NEW STUFF: The Final Problem - Arturo Pérez-Reverte

There will always be Sherlock Holmes pastiches.  It is the one type of mystery novel homage that seems to be pouring out of an eternal fountain.  I tend to avoid them these days but The Final Problem (2026),  from the pen of inventive Spanish writer Arturo Pérez-Reverte, has an intriguing originality in that this is not only a Homes homage but also an intricately devised meta-fictional tribute to the history and development of detective fiction and also a true love letter to the Golden Age of Cinema, specifically Hollywood studio produced movies of the 1930s -1950s.

The stand-in for Holmes in this well thought out and trickily plotted detective novel is an actor who clearly is meant to be Basil Rathbone. No attempt to hide his true identity is made even if Pérez-Reverte saddles him with the awful stage name of Hopalong Basil, a name Basil despises. His real first name is no better.  It's Ormond and only one person ever calls him that.  I think it happens twice. He's referred to by his last name hammering home the source of the character each time someone addresses him as Basil. Anyone who knows old movies and the life of Basil Rathbone will see through the disguise immediately regardless of the similarity in names.  Ormond Basil's biographical information as it slowly seeps into the storyline parallels Rathbone's life matching everything from his close friendships with David Niven and Errol Flynn to his failed marriages.

And so we have a meta-fictional mystery with Holmes being played by the actor most well known at the time of the book's setting (it's 1960, BTW) who reluctantly accepts the role of detective. Basil is among a group of international tourists marooned on a Greek island when a violent death occurs. They are waiting for a severe storm to subside so that the Corfu police can arrive by boat and take over the police investigation. Edith Mander, a British tourist, is found dead from an apparent suicide in a locked room.  But of course it's not. This is a detective novel. There is a murderer among the tourists and violent deaths will occur twice more (one in another locked and bolted room) before the police arrive. Basil takes on the Holmes mantle one more time with the aid of Paco Foxá, Spanish thriller writer -- another attempt at a disguise that is easily seen through as it is obvious this is meant to be Pérez-Reverte.

This book is overloaded with Holmes allusions and quotes.  Hardcore devotees and all the Baker Street Irregulars out there may find this a real romp, but the incessant quoting of lines from the Canon and allusions to the many movie adaptations Ormond Basil has appeared in were a distraction for me. An equal amount of references to Hollywood movies, both real and imagined, dozens of real Golden Age of Cinema actors and actresses as well as insights into the life of Basil Rathbone are strewn throughout the text.  The abundance of references seemed like padding by the midpoint of the book. After each lengthy interruption I was eager for a return to the unravelling of the many mysteries surrounding the death by hanging and the two bludgeoning murders that occur later.

Basil and Foxá are a good duo and enjoy the role playing so much that there begin to refer to each other as Holmes and Watson. However, the role playing gets to be as transparent as Ormond's true life inspiration when the talk turns to plot tricks and misdirection. An exchange between Basil and Foxá hints at the rule breaking trend in GAD mystery fiction of both the detective and the Watson turning out to be the murderer.  This was, I think,a huge mistake on Pérez-Reverte's part because it led me to scrutinize one of the two detectives' actions and I easily figured out the solution to one of the locked rooms. Without that mention I don't think I would have seen through it so easily. Astute readers may see that sequence of discovering the second locked room is an allusion to a well-known detective novel, oft imitated in the genre. Even the title of that work is mentioned off-hand at least once that I noted.

What is most unique about the narrative is Pérez-Reverte's devotion to the actual construction of a mystery novel. Not only is this a meta-fictional treatment of a detective story it is the only one I can recall in which the crimes are viewed as incidents in a novel. The solution itself is arrived at only by looking at the murders as if they were created by a writer of mystery fiction. This conceit makes the reader look rather closely at the actions of Foxá, a writer himself.  But don't expect an obvious twist there.  The real motive behind the murders is hidden very cleverly and while the focus seems to be on a cat-and-mouse game between Basil and Foxá, Pérez-Reverte has several tricks up his sleeve delivered in the finale that elicited a few gasps of surprise from this veteran reader of detective fiction. Timeworn motifs and plot gimmicks show up and I was too busy out-thinking Pérez-Reverte to see the obvious.  And, of course, the ultimate Holmes allusion arrives in the finale, one that should have been obvious from the start. I overlooked that one because of the constant references to Moriarty. I should have paid closer attention to Basil and his frequently quoted line "You see, Watson, but you do not observe."

