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Federico DN's Reviews > The Valley of Fear

The Valley of Fear by Arthur Conan Doyle
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bookshelves: classics, crime, free-domain

Moriarty-less.

Mr. Douglas of Birlstone Manor is found dead of a shotgun wound to the head, apparently the product of a long standing feud with the infamous Professor Moriarty. A devastated Mrs. Douglas and gentleman Cecil Barker meet detectives Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, in an investigation that will prove much more difficult than originally thought, with implications that may point to a secret society, and an old grievance carried from many decades ago.

Fourth and final novel in the Sherlock Holmes series, the rest being collections. A seemingly unconnected two-part story taking place at different times with different characters, until they converge at the end with the final resolution; very similar in style and format to A Study in Scarlet, although with a smoother transition between the two.

Another good yet not great addition to the series, with its pros and cons. Must say the first part is as good as any average short story found in the many SH collections, except longer and unnecessarily drawn out; the second part a lot more entertaining and engaging, with the introduction of new characters like John McMurdo, Ettie Shafter, Ted Baldwin, and Birdy Edwards. The final conclusion, decently satisfying.

However, I must point out it was EXTREMELY disappointing hearing about Professor Moriarty and thinking during the whole book this may be a prequel story, only to realize at the end that it is, but with near nonexistent participation of the great arch nemesis, with merely a mention of him at the beginning and end, and that being it. So, be warned. Personally I think it would have been better to just scratch out that whole mention of him in favor of saving time, and disappointment.

On the whole I enjoyed the two stories and its little twists enough, yet not nearly as much as to be Recommendable.

It’s public domain, you can find it

Still missing, the BBC series.



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PERSONAL NOTE :
[1915] [195p ] [Classics] [Not Recommendable]
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★★★★� 1. A Study in Scarlet [3.5]
★★★☆� 2. The Sign of Four [2.5]
★★★☆� 3. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
★★★★� 4. The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes [3.5]
★★★★� 5. The Hound of the Baskervilles
★★★★� 6. The Return of Sherlock Holmes
★★★☆� 7. The Valley of Fear
★★★★� 8. His Last Bow [3.5]
★★★☆� 9. The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes [2.5]
★★★☆� 10. The Complete Sherlock Holmes

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Sin Moriarty.

El Sr. Douglas de la Mansión Birlstone es hallado muerto de un escopetazo a la cabeza, aparentemente producto de un largo feudo con el infame Profesor Moriarty. Una devastada Sra. Douglas y el caballero Cecil Barker se encuentran con los detectives Sherlock Holmes y Dr. Watson, en una investigación que probará ser mucho más dificultosa de lo que originalmente se pensaba, con implicaciones que podrían apuntar a una sociedad secreta, y un antiguo rencor de muchas décadas atrás.

Cuarta y última novela en la serie de Sherlock Holmes, el resto siendo colecciones. Una aparentemente inconexa historia de dos partes que toma lugar en diferentes tiempos y con diferentes personajes, hasta que convergen en el desenlace con la resolución final; muy similar en estilo y formato a Un Estudio en Escarlata, aunque con una transición mucho más suave entre las dos.

Otra buena pero no genial adición a la serie, con sus pros y contras. Debo decir que la primera parte es tan buena como cualquier cuento corto promedio hallado en cualquiera de las muchas colecciones de SH, excepto que más larga e innecesariamente prolongada; la segunda parte mucho más entretenida y cautivante, con la introducción de nuevos personajes como John McMurdo, Ettie Shafter, Ted Baldwin, y Birdy Edwards. La conclusión final, decentemente satisfactoria.

Sin embargo, debo señalar que fue EXTREMADAMENTE decepcionante escuchar hablar del Profesor Moriarty y pensar durante todo el libro que esta podría ser una historia precuela, sólo para darte cuenta al final que lo es, pero con una casi inexistente participación del gran archienemigo, con apenas una mención de él al principio y al final, y siendo eso todo. Así que quedan advertidos. Personalmente creo que hubiera sido mejor haber eliminado toda mención de él en favor de salvar tiempo, y desilusión.

Dentro de todo disfruté de las dos historias y sus pequeños giros de trama lo suficiente, aunque ni de cerca tanto como para ser Recomendable.

Es dominio público, lo pueden encontrar ACA.

Queda pendiente, la serie de BBC.



