The Private Diaries of Dr. Watson

The following stories have come, not from the good Doctor’s journals but from his private diaries, which he had stipulated in his last will and testament were strictly NOT FOR PUBLICATION. In his time, the events recorded could well have been considered scandalous, but in this century—hardly! A man in drag is no novelty, nor is it any great scandal to have an illegitimate child, but in Watson’s day, even the hint of such things could ruin a man’s name, reputation and career—small wonder Watson was concerned that his diaries would not fall into the wrong hands. We see an unexpected side to Sherlock and his brother Mycroft in The Illegitimate Daughter when they revisit the Holmes ancestral home and meet the elusive third brother, Sherrinford. For Watson’s it is an intriguing look into the Holmes brothers’ early life. Holmes is at his professional best in The Seaside Horror when hunting for a violent axe murderer in the picturesque village of Clovelly, or when solving the murder of a gardener at his Aunt’s private girl’s school in Death Amidst the Orchids. He’s almost stumped when tackling a serial killer in The Full Moon Killer inadvertently embarrassing Watson in the process, yet proves to be Watson’s staunchest ally when Watson is arrested for murder in The Trial of Dr. Watson. He doesn’t hesitate to step outside the law to prove Watson’s innocence, and even Mary Watson and Mrs Hudson gets involved in the action. That old favourite, Colonel Warbuton’s Madness is finally mentioned in humorous detail, while Viper’s Nest just reinforces why Holmes distrusts women. In the Lively Corpse there is a particularly resilient butler, who despite being dead and buried keeps returning to terrify the staff at his place of employment and in the remaining cases we gain greater insight into both Holmes and Watson’s characters, their strengths, their foibles and their attitudes to fortune and the unfortunate. A must read for all lovers of Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes.