The Future Door

By Jason Lethcoe

“Think Treasure Island’s Jim Hawkins and Encyclopedia Brown rolled into one adventurous, ingenious, God-fearing lad, and you get the idea. Fun, suspenseful, and unpredictable, the No Place Like Holmes books are fantastic reads, and author Jason Lethcoe is a fine craftsman of words to boot. I highly recommend this series.” —Robert Liparulo, bestselling author of Dreamhouse Kings and The 13th Tribe

A mystery is afoot at 221 Baker Street, but will Griffin Sharpe be able to figure out the clues before the future catches up with the past?

When Sherlock Holmes moves out of Baker Street, a new tenant moves in—a mysterious woman named Elizabeth who has long been a fan of Holmes. When she discovers that Griffin and his uncle are also detectives, she becomes very friendly. So when Elizabeth goes missing along with a special invention, Griffin sets out to rescue her.  But finding Elizabeth will take them on a race against the clock that bends time itself!

“The No Place Like Holmes books will capture you on first page and not let you go until the final fascinating twist and turn. Jason Lethcoe is an excellent writer with the ability to craft a story that entertains all readers (adults are welcome to take a peek!).” —Robert Whitlow, bestselling author of the Tides of Truth series

• Language: English
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson
• Release date: Dec 5, 2011
• ISBN: 9781400318599

Book preview

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OTHER BOOKS IN THE NO PLACE

LIKE HOLMES SERIES:

No Place Like Holmes

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© 2011 Jason Lethcoe

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or other—except for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Published in Nashville, Tennessee, by Tommy Nelson. Tommy Nelson is a trademark of Thomas Nelson, Inc.

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Scripture quotations are taken from THE NEW KING JAMES VERSION. © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Lethcoe, Jason.

   The future door / Jason Lethcoe.

    p. cm. — (No place like Holmes ; bk. 2)

Summary: When Charlotte, a long-term fan of Sherlock Holmes, moves into his former apartment on Baker Street then disappears along with a special invention, her neighbors and fellow detectives Griffin and his uncle try to find her in a race against the clock that bends time itself.

      ISBN 978-1-4003-1730-1 (pbk.)

[1. Missing persons—Fiction. 2. Uncles—Fiction. 3. Inventions—Fiction. 4. Time travel—Fiction. 5. Christian life—Fiction. 6. Characters in literature—Fiction. 7. London (England)—History—19th century—Fiction. 8. Great Britain— History—19th century—Fiction. 9. Mystery and detective stories.] I. Title.

    PZ7.L56647Fut 2011

    [Fic]—dc23

2011027871

Printed in the United States of America

11 12 13 14 15 QG 6 5 4 3 2 1

Mfr: Quad Graphics / Fairfield, PA / November 2011 / PPO# 125603

For Nancy

Thank you for your timeless love.

You are my past, my present, and my future.

—J.J.L.

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Iwould like to acknowledge Molly Kempf Hodgin, my longtime editor and partner in crime. Thanks for your vigilance, skill, and unending support. Without your help, Griffin’s story surely would have remained untold.

The only reason for time is so that everything doesn’t happen at once.

—ALBERT EINSTEIN

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CONTENTS

SEPARATING THE FACTS

PROLOGUE

1: THE MISSING SPYGLASS

2: BOSTON

3: THE MORIARTYS

4: UPSIDE DOWN

5: THE LADY RETURNS

6: THE JOURNAL

7: HOMECOMING

8: BROTHER AND SISTER

9: QUESTIONS

10: BACK AT THE BOSTON DOCKS

11: BAKER STREET

12: THE SPIDER’S WEB

13: TEA FOR THREE

14: A BUMP IN THE NIGHT

15: THE RETURN

16: THE BEEKEEPER

17: THE FUNERAL

18: THE OLD CLOCK

19: CHANGES

20: STONEHENGE

21: THE TUNNELS BELOW

22: A DASH OF PEPPER

23: TIME-TRAVELING TEAPOT

24: MISS FITCH

25: NEW LONDON

26: SO CLOSE

27: A NEW PLAN

28: THE FUTURE DOOR

29: A LONG TIME

30: THE SPIDER AND THE BEE

31: NO PLACE LIKE HOLMES

EPILOGUE

HOW SHARPE ARE YOU?

THE CASE OF THE BIG GAME HUNTER:

A GRIFFIN SHARPE MINI-MYSTERY

THE CASE OF THE MISSING MASTERPIECE:

A GRIFFIN SHARPE MINI-MYSTERY

HOW TO BREW THE PERFECT POT OF BRITISH TEA

ANSWERS TO GRIFFIN SHARPE MINI-MYSTERIES

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SEPARATING THE FACTS

It is of particular importance that we stick to the facts when talking about the history of Griffin Sharpe. Although scholars have attributed many fantastic deeds to the World’s Most Secret Detective, we must try, if possible, to remain objective and sort out what is fact from fiction.

