again and again.
Eventually this will go from being annoying to being a serious detractor to the story.

Everyone changes over time. The only ones who don't are dead.

So too I find a bit ridiculous that Sherlock, imminently logical as he is....would have to have explained to him, by Watson of all people, the rational behind why the end had to be the way it was.

That's not being thick-headed, that's being purposely obtuse.

I hope that this does not continue in the future.

Elementary...but fun.

In his long literary existence Sherlock Holmes has matched wits and tested his mettle against some of the most famous malefactors in history. Cthulhu and the Old Ones, Count Dracula, Erik the Phantom, and even Pinhead himself have all encountered Sherlock Holmes in one story or another, and thats without including Professor Moriarty. While these stories can be (and often are) harmless, if amusing, pastiches of Arthur Conan Doyle's original stories they are also far too often frustratingly predictable. We know the culprit from cultural osmosis and the cases become an exercise in tedium until Holmes meets the famous villain. Theres also the problem of the villains themselves. Because of that aforementioned familiarity, the authors often feel the need to go broad and give readers the monster they know, the characters they've seen one hundred times before in other movies, books, and television shows. This unfortunate but common problem often leads to handicapping investment in the story by keeping readers from engaging in the mystery because they know who the culprit is and exactly why they're committing their crimes. This is a problem not even the author of this book has escaped in earlier entries. What I like about Klaver's "Sherlock Holmes and Mr. Hyde" however, is that he's showing me an Edward Hyde I'd never quite seen before as well as giving me a mystery that kept me guessing...for the most part. To be sure, the mystery itself isn't necessarily going to be going up there with Holmes' most interesting cases ever written but it's engaging enough and allows for some pretty interesting character work. I love the carousing and debauched, but loyal and intelligent Mister Hyde that's constantly having to check his ferocity with his desire for justice. It’s also a delight to see Watson's prudishness conflicting with Hyde's wanton sense of fun. While it does have its problems, I would have to say that much like Klaver's previous entry " Sherlock Holmes and Count Dracula", there's enough original character work and fun to be had to make this worth listening to.

If you enjoyed "Sherlock Holmes and Mister Hyde" and are looking for similar titles then check out "Sherlock Holmes and the Angel Of The Opera" by Sam Siciliano, "A Study In Emerald" by Neil Gaiman, "Professor Moriarty: The Hound Of The D'Urbervilles" by Kim Newman, or "The Canary Trainer" by Nicholas Meyer.

Sherlock Holmes and classic monsters of littérature!

I love these novels! The first with Dracula was a great romp in what would happen if two towering pillars of littérature were to meet eye to fangs. But the second novel is even better, even bigger, and even more difficult to put down and the chemistry between Hyde and the company of Holmes is whimsically enjoyable and I was looking forward to more interactions with every chapter. I highly recommend this novel and it’s series and I cannot wait for the third novel as Holmes and Watson navigate the beguiling and erotic narrative of Oscar Wilde’s The portrait of Dorian Grey.

worst

I cannot stress how bad this narration was. they truly picked the absolute wrong person to tell this story. the voices were horrible.

Uninteresting and boring

Uninteresting story and even more uninteresting narrator. The narrator is flat and boring. It’s a if he’s just reading out loud I a classroom certainly not trying to bring the story to life.