Warlock Holmes: A Study in Brimstone

Written by G.S. Denning

Narrated by Robert Garson

Sherlock Holmes is an unparalleled genius who uses the gift of deduction and reason to solve the most vexing of crimes.

Warlock Holmes, however, is an idiot. A good man, perhaps; a font of arcane power, certainly. But he’s brilliantly dim. Frankly, he couldn’t deduce his way out
of a paper bag. The only things he has really got going for him are the might of a thousand demons and his stalwart flatmate. Thankfully, Dr. Watson is always
there to aid him through the treacherous shoals of Victorian propriety … and save him from a gruesome death every now and again.

An imaginative, irreverent and addictive reimagining of the world’s favourite detective, Warlock Holmes retains the charm, tone and feel of the original stories
by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle while finally giving the flat at 221b Baker Street what it’s been missing for all these years: an alchemy table.

Reimagining six stories, this riotous mash-up is a glorious new take on the everpopular Sherlock Holmes myth, featuring the vampire Inspector Vladislav
Lestrade, the ogre Inspector Torg Grogsson, and Dr. Watson, the true detective at 221b. And Sherlock. A warlock.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: May 17, 2016
• ISBN: 9781501911866

G.S. Denning

G.S. Denning is the author of the acclaimed Sherlock-fantasy mashup series Warlock Holmes, including Warlock Holmes: A Study in Brimstone and Warlock Holmes: The Hell-Hound of the Baskervilles. He has a background in improv and has performed with Ryan Stiles and Wayne Brady. He lives in Las Vegas with his wife and two children.

Reviews for Warlock Holmes

[Michelle Anderson · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Clever, hilarious. Best Sherlock Holmes pastiche ever. The narrative Robert Garson, amazing talent. Wish I could find more of his works!!! I have read and listened to well over a thousand books and audiobooks and this series is absolutely the best. I’m really hope the author continues this wonderful series.

[Doug Wilkes · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

If you're a devotee of Sherlock Holmes this book is hilarious! The reader's performance amplifies both the over-the-top and subtle humor. I'm now a lifelong fan of Warlock Holmes ??

[Elizabeth Allen · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I’m on an genre-bending spree with our favorite consulting detective, and thus far Warlock Holmes is my favorite. It’s laugh-out-loud funny at times, and it does keep me guessing, even if the narratives are familiar.

[jean_sexton-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Victorian London, Sherlock Holmes, steampunk pastiche, what could go wrong? What I failed to notice was that it was supposed to be humorous, so I went into the book unprepared.It also was not a novel, but a novella and five short stories. All are parodies of Doyle's titles.A Study in Brimstone (A Study in Scarlet)The Adventure of the Resident Sacrifice (The Adventure of the Resident Patient)The Case of the Cardboard ... Case (The Adventure of the Cardboard Box)The Adventure of the Yellow Bastard (The Adventure of the Yellow Face)The Adventure of the _eckled _and (The Adventure of the Speckled Band)Charles Augustus Milverton: Soulbinder (The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton)I loved the opening lines of the book, written by Dr. John Watson: THE DOMINION OF MAN IS DRAWING TO A CLOSE. THE age of demons is upon us. This, I recognize, is largely my fault and let me take just a moment to apologize for my part in it. I am very sorry I doomed the world. Really, just… absolutely, horribly sorry.If it weren't for Dr. Watson, I would most likely have finished the book and never wanted to read another. As it is, I will get the sequel, just to see how he copes with the less-than-clever Warlock Holmes. I liked Grogsson and Lestrade as well. Mrs. Hudson .. the less said about her the better. Really. Trust me.The humor can be over-the-top silly, which isn't my cup of tea. To understand some of the humor, you need to be familiar with the Sherlock Holmes canon. Those parts were truly amusing to me.Who would like it? Take advantage of the free preview on Amazon. If you like it, then you'll probably like the book. Otherwise, you need to like mashups (Lovecraft/Holmes/steampunk) with a hefty dose of humor.

[paul_s-289480 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Utterly silly but fully committed to its premise. I laughed.

[being_b-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

That was just tremendous fun. Retellings of the early Sherlock Holmes stories if Sherlock were a none-too-bright Warlock instead, and Watson the investigator. As matters go on things get more and more interesting. Bought the next two books immediately.

A note for the people complaining about the stupidity of the extended donut joke in the first mystery: A Study in Scarlet, the very first Sherlock Holmes story, suffers from what can charitably be called "creative" narrative choices by Doyle. It's got a boring story in third-person omniscient POV that is used to explain the killer's motivations and backstory, and Denning justifiably mocks it. By replacing Lucy the woman (whose kidnapping, forcible marriage and eventual death drive the killer's desire for revenge in the original story) with Lucy the donut, the author lampshades how totally irrelevant Lucy-the-person is to a narrative that is supposedly all about the killer's love for her. All in the spirit of DeConnick's "sexy lamp" test (can the female character can be replaced by a sexy lamp and the narrative still makes sense?)- clever idea, but it does make for flat reading.

[thebooknooknc · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

If you want laugh out loud ridiculousness then this book is for you. If you want a magical twist to a well known classic then this book is for you. These characters are hilarious and the witty banter between Holmes and Watson will keep you in stitches. This book is a great pick me up and is definitely the one I grab when I need a laugh.

[cmbohn · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Very entertaining stuff! No sure I want to read book 2 but I did like this one. Features Lestrade as a vampire.

[wyvernfriend · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

In the vein of some of the re-writings of Sherlock Holmes this is Sherlock as a bit of an idiot, saved by the cleverness of Dr Watson. This is a set of stories, rather than just one, detailing Watson's introduction to the world that Holmes inhabits (and honestly it's done better in the Lord Darcy series). There's a vampire, Inspector Vladislav Lestrange and an Ogre and a variety of other characters that I neither cared about or really remember.It's not terrible but I have absolutely no inclination to read further in this series, it wasn't enough of any of my catnip to really interest and too much of a parody to make me happy with it. It's a Sherlock Holmes meets Lovecraft style of story. On the surface it had a lot of things that should make me quite happy, paranormal, victorian etc, but no, it just didn't do it for me. Your mileage may vary. It occasionally came across as trying too hard.The reader, Robert Garson, did quite a good job of reading it.

[cygnet81 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Time I will never get back.

[fairesteve-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Warlock Holmes is an alternate reality to Sherlock Holmes if you couldn't have guessed from the cover.I'll keep my review short and sweet. I enjoyed it. I'm very picky about my Sherlock and this was very pleasant and a humorous light read. My biggest complaint is that in the last story, Watson ends up behaving very out of character based on what's established in this book alone. It caught me off guard and I saw no reason to it outside of some forced comedy that wasn't very funny at all. My other complaint is that I enjoyed the smaller cases far more than the opening and ending cases that were the story drivers. The bigger cases surprisingly didn't hold my attention very well. Otherwise, I recommend anyone into more magic-based fantasy and comedic Sherlock stories to give it a shot. I look forward to reading the sequel.

[marysneedle · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This was a fun a quick read, especially if you like alternate Sherlock Holmes fiction. I cannot wait for the next Warlock Holmes adventure.