The Irregular Casebook of Sherlock Holmes

Canada: Calabash Press, 2000. BH4 - A hardcover book in as new condition in very good dust jacket that is mylar protected and has few wrinkling on the edges, some scattered light rubbing and scratches, some light discolroation and shelf wear. Although not marked in any way, this copy comes from the personal collection of Otto Penzler, legendary editor and founder of the Mysterious Press, an award-winning icon in the genre. The Irregular Casebook of Sherlock Holmes - The Case of the Fiery Messengers / The Shadow of the Wolf / The Curse of Nectanebo / The Sect of the Salamander / The Black Heaven. 8.75"x5.5", 143 pages. Satisfaction Guaranteed. Sherlock Holmes, wrote his friend and chronicler John H. Watson, was an 'unofficial adviser and helper to everybody who is absolutely puzzled', and as such Holmes came into contact with 'all that is strange and bizarre'. Cases such as The Hound of the Baskervilles or 'The Sussex Vampire' show the great detective dealing with matters which certainly are strange and bizarre; yet in all of the sixty cases in the canon, Holmes proves that the supernatural plays no part in the matter under investigation. What if, however, those sixty cases did not tell the entire story? In The Irregular Casebook of Sherlock Holmes, we encounter five cases which test Holmes's powers to the limit; strange and bizarre cases involving forces that are not of this world. Missing manuscripts, strange sects, sudden deaths, and mysterious encounters all lead Holmes and Watson into a twilight world of mystery, magic, and danger, where nothing is commonplace and people are not what they seem. Along the way, the pair travel as far afield as Egypt and Venice; enlist the aid of Holmes's brother Mycroft; investigate a supposed werewolf attack; and are asked for assistance by two masters of the weird tale, M.R. James and Arthur Machen. Skillfully blending the classic supernatural tale with Holmes stories written in the style of Arthur Conan Doyle, The Irregular Casebook of Sherlock Holmes will appeal to all those readers who, like Watson, share the great detective's love of 'all that is bizarre and outside the conventions and humdrum routine of everyday life'. SHERLOCK HOLMES is a fictional detective created by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a "consulting detective" in the stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with observation, deduction, forensic science and logical reasoning that borders on the fantastic, which he employs when investigating cases for a wide variety of clients, including Scotland Yard. First appearing in print in 1887's A Study in Scarlet, the character's popularity became widespread with the first series of short stories in The Strand Magazine, beginning with "A Scandal in Bohemia" in 1891; additional tales appeared from then until 1927, eventually totaling four novels and 56 short stories. All but one are set in the Victorian or Edwardian eras, between about 1880 and 1914. Most are narrated by the character of Holmes's friend and biographer Dr. John H. Watson, who usually accompanies Holmes during his investigations and often shares quarters with him at the address of 221B Baker Street, London, where many of the stories begin. Though not the first fictional detective, Sherlock Holmes is arguably the best known. By the 1990s there were already over 25,000 stage adaptations, films, television productions and publications featuring the detective, and Guinness World Records lists him as the most portrayed literary human character in film and television history. Holmes's popularity and fame are such that many have believed him to be not a fictional character but a real individual; numerous literary and fan societies have been founded on this pretence. Avid readers of the Holmes stories helped create the modern practice of fandom. The character and stories have had a profound and lasting effect on mystery writing and popular culture as a whole, with the original tales as well as thousands written by authors other than Conan Doyle being adapted into stage and radio plays, television, films, video games, and other media for over one hundred years. . Hardcover. As New/Very Good. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.