Valley of Fear Ch.5-Pt.2 Ch.3
Utter madness!
Chapters 1-4 were entertaining but not particularly fast-paced. They served an important role in setting up the foundational components of the story: characters, relationships, and the mystery at hand. This second section though, ramped things up a notch.
The mystery seemed pretty cut-and-dry -with all the evidence and circumstance compiled- but with a Sherlock Holmes mystery, I should have known better. Of course, Holmes did know better. He condescended the inept police at every turn and was always right. Which is really annoying. When it seems like he can’t be right, it is important to just assume he always is. I was so sure that the whole story was going to be predicated on finding Douglas’ killer until everything got turned on its head and we ended up following a freemasonic-esque group in the actual location of the title’s namesake.
Ultimately the section is a whirl. The story line takes a hard veer, and in doing so makes the story much more interesting. It also becomes more interesting through character development. If anyone was questioning Holmes’ arrogance and patronization of Watson… no more. It is clear that Holmes is very good at what he does and that he does not care about niceties.
I liked what you said about how the mystery was pretty cut and dry. In hindsight, all of the clues were given to the us, but it was difficult to put the pieces together given the way that the story is set up. I also agree with what you said about the story taking a hard veer. The flashback to 20 years ago with McMurdo adds a nice element to the story, making it a more interesting read.
ReplyDeleteI understand what you are saying about the pacing of novel as throughout the ending of the book. I felt that it was dragging on and could have ended much earlier. Also, I agree with your analysis of how the mystery was structured. There was very little intrigue beside when we found out that Douglas was still live.
ReplyDelete