For example, there are those who say that Griffin Sharpe traveled into outer space, not once, but three times, and that on each voyage he prevented Earth from being destroyed by otherworldly forces. This we know to be true.

And there are those who say that later in life he thwarted a plan by the Nazis to resurrect Adolf Hitler using robotic parts.

This we also know to be true. The account was corroborated by several eyewitnesses.

In the mystery of the Iron Cross, Mr. Sharpe is said to have bested the infamous Red Baron in aerial combat, and in another account he is said to have impersonated both the president of the United States and the prime minister of England in order to save both their lives. Both stories are true.

And I myself have said on a number of occasions that when he was eleven years of age, Griffin Sharpe traveled in a time machine and saved us from a terrible future we never knew existed.

But here we must separate fact from fiction.

While it is most certainly true that he traveled through time and, while doing so, he actually became the first person in history to have tea with himself, I have been contacted by Dame Victoria Sharpe regarding this incident, and she has informed me that on one important fact I am gravely mistaken.

Griffin Sharpe was actually twelve years old when it happened, not eleven. I apologize, dear reader, for this terrible error. And let me assure you that everything you are about to read from this point onward was carefully researched.

Now then, since the writing of my first book about Mr. Sharpe, No Place Like Holmes, I have been inundated with letters from Griffin Sharpe fans begging to know more of the great detective’s exploits. But the real challenge for me was, which one to choose? For as you know, Mr. Sharpe has done so many incredible things that each account makes for an interesting story.

But after spending many sleepless nights researching his cases, I finally decided that none is quite as remarkable as the one you are about to read.

So please pull up a chair and get your tea and scones, for once again we’re about to travel into the past. As the years fly behind us, we shall follow Griffin Sharpe as he travels forward in time, embarking on this strange adventure, and meeting us in the most unlikely of places . . . the future!

We shall stick to the facts as they actually happened. Or, should I say, are about to happen.

JASON LETHCOE

MARCH 2011

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PROLOGUE

Mrs. Hudson wiped her hands on her apron as she hurried to the front door of 221 Baker Street. The delicious scent of roasting chicken and rosemary wafted behind her as she rushed out of the kitchen to answer the persistent knocking.

Half a moment, she called irritably. If there was one thing she didn’t like, it was being interrupted when she was in the middle of preparing a meal for her tenants. After pausing to tuck a few stray hairs beneath her cap, she opened the door. To her surprise, a pretty young woman dressed in boys’ clothing was standing on the doorstep.

May I help you? Mrs. Hudson asked suspiciously. She scanned the woman’s attire, taking in her dyed wool jacket, checked trousers, and newsboy cap. Somehow, in spite of the unflattering clothing, the girl still managed to look feminine.

You must be Mrs. Hudson! My name is Charlotte Pepper. It’s so very nice to meet you, she said, extending her hand. Mrs. Hudson was taken aback for a moment, but then, seeing no other polite way around it, shook Charlotte’s offered hand.

Ouch! said Mrs. Hudson, releasing Miss Pepper’s grip. The ring the young lady wore was quite sharp.

Oh! Please forgive me, said Charlotte Pepper, and quickly removed the ring. I didn’t mean to injure you. Sometimes I forget I have that old ring on.

And what can I do for you, Miss Pepper? Mrs. Hudson asked impatiently.

I heard that you were looking for a new tenant and have come to inquire about the apartment. How much rent do you require?

Mrs. Hudson noticed that when she spoke, Charlotte Pepper didn’t make eye contact, but instead glanced everywhere else, including the hallway behind her.

A smile played around the young woman’s full lips, and her huge brown eyes danced with excitement. Turning back to the landlady, she asked, Is it indeed the former residence of the famous Sherlock Holmes?

Until recently, yes, Mrs. Hudson replied with a sigh. Ever since her favorite tenant had departed, she’d had no end of lookie-loos showing up, wanting to catch a glimpse of the great detective’s apartment.

Wonderful! May I see it? said Charlotte Pepper.

Young lady, Mrs. Hudson said. I don’t wish to be rude, but the apartment in question is quite expensive. She glanced at the young woman’s shabby clothing. Mr. Holmes was an accomplished detective with a reliable income, and I mean for my new tenant to meet the same qualifications.

If Charlotte Pepper was offended by the remark, she didn’t show it.

Well, I assure you that money is no object, she stated. Simply name your price and I shall pay it.

Mrs. Hudson started to reply, but Charlotte interrupted her, holding up a finger.

I am absolutely without question the biggest fan of Sherlock Holmes who ever lived. I am a bit of an amateur detective myself and will treat the premises with the utmost care and respect. I am clean, decent, and well-mannered. In other words, I am the perfect tenant. I’m sure we’ll get along famously.

