Sherlock Holmes and the Needle's Eye

Len Bailey          Thomas Nelson, 2013.

 3.5  / 5.0 
 This attempted combination of a Bible study and Sherlock Holmes novel works well in the first sense which, in turn, throws off the second.


Sherlock Holmes is hot stuff and, for the most part, I'm ready to consume whatever is in the vein. I love the idea of Holmes. Definitely not tied to Conan Doyle (I might have read The Adventures as a youngster--can't remember), I enjoy the modern iterations and loved watching Jeremy Britt on A&E during the 1990's. So if Len Bailey got the essence of Holmes I knew I would enjoy the book, even if he couldn't engineer a feeling of late 19th century London.

Bailey puts the reader through the detectives paces by having us accompany Holmes as he travels in time to ten mystery shrouded moments in the Bible:

1. The hanging of Ahithophel (2 Samuel) 
2. Jesus writing in the sand (John) 
3. The murder of Zechariah (Matthew and 2 Chronicles) 
4. The temptation of Christ (Luke) 
5. Paul's missionary activity in Macedonia (Acts) 
6. David and Goliath (1 Samuel) 
7. The resurrection of Lazarus (John) 
8. The descendant's of Jehoiachin (Matthew and Jeremiah) 
9. The "Right Timing" of Christ's Birth (Galatians and Matthew) 
10. The Battle of Jericho (Joshua) 

Bailey, with the help of his super sleuth, elucidates some very interesting details from the Old and New Testaments. I think what most potential readers will want to know, though, is if in exploring the above he makes a believable run at a Holmes and Watson adventure.

Well, I was surprised. The language and settings seemed to be spot-on 95% of the time. I used my reader's built-in dictionary several as well as referring to hypertext-linked endnotes (nice touch from the publisher, but c'mon...1) to parse references to trichinopolys, melioidosis and "bubble and squeak". Even the relationships bear out familiarly: Holmes and Watson fierce friends one moment only to be disgusted by one another the next; Mrs. Hudson being rudely castigated for no apparent reason; Scotland Yard dropping a ball made of hasty judgments and wrong conclusions. Even Moriarty and the Stradivarius make cameos.

Where it all falls apart, as a novel, is in the sermons that Holmes and Watson deliver to each other during and after each adventure. The doctor assumes the role of the orthodox seminary student who gives the usual answers about the Bible and doesn't come down definitively on the mysterious issues therein. Holmes on the other hand, while not convinced of the supernatural, uses his icomparable intellect and insatiable appetite for the truth to push past the conventional wisdom and "safely conjecture" his way to more satisfying answers.

I appreciate the spirit of the book and admire the authors view that deep study of the scriptures is rewarding. The book can be used as a Bible study; there are even questions about each adventure intended to lead the reader into more analysis, if they so choose. This is the way in which Sherlock Holmes and the Needle's Eye primarily works. It does not work as a novel, with the reader being jolted out of the story with anachronistic dialogue.

"So much for Christianity being a religion prejudiced against women. Christ, by his actions, turns that notion on its head." (p. 59)

"He didn't take five stones in the event he missed: the Davids of this world don't miss." (p. 127)

"Look, Holmes, God took a risk creating this world. It cost him his Son." (p. 211)

The words can be right and true, but they just do not work coming out of the mouths of our dynamic duo during tea. I enjoyed the book, and feel that with the right editing it could have joined the Baker Street pantheon--some of Bailey's scenes and words are that good--instead being relegated to a weird limbo for folks like me that can handle a little sermonizing with their Sherlock.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publishers for review. Thanksbooksneeze.com!