REVIEW: Moriarty by Anthony Horowitz

SYNOPSIS

• Hardcover: 304 pages

• Publisher: Harper (December 9, 2014)

The game is once again afoot in this thrilling mystery from the bestselling author of The House of Silk, sanctioned by the Conan Doyle estate, which explores what really happened when Sherlock Holmes and his arch nemesis Professor Moriarty tumbled to their doom at the Reichenbach Falls.

Internationally bestselling author Anthony Horowitz’s nail-biting new novel plunges us back into the dark and complex world of detective Sherlock Holmes and Moriarty—dubbed the Napoleon of crime” by Holmes—in the aftermath of their fateful struggle at the Reichenbach Falls.

Days after the encounter at the Swiss waterfall, Pinkerton detective agent Frederick Chase arrives in Europe from New York. Moriarty’s death has left an immediate, poisonous vacuum in the criminal underworld, and there is no shortage of candidates to take his place—including one particularly fiendish criminal mastermind.

Chase and Scotland Yard Inspector Athelney Jones, a devoted student of Holmes’s methods of investigation and deduction originally introduced by Conan Doyle in “The Sign of Four”, must forge a path through the darkest corners of England’s capital—from the elegant squares of Mayfair to the shadowy wharfs and alleyways of the London Docks—in pursuit of this sinister figure, a man much feared but seldom seen, who is determined to stake his claim as Moriarty’s successor.

A riveting, deeply atmospheric tale of murder and menace, Moriarty breathes life into Holmes’s dark and fascinating world.

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REVIEW

I have long been a fan of most things Sherlock Holmes.  Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's stories are, of course, amazing.  I especially enjoyed the movies with Basil Rathbone and the PBS Series with Jeremy Brett.

So when I saw that Moriarty by Anthony Horowitz was up for a book blog tour, I HAD to be in on it.  When I saw the cover, I was even more excited.  And when I started reading, I was in Holmesian Heaven.  I told my husband that he HAD to read the book too, it was that good.

The villains were desperate and evil people.  The detectives were dogged in their pursuit of the criminals.  Inspector Athelney Jones's obsession with Holmes served him quite well, right up until the end.

There was one small disappointment.  But I don't do spoilers, so you're out of luck there.  And anyway, I'm not sure whether it affected me more because it happened, or I did not see it coming.

Having said that, I would read Moriarty again.  It's that good.

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AUTHOR INFORMATION

Anthony Horowitz is the author of the international bestseller The House of Silk and the New York Times number one bestselling Alex Rider series for Young Adults. As a television screenwriter he created both Midsomer Murders and the BAFTA-winning Foyle’s War, both of which were featured on PBS’s Masterpiece Mystery. He regularly contributes to a wide variety of national newspapers and magazines, and in January 2014 was awarded an OBE for his services to literature. He lives in London.

Find out more about Anthony at his website and connect with him on Twitter.

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(Disclosure:  I received a print copy of Moriarty by Anthony Horowitz from the author and publisher via TLC Book Tours in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion.)