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NOTA PERSONAL :
[1915] [195p] [Clásicos] [No Recomendable]
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Reading Progress

January 10, 2024 – Shelved
February 8, 2024 – Started Reading
February 10, 2024 – Finished Reading

Comments Showing 1-50 of 68 (68 new)


message 1: by Alexandra (new)

Alexandra I loved your "Moriarty-less" :) Sherlock Holmes stories are usually nice, even when they are not recommendable. Great review, Federico!


message 2: by Debbie Y (new)

Debbie Y Wish it was more of a satisfactory ending to the series, but I’m still glad you were able to enjoy it overall. Fabulous review, Federico! :)


Federico DN Alexandra wrote: "I loved your "Moriarty-less" :) Sherlock Holmes stories are usually nice, even when they are not recommendable. Great review, Federico!"

Moriarty-less is the ultimate flavor of the book lol. Thank you so much Alexandra <3!


Federico DN Debbie Y wrote: "Wish it was more of a satisfactory ending to the series, but I’m still glad you were able to enjoy it overall. Fabulous review, Federico! :)"

Oh no this is not the ending to the series, just the final novel, the rest of the books are collections of short stories. Thank you Debbie!


message 5: by Connie (new)

Connie I'm sorry there wasn't more Moriarty in the story. But glad you were still able to enjoy it. Great review, Federico!


Federico DN Coco wrote: "I'm sorry there wasn't more Moriarty in the story. But glad you were still able to enjoy it. Great review, Federico!"

It just wasn't meant to be lol. Thank you Coco :D !


message 7: by Ian (new) - rated it 3 stars

Ian A fair and balanced review Federico. I had pretty much the same view as you on this one.


Tina âž¹ lives in Fandoms great review Federico.
yeah! this was my problem with this book as well. I liked it at some points, it was interesting, but not like the others.


Federico DN Ian wrote: "A fair and balanced review Federico. I had pretty much the same view as you on this one."

Thank you Ian! An interesting sequel featuring the amazingly chameleonic John McMurdo xD


Federico DN Tina � lives in Fandoms wrote: "great review Federico.
yeah! this was my problem with this book as well. I liked it at some points, it was interesting, but not like the others."


Thank you Tina! Yes, entertaining, but sadly not one Doyle's finest works :p


message 11: by inciminci (new)

inciminci Disappointing 😕 Thanks for the warning and nice review, Fede!


Federico DN inciminci wrote: "Disappointing 😕 Thanks for the warning and nice review, Fede!"

Thank you Inci! Disappointing because of the whole Moriarty business mainly. Otherwise I think it'd been even better than A Study in Scarlet 😕


message 13: by Helga (new) - rated it 1 star

Helga For some reason, I've given this 1 star. 🤔 Great review, Federico! �


Federico DN Helga wrote: "For some reason, I've given this 1 star. 🤔 Great review, Federico! �"

I'm sure you had your reasons, but looks to me you were even more extremely disappointed with it than me lol. Thank you Helga <3!


message 15: by Helga (new) - rated it 1 star

Helga Federico wrote: "Helga wrote: "For some reason, I've given this 1 star. 🤔 Great review, Federico! �"

I'm sure you had your reasons, but looks to me you were even more extremely disappointed with it than me lol. Th..."


Haha! To be fair it was years ago. But in general, Holmes and I aren't on good term with one another. ;)


message 16: by Debbie Y (new)

Debbie Y Federico wrote: "Debbie Y wrote: "Wish it was more of a satisfactory ending to the series, but I’m still glad you were able to enjoy it overall. Fabulous review, Federico! :)"

Oh no this is not the ending to the s..."


Oh, ok! There’s still hope then. :D


Heather Adores Books Great review, Fed! Seems a bit ho hom.


message 18: by Dmitri (new)

Dmitri I like the way you use rankings in story collections and entire oeuvres. It makes sense in the context of a body of works. Great job with both Doyle and Poe!


Federico DN Heather Adores Books wrote: "Great review, Fed! Seems a bit ho hom."

Yeah somewhat average, especially the first part. Meh, had better. Thank you Heather :) !


message 20: by Federico (last edited Feb 28, 2024 03:37AM) (new) - rated it 3 stars

Federico DN Dmitri wrote: "I like the way you use rankings in story collections and entire oeuvres. It makes sense in the context of a body of works. Great job with both Doyle and Poe!"

