Toward the Gleam

Toward the Gleam, written by T.M. Doran.  Ignatius Press, 2011.  467 pages.  Hardcover, $24.95.

 

Toward the Gleam is a rousing salute to the culture of fandom, celebrating some of the major figures of twentieth-century literature and inserting them into an adventure revolving around a priceless historical manuscript, ruthless supervillains, and the hunt for a lost civilization, possibly Atlantis.

 

The main character in Toward the Gleam is John Hill, an Oxford professor, specializing in philology. Though Hill is essentially a fictionalized character, he is clearly based on a famous real-life author, also an Oxford philologist, also with the first name John.  John Hill is married to a woman named E.M., and has four children. If you know anything at all about the personal life of the author who inspired John Hill, then you should already know Hill’s true identity.

 

As if a novel featuring one of my all-time favorite writers as its hero wasn’t enough, many of my other favorite novelists also make appearances as Hill’s friends and allies. The real-life characters are referred to only by their first names. Hill’s colleagues at Oxford include scholars named Owen and Charles. Readers looking in vain for Hill’s buddy Clive will do well to remember that the real-life “Clive” was commonly referred to as “Jack.” Hill is also profoundly influenced by a saintly woman named Edith. There are references to mystery writers Arthur and Dorothy, and another mystery writer named Agatha plays a pivotal role in the plot, acting as E.M.’s friend and supporter. Agatha also plays a role in solving an impossible locked-room mystery.

 

Another character who becomes one of Hill’s most trusted confidantes and powerful allies is an enormous, caped journalist named Gilbert. (I have no idea who Gilbert is supposed to be. Does anyone have any ideas?) Gilbert realizes the mortal danger that Hill inadvertently has stumbled into, and rescues him from deadly peril at a pivotal moment.

(Dale Ahlquist has told me that he personally finds the characterization of Gilbert to be unbelievable. I’m not sure why. Perhaps it is because at one point Gilbert is offered chocolate and doesn’t accept it.)

 

There are subplots involving slavers, pirates, and butt-kicking women out for revenge. Unfortunately, the subplots distract from the more interesting scenes where great minds interact and fight for a common cause, and the epilogue at the end seems to leave the ultimate point of the novel dangling in the wind a bit. I would have loved to see more scenes focusing on Hill’s burgeoning interest in creative writing and his development of theories on the power of myth. Perhaps my own extreme fandom is an influence here, but if necessary I could have done without the entire “evil antiquarian wants a priceless book” storyline in favor of more passages where the characters interact, in which case the novel might just as well have been called Chris Chan’s Favorite Writers Just Sit Around And Talk. Personally, I see no reason why that book would not be a runaway bestseller.  But Doran really does do a fine job with the adventure storyline that he has constructed.

 

The plot about the evil antiquarian’s search for the book is quite well done, culminating in a fantastic scene involving Hill and his son fighting for their lives in the face of three deadly creepy crawly creatures, who quite understandably will feature in Hill’s fictional pursuits later in a rather expanded form. Hill’s ultimate rescue from mortal peril is based more on pure luck than anything else (or perhaps more satisfyingly, the Hand of Providence), which kind of undercuts the themes of quiet heroism and the constant struggle for survival that permeate the book. It would also have been more satisfying to have actually seen the primary antagonist’s empire of crime crumbling without his influence, and the straggling lackeys being brought to justice, but I should not complain too much, not when the book brought me as much pleasure as it did.

 

Ultimately, the real joy of Toward the Gleam for me was seeing so many of my favorite authors coming together and sporadically uniting (or at least allying with Hill) towards a common cause. Having read the memoirs and letters of the authors featured in this book, it is a tad disappointing that they do not really sound like their real-life inspirations (every line sounds more like Doran’s authorial voice than the wit or ramblings of the actual writers), but the power of fandom is enough to blot out any disappointment regarding their presentation. The authors featured in this novel all managed to created fictional worlds that I wanted to visit, and Doran’s melding of minds and adventure is also a place that I would like to explore.

This review first appeared in Gilbert! Magazine.

Murder in the Vatican: The Church Mysteries of Sherlock Holmes

Murder in the Vatican: The Church Mysteries of Sherlock Holmes, by Ann Margaret Lewis.  Illustrations by Rikki Niehaus.  Gasogene Books, 2010.  152 pages.  Softcover, $18.95.

