Saturday, October 22, 2022

Some Monstrous Conspiracy [NAVA]

The truth is out there.  And now it can finally be told.

Through no fault of my own, I somehow got roped into shining a light into the darkest recesses of the Sherlockian Canon.  I'm a humble editor/proofreader, so how I ended up working with Nathaniel Barker-Harris, the great-great-grandsomething of Cecil Barker from Surrey is beyond me. 

Okay, let me back up.  You might be wondering what all of this is about.  I posted last week on Twitter and Facebook about a new book I co-edited with Brad Keefauver and Nathaniel Barker-Harris, The Monstrum Opus of Sherlock Holmes.  

The Monstrum Opus of Sherlock Holmes is a collection of 17 essays that pull back the curtain on some pretty big cover-ups (some might even say conspiracies) to hide the true nature of some seriously monstrous interactions that Holmes and Watson had during their years of active service.  I know, "No ghosts need apply."  And yeah, there are a million books out there that pit Holmes against Dracula or other vampires, but this isn't a pastiche or some book filled with spirits contacting the living.  

The Monstrum Opus of Sherlock Holmes collects some pretty prominent names in Sherlockiana and some exciting new ones as well.  And in it they all make some serious arguments that will make you rethink some of the stories that we love so much.  At least they did for me.  Just check out the contributor list:

Elinor Gray

Ray Betzner

Paul Thomas Miller

Nancy Holder

Heather Hinson

Steve Mason

Johanna Draper-Carlson

Beth Gallego

M.K. Wiseman

Phil Bergem

Claire Daines

Derrick Belanger

Nick Martorelli

Luke Poling

Mary O'Reilly

Shana Carter

Burt Wolder


See?  Quite a list!  I've interviewed most of these folks and never knew until working on this project that they had such intimate knowledge of this monstrous conspiracy.  Did they know that others out there had such information as well?  Had Nathaniel Barker-Harris connected them with one another?  I don't know, but I do know that after working on The Monstrum Opus of Sherlock Holmes, I've spent some time looking into the abyss of questioning what I thought I knew.  

Maybe there are more folks out there who know more than they are letting on.  But for now, I'm content to share these 17 authors with the world and let the world decide what to do with all of this new knowledge....

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