Thank you Dmitri! I'm done with Doyle, missing a few Poe and Christie is next. You know it takes a bit of work at first to do it but it's SO worth it. I save templates so it's just copy paste most of the time, adding a new line for each new book I read. What I like most is that it allows me to jump instantly in a sec between reviews whenever I want to. Somehow even searching your own reviews in GR is quite messy sometimes lol. Lots of clicking or typing and stuff, it just saves time in the long run xD


message 21: by Dmitri (last edited Feb 28, 2024 03:45AM) (new)

Dmitri Federico wrote: "�. I'm done with Doyle, missing a few Poe and Christie is next. You know it takes a bit of work at first to do it but it's SO worth it. ..."

Wow, Christie will be an undertaking, she was prolific. I’m looking forward to it! Anything about process intrigues me; it’s a process itself deciding what to read.


Federico DN Dmitri wrote: "Wow, Christie will be an undertaking, she was prolific. I’m looking forward to it! Anything about process intrigues me; it’s a process itself deciding what to read..."

One day book at a time. That's my motto ;)


message 23: by Diana (new)

Diana I have never ever read a Sherlock Holmes. It’s surprising since I like mysteries but just never have and honestly I don’t think I will read one but I enjoyed reading your review!


message 24: by Rhonda (new)

Rhonda Excellent review, Federico! 😊


message 25: by Federico (last edited Feb 28, 2024 04:51AM) (new) - rated it 3 stars

Federico DN Diana wrote: "I have never ever read a Sherlock Holmes. It’s surprising since I like mysteries but just never have and honestly I don’t think I will read one but I enjoyed reading your review!"

Thank you Diana! Ah maybe, but then again, you have a full reading life ahead of you ;)




Federico DN Rhonda wrote: "Excellent review, Federico! 😊"

Thank you Rhonda :D!


message 27: by Nora (new) - added it

Nora Currie Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts and opinions about this book, Federico! I’m sorry that Moriarty never made an appearance in this book. Thanks so much for sharing your pros and cons. Fair review!


message 28: by Federico (last edited Feb 28, 2024 05:44AM) (new) - rated it 3 stars

Federico DN Nora wrote: "Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts and opinions about this book, Federico! I’m sorry that Moriarty never made an appearance in this book. Thanks so much for sharing your pros and cons. Fair r..."

An unnecessary and terribly misleading teaser lol. Thank you Nora :) !


message 29: by Srivalli (new)

Srivalli Rekha Oh, I saved this book for later. Looks like a wrong move. Will read it when I get time. Nice review, Federico. No point in mentioning the guy if he doesn't feature!


message 30: by Federico (last edited Feb 28, 2024 06:22AM) (new) - rated it 3 stars

Federico DN Srivalli wrote: "Oh, I saved this book for later. Looks like a wrong move. Will read it when I get time. Nice review, Federico. No point in mentioning the guy if he doesn't feature!"

Thank you Srivalli! Well, hopefully now that you are on the know you can enjoy it much more than I did without the disappointment ;)


Southern Lady Reads I'm reading a Lady Sherlock Holmes series right now and I think after I'm done I
m going to have to go back and read these! Great review Federico!


message 32: by Federico (last edited Feb 28, 2024 06:32AM) (new) - rated it 3 stars

Federico DN Southern Lady Reads wrote: "I'm reading a Lady Sherlock Holmes series right now and I think after I'm done I'm going to have to go back and read these! Great review Federico!"

Not the best series ever but sure enjoyable and quite memorable sometimes. Thank you SLR! Hope you enjoy them too when the time is right :)


message 33: by Imme (new)

Imme van Gorp I’ve never read the books, but the BBC show is one of my favourite tv series of all time. I’m a little hesitant to read the books though because I’m somehow afraid it won’t live up to my expectations, and your review (and ratings for the other books) is kind of making me even more wary tbh🥴 Also, I’d totally be disappointed too if I got teased with some Moriarty content only for it to lead to nothing! Ugh


message 34: by Federico (last edited Feb 28, 2024 06:59AM) (new) - rated it 3 stars

Federico DN Imme wrote: "I’ve never read the books, but the BBC show is one of my favourite tv series of all time. I’m a little hesitant to read the books though because I’m somehow afraid it won’t live up to my expectatio..."