 

Fans of the original Sherlock Holmes mysteries by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle know that the great detective solved many more cases that were never recorded by Dr. Watson. Peppered throughout the canonical writings are scores of references to cases that never made it into print. Some of these never-written cases include the giant rat of Sumatra, and the Dundas separation case, where a marriage unraveled due to the husband’s unpleasant habit of tossing his dentures at his wife after meals.  Over the years, many Sherlockians have taken a shot at writing these unrevealed cases, with varying results. Some of the best fans to follow in Conan Doyle’s footsteps are Nicholas Meyer, August Derleth, Denis Green, and Anthony Boucher. With the publication of Murder in the Vatican, Ann Margaret Lewis can join the ranks of authors who have provided worthy additions to the adventures of Holmes and Watson.

 

Out of over a hundred references to unrecorded Holmes mysteries, three are connected to the Catholic Church.  These are “The Case of Cardinal Tosca” (originally mentioned in The Adventure of Black Peter), “The Vatican Cameos” (The Hound of the Baskervilles), and “The Second Coptic Patriarch” (The Retired Colourman).  Lewis has taken these three references and expanded them into novelettes, drawing heavily on history and Catholic theology. In each of these stories, Pope Leo XIII is a major figure.

 

In “The Case of Cardinal Tosca,” the title character succumbs to poisoning, and Holmes and Watson are summoned to determine how the crime was committed.  Pope Leo XIII assists the famous pair in their investigation, going so far as to go uncover in order to help bring the culprit to justice. There are many references that the Pope and Holmes have worked together before, but the exact nature of their history together is not revealed until the next story.

 

“The Vatican Cameos” is the longest story in this volume, focusing on a complicated diplomatic mission between the Vatican and a hostile Protestant England. A set of priceless cameos is sent to Queen Victoria as a tribute gift in order to further the possibility of building a new Catholic cathedral in Great Britain. Although the tale is capped with introductory and closing passages narrated by Watson, the bulk of this lengthy tale comes from the Pope’s first-person manuscript. 

 

This mystery is actually set before the Cardinal Tosca mystery, although the prologue and epilogue are set after the Tosca case. This story explains how Holmes and the Pope first met, when Holmes traveled to Rome at the request of the British government (Watson was otherwise engaged during this adventure). The theft is followed by murder, and the Pope and Holmes join forces in order to find the stolen artwork and salvage the Vatican’s diplomatic efforts.

 

“The Vatican Cameos” allows for some rather interesting character development on Holmes’s part. Holmes begins the tale as an extreme rationalist who is unabashedly hostile to all things Catholic. Throughout the investigation, the Pope and Holmes debate logic, faith, reason, and eventually develop a sincere respect for each other. Pope Leo XIII does not make a convert in this tale, but he does make a friend and ally.

 

A famous Chesterton character also makes a cameo appearance in “The Vatican Cameos.” A Deacon Brown, soon to be fully ordained as a priest, delivers the Pope’s manuscript to Watson at the start of the story. Father Brown plays a much more central role in “The Second Coptic Patriarch,” where a bumbling Inspector Lestrade falsely accuses the good father of murder. A disguised Flambeau recruits Holmes to clear Father Brown’s name, although Holmes, who knows all about Flambeau’s felonious activities, sees right through the make-up. There is a slight disconnect between the chronology in Lewis’s stories and Chesterton’s original Father Brown mysteries (“Coptic Patriarch” is set long before “The Flying Stars,” and Flambeau’s conversion and rehabilitation are made explicit in Lewis’s tale), but these issues should not distract from an otherwise enjoyable story.

 

Chesterton is not the only mystery writer to have a character appear in these stories. There is an oblique reference to a super-short story by Dorothy L. Sayers, published only in the now out-of-print collection Sayers on Holmes. Originally a brief radio monologue called “A Tribute to Sherlock Holmes on the Occasion of his 100^th Birthday,” this rare tale tells how when Lord Peter Wimsey was a little boy, he visited Holmes in order to help him find his missing pet cat. It would be interesting to know how many of Lewis’s readers would have known about this obscure little reference.

 

Murder in the Vatican is highly recommended not just for fans of Sherlock Holmes, but also for fans of historical fiction and people who would like to see the Catholic Church portrayed in a highly favorable light. Lewis does a creditable job of mimicking Doyle’s prose style, and the tales are full of theological and historical details without ever appearing preachy or forced. Given the plethora of “untold” Holmes stories, Lewis has plenty of material for some follow-up stories. For the sake of mystery fans everywhere, I hope that Lewis keeps writing.

This review first appeared in Gilbert!