She reached into her jacket pocket and removed the largest amount of British currency Mrs. Hudson had ever seen one person carry. After pressing it into the startled landlady’s hand, she stepped past her into the hallway.

I believe my new rooms are right up these stairs, correct?

Mrs. Hudson, feeling completely flummoxed, watched as the young woman charged down the hall and up the stairs. Another detective at Baker Street? she thought. First there was Mr. Holmes, then Mr. Snodgrass, and now this precocious female? And just who did Charlotte Pepper think she was, bossing her around, not asking but telling her that she was to accept her as her tenant?

But Mrs. Hudson didn’t express her feelings aloud. For one of the first times in her life, the landlady was left absolutely speechless. She felt quite dazed by Miss Pepper’s presence and persuasive speech, and decided that it was easier to comply with the woman’s demands than to resist. And she couldn’t help but think that her old tenant, Mr. Sherlock Holmes, would have enjoyed seeing that happen for once.

If only he were still here, she thought sadly.

Mrs. Hudson respected that Mr. Holmes had finally moved to Sussex to live a quiet life of retirement, but his absence at Baker Street was a loss that she felt deeply. And without Sherlock Holmes’s lanky figure patrolling the streets of London, the world felt much more dangerous. Even though Mr. Snodgrass and Master Sharpe had proven that they were capable detectives and lived next door, it just wasn’t the same. In her opinion, the boy and his uncle were second best, and that just wasn’t good enough.

She felt quite light-headed as she closed the front door, and failed to notice the disreputable character who was standing beneath the gaslight on the opposite side of the street. The huge man watched her with a twisted grin.

Right on schedule, he thought.

Then he reached up to the gaslight and opened one of the glass panes. After removing two small pieces of paper from a tiny metal box, he closed the pane again almost silently. Then, with hardly a backward glance, the man hurried into the shadows.

1

THE MISSING SPYGLASS

Griffin Sharpe clutched his ebony walking stick, fighting to keep his balance as the steamship rocked back and forth on the churning waves. The storm had forced most of the passengers below, but not him.

His leg was still sore from where it had been permanently injured in a battle with one of the most evil men in London. But he didn’t complain about the discomfort. Instead, he gritted his teeth and leaned more heavily on his stick, forcing himself to limp along the slippery rail to the bow of the heaving ship.

Twenty life preservers, three lanterns, one shuffleboard stick . . . Griffin silently counted the things he saw as he hobbled forward, a longtime habit that helped him cope with anxiety or discomfort. He fought down his feeling of seasickness and forced himself to focus on the task at hand.

Griffin Sharpe’s mind was a constant fireworks display of thoughts and ideas, and there were very few people like him. His unique reasoning and deductive abilities were gifts from heaven, and Griffin intended to use them in the service of others. Right now, he was helping the captain of the ship find his favorite spyglass, which had mysteriously disappeared. The captain had always kept it in his private chambers, and earlier that afternoon, when he’d gone to retrieve it, he discovered that the small telescope had vanished.

His leg was really throbbing, and the doctor had warned him that he needed to treat it gently, but Griffin couldn’t help himself. Trifling things like unpleasant weather and rollicking waves wouldn’t stop him when he was feeling excited to solve a mystery.

And as the twelve-year-old detective hobbled forward, his usually sad, blue eyes were alight with excitement, for Griffin knew he was getting close to cracking the case, and nothing thrilled him more than that.

He ignored the cold spray that had thoroughly soaked through his tweed jacket and cap as he searched everything near the front of the ship. After several long minutes, he finally spotted what he was looking for. A few feet to the left of a life preserver, right at the top of the bow, was a tiny, glittering object wedged between the deck plates.

He wiped his magnifying glass on his damp shirt and bent closer so that he could see the object better.

It was a tiny brass ring.

But Griffin could tell right away that it wasn’t the kind of ring that was to be worn on a finger as a piece of jewelry. He studied it

Reviews for The Future Door

[theokester · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The Future Door is actually the second book in a series. Normally I would go and read the first book first, but I had this sent to me by Amazon Vine for review so I decided I'd jump right in rather than seeking out the first book. I hadn't read the first book but recognizing that it is aimed at a younger "middle grade" audience I hoped it would either work as a stand alone or give me enough details to catch me up if I needed material from book 1. The concept sounded fun. The overall series is about a young boy, Griffin Sharpe, who is living with his Uncle Rupert in London…but not just anywhere in London. Rupert lives in apartment 221 A on Baker Street, right next door to Sherlock Holmes. Rupert is a much less successful detective than Holmes but he is very passionate and competitive and hopes to be as famous as Holmes. He has a knack for inventions and he's created a wide assortment of inventions to help him in his sleuthing. The inventions are pretty amazing and frankly should make him more famous than