What really happened when Holmes and his arch-nemesis, Professor Moriarty, met at the Reichenbach Falls?
Internationally bestselling author Anthony Horowitz’s nail-biting new novel plunges us back into the dark and complex world of Detective Sherlock Holmes and Professor James Moriarty—dubbed “the Napoleon of crime”—in the aftermath of their fateful struggle at the Reichenbach Falls.
Days after Holmes and Moriarty disappear into the waterfall’s churning depths, Frederick Chase, a senior investigator at New York’s infamous Pinkerton Detective Agency, arrives in Switzerland. Chase brings with him a dire warning: Moriarty’s death has left a convenient vacancy in London’s criminal underworld. There is no shortage of candidates to take his place—including one particularly fiendish criminal mastermind.
Chase is assisted by Inspector Athelney Jones, a Scotland Yard detective and devoted student of Holmes’s methods of deduction, whom Conan Doyle introduced in The Sign of Four. The two men join forces and fight their way through the sinuous streets of Victorian London—from the elegant squares of Mayfair to the shadowy wharfs and alleyways of the Docks—in pursuit of this sinister figure, a man much feared but seldom seen, who is determined to stake his claim as Moriarty’s successor.
Riveting and deeply atmospheric, Moriarty is the first Sherlock Holmes novel sanctioned by the author’s estate since Horowitz’s The House of Silk. This tale of murder and menace breathes life into Holmes’s fascinating world, again proving that once you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.
Author Info
ANTHONY HOROWITZ is the author of the US bestselling Magpie Murders and The Word is Murder, and one of the most prolific and successful writers in the English language; he may have committed more (fictional) murders than any other living author. His novel Trigger Mortis features original material from Ian Fleming. His most recent Sherlock Holmes novel, Moriarty, is a reader favorite; and his bestselling Alex Rider series for young adults has sold more than 19 million copies worldwide. As a TV screenwriter, he created both Midsomer Murders and the BAFTA-winning Foyle’s War on PBS. Horowitz regularly contributes to a wide variety of national newspapers and magazines, and in January 2014 was awarded an OBE.
Reviews
“An altogether terrific period thriller and one of the best Sherlockian pastiches of our time.” — Washington Post
“Anything but elementary, this clever thriller is sure to please.” — People
“Infernally clever.” — New York Times Book Review
“There are secret codes to crack, plenty of puzzles to solve. . . . [Horowitz’s] evocative writing easily transports you to Victorian London, from fancy villas and foreign embassies to slummier mean streets.” — Boston Globe
“A tour de force. . . . Enthralling.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“The House of Silk was very popular and a solid piece of work—well constructed, skilfully executed and persuasively tinged with that alluring sooty flavour of 1890s London. His second, Moriarty, is much the same, but bolder in its ambitions.” — The Guardian
“Thrilling and compelling, with a stunning twist, this is written as if Conan Doyle were at Horowitz’s shoulder, and is-in my view-the finest crime novel of the year.” — Daily Mail
“Is there nothing Anthony Horowitz touches that doesn’t turn to gold? . . . . He captures Conan Doyle’s narrative technique to perfection. Gory murders, honest thieves, brilliant disguises, breathless chases and red herrings abound.” — Daily Express
“A relentlessly fast-paced and entertaining read.” — Sunday Times
“Though Horowitz dishes up the gore and violence with relish, he also offers all the tropes one might expect from a Holmes yarn, including baffling coded messages, impossible murders and clever red herrings.” — Financial Times
“An often excruciatingly exciting pursuit, and there is much casual slaughter, with hints of torture; nothing gratuitous but, as in The House of Silk, Horowitz’s Victorian London is a much darker place than Doyle’s.” — The Daily Telegraph
“In this skilfully executed follow on, Horowitz takes up the Conan Doyle baton and creates a suitably stylish and twisty detective story.” — Sunday Mirror
“The plot is gripping and the writing most readable. In fact, I must make a confession: I would rather read Horowitz than his model, Arthur Conan Doyle.” — Literary Review
“A no-nonsense writer Horowitz proceeds briskly and ladles out spills and thrills with aplomb.” — Irish Independent
“Anthony Horowitz may not be the most reverential of the many writers who have attempted to breathe new life into the legacy of Sherlock Holmes, but Moriarty proves that he is certainly one of the most entertaining.” — Irish Times
“An exhilarating page-turner.” — Sunday Post
“Horowitz weaves this mystery together perfectly and his plot twists are unpredictable until the last.” — Newcastle Journal
“A page-turner that is exhilarating and infuriating in equal measure.” — Edinburgh Evening News
