Review: The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes; The Angel of the Opera by Sam Siciliano

Published: March 2011

Pages: 309

Synopsis: “Paris 1890. Sherlock Holmes is summoned across the English Channel to the famous Opera House. Once there, he is challenged to discover the true motivations and secrets of the notorious phantom, who rules its depths with passion and defiance.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s timeless creation returns in a new series of handsomely designed detective stories. The Further Adventures series encapsulates the most varied and thrilling cases of the worlds’ greatest detective.”

Rating: *****

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The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes: The Angel of the Opera is another potentially promising cross-over between two classic works of fiction. And having read a number of the original Sherlock Holmes novels and The Phantom of the Opera, I was intrigued to see how this stacked up. Despite being published back in 2011, The Angel of the Opera is very on trend as fiction cross-overs are gaining in popularity at the moment, particularly with TV series such as Penny Dreadful. I would definitely recommend this to people who like the idea of cross over fiction, but who aren't going to judge them purely on the merit of the originals or by how closely the author sticks to them, as there are always going to be subtle differences. The Angel of the Opera started strongly, with Holmes and his cousin Doctor Henry Vernier (no Doctor Watson this time) finishing up an unrelated case in Wales. I enjoyed the snippets of this case and would be intrigued to read more about it, if it happens to be in another work, if not, I would consider petitioning Sam Siciliano to write it! As The Angel of the Opera progressed, I could see a potential link between the two cases and wondered if any of the characters from this initial case would be re-introduced throughout the course of the novel. This would have been the obvious choice in true Conon Doyle style, so I was eagerly awaiting the return of Susan Lowell. I was unsure of the timing of The Angel of the Opera as I couldn't tell if it was set during the same period as the original or after. Some hints suggested during, but there were some plot points mentioned which I didn't recall from the original, such as Madame Giry being fired, or the Viscount de Chagny having an older brother. I did really enjoy the details about the Viscount's extended family and their feelings about his relationship with Christine Daae. This was a very interesting addition which added to the plot between the two in the original, where it was just the two of them in isolation with their romance. Of course, thinking logically, there would be ramifications for some of a relationship between a Viscount and an orphaned Opera singer! Sam Siciliano added depth to many of the other characters including Madame Giry and her daughter Meg as well as the behind the scenes characters from the opera house; I felt this was a clever way of making the plot "his", as the original Phantom of the Opera (and the film) seemed to focus mainly on Christine, the Phantom and the Viscount de Chagny. One of the only negatives I have to mention are the inconsistencies in spelling. Sherlock's cousin was called Henry half of the time but then Henri the rest. This could have been attributed to the accent of the character saying his name, but I did find this incredibly irritating. I have now read three of the Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sherlock Holves Vs Dracula, The Titanic Tragedy and The Angel of the Opera, and this one is definitely the best of the three. I have never read anything by Sam Siciliano before, but after reading this would actively seek out his other novels.