Some of the best parts of the book are in the talks of writing and concocting mystery plots, comparing "real" crime with fictional crime and the role of the detective. Here are some of my favorite exchanges:

Foxá on the art of misdirection: "You have to cover the reader's ears when you show them something and then cover their eyes when you tell them something. Also, play with their capacity for misjudgement and forgetfulness. You have to plant an idea, hide it, and confuse the reader with things that lead them to a different idea..."

"Sherlock Holmes wouldn't be on television today for being famous; he would be famous for being on television." 

 Foxá persuading Basil to be their detective: "Look at it another way. Lacking a real detective and with all those films under your belt, you have more experience than any of us. It's less about a criminal investigation that simply acting as an authority figure. Something symbolic." 

Foxá: "...[the murderer is] working like a good novelist."
Basil: "That's exactly what he does: incite ideas, but arranges everything to as to impede us from thinking things though. That's why we cannot trust the visible clues. And he could be offering up real ones as well to make it seem less suspicious."

Basil: "One of the downsides of imagination is that is suggests too many alternatives and can cause one to follow false leads."

Basil: "Remember that we're inside a novel. [...] Who said that audacity and romance seem to have passed forever from the criminal world?"
Foxá: "You said it. Well, Sherlock Holmes said it. The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge?"
Basil: "Well, Sherlock Holmes, or Conan Doyle was mistaken. There are still some romantic killers left."  

The Final Problem is a meta-fictional tour de force. Whatever your obsession -- Sherlock Holmes, old Hollywood movies, actors and actresses, or the traditional detective novel formula with all its trickery and plot motifs -- this new treasure trove of a novel will not disappoint.  Just be prepared for an overload of allusions.  Is there a preventive drug like Dramamine for allusion overkill?  Pop one of those in mouth (figuratively, of course) before diving headlong into this richly detailed and truly fun book. 

Net of Cobwebs - Elisabeth Sanxay Holding

THE STORY:  Malcolm Drake has returned from his WW2 Navy service a damaged man. He keeps dwelling on a young sailor whose death he feels he caused. While recuperating in his brother's home he has been amassing sleeping pills for what seems like a planned suicide. Then at an impromptu party he insists his teetotaling Aunt Evie join in drinking and she accepts a strongly prepared cocktail more on a dare than a willingness to be a social drinker. After downing that cocktail she dies on the spot, a rare case of alcohol poisoning that affected her weak heart. Malcolm is led to believe that he caused her death too. Police want to rule out murder and label the death a horrible accident.  But the family physician and several relatives lay the blame with Malcolm.  His mental state worsens with the additional guilt. Reality and imagination blur so that neither can be distinguished from one another.  Then another person dies - this one an obvious murder. Will Malcolm be able to escape the Net of Cobwebs (1945) that have entangled his mind and altered his reality?

THE CHARACTERS: The story is told exclusively through Malcolm's point of view and everyone he meets or knows is filtered through his skewed view of reality. This is an intriguing touch on Sanxay's part as everyone may not be presented as they really are. Just as Malcolm's mind is cracking and his guilt affects all of his actions and thoughts so we see the characters through this veil of cobwebs, an eerie but apt metaphor for a mind trapped in the past and at odds with the present. Of the supporting players in the the story these are the stand-outs:

Aunt Evie - the victim and a woman with a lot of money. Her nieces and nephews are expecting a share in her estate but when the will is read they are all in for a shock when Malcolm, someone Aunt Evie seemed to be ridiculing most of the time, receives $20,000 -- the largest bequest.

Virginia - One of Malcolm's in-laws, sister to Helene, his brother's wife. Virginia seems to be the kinder of the two sisters. Immediately following the reading of the will she begins to profess a fondness for Malcolm that grows increasingly obsessive.  She calls it love but it seems more like she has eyes on his inheritance.

