Here's yet another Sherlockian pastiche off the presses. I buy 'em all, hoping to come across another Sam Siciliano's Angel of the Opera or another Laurie R. King's The Beekeeper's Apprentice. Or at least a Jan Walker's Singular Case of the Duplicate Holmes, but my advice for you who've arrived to this page and are considering buying this book is "Keep on going. Nothing to see here."

As Holmes pastiches go, this particular book isn't too bad. But neither is it very gripping. It's just sort of...there. Out of the dozen or so installments that I've read in the continuing non-Doyle adventures of the Great Detective, this little outing does little to distinguish itself.

We get no real insight into the Holmesian character, and certainly none into the often-overlooked Watson. (In truth, a lot of the recent pastiches use this duo only as an excuse to introduce other historical or fictional characters that the author is far more interested in investigating.) The antagonists are singularly bland, and the supporting cast is not altogether memorable.

The key cryptographic puzzle is rather intricate, though, so much so that several diagrams are required in order for the reader to make any sense of the whole thing. It's fairly clever.

However, the denouement is just ludicrous and the fulfillment of Holmes' plan requires that everyone involved should unwittingly act out their part by undertaking the most irrational actions. The whole climax feels forced.

My biggest complaint? The villains are threatening Holmes' client from the moment he sets foot in England and wish to prevent him from going to a certain place, when, in fact, they have no evidence that he ever intends to go there, nor that anything he might do would in the slightest way be disadvantageous to them. In fact, as it all turns out, the bad guys have no way of solving a riddle without his assistance in the first place, so they would've been better advised to have duped him into acting on their behalf. But perhaps I quibble.

In any case, it's a quick read for those who absolutely must have a Holmes fix, and the notes at the end of the book are not without interest.

Right up until the end, this is one of the best Holmes pastiches I have read in years. Holmes and Watson are depicted pretty much bang on, there is plenty of authentic local 1895 color in various British Isle locales, and there are some interesting characters for Holmes and Watson to interact with, plus an ancient, secret message for Holmes to decode.

But at the end, things fall apart. First, Holmes' preposterous plan for dealing with the three villains would, in real life, have led to a mass grave covering the bodies of Holmes, Watson, their client, his son, and a number of Baker Street Irregulars! Second, the nature of the "Devil's Grail" itself is a huge, huge letdown. But right up to these final pages, things move along well, and the entertainment value of the proceedings is unquestionable.

I do have one other reservation about the novel, but it is a reservation I have about fully half of the hundred or so novel-length Holmes pastiches I have read over the years. Namely, the villains act exactly contrary to their revealed motivations. They want to find the secret hidden in the ruins of Glastonbury, but they spend half the novel preventing the one man who can find the secret for them from going there! All they have to do is wait until Col. Harden takes his photos, then steal them. But instead they are involved in a hundred pages of nonsensical foolishness to PREVENT Harden from getting the info they need. Then, with Holmes on the case, all they need to do is to wait until Holmes finds the Grail and take it, but insead they interfere constantly for another 70 pages. Of course, the answer to the paradox is that the author could not fill his pages with action unless the villains behaved this way! But I wish more authors would try to find another way to keep the reader's attention besides having the villains act like the Coyote in the Roadrunner cartoons throughout the book.

Since I began reading this series, I had occasionally wondered if Penelope "Nell" Huxleigh, sensible parson's daughter and friend to the great Irene Adler, would ever find a special "someone" of her own. Irene, after all, has been happily married to Godfrey since the end of "Good Night, Mr. Holmes" (no spoiler there, as this is revealed in the Holmes version of the tale). I was pleasantly surprised with the nature of the match the author chose to make-- fitting with Nell's background, yet appropriate to her present and future. Quentin is simultaneously able to hold Nell up as an icon of respectability, yet admire her for her present adventures (much as she denies them). And in doing this, he encourages her to see herself more as we, the readers, have come to see her-- competent, practical, and intelligent.

