The Vatican Cameos: A Sherlock Holmes Adventure - Softcover

Ryan, Richard T

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1780929897 ISBN 13: 9781780929897

Publisher: MX Publishing, 2016

Synopsis

When the papal apartments are burgled in 1901, Sherlock Holmes is summoned to Rome by Pope Leo XII. After learning from the pontiff that several priceless cameos that could prove compromising to the church, and perhaps determine the future of the newly unified Italy, have been stolen, Holmes is asked to recover them. In a parallel story, Michelangelo, the toast of Rome in 1501 after the unveiling of his Pieta, is commissioned by Pope Alexander VI, the last of the Borgia pontiffs, with creating the cameos that will bedevil Holmes and the papacy four centuries later. For fans of Conan Doyle's immortal detective, the game is always afoot. However, the great detective has never encountered an adversary quite like the one with whom he crosses swords in "The Vatican Cameos.".

About this title

Review

Winner of the Underground Book Reviews 'Novel of the Year -- People's Choice Award."

["The Vatican Cameos" is] an extravagantly imagined and brilliantly written Holmes story." -- Lee Child, New York Times bestselling author and the creator of Jack Reacher

By Fran Wood | For NJ.com
on November 13, 2016 at 8:45 PM, updated November 14, 2016 at 2:03 PM

That Sherlock Holmes never falls out of favor with readers (or TV viewers or movie goers) explains why Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's legendary sleuth continues to inspire writers. Some are moved to pen their own Sherlock adventures, while others employ Doyle's muse to create new characters and plot lines in the spirit of the original canon.

Richard T. Ryan falls into the first category. The debut in his series, "The Vatican Cameos" (MX Publishing, 312 pp., $16.95 paperback), is just out, and die-hard fans will not be disappointed.

Full disclosure up front, Ryan sent me a pre-publication galley some months ago, asking if I'd read it and, if so moved, write a blurb. I've never met Ryan, but it was a flattering request, and I imagined my late father -- a devoted fan of the ACD books -- nudging me to say yes.
fwBLOG111317a.jpgMX Publishing 

The story is crafted not only in the style of Sherlock's creator, but rife with all the trappings, starting with the character traits of Holmes and Watson and their procedural approach to problem solving, on to the imaginative means of maneuvering around inevitable hurdles, and down to minutia that makes the storytelling indisputably authentic.

The title, at least from my research (I didn't consult the author), seems to have been inspired by a remark in one of Holmes' mysteries referring to a case "pertaining to the Vatican cameos." In fact, Doyle never wrote about that case, but apparently the mention of it was sufficient to ignite Ryan's imagination.

Incidentally, Ryan comes to the subject fully prepared; a Google search elicits the revelation he previously authored "The Official Sherlock Holmes Trivia Book (Quinlan Press).

The story opens with a Roman Catholic cardinal calling on Holmes at his Baker Street lodgings to beg his help in recovering cameos created by Michelangelo in the 16th century that have been stolen from the Vatican. Purportedly, they were commissioned by Pope Alexander VI, the last of the Borgias to be elected pope, and whose deplorable reputation for vice "remains a blot on the papacy."

Holmes and Watson travel to Rome. They warily arrived at the Vatican, having neither clues nor a sense of who their enemies might be. The story time-travels between 1501, at the time Michelangelo was creating the cameos, and 1901, when Homes and Watson meet with Pope Leo XII.

Ryan has captured not only Holmes' voice but the pattern of his thinking process and logic, and the mystery is laced with an abundance of Holmes' trademark characteristics and arcane knowledge. (Holmes displaying an encyclopedic knowledge of the Vatican's architecture, for instance.)

At the story's center is a papal primer that provides the reader with a cultural history of the political struggle between Church and State.

Watson's narrative perfectly captures Holmes' arrogance and trademark knowledge of the obscure. Once you've read "The Vatican Cameos," you'll find yourself eager awaiting the next in Ryan's series.

As am I.

About this edition

• Publisher: MX Publishing
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 1780929897
• ISBN 13: 9781780929897
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 312