Book Review: Trigger Warning

Okay, fair warning - I'm a pretty big Neil Gaiman fan - I've got all the books and movies, even the BBC Neverwhere series and a couple of CDs, so short answer - I loved the book and yes you should read it.

Okay, now to go a little in depth.

The book has over twenty stories and poems; including ones focusing on Sherlock Holmes, Doctor Who, and even Shadow Moon (from his 2001 novel American Gods).  In addition the book includes a great fairy tale theme story called The Sleeper and the Spindle as well as a couple great tribute stories to both Ray Bradbury and David Bowie.

The book collects stories that have been published in various anthologies over the last few years, so as it's a great way to catch up on any stories you may have missed out on.

A great read.

Genre Characters of the Week: Gustav and Otto Arlingmeyer

For one of my book clubs this month we read Steve Hockensmith’s debut novel Holmes on the Range, a western mystery, featuring two delightful cowboys-turned-detectives, Gustav “Old Red” and Otto “Big Red” Arlingmeyer, as they take on their first big case.

The two main characters are both huge fans of the Sherlock Holmes mysteries, as written by his chronicler, and partner, John Watson.  Interestingly, rather than being fans of Arthur Conan Doyle’s stories, Hockensmith has instead put his characters into Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes Universe, allowing them to read of his exploits in the paper, and even meet people who are related to people that Sherlock dealt with over his career.

Being both a longtime fan of Westerns and mysteries, this fast-past novel (written in 2006), kept my attention the whole way through, had me smiling more than a time or two, and in the end worked as both a mystery and a western, which is a great job for any cross-genre story.

I think what I liked best about the Arlingmeyer brothers was their depth, considering I’m not used to a lot of character study in westerns, their German upbringing came through again and again their work ethic and in how they saw the world around them.

A really fun story and I’m sure to follow up with more of the series in the future.

Gene Character of the Week: Dr. John Watson

On Christmas Day my family and I continued our yearly tradition of seeing a matinee showing at our local theatre of whatever tickles our fancy. In years past we've seen Sherlock Holmes, Gulliver's Travel's, and Yes Man (Which involved a pretty awkward scene to sit through with my two teenaged daughters). This year we saw Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, and that brings me to this week's genre character, Dr. John Watson.

Although not my favourite Watson (that would be Martin Freeman in the BBC series Sherlock), the Watson in these two most recent motion pictures based on the character is a lot of fun. Yes, he does punch, kick, and shoot much more than any other version of Watson I've come across, but at the same time, actor Jude Law does a wonderful job of showing us a character trying desperately to be a responsible doctor and husband who just can't shake his BFF Sherlock (like a fungus, Sherlock kind of grows on you).

The film was full of action and some pretty spectacular effects, and I would be remiss not to mention Jared Harris as Moriarty in a particularly chilling performance. The film was fun, impressed both my wife and my teenaged daughters and did a great job of mixing action, thrills and laughs.