This little book is one of the most insightful books I have ever read. It makes a very convincing argument that Sherlock Holmes had a great understanding of the human spirit, and as a detective, brought both justice and mercy to bear in his cases. The author knows his Holmes literature very well and also pulls in a great deal of other literature from the mystery genre in a way that provokes a great deal of curiousity. I found myself reading and rereading a lot of mystery fiction after finishing this book.

This book will give you many insights into both Sherlock Holmes and Conan Doyle, along with other mystery literature. I have read the book through several times, and it has really deepened my appreciation of mystery literature and Holmes in general. I would put it into the "desert island" category of books.

A very entertaining way of looking at the questions of life, using the Sherlockian Canon as your guide.

I found this book a very pleasant surprise. Sherlock Holmes on religion? Surely this could not be a serious book. Then I read a paragraph at random and was fascinated--and immediately bought a copy. Of course Stephen Kendrick edits his quotes from Holmes to show the detective's nobler sentiments; there is none of the negativity here (no reference to drugs or other evidence of the character's darker nature.) The book is very inspirational and is a real pleasure to read. I feel that there is no coincidence that early religious plays were called "Mystery Plays"--Mr. Kendrick argues that we are all detectives investigating the greatest mystery of all.

One should also remember that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was committed to the Spiritualist cause at about the same time he started writing the Holmes stories, and these tales paid for and possibly helped propagandize his own religious views. Kendrick has simply uncovered the message that Doyle wrote in the stories a hundred years ago. He has done a very capable job.

Night Watch presents Holmes in a slightly different setting, but unfortunately, it is only looking at how he uses unusual bits of info and the bit of theological interplay that makes the book truly interesting. For fans of Sherlock Holmes and Father Brown, I recommend getting a different book.....

Stephen Kendrick enters the Holmes pastiche realm with this meeting of Holmes and Father Brown. Creating a murder mystery set at a secretive international religious conclave, Kendrick sets an interesting table. Populated with familiar characters (Mycroft, Lestrade, Watson) and using the clever excuse that this was Watson's undiluted (by Doyle) account; Kendrick creates a page turner. But the little errors kept nagging at me. Like when Holmes states he never caught the Ripper because "he was too random, impulsive and totally haphazard," then in the next paragraph Holmes says, "The odder the murder, the easier it is to solve." The Ripper murders were not odd? Later Kozan, the Buddhist monk, compliments Holmes twice on his familiarity with Buddhist principles. Did he forget the first conversation? I'm usually not that much of a nitpicker but these types of errors interfered with my enjoyment of this book.

Any author who undertakes to "do" Arthur Conan Doyle takes a great risk.

Trying to emulate the great Mr. Doyle and his Sherlock Holmes stories can be dangerous,
indeed. But Stephen Kendrick in "Night Watch" has done a splendid job of presenting yet
another Sherlockian story. Naturally (and would we expect otherwise?), this one is a
long-lost Watson recollection, but no matter.

Kendrick's story is quickly afoot and the pace never slows down. Tis the season:
Christmas Day, 1902, in London. A group of international religious leaders are meeting
and, voila, a corpse in their midst! A priest is found murdered, a real grisly affair.
Immediate authorities are without a prayer, and Holmes is summoned. Kendrick presents
all the standard clue requirements (red-herrings, too!), baffling to everyone but our
Sherlock. In an interesting--and delightful--twist, Kendrick enlists the aid of the liturgical
side, too, in the form of young Father Brown!

Kendrick has done his homework well and the novel provides great insight into the
setting/situation, as well as presenting a great story line. Not being a totally committed
dyed in the wool Doyle fan (I can appreciate him, but he's not my favorite writer of the
genre!), I found Kendrick's "version" an exciting piece to read, one that certainly kept my
interest as his suspense is well-paced and captivating. A fun book to read! (Billyjhobbs@tyler.net)