Thank you Imme! It's a pickle alright. Haven't watched the BBC series so can't tell you if the books live up to the show, although my heart tells me it doesn't. I mean truly, what can ever match the one and only Benedict Cumberbatch?? Such an idea is preposterous lol. But maybe now that you know it's possible you won't be as disappointed as I was with this one ;)


message 35: by EdIsInHell (new)

EdIsInHell Excellent review


message 36: by Federico (last edited Feb 28, 2024 07:16AM) (new) - rated it 3 stars

Federico DN EdIsInHell wrote: "Excellent review"

Thank you Ed😇!


Valerie Book Valkyrie Thank you for a concise review. "Moriarty-less." sums it all up for me. As enjoyable as Sherlock and Watson are, my favorite character is Moriarty. Anthony Horowitz wrote a book titled "Moriarty" that you may enjoy if have not already read it. Many Good Reads to You!


message 38: by Thibault (new)

Thibault Busschots The two seemingly unconnected stories does sound quite similar to A Study in Scarlet. Which is a bit unfortunate, as I did not really like that. I’d also have thought that Professor Moriarty would have a bigger role to play here. Good review, Federico.


Federico DN Valerie wrote: "Thank you for a concise review. "Moriarty-less." sums it all up for me. As enjoyable as Sherlock and Watson are, my favorite character is Moriarty. Anthony Horowitz wrote a book titled "Moriarty" t..."

Thank you for the rec Valerie! Moriarty is a great nemesis but after nine books I had my fill with Sherlock for the time being lol. but in a few years in the future, who knows :D


message 40: by Karen (new)

Karen Great review, Federico! 🙂 Oh no, Doyle really teased you! Darn it!


Federico DN Thibault wrote: "The two seemingly unconnected stories does sound quite similar to A Study in Scarlet. Which is a bit unfortunate, as I did not really like that. I’d also have thought that Professor Moriarty would ..."

We were all deceived, but the grand deception has been unmasked lol. Thank you Thibault :D !


Federico DN Karen wrote: "Great review, Federico! 🙂 Oh no, Doyle really teased you! Darn it!"

I was played for a fool, for a FOOL! But nevermore, you are dead to me Doyle; oh sorry you already are, well rip then. Thank you Karen!


message 43: by Kay (new)

Kay Glad you're enjoying the series too bad this needs More-iarty! Great review Federico!


Federico DN Kay �*¨ wrote: "Glad you're enjoying the series too bad this needs More-iarty! Great review Federico!"

More-iarty LOL. Perfectly put Kay <3 !


message 45: by Pedro (new)

Pedro Gran reseña, Federico! Veo que sos un gran conocedor del legendario Sherlock. :)


message 46: by Federico (last edited Feb 28, 2024 09:07AM) (new) - rated it 3 stars

Federico DN Pedro wrote: "Gran reseña, Federico! Veo que sos un gran conocedor del legendario Sherlock. :)"

Gran conocedor JAJAJAJ. Gracias Pedro! Me hizo reir. Si quiere saber la verdá, si no escribiera estas reseñas tratando de salvaguardar algo, probablemente olvidaría todo lo que leí en cuestión de semanas xD


message 47: by P.B. (new)

P.B. Flower Nicely enunciated review, Federico. Sherlock Holmes is a profound character that I could connect with better in the series. I still read several books by Arthur Conan Doyle as I was introduced to his work in school. And I was completely mesmerized.


message 48: by Federico (last edited Feb 28, 2024 09:35AM) (new) - rated it 3 stars

Federico DN P.B. wrote: "Nicely enunciated review, Federico. Sherlock Holmes is a profound character that I could connect with better in the series. I still read several books by Arthur Conan Doyle as I was introduced to h..."

Thank you PB! Glad to hear you enjoyed Sherlock Holmes too <3. Read a few of his non Sherlock works and they were not bad at all, really looking forward to a few more of his horror stories :)


message 49: by Tina (new)

Tina Thanks for your honesty. I hope you find a 5 star collection next! You are in need for a fabulous read 💖


message 50: by Federico (last edited Feb 28, 2024 03:05PM) (new) - rated it 3 stars

Federico DN Tina wrote: "Thanks for your honesty. I hope you find a 5 star collection next! You are in need for a fabulous read 💖"

Thank you Tina! This is #7, you can already tell in the list how it went for the following xD


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