I seem to be in a Sherlock Holmes kick. I read a slew of books in the same vein as Sherlock Holmes in hopes that it will help pass the time until the new season of Sherlock returns to TV. Some of the reads were entertaining while others were a complete miss.
Description: It is the dawn of World War I, and Sherlock Holmes has been dead for 20 years. Holmes'' enemy - Professor James Moriarty - is a lost man. MI5 blackmails Moriarty into finding Holmes'' long-lost brother, Mycroft, but what at first appears to be a routine case leads to a web of intrigue that involves a psychic box and its creator, a woman from Moriarty''s past, and a new villain that threatens to be greater than Moriarty ever was!
Review: Moriarty has always been a fascinating character. He has been commonly called Sherlock Holmes' arch-nemesis. Yet, any Sherlock Holmes reader would know, we know very little of him besides the mentions here or there since he barely appears in the stories. To find a graphic novel that attempts to shed some light on this mysterious character piqued my curiosity and I thought I would give it a try.
Daniel Corey has created a Moriarty that is tangible and easy to understand, but he is far different from his original description created by Doyle. Instead of being an older scholarly gentlemen, he is much younger and comes across as a secret spy. He is not as formidable as I hoped him to be and nor is he smarter than Holmes. While the changes to Moriarty character is jarring, it does make sense since this book has a lot of action.
The plot of the graphic novel was a bit hard to follow at times. From what I can gather the story takes place in an alternative universe where Sherlock Holmes was the one who went over the falls at Reichenbach, and Professor Moriarty who survives, albeit in a much diminished form. His criminal network is all but lost and he is reduced to being “a sort of investigator for the criminal element”, when he is called upon to find the missing Mycroft Holmes and at last finds the first real challenge he's had since 'The Final Problem'. There were many new characters that were in the graphic novel that I was unfamiliar with and could have used a better introduction. In addition to having problems with the plot of the graphic novel, I also was not a fan of the artwork. The color black and dark red was used heavily and made the panels hard to read.
Overall Moriarty has a great premise and concept, but the execution of the story and drawings leave you with wanting more. I don't plan on continuing this series.
Rating: 2 stars
Words of Caution: There is strong violence, some language, and some nudity. Recommended for mature teen readers and up.
If you like this book try: Moriarty: The Lazarus Tree by Daniel Corey, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen by Alan Moore
Review: Moriarty has always been a fascinating character. He has been commonly called Sherlock Holmes' arch-nemesis. Yet, any Sherlock Holmes reader would know, we know very little of him besides the mentions here or there since he barely appears in the stories. To find a graphic novel that attempts to shed some light on this mysterious character piqued my curiosity and I thought I would give it a try.
Daniel Corey has created a Moriarty that is tangible and easy to understand, but he is far different from his original description created by Doyle. Instead of being an older scholarly gentlemen, he is much younger and comes across as a secret spy. He is not as formidable as I hoped him to be and nor is he smarter than Holmes. While the changes to Moriarty character is jarring, it does make sense since this book has a lot of action.
The plot of the graphic novel was a bit hard to follow at times. From what I can gather the story takes place in an alternative universe where Sherlock Holmes was the one who went over the falls at Reichenbach, and Professor Moriarty who survives, albeit in a much diminished form. His criminal network is all but lost and he is reduced to being “a sort of investigator for the criminal element”, when he is called upon to find the missing Mycroft Holmes and at last finds the first real challenge he's had since 'The Final Problem'. There were many new characters that were in the graphic novel that I was unfamiliar with and could have used a better introduction. In addition to having problems with the plot of the graphic novel, I also was not a fan of the artwork. The color black and dark red was used heavily and made the panels hard to read.
Overall Moriarty has a great premise and concept, but the execution of the story and drawings leave you with wanting more. I don't plan on continuing this series.
Rating: 2 stars
Words of Caution: There is strong violence, some language, and some nudity. Recommended for mature teen readers and up.
If you like this book try: Moriarty: The Lazarus Tree by Daniel Corey, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen by Alan Moore
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Ooh, yeah dying for Sherlock to return to TV! And luckily there are a ton of Sherlock-themed reads to pass the time. I would love to see more about Moriarty, but... this graphic novel definitely doesn't seem like something I would like either.
I haven't read Sherlock but I would try the graphic novels. Might skip this one. Too bad that it just didn't work for you. I have a feeling it would be the same for me.
I haven't read much about Sherlock, or any characters from the original stories. I did read one about a young Sherlock (middle grade) and it was great. I don't like graphic novels but I'm sorry this wasn't better for you!
It's too bad the panels where hard to read due to the color scheme and things were a bit jumbled and confusing overall. Sounds like you really need to have a firm grasp on the characters in Sherlock's world before diving into this one!
The red and black combo just sounds like lots of death to me. I know this wouldn't appeal to me as I haven't read much of the Sherlock Holmes by Doyle. I've read some by other authors. My info on Moriarty comes from the show. Sorry this was disappointing.