Sherlock Holmes vs. Cthulhu: The Adventure of the Neural Psychoses (Cthulhu Vs Holmes)
The second novel in Lois H. Gresh’s Sherlock Holmes vs. Cthulhu series.
Amelia Scarcliffe’s monstrous brood, harbingers of Cthulhu, will soon spawn. Her songs spell insanity, death… and illimitable wealth. And Moriarty will do anything to get his hands on gold, even if it means tearing down the walls between this world and a realm of horrors.
Meanwhile, after Sherlock Holmes’s last tangle with the Order of Dagon, horrifying monsters haunt the Thames, and madness stalks the streets of Whitechapel. Gang war between Moriarty’s thugs and the powerful cult can only bring more terror—unless Holmes and Dr. Watson can prevent it. But can they find the cause of the neural psychoses before Watson himself succumbs?
Holmes versus Moriarty and the Monsters!,
However, this is the second book in a trilogy, and although I was able to pick up what had happened in the first one, it did detract from my enjoyment because I only got brief references to the previous story in this book.
Sherlock and John Watson have had an epic battle against horrendous monsters which seem able to slip between one world and another and appear immune to the normal means that could be used to kill them. These monsters are now infesting the Thames, and we are introduced to them when they attack the boat that Holmes and Watson are on capsizing the boat and killing many people.
Watson becomes infected with a strange malady which causes him strange hallucinations and great weakness. He feels he is slowly going mad and both he and Holmes need to find a way to destroy the creatures before it is too late.
We are introduced to the lunatic asylums of this time, one run by Dr Reginald Sinclair who is perfecting electro-therapy machines to help with madness in patients. Unfortunately, these machines also are used by people seeking the thrill that such machines can give and Holmesâ nemesis, Professor Moriarty, is putting pressure on Sinclair to make these machines in bulk so he can make more and more money.
Holmes and Watson need to discover how these machines can help in destroying the monsters before it is too late and this book is really about this. However various characters that I have met before appearing in the book and we get a real feel for Victorian London with its poverty and hand to mouth living set against the opulence of some people, such as Holmesâ brother, Mycroft, who spends most of his life sat in his gentlemenâs club.
I did enjoy reading this book. It is well written and very descriptive of the life in this period, and it is always enjoyable to delve into the mind and intellect of Sherlock Holmes, but I really needed to have read the first book to fully appreciate this one. I would be interested in seeing how the story ends when the third book is released.
Dexter
Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review
This series just got better,
Holmes and Watson were still trying to battle the strange creatures and as things got more serious, Holmes had to user every part of his brain to understand the situation. Professor Moriarty played a bigger role and whilst he was not working against Holmes, he was using the situation for his own monetary gains. The scenes in the Whitechapel Lunatic Asylum showed just how bad Victorian asylums were. The proprietor of the asylum Dr Reginald Sinclair and the inventor of the shocker was a character that I could not decide whether he was Dr trying to do the best for his patients or sadistic maniac. More was understood about Amelia Scarcliffe and I could understand why her back story in book 1 was important
The story flowed a lot more smoothly and because of what was going on made the story easy to get into. It was full of action and the death scenes were gruesome and graphic, just what I like. The back stories in the book helped you understand how serious the situation was, whether it was in Whitechapel or Half Moon Bay. The only thing that got on my nerves was Willie Jacobs and his nose jabbing and I just wanted to chop off his hands. The author yet again nailed Holmes and Watsonâs personality and there were times that you could see how much Holmes needed Watson. Some people may find the scenes with the animals disturbing but it was relevant to the story. I cannot wait for the final book in this series and hope that Homes will get to battle the Cthulhu. This series just got better.