Ivan Jenette - A musician who has inveigled his way into Aunt Evie's life and her bank account.  Described as a "detached sort of person" by Helene, Arthur Drake's wife. He's a wannabe artist with no ambition other than to grab as much money as he can from the older woman who becomes his patron of sorts.  She pays the rent on his apartment and supplies him with additional income when she has him perform concerts for her high society matron friends. He loathes his life but a indolent parasite can only cling to his gravy train. He's furious when he is left out of her will. Ivan then begins to bother Malcolm and claims to have seen something the night that Aunt Evie died. They arrange to meet, but he never shows up.

Lily Kingscrown - One of the next door neighbors to Malcolm's brother's house. She appears to be the embodiment of kindness. Her striking beauty captures Malcolm's eye and soon his heart.  She seems to good to be true.  Spends her free time volunteering at a mental institution for war veterans. She has an empathy for the men she cares for and this seems to give her an insight into Malcolm's troubles and perhaps why she listens to him more carefully than others.  She seems to be his only ally, but does she like everyone else have an ulterior motive in becoming friendly with Malcolm. Apart from Malcolm she's the most fascinating character in the book 

Gussie - Lily's not too bright housemaid.  Only 18 years old and thinks she knows the world. Malcolm must find a way to get her to reveal what she saw in Lily's garage.  A little bribe might work...

Ben - Servant in the Drake household.  Works for Arthur, Malcolm's brother. Ben may have something to do with Ivan's disappearance. Malcolm also discovers he and Gussie have some kind of sexual relationship that creeps him out because Ben is considerably older than Gussie.

Dr. Lurie - The family physician who is on hand for all the deaths. He is highly suspicious of Malcolm and wants everyone to know that the war vet is most likely unstable and liable to do something they will all regret. Wants Malcolm sent to the mental home. Reveals at a key moment in the plot that Malcolm has been hoarding sleeping pills. Comes across as a sinister threatening doctor, but we're seeing him through Malcolm's perception. Is he actually a good physician or is in he in cahoots with someone?

ATMOSPHERE:  Sanxay's strength in writing these kinds of suspense stories is her skill in creating an atmosphere of fear and dread.  Malcolm is truly haunted by the young sailor's death; it colors every waking moment so that the first half is almost a ghost story.  When Ivan disappears and his body turns up in Lily's garage a new kind of terror begins. Then just as quickly as it appeared the body disappears. We can only sympathize with this poor man who believes he is losing his mind. Nothing in the book is ever treated lightly.  Every event and incident has the potential for danger. No one's words ever seem honest or truthful. No one at Arthur's house seems to be on Malcolm's side, not even Virginia whose love seems over-the-top and insincere. By the midpoint we want Lily to be the ally Malcolm desperately needs.  But even Lily seems to be hiding true intent in her friendship with Malcolm. 

QUOTES: Four o'clock is the zero hour. That's when your vitality is at the lowest ebb. Ebb tide, when life is going out; when people die. All right, then die at four o'clock, and be done with it.

Three o-clock is certainly a quiet hour. What the hell is the matter with all the little crickets and things? Too late in the year? Or is it the rain? Or is it because I-- can't hear them?  Four o'clock is the zero hour. Then let it be. You've got to be dead or alive, one or the other. Not like this.

Cobwebs are pretty. I've looked at them. I saw a bee caught in a cobweb once. It was getting dragged along, by the littlest spider in the world. Dragged into web. The bee could break one thread, and another thread. But in the end there were too many threads. Each one of them is so little, you think, well, I'll bust out of this. But then there's another.  And another...

EASY TO FIND?  There were at least three paperback reprints after the initial 1945 Simon & Schuster hardcover edition in the US: two editions from Bantam and one in a 2-for-1 Giant Ace. Most copies for sale are one of those three paperback editions.  For some reason several of the Bantam 1st paperbacks are priced at the cost of a 1st edition hardcover.  I'll never understand the prices of vintage paperbacks these days. Who is paying these absurd prices? No one, it seems, because they just sit out there in the digital shopping mall gathering ethereal dust. Anyway, the US 1st edition is pretty damn scarce these days though I did turn up two US hardcovers but they look to be beat up reading copies.  The paperback reprints seem to be the only options now. There may be a digital reprint, but I don't spend much time looking for them. Happy hunting!