Reviewed By Liz

ISBN 0312347820
St. Martin’s Minotaur – Hardcover

THE BLACK DOVE – A Holmes on the Range Mystery – In the summer of 1893, Gustav “Old Red” Amlingmeyer and his brother Otto (a.k.a. “Big Red”) find themselves down and out in San Francisco. Though cowpokes by training, the brothers are devotees of the late, great Sherlock Holmes and his trademark method of “deducifying.” But when they set out to land jobs as professional detectives, they land themselves in hot water, instead.

First their friend Dr. Chan mysteriously takes a potshot at them, fatally wounding Big Red’s new hat. Then a secretive young woman from their past pops up and convinces them that Chan’s in trouble — and they’re just the men to get him out of it. Unfortunately, they’re too late: By the time they track Chan down again, he’s dead. The police call it a suicide. Old Red calls that a lie. When he and his brother set out to prove it, they put themselves on a collision course with shady S.F.P.D. cops, brutal Barbary Coast hoodlums and the deadly Chinatown tongs.

Before long, all sides are in a race to uncover the secret that could rock the city. And their only clue to what’s actually going on is the enigmatic, exotic and extremely difficult to find “Black Dove.”

Though he considers himself a Midwesterner at heart, Hockensmith currently lives in California’s Bay Area. He says he’s adjusted to life on the West Coast, but confesses that he still misses thunderstorms, snow and Long John Silver’s Seafood Shoppes. He shares his home with the perfect wife, the perfect daughter, the perfect son and a slightly imperfect cat.

Check out Steve’s web site at www.stevehockensmith.com.

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ISBN 0-312-34781-2

Big Red and Old Red are back in their second book, On The Wrong Track. The year is 1893 and the Amlingmeyer brothers have ridden across several states trying to find work that will fulfill Old Red’s desire to be a detective. Old Red had recently discovered Sherlock Holmes and he had persuaded Big Red to read the tales of Holmes’ adventures to him over and over. Old Red believes that he has the ability to follow in the footsteps of his idol and when the two of them are hired on as guards for a train, he has the opportunity to prove his mettle.

The train is headed to San Francisco with a beautiful woman, a mysterious Chinaman, a Western hero, some unusual cargo, and is the expected target of train robbers. The Amlingmeyer brothers have their hands full sorting the good guys from the bad, something that they need to do around Old Red’s bouts of nausea – turns out his stomach really doesn’t like trains. In fact, he is leaning over the railing of the caboose, painting the track an unattractive color, as the body is thrown from the train. And suddenly Big Red feels a little sick, too.

Steve Hockensmith is one of my new favorite authors. The colorful (not profane) language, the hilarious descriptions of people and events, and the delightfully improbable story setup all make Hockensmith’s books wonderful. He carries this tongue in cheek style all the way through the story and even into the chapter headings. Chapter Two, for example, is dubbed “Lockhart – or, a close shave leads to a hairy predicament.” This book is wonderfully written and very funny.

Favorite character? Big Red is still my favorite. Did I guess it? No. Will I read another? Absolutely. Book three can’t come out soon enough.

Mystery Book Reviews by Liz at http://reviewedbyliz.com ©2007

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ISBN 0-312-34780-4

Run, do not walk to buy this book! Holmes on the Range is wonderful. It is about two cowboy brothers in 1893 who are big fans of the Sherlock Holmes stories that reach them way out in Montana by way of the Harper’s Weekly magazines. Big Red reads these stories to Old Red (they both have red hair) by the light of the campfire or lantern until the magazine pages are practically worn through. Then Old Red gets a notion to do some detecting himself one day when he hears about some strange doings at a particular ranch and the two brothers get jobs there to see if they can get to the bottom of the mystery.

But Old Red has landed them in a snake pit with danger on all sides. The brothers must stay together and watch each other’s backs at all times as hostile cowboys, visiting Englishmen, and an escaped cannibal named Hungry Bob all threaten their continued wellbeing and ongoing investigation.

This book has it all – great settings, interesting characters, good plot, and some action at the end. And I guarantee that you will laugh out loud at the colorful cowboy dialog and descriptions of life on the range. But this book also has a tremendous feeling of menace and that, along with the hard work described, make the reader appreciate their cushy modern life.

Favorite character? Who doesn’t love a cannibal named Hungry Bob? I’m tempted to go with him, but I have to say Big Red, who narrates the story. Did I guess it? Not really. Will I read another? Yes. I can’t wait for the further adventures of Old Red and Big Red. And I will re-read this book again in the future, too.

Mystery Book Reviews by Liz at http://reviewedbyliz.com ©2007

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