The period references to the "Great Game"-- the ongoing struggle for domination between England and Russia, the two major world powers of the day-- were also detailed and well-written, and added a satisfying texture to Watson's past, as well as adding suspense to the plot. (Those who liked this aspect of the story might also like Margaret Ball's "Flameweaver" and "Changeweaver" novels, though these are historical fantasy rather than mystery.)

Oh, and the mystery itself was pretty good too. :)

I find this book, as others in the series, a delightful addition to the Sherlockian canon. The adventures of Irene Adler loop in and around the known timeline of Sherlock's exploits, and the few tantalizing glimpses we have of the Great Detective keep him very definitely in character, unlike many ham-handed attempts by other authors. I highly recommend the entire series, and can't wait until it moves into the mysterious 2-year hiatus so unsatisfactorily explained by Mr. Holmes after his supposed death.

I have read other supposed Sherlock Holmes take offs, This one succeeds by not recreating Sherlock Holmes but one of the characters from the original series. I enjoyed the female viewpoint and the tidbits of Sherlockian lore she weaves through the adventure. This was the first of the series that I have read, I have just bought the previous two and will spend a couple of great nights reading them. Hope Ms. Douglas bring out more in the series.

I had mistakenly thought that Wrox books were held to a higher standard. First getting a taste for them going through both of Rob Vieira's two SQL Server Programming books and regarding them as the finest technical books I've ever seen. However this Professional SQL Server 2000 XML is a disappointment. Part of the problem lies with having 12 different authors because it seems a bit jumpy. I think I'll really try to limit my future purchases to single source efforts. Also, no care was taken with the code examples that you can download from the Wrox website. The book shows the source but there is really no way of really matching the example to the source other than guessing the name. Often I've needed to open up all 15 or so files in the directory to realize that the particular example is not included. I'm picking my way through but it is not pleasant.

It is a good book as far as explaning what SQL Server has to offer regarding XML capabilities but it should have covered the case studies fully with the .Net Framework. Also, it covers very good the IIS configuration, and how to manage XML Templates, XPath and Schemas. The book has a migration example from ASP to ASP.Net which does not cover ADO.Net. If you want a rich source on how to integrate SQLXML and the .Net Framework THIS IS NOT THE BOOK.

I looked at two other SQL Server 2000 XML books, but found this one to be the best - covering almost everything on SQL Server 2000 XML. Very well written, nice examples help understand the technology better. The chapter on Updategrams is very useful. I wanted to learn updategrams and this chapter covers it nicely to get started using them in production.

Forgot to add, author/contributor Eric Schiller is nothing more than a mouthpiece for Dogmatic ideas. He wouldn't know an original chess idea if it came up and bit him on his you know what. His mentality is the sort that attacked Aron Nimzowitsch's ideas before Nimzo proved his critics wrong. Take anything that Schiller or his associates say with a grain of salt.

An entertaining book, yet lacking any real refutations to irregular openings for the average to club player. Irregular openings are played for a reason, for shock value. Of course highly ranked players usually defeat such openings, not because the opening itself is inferior (in most cases) but because the player facing these openings is quite simply the better player. I have seen highly ranked players use irregular openings with success against players supposedly booked up on how to combat them. If IM Michael Basman and Deep Blue can win with 'garbage' like the Grob against other Masters, then obviously it's not as bad as it's reputation. This book is merely a starting point for ideas on how to combat such openings. If a particular opening is causing you difficulties, get your best software program out and research the problem yourself. If anything, this book shows players who use irregular openings the possible defences/attacks they can expect, which will just confuse the issue even further. I give this book a 3 star rating, which i consider neutral, because it actually helps *both* the player facing these openings and the player who uses them.

This is a good book. It's fun, interesting, and sometimes enthralling. The book can be hard to put down.

This does not enable you to beat offbeat openings. That requires years of experience. There is no magic pill. A better player will usually beat you from an inferior position. A master will beat you even if he gives you odds (a free move or a missing piece). This book helps you to compete with players at your own level who are tyring to get an easy victory by surprising you.

Most openings have only about half-a-column of information. Some have several pages, with one or two complete games for illustration. This is not the place to learn a repertoire. It's a place to gain some confidence that you can equalize early.

