My fear for The House of Silk

There has been much raving in the press about the new Sherlock Holmes story The House of Silk by Anthony Horowitz. Journalists seem to be lining up to report that it is excellent. They also seem to be saying that Horowitz writes in the style of Conan Doyle which begs the question - are they qualified to judge that? To my mind, the individual reader will decide that for themselves and the opinions are bound to be wide ranging.


I am still waiting for my copy to arrive but a day does not seem to go by where I don't see a sign proclaiming it to be Holmes's darkest case and so on.

I fear that these adverts are raising my expectations to a level where it may not be possible for the book to reach. Much is also being made of this being the first Conan Doyle Estate sanctioned book. Why? Is it a guarantee of quality? What level of input did the estate have?

Please don't get me wrong. I am not condemning the book. That would be daft as I am yet to read it. My fear is that the publicity surrounding it will do more harm than good.

Have you read it? Does it live up to the hype? Please let me know - just don't write any spoilers.