tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post5481627262064009957..comments2024-03-28T22:42:54.810-07:00Comments on Bitter Tea and Mystery: Classics Club Spin: The Sign of FourTracyKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08303342674824383688noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-76424585904417012232023-01-30T12:54:10.795-08:002023-01-30T12:54:10.795-08:00Margot, I am glad to hear so many say that The Hou...Margot, I am glad to hear so many say that The Hound of the Baskervilles is good, and I will be reading that. I will be reading more of the short stories too. TracyKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08303342674824383688noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-42795025060659094442023-01-30T09:39:55.907-08:002023-01-30T09:39:55.907-08:00I'm very glad you liked more than you didn'...I'm very glad you liked more than you didn't like about this one, Tracy. I have to admit, I like the mystery part better than the adventure part, but still, I think it's a solid introduction to Holmes' deduction. You're right, too, I think, about the disguise! The story at the end moves more slowly, as you say, but if you forgive that aspect, I think it adds background. The fact is, though, that, at least for me (others may not agree), Conan Doyle's short stories are, in general, better than the novels ('though I did really like <i>The Hound of the Baskervilles</i>). But that's just my opinion. Margot Kinberghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08599589137890528065noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-18981152327605720632023-01-29T18:59:15.874-08:002023-01-29T18:59:15.874-08:00Kathy, I had wondered about the plots of the Sherl...Kathy, I had wondered about the plots of the Sherlock Holmes stories that I have read and they seem similar in some ways. But of course when they were written they came out in magazines (at least the short stories) and people were not reading them one after another. And Doyle created very interesting characters that have been imitated through the years. TracyKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08303342674824383688noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-87206333701319208962023-01-29T18:52:33.954-08:002023-01-29T18:52:33.954-08:00Hi Tracy, I know that I read A Study in Scarlet an...Hi Tracy, I know that I read A Study in Scarlet and I believe also the Sign of Four and yet I had completely forgotten the plot of both novels until reminded. I think that's a problem because in great mystery novels: And Then There Were None, Gaudy Night, Laura etc I do retain at least an outline of what happened no matter how many years have passed. I do remember the plot from The Hounds of the Baskervilles.Kathy's Cornerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03967595794483824444noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-29873318206630208172023-01-29T15:01:07.775-08:002023-01-29T15:01:07.775-08:00Cath, I believe the flashback story you are referr...Cath, I believe the flashback story you are referring to is from A Study in Scarlet. I could only remember that it was in the US, so I checked and it was in Utah, and focused on Mormonism. That story also surprised me. I will be reading more of the original Sherlock Holmes short stories soon, and maybe then I will try some of the pastiches.TracyKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08303342674824383688noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-59908975097204711712023-01-29T14:55:25.065-08:002023-01-29T14:55:25.065-08:00Jeff, thanks for commenting. Hound of the Baskervi...Jeff, thanks for commenting. Hound of the Baskervilles will be the next novel by Doyle that I read and then I think I will stick with the short stories. TracyKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08303342674824383688noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-59069804636271644772023-01-29T14:53:09.164-08:002023-01-29T14:53:09.164-08:00That story at the end was a bit strange wasn't...That story at the end was a bit strange wasn't it? Was it in Wyoming or somewhere like that? I forget. I do actually think Conan Doyle was more suited to short stories than novels. Cathhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06371069000185280668noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-74319241854001066662023-01-29T14:43:11.916-08:002023-01-29T14:43:11.916-08:00A much better novel-length Holmes story, in my opi...A much better novel-length Holmes story, in my opinion, is "The Hound of the Baskervilles."<br /><br />Cheers,<br />JeffJ. Kingston Piercehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17073921191624535912noreply@blogger.com