Moriarty

Name: Moriarty

Author: Antony Horowitz

Published: 2014

Sherlock Holmes is dead. The famous detective and his nemesis, Moriarty, fell to their deaths at Reichenbach Falls. But all is not as it seems. A brand new criminal mastermind has arrived from America and with him brings change. He wishes to rebuild the underworld empire Moriarty left behind and make it stronger than ever before.

 And so it is down to junior investigator Frederick Chase to forge a path through the darkest corners of the capital. With the help of Inspector Athelney Jones, he races against time and this shadowy figure, a man determined to engulf London in a tide of murder and menace.

The game is afoot…

Moriarty is a Holmes novel with neither Holmes or Watson. However, Horowitz has perfectly captured Doyle’s writing style. This book is full of red herrings, exciting pursuits, violence and gore. Plus, an excellent twist.. which you will never see coming! But, this London is a much darker place than Sherlock’s.

The House of Silk is the predecessor of this book, however Moriarty is a sequel, not a follow up. You do not need to read them in any particular order either. I only heard about The House of Silk while doing research for this post, and I understood the book fine without it.  While I’m sure they both are, Moriarty especially is full of bits and pieces from the original series by Conan Doyle that link nicely with this plot, but you don’t need to be a Holmes – nerd to understand them all! Whether you are a Sherlock know it all (not me) or enjoyed the TV series and would like to read this epilogue (more my type! 😉 ) this is a perfect crime novel for all.

SWEETENER: Anthony Horowitz uses amazing yet complicating vocabulary to really bring this piece to life. This is probably one of the reasons I would recommend it to more confident readers,  because complex words are used that might be difficult for anyone under 13 to understand. Also, Horowitz creates vivid and gruesome images of the darkness within the streets of London. He writes with all the gory of Lee Child and the cleverness of Agatha Christie.

MATURE CHEESES ONLY! For the point listed above and a few scenes in the book that may disturb younger readers, I would recommend it to 13+. You may struggle to understand some of the references below this age. BUT, Anthony Horowitz is, in my opinion, one of the greatest childrens’ authors ever. If you have never read one of his books, be ashamed! You don’t need to be young to enjoy these book, adults still read them as well. Here are some of my favourites, which I will try to blog about at some point:

POWER OF FIVE SERIES 
Only £7 from The Book People
Unbeknownst to them, 5 teenagers with special powers are the only thing that stands between evil and all humanity. They must face their fears, form together and defeat evil before it is too late and the past repeats itself.

ALEX RIDER
Available at all good charity shops
Alex Rider is a normal teenager… except for the fact that he is an M16 agent of course. He travels the world unmasking criminals and fighting crime (lot less cheesy than it sounds!)
P.S: don’t watch the movies. They’re TRASH.

THE DIAMOND BROTHERS
£10 from the book people with Groosham Grange –
which is also amazing
When bumbling Tim decides he wants to become a private detective, he’s going to need the help of his younger brother Nick… who ends up doing most of the work. This series is clever and funny, having you in stitches yet clueless until the very end. 

If you have read this book, want to share a book that you’ve read or have an opinion on other english related things about my blog, just click on the comments section. I really want to hear your opinion 🙂