"Monsieur Oscar Meunier, of Grenoble" [EMPT]

Occasionally we remember members of the BSI who have gone to the other side of the Reichenbach. This one was a particularly difficult one for us.

Irving Kamil, BSI ("Monsieur Oscar Meunier, of Grenoble") died on April 26, 2013 at the age of 86. He was a chemistry teacher, assistant principal and principal in the New York City school system for 41 years, retiring in 1990. Irv graduated from Central Methodist College and received a Master's Degree from Columbia University Teachers College.

Irv was a WWII U.S. Navy veteran, a former member and president of the Cliffside Park Board of Education and president of Temple Israel in Cliffside Park. He wrote over 40 articles that were published in The New York Times and other papers, taught a mystery course at The New School, was a member of The Wolfe Pack, and was an avid three-times-a-week bridge player.

Read more...

"Dealt With In Any Public Print" (RESI)

Although many Sherlock Holmes pastiches are published, very few often have the sparkle of Conan Doyle's writing. This is not a complaint - after all, attempting to document the great detective's further adventures often mean focusing more on the story and less on the style. However, The Lost Stories of Sherlock Holmes, edited by Tony Reynolds and available via MX Publishing, is the best of both worlds, containing some well-written stories that reflect the "house style" at its best.

Thankfully, Reynolds does a very admirable job in writing a series of tales that could easily fit into the Canon, but that have an imagination and creativity all of their own. Even the first story - "The Giant Rat of Sumatra" - takes its cue from the Canon, but spins a decidedly distinctive tale. But page after page contains some wonderful, well-written adventures which (thankfully) contain a brief statement within as to why the tale was "omitted" (usually for reasons of either national security or personal embarrassment).

Read more...

"You Remind Me of Edgar" [STUD]

The evening of May 2 marked the 2013 Edgar® Awards banquet, during which the winners of the Mystery Writers of America grant the most prestigious award in the mystery genre to the authors and creators who gave us such treasures over the previous year.

As usual, Sherlock Holmes-related and -inspired work was present across a number of categories of both nominees and winners, and we'd like to share the results that may be of interest to those of you who are either completists on your collecting habits or who simply like to know relevant news about works of Sherlock Holmes.

Read more...

"To Stand the Kicks" [TWIS]

If you haven't had the chance to check out Watson and Holmes on Kickstarter yet, we highly recommend doing so.

We've mentioned Kickstarter previously - first for the graphic novel Moriarty: The Dark Chamber by Daniel Corey, and then again last year for Steampunk Holmes, a multimedia adventure by Richard Monson-Haefel that included a print edition as well as the core iPad edition. That latter project is just winding up now and will be making its way to the market.

One of the unique aspects of so-called crowsourcing development costs for such a project is that there are levels of awards based on the amount of money a benefactor is willing to pledge. So investors will not only receive the final product when the project is complete, but will also have the opportunity to accumulate various other value-added items along the way. For example, backing Steampunk Holmes at the $36 level resulted in the backers receiving all of the lower level rewards (all of the e-publications, lifetime subscription to the website, a print edition, and advance copies of the future e-books).

There's another Kickstarter project that is nearing completion that you have an opportunity to support.

Read more...

"An Isolated Phenomenon" [GREE]

When we recently came across an entry from Now I Know, a free daily newsletter that promises "you'll learn something new every day," (click through to subscribe) it was almost as if it had been written for us. So we did what was only natural: we reached out to the editor and asked if we might share the original post here. He gracefully agreed.

But before we delve into the details behind this rather interesting bit of trivia, let's explore the Canonical mention (CAUTION: there may be spoilers ahead if you haven't yet read The Sign of Four).

The mystery begins with Holmes and Watson being visited by Mary Morstan, whose father served in the army in India at Fort Agra. Major Morstan disappeared 10 years prior, leaving behind his luggage and some curiosities from the Andaman Islands. Since that time, Ms. Mortan received pearls annually and has been invited to discover the origin of the same by Thaddeus Sholto, son of Maj. John Sholto, who served with Morstan. Upon arrival at Pondicherry Lodge, the group learned that Bartholomew Sholto is dead, having himself been hit with a poisoned thorn. All that remained were child-like footprints and a stick with a stone head tied to it like a hammer.

Read more...