His Last Bow (Sherlock Holmes #8)

Overall I enjoyed this collection but I’m pretty sure this is the most overtly sexist and misogynistic of the entire collection. I’ve mentioned before that I’m mindful of the era that they were written (and my ratings reflect that) but in the earlier collections the lack of women playing a major roll in any of the cases was obviously for the best because when they did it was not for the better. These are some of the cases that I knew and loved the most but it was difficult for me to get over how women were viewed.

If I was to take away the fact that were written in a different time I’d be rating these much lower just for being so mad at how Arthur Conan Doyle wrote women.

Part 5
Chapter 20 (The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge Part 1)

Part 6
Chapter 1 (The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge Part 2) – Chapter 7

The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge: Chapter 20 and Chapter 1

4⭐

“I’m bound to say that I make nothing of the note except that there was something on hand, and that a woman, as usual, was at the bottom of it.”

Inspector Baynes may have won the affections of Holmes but he certainly didn’t win any from me. The story was very good and the mystery very entertaining though.

The Adventure of the Red Circle: Chapter 2

4⭐

Another very entertaining case. I liked the addition of the mafia and how it all came about.

The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans: Chapter 3

5⭐

One of the more famous cases I think. I’ve always found this case to be clever and anything with Mycroft Holmes is welcome by me. I particular like how Sherlock openly admits that Mycroft is a better mind than he himself. We don’t see much humble Sherlock in the later stories so it’s nice to see him make an appearance every once in a while.

The Adventure of the Dying Detective: Chapter 4

4⭐

One of my favourites.

BUT

“The landlady stood in the deepest awe of him and never dared to interfere with him, however outrageous his proceedings might seem. She was fond of him, too, for he had a remarkable gentleness and courtesy in his dealings with women. He disliked and distrusted the sex, but he was always a chivalrous opponent.”

Is it my imagination or is His Last Bow turning out to be the most sexist Sherlock Holmes yet? What on earth happened to Arthur Conan Doyle in the run up to 1917? Yes, Holmes was never overly fond of women but so far we have had some kind of derogatory remark towards women in each story in this collection.

The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax: Chapter 5

4.5⭐

“One of the most dangerous classes in the world,” said he, “is the drifting and friendless woman. She is the most harmless and often the most useful of mortals, but she is the inevitable inciter of crime in others. She is helpless. She is migratory. She has sufficient means to take her from country to country and from hotel to hotel. She is lost, as often as not, in a maze of obscure pensions and boardinghouses. She is a stray chicken in a world of foxes. When she is gobbled up she is hardly missed. I much fear that some evil has come to the Lady Frances Carfax.”

Another humdinger of a quote.

This case was actually incredibly exciting and had me captivated. Holmes kind of let the ball drop but it all turned out well in the end. Adding this one to my favourites list I think.

The Adventure of the Devil’s Foot: Chapter 6

5⭐

A trip to Cornwall for Holmes’ health leads to a most interesting case. I can’t see Holmes having a problem with his nerves though. It seems wrong somehow. Still this one felt very supernatural like and was very atmospheric, also a little sad in the end.

His Last Bow: An Epilogue of Sherlock Holmes: Chapter 7

3⭐

“Good old Watson! You are the one fixed point in a changing age. There’s an east wind coming all the same, such a wind as never blew on England yet. It will be cold and bitter, Watson, and a good many of us may wither before its blast. But it’s God’s own wind none the less, and a cleaner, better, stronger land will lie in the sunshine when the storm has cleared.”

A different narrative for this one and I’m not sure I loved it.

Also, why is Holmes tending to bees without Watson? What the actual? I don’t like it.

His Last Bow is the harbinger to the Great War and sets the stage very well.

It’s also the last chronological instalment of the series which makes Holmes’ hanging about with bees WITHOUT his Watson all the more upsetting for me. They should be together. Why wasn’t Watson in the country attending to a small practice while Holmes wrote his study on bees?

I’ll shut about it now. But I’m unhappy!