It's also a place to get some ideas. Why not throw an offbeat opening at your friends now and then? "All openings are playable by non-masters," sayeth a wise man. Have some fun. Create some very strange-looking positions.

As long as you aren't hoping to win in the opening, but only to get through it, this is a very good book.

And it is the ONLY book by Schiller about which the opposite could not be said. Most of his books are riddled with errors, outlined with deceptively useless disorganization, ladden with overwhelming quantities of data, and marred with occasionally suspicious analysis. This book is the opposite in every way. Some people give the credit to Watson's contribution to the annotations, but I think Schiller simply spent more time on this one. His other books show hints of utility but fail in the details.

The point is this: Don't let Schiller's other books deter you from buying this one. It really is a decent book. 3 1/2 stars.

There is nothing unusual about another Sherlock Holmes novel - not even one in which the Great Detective is pitted against the best known uncaught criminal of the nineteenth century, Jack the Ripper. Where 'Bloodguilty' varies from the pack is in that the Holmes portion of the book is only about one-half; the rest is taken up with the twentieth century consequences of the actions of the Ripper.

The story revolves around a diary of Dr. Watson kept hidden by the Baker Street Society, who "both guard and insure the immortal continuance of the world's greatest consulting detective and his faithful chronologist, Dr. Watson." The good doctor has specified that this diary not be released until 100 years after the last entry. And now it is time to reveal the truth about Sherlock Holmes and the man who was known as Jack the Ripper...

But, the legacy of the Ripper lives on, and will stop at nothing to prevent the truth getting out.

Fairly well-written, the story doesn't contain too many twists and turns that can't be predicted, but exactly what tack a particular author would take with this kind of story isn't predictable. Raymond Thor produces a creditable effort, but not one that is not necessarily superior to other efforts.

This was one of the most enjoyable books I have read in a long time. I was caught up in it from the first page and couldn't put it down! I just had to find out what was going to happen next. The story is a little terrifiying because it seems so plausible. The author guided me through each chapter with just enough to keep me wanting more. Now that's a great book!

In a great novel, Sherlock Holmes and Jack the Ripper are presented in a most unusual way. The author cleverly forms the foundation of a mystery that spans a 110 year period. The story begins in 1888 and ends in 1998 in the deserts of Southern California where the mystery is finally unraveled. This book kept me on the edge of my seat!

Again, I think it's immoral to borrow this great name if one hasn't the slightest intention to bring it to life. This name means not only the person himself, but also a beloved genre of detective stories and a cherished memory of good old days when they were thriving. One can forgive an awkward imitation, but not most stories in this collection, where the person named Sherlock Holmes is certainly not the best and the wisest man I've ever known.

The basic premise of this book is to have contemporary famous authors write stories in the styles of deceased famous authors ostensibly working from notes of Sherlock Holmes' cases left behind and never written up by Dr. John Watson. With me so far? Good. This book is obviously an experiment and as such it fails overall. Perhaps three of the stories are outstanding, so much so that they measure up to the best of the original canon. Most do not really reflect the styles of the putative authors but that is not always a flaw. The "Hemingway" tale, for instance, is far better written and much more entertaining than anything Papa ever wrote himself. Another flaw, significant to dedicated Sherlockians, is the glaring lack of familiarity with their subject shown by too many of the authors. One wonders if they have read many Sherlock Holmes adventures or at least watched teleplay versions. Two or three of the stories are absolutely excrement and never should have been included in this collection. Outstanding among the latter is the story by "Jack Kerouac." In his introduction, the editor admits that the tale has no relationship whatsoever to Watson's notes on a Holmes case. In attempting to read the first few pages, it becomes patently clear that the story lacks other important elements like a plot, characters, and a purpose for existing. The editor's reasons for including this piece are beyond even the powers of the Master to deduce. Although the premise of the collection is certainly original, it is ultimately unsuccessful and hopefully will not be repeated. Far better to have writers recreate stories in the voices of Watson and Holmes themselves rather than in the false voices of others.

