The Reichenbach Problem, by Martin Allison Booth Review

Arthur Conan Doyle is on the run from his own fame. Taking a much-needed holiday, Doyle escapes to a picturesque village in Switzerland nestled beneath the imposing Reichenbach Falls. There he hopes to find anonymity, but even in this beautiful rural setting, peace eludes him when he finds himself immediately recognized and involved in the investigation of a mysterious death of a fellow traveler.

All too soon, Doyle's somewhat unwilling, gentle probing into the case causes the finger of suspicion to turn towards him. But can the creator of the famous detective actually do the sleuthing himself? As Doyle learns more and more about the famous character he penned, he finds he is less like Sherlock and more like his sidekick, Watson. Can the "sidekick" see enough of the picture to solve the case for once?

Sherlock Holmes has fascinated readers since he first burst into fiction, over one hundred years ago. In this novel, the first in a trilogy, we meet his author and discover the difficult relationship between them.

My Review: 

This was a really interesting look at Doyle's life. I loved that the book was based on as some facts as possible. I loved that some of the story took place on a train. I always think of train rides when I think of Sherlock Holmes. The beginning was kind of slow, and I liked that there were really only 2 characters. I enjoyed the way that Doyle wanted to be a loner, yet he could not stop himself from talking. As the book progressed and Doyle was trying to solve the mystery I read that Doyle was expected to be great like Holmes. It was interesting to see how Doyle solved crimes versus how he wrote Holmes to solve crimes. My favorite part was the "coded" message that Doyle sent to a friend. I could not figure out the solution, and I kept thinking about it. I finally gave up and continued to read. I was elated when the author told us the code! I can not believe that I missed it. The end was really good as well. I am giving this book a 4/5. I was given a copy to review from Kregel, however all opinions are my own.