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Horowitz's Holmes #1.5
The Three Monarchs
An original Sherlock Holmes short story from the New York Times bestselling author of The House of Silk and Moriarty—one of the only writers to earn the seal of approval from Conan Doyle’s estate.
In this e-original short story, Sherlock Holmes and James Watson come together once again to uncover the motive behind a robbery gone awry. When an elderly man shoots an intruder he finds in his home, it seems like a clear case of self defense. What’s not so clear is why the robber was there. His bag contains no silver or jewelry—only three crude ceramic figurines of Queen Victoria which were mass-produced for her Golden Jubilee. When two of the figurines are traced to other houses on the same street, it’s Sherlock Holmes who sees the key to unlock the mystery.
Three Monarchs includes a preview chapter from Moriarty.
In this e-original short story, Sherlock Holmes and James Watson come together once again to uncover the motive behind a robbery gone awry. When an elderly man shoots an intruder he finds in his home, it seems like a clear case of self defense. What’s not so clear is why the robber was there. His bag contains no silver or jewelry—only three crude ceramic figurines of Queen Victoria which were mass-produced for her Golden Jubilee. When two of the figurines are traced to other houses on the same street, it’s Sherlock Holmes who sees the key to unlock the mystery.
Three Monarchs includes a preview chapter from Moriarty.
27 pages, ebook
First published October 28, 2014
456 people are currently reading
3110 people want to read
About the author
Anthony Horowitz
530 books20k followersAnthony Horowitz, OBE is ranked alongside Enid Blyton and Mark A. Cooper as "The most original and best spy-kids authors of the century." (New York Times). Anthony has been writing since the age of eight, and professionally since the age of twenty. In addition to the highly successful Alex Rider books, he is also the writer and creator of award winning detective series Foyle’s War, and more recently event drama Collision, among his other television works he has written episodes for Poirot, Murder in Mind, Midsomer Murders and Murder Most Horrid. Anthony became patron to East Anglia Children’s Hospices in 2009.
On 19 January 2011, the estate of Arthur Conan Doyle announced that Horowitz was to be the writer of a new Sherlock Holmes novel, the first such effort to receive an official endorsement from them and to be entitled the House of Silk.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/anthon...
On 19 January 2011, the estate of Arthur Conan Doyle announced that Horowitz was to be the writer of a new Sherlock Holmes novel, the first such effort to receive an official endorsement from them and to be entitled the House of Silk.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/anthon...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 188 reviews
April 24, 2025
"You will remember, Watson, how the dreadful business of the Abernetty family was first brought to my notice by the depth which the parsley had sunk into the butter upon a hot day."
- Sherlock Holmes in The Adventure of the Six Napoleons
And thanks to Anthony Horowitz, fans can finally read a story about the Abernetty's and that damn parsley in the butter.
I think he does a fine job of it, too. In fact, I was hard-pressed to remember that I wasn't reading some leftover scrap of Doyle's that someone dug out of an old drawer. I really enjoyed both The House of Silk & Moriarty, and thought he did an excellent job bringing the characters back to life.
But damn! In short story format, his voice was almost indistinguishable from Doyle's.
Recommended.
- Sherlock Holmes in The Adventure of the Six Napoleons
And thanks to Anthony Horowitz, fans can finally read a story about the Abernetty's and that damn parsley in the butter.
I think he does a fine job of it, too. In fact, I was hard-pressed to remember that I wasn't reading some leftover scrap of Doyle's that someone dug out of an old drawer. I really enjoyed both The House of Silk & Moriarty, and thought he did an excellent job bringing the characters back to life.
But damn! In short story format, his voice was almost indistinguishable from Doyle's.
Recommended.
May 16, 2020
A 42 page Sherlock Holmes mystery. Horowitz writes a perfect likeness of Holmes. I love how Holmes solves crimes thru miniscule traces of clues. A short but satisfying mystery about an odd theft.
December 19, 2015
The Three Monarchs How to sell a book: You write a short story, add the first chapter of your book after the short story then sell it cheap. voilà!
But I have learned the lesson, I seldom read the first chapter...so, Mr. Horowitz, I will not buy your book (until the price is right)...
The short story was ok, of course too short to be really interesting. But it was good written, not terribly surprising, but hello, it was super short, not many things can happen on so few pages...
But I have learned the lesson, I seldom read the first chapter...so, Mr. Horowitz, I will not buy your book (until the price is right)...
The short story was ok, of course too short to be really interesting. But it was good written, not terribly surprising, but hello, it was super short, not many things can happen on so few pages...
January 3, 2016
Read all my reviews on http://urlphantomhive.booklikes.com
If you are a Sherlock fan. like me, chances are you were watching the new episode yesterday, like me. Don't get me started on how rude it is to only provide one episode after two years of waiting (or how the series is dwelling a lot on how awesome it is). Luckily for us, there are other Sherlock Holmes stories to keep the waiting bearable.
I've not been a fan of all the modern Sherlock Holmes stories, but when I was reading The House of Silk I was surprised by how well it captured the characters and how much I liked the writing. This is a (too) short story intended as a promotion. And even though it was too short to give the story anything substantial going on and to be really interesting, it did remind me of how much I liked The House of Silk and that I should certainly read Moriarty soon.
I'd say, mission accomplished. The case is closed.
If you are a Sherlock fan. like me, chances are you were watching the new episode yesterday, like me. Don't get me started on how rude it is to only provide one episode after two years of waiting (or how the series is dwelling a lot on how awesome it is). Luckily for us, there are other Sherlock Holmes stories to keep the waiting bearable.
I've not been a fan of all the modern Sherlock Holmes stories, but when I was reading The House of Silk I was surprised by how well it captured the characters and how much I liked the writing. This is a (too) short story intended as a promotion. And even though it was too short to give the story anything substantial going on and to be really interesting, it did remind me of how much I liked The House of Silk and that I should certainly read Moriarty soon.
I'd say, mission accomplished. The case is closed.
October 9, 2022
Not too complex but pretty entertaining
November 16, 2022
I have not yet delved into the Holmes series by Anthony Horowitz, but it's on my radar. I found this short story while looking for a book for a reading challenge. Although the story likely comes chronologically after the first book of the series, this quick read is a good introduction to the rest of the books. I enjoyed Horowitz's writing and the mystery that Holmes, of course, was able to solve with his keen eye for detail. The story is told from Watson's point of view and gives us a nice profile of Holmes through his eyes.
The story involves an elderly man who supposedly shot an intruder in self-defense, but Holmes, who is summoned to the crime scene, suspects further foul play. A set of figurines discreetly adorning a couple of residences helps Holmes solve the mystery.
The story involves an elderly man who supposedly shot an intruder in self-defense, but Holmes, who is summoned to the crime scene, suspects further foul play. A set of figurines discreetly adorning a couple of residences helps Holmes solve the mystery.
August 21, 2019
The Three Monarchs was a short but a very entertaining mystery that provides an intriguing peek into the working of Sherlock Holmes though Dr. Watson's engaging narration.
January 28, 2016
I needed a dose of Holmes and so purchased this small ebook via Kindle. So is it worth the $1.99 I paid for it? Answer: yes. Anthony Horowitz is an author of many talents-one of which is creating excellent Sherlock Holmes stories, apparently. I was not so crazy about Moriarty but The House of Silk was fantastic. I found I enjoyed The Three Monarchs quite a bit, and Horowitz plays fair and lays out all the clues so you can solve the mystery yourself if you are observant enough, which is the only way to fly. It is always a pleasure to match wits with Mr. Sherlock Holmes.
April 27, 2017
Cute story, not amazing, writing a little heavy-handed, which makes it hard to read even though it's so short. Not up to the level of Horowitz's first Sherlock novel.
March 22, 2021
An interesting short story, but not outstanding, I also fell asleep twice while reading, which says a lot about it.
September 17, 2023
Da war ich ja schnell durch 😳 Ich hatte nicht darauf geachtet, wieviele Seiten das Buch hat und hab mich schon gewundert, dass Sherlock so schnell Schlüsse zieht, aber anscheinend ist es eher eine Kurzgeschichte; deshalb aber nicht weniger spannend. Ich freu mich auf das nächste Buch, was hoffentlich länger ist 😉
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 4, 2019
Interesting story
Anthony Horowitz is a brilliant writer as seen by his scripts of Foyles War television show. Now he has applied his talent to writing new stories of Sherlock Holmes. This single is a fine example of this new adventure and will delight you just as Doyle's writings did years ago. Can't wait to read more.
Anthony Horowitz is a brilliant writer as seen by his scripts of Foyles War television show. Now he has applied his talent to writing new stories of Sherlock Holmes. This single is a fine example of this new adventure and will delight you just as Doyle's writings did years ago. Can't wait to read more.
June 2, 2021
I love short stories that supplement the main books and this one was a fab little short with Holmes and Watson and an encounter with Athelney Jones of which we previously met in The Sign of Four. It was a great little story, with some succinct deductions from Sherlock, a nice little catch up with Watson and a mystery afoot which the likes of Sherlock Holmes can only solve…. It was great.
February 1, 2016
Really short und slightly interesting mystery with Holmes and Watson. Bit too obvious for my taste.
December 2, 2024
While someone needs to hit Horowitz over the head with an accurate timeline, this was a fairly solid, fun story that made an admirable attempt at capturing the spirit of the original Canon. Never once felt like I was reading a pastiche of a TV show based on a hodgepodge of other pastiches, and for that alone this is a worthy addition to any Holmesian library.
June 27, 2018
While I don't believe that Doyle is the one and only author to be able to construct a Holmes story, this seemed a bit weak constructed around the solution.
But I still consider the style faithful and will like to start the novel
But I still consider the style faithful and will like to start the novel
August 5, 2018
Quite an entertaining read.
I liked this one, even if it is pretty close to an original Sherlock story. 😉
I liked this one, even if it is pretty close to an original Sherlock story. 😉
July 31, 2020
Nice little short, very much in he style of Doyle.
August 2, 2021
Ein kurzes Buch für zwischendurch, also eher eine Kurzgeschichte.
Aber eine gute Geschichte 👍🏻😊
Aber eine gute Geschichte 👍🏻😊
September 7, 2024
A gripping story that had me glued to my Kindle screen to find out the resolution. Horowitz is guilty of a little indulgence at the start of the story, Doyle never gave superfluous reminiscing, but the rest of the story was great. I was really pleased when I started it to find it's an episode that was referenced frequently in Horowitz's 'Moriarty'. 4 stars.
November 8, 2024
Superb short story...classic Holmes❤️
March 9, 2020
Holmes is at it again in this short story (now published for the first time). Horowitz dishes up what's fun about Sherlock Holmes.
March 11, 2017
Probably not going to read this authors renditions of Sherlock Holmes anymore. I would recommend his book Moriarty though. That was good. This was a disappointment.
December 9, 2016
Ebenso wie Band eins sehr knackig geschieben und noch dazu erhält für lau. Natürlich nicht ganz so komplex wie das vorherige Buch - trotzdem gut ausgearbeitet. Leider ist diese Story hier näher am Original - d.h. Hinweise, die nur Herr Holmes sieht und deren Zusammenhang erst Sinn ergeben, wenn der gnädige Herr uns aufklärt.
May 2, 2019
As with House of Silk, I really liked the tone and the way the author has been able to capture the narration style of Dr. Watson/ACD. Since it was a short story, Sherlock's presence felt much more genuine as in the style of ACD. The mystery was simple though and something which I've read/watched/heard over years of acquaintance with mystery genre.
Still recommended as I felt this mirrored the style of ACD much more closely than House of Silk did.
Still recommended as I felt this mirrored the style of ACD much more closely than House of Silk did.
November 16, 2020
Awesome short story
I have read a few Sherlock Holmes books by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and this short story is very Doyle like. Great characters, witty dialogue by Holmes and Watson. Interesting Story and nice twist at the end. I would recommend Anthony Horowitz Sherlock Holmes books and wish there could be a few more.
I have read a few Sherlock Holmes books by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and this short story is very Doyle like. Great characters, witty dialogue by Holmes and Watson. Interesting Story and nice twist at the end. I would recommend Anthony Horowitz Sherlock Holmes books and wish there could be a few more.
October 18, 2022
A supposed thief shot dead after he takes an identical statuette from three houses in the same neighborhood confounding the Scotland Yard inspector working the case. He consults Holmes and Watson with what little facts he’s collected. Holmes takes on the case and quickly solves the case to the astonishment of the inspector. Definitely recommended
May 19, 2016
'The Three Monarchs' is a (very) short story involving what seemed to be an attempted theft, followed by a murder.
As usual with Sherlock Holmes stories, nothing is what it seems, and my only wish was that this was a longer story.
As usual with Sherlock Holmes stories, nothing is what it seems, and my only wish was that this was a longer story.
December 28, 2021
What a great Holmes & Watson short story written by Horowitz published just before his book “Moriarty” was released. I found myself having the remember that this story wasn’t written by Doyle. It just had that same feeling, which is what makes both “House of Silk” & “Moriarty” such great books.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 188 reviews