'Resurrected Holmes' is a somewhat convoluted idea well-executed. It is a collection of short Sherlock Holmes stories supposedly written by other well-known authors. In other words, the actual authors who wrote the stories had to write them in the style of the purported authors, who were supposedly endeavouring to write in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Watsonian voice.

Now, that may or may not take your fancy. What is needs to be said is that, by and large, the stories in this volume are of an excellent quality, so even if the literary conceit that is the book's starting point fails to please you, the stories themselves should.

For true Holmes completists, each story is one of the unchronicled stories referred to by Watson in his accounts of Holmes' investigations (with the exception of the final story, which reveals the truth behind 'The Adventure of the Second Stain').

In some cases (for example, 'The Adventure of the Boulevard Assassin' and 'The Madness of Colonel Warburton', ascribed to Jack Kerouac and Dashiell Hammett respectively) the voice of the putative author occassionally overwhelms the Holmesian nature and may be a substantial distraction for those reading this book purely as a Sherlock Holmes collection.

However, some of the stories are good enough to warrant the price of admission alone. I particularly enjoyed 'The Adventure of Ricoletti of the Club Foot (and his abominable wife)', notionally written by P.G. Wodehouse, in that it managed to be both a convincing Holes story while also being a comedy of manners that its putative author might well have appreciated.

Marvin Kaye knows his Sherlock Holmes, and this volume plainly displays his (and the contributing authors) deep-felt love and admiration for the Holmesian canon. Recommended.

Velo Press during the Tour de France runs an on-line ticker for each stage, which is quite good for those who do not have access to live television coverage. This book consists mostly of snippets of that on-line ticker and gives a very fragmented feel to the reader. After a while it grows tiresome to read of Mr. Noname making a break or covering a break. There is just a whole lot more to the Tour than an endless recitation of obscure names as they jockey for position throughout a six hour stage. A far more interesting angle would be to explain how so-called domestiques do so well in so many of the stages. What are differences between them and the favorites?

I would have expected an insiders book on the Tour de France to supply the reader with far more technical information as well as explanations of the rigors, demands and behaviors affecting the participants. What are typical meals? How can so many calories be consumed without causing complications? How is hydration maintained? How can a rider survive over 2,000 miles on a bike in three weeks? What special measures are taken. How does a rider not feel good on a ride yet continue at a level that would amaze even a good amateur cyclist? What does it mean to "have good legs"? What are the riding styles - in saddle or out? What gearing is used? What manufacturers equipment is used? There was a brief section on time-trial bikes in the book. How can a cyclist scream down mountain stages at 60-70 mph? Most good cyclists would not survive even one such descent.

Few books are written on professional bicycling racing, but the Tour de France does pique general interest. Here is a chance to explain the real world of cycling: its difficulties, complications, and requirements. Put the race coverage in the context of a broader view. Did the winners somehow cope with all of that better or is there another explanation? This book seems to have been written exclusively for the small world of elite cyclists who know all about professional cycling if not the actual participants. If that is the objective, label the next book "For elite cyclists only."

Spring cleaning can be fun if you are cleaning with Paddington Bear. This book helps children learn their colors, while re-enforcing them with bright illustrations. The book, writeen without a storyline, allows children to tell their own version. Also, there are some points in the book when the different colors are mixed together, helping children understand this process. A great addition to a preschooler's bookshelf.

This colorful and well illustrated book helps children learn their opposites, through bold words and illustrations of these words. Although only one word is on each page, the illustrations lend themselves to discussion about the pictures and why the pages are different and opposites. Great for helping children learn opposites. The book even includes an end for children to match the opposites. Great addition to a preschool or your young child's collection.

This tale of Sherlock Holmes investigating the disappearance of some bonds, prior to their issue, in the vaults of the Bank of England and in high society is an odd mixture.

On the one hand, the mystery is well constructed and its investigation, including the slow piecing together of disparate pieces of information to create a sensible whole is excellent.

On the other, the story is related in such a clinical and passionless fashion that it fails to excite the interest of the reader, if appealing to the intellect.

Probably on par with some of the lower-average Holmes stories from the pen of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.