The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (32 page)

‘Now, now, Watson, you know that I have apologized for that many times.’

‘I know, Holmes.’ I smiled and patted him on the shoulder. ‘But after this mission, I expect to see you again immediately. And no more dramatic reappearances.’

‘Indeed, but I also have a request to make.’

I nodded.

‘If, after I return from this mission, you decide to publish an account of it, I would like to choose the title.’

‘And what would you like to call it?’

He stroked his chin with his thumb and forefinger, and looked towards the sky.

‘I would like you to call it
His Last Bow,
for after this I plan to retire — permanently.’

‘You have my word.’ We shook hands.

‘Well, Watson, to breakfast, but please do not eat too much.’

‘And why not, pray?’

‘The cook is preparing a special meal for us.’

‘A special meal?’

‘Yes, we are having woodcock, with all the trimmings.’

‘But Holmes, Mrs Hudson used to make that all the time. I have long since grown tired of it.’

‘And all this time I thought it was your favourite... Good old Watson, never one to complain.’

‘I am sure it will be quite delicious.’ We both laughed.

‘Shall we return to the academy?’ I said.

He nodded and we strolled back along the river bank, quietly enjoying a most spectacular dawn.

S
pecial thanks are owed to Martin Breese, who first published this book back in 1996 and used his magic touch to produce a quality publication and ensure its successful introduction to readers.

My deepest appreciation goes to family members and friends who provided help and encouragement when I was writing this book. This includes past and current members of Seattle’s great Sherlockian society,
The Sound of the Baskervilles
, with whom I have shared canonical adventures for the past three decades. I would also like to thank Bob Cumbow for his advice and support.

This book would not have been possible without the research of
Titanic
historians, particularly Walter Lord, author of
A Night to Remember
and
The Night Lives On
. A wealth of information on the structure, equipment and interior features of
Titanic
is contained in a 1911 issue of
The Shipbuilder
magazine.

Above all, I owe my thanks to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, whose Sherlock Holmes stories first captivated me in my childhood and still have a firm hold on my imagination.

William Seil

November 2011

THE FURTHER ADVENTURES OF
S
HERLOCK
H
OLMES

Philip José Farmer

During the Second World War, Mycroft Holmes dispatches his brother, Sherlock, and Dr. Watson to recover a stolen formula. During their perilous journey, they are captured by a German zeppelin. Subsequently forced to abandon ship, the pair parachute into the dark African jungle where they encounter the lord of the jungle himself...

ISBN: 9780857681201

THE FURTHER ADVENTURES OF
S
HERLOCK
H
OLMES

Carole Buggé

Holmes and Watson find themselves caught up in a complex chessboard of a problem, involving a clandestine love affair and the disappearance of a priceless sapphire. Professor James Moriarty is back to tease and torment, leading the duo on a chase through the dark and dangerous back streets of London and beyond.

ISBN: 9780857681218

THE FURTHER ADVENTURES OF
S
HERLOCK
H
OLMES

Sam Siciliano

A mysterious gypsy places a cruel curse on the guests at a ball. When a series of terrible misfortunes affects those who attended, Mr. Donald Wheelwright engages Sherlock Holmes to find out what really happened that night. Can he save Wheelwright and his beautiful wife Violet from the devastating curse?

ISBN: 9780857686985

THE FURTHER ADVENTURES OF
S
HERLOCK
H
OLMES

Sam Siciliano

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.

ISBN: 9781848568617

THE FURTHER ADVENTURES OF
S
HERLOCK
H
OLMES

Richard L. Boyer

For many years, Dr. Watson kept the tale of The Giant Rat of Sumatra a secret. However, before he died, he arranged that the strange story of the giant rat should be held in the vaults of a London bank until all the protagonists were dead...

ISBN: 9781848568600

THE FURTHER ADVENTURES OF
S
HERLOCK
H
OLMES

Edward B. Hanna

Grotesque murders are being committed on the streets of Whitechapel. Sherlock Holmes believes he knows the identity of the killer—Jack the Ripper. But as he delves deeper, Holmes realizes that revealing the murderer puts much more at stake than just catching a killer...

ISBN: 9781848567498

Kim Newman

Imagine the twisted evil twins of Holmes and Watson and you have the dangerous duo of Professor James Moriarty—wily, snake-like, fiercely intelligent, terrifyingly unpredictable—and Colonel Sebastian ‘Basher’ Moran—violent, politically incorrect, debauched. Together they run London crime, owning police and criminals alike.

A one-stop shop for all things illegal, from murder to high-class heists, Moriarty and Moran have a stream of nefarious visitors to their Conduit Street rooms, from the Christian zealots of the American West, to the bloodthirsty Si Fan and
Les Vampires
of Paris, as well as a certain Miss Irene Adler...

“It’s witty, often hilarious stuff. The author portrays the scurrilous flipside of Holmes’s civil ordered world, pokes fun at ‘guest stars’ from contemporary novels and ventures into more outré territory than Conan Doyle even dared.”

Financial Times

“
The Hound of the d’Ubervilles
is a clever, funny mash-up of a whole range of literary sources including Thomas Hardy, HG Wells, EW Hornung, Maurice Leblanc and most of all, Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes stories and novels... It is extravagantly gruesome, gothic and grotesque.”