Tim Symonds, Sherlock Holmes and the Strange Death of Brigadier-general Delves (MX Publishing 2022)
Dr Watson meets with Col. ‘Maiwand Mike’ Fenlon, an old military comrade, to reminisce about Afghanistan. Fenlon has been invited by Brigadier-general Delves to come to Guernsey to discuss the Battle of Maiwand, about which he is writing a book. There are questions. Why did Delves rush into battle, for example, when reinforcements were on the way? Why did, at every step, he seem to command defeats?
A telegram arrives for Watson from Fenlon in Guernsey urgently requesting his assistance. Delves is dead and Fenlon accused of murder. Delves dies, after pub crawling with Fenlon, of alcohol poisoning topped up by opiate mixture Chlorodyne, a vial of which was found under Fenlon’s chair. Fenlon has written an account of it, placed in an envelope in a bank vault, only to be opened after his death. He refuses to say anything in his own defence.
At the last moment, Holmes appears, as witness for the prosecution! He testifies that the fingerprints on the vial indeed match those of Fenlon. They are reminded of Holmes’s previous case, the Case of the Norwood Builder.
Fenlon dies, and Watson opens the envelope, and the whole story is revealed.
The narrator is Holmes’s ‘biographer’, Dr Watson, but there’s a long section, with the opening of the envelope, when we lose track of who’s narrating (presumably Fenlon). Like all Holmes cases, this one has something of the quirky about it. The story hooks the reader with a good pace, building suspense until the opening of Fenlon’s bank vault document reveals the backstory. I couldn’t quite understand why the document could only be read after Fenlon’s death.
A long ‘Miscellany’ section at the end goes into absolutely everything.
Over 100 authors have written new stories featuring the Sherlock Holmes. Tim Symonds has written eight novels starring the famous detective.
This review first appeared in Historical Novels Review.
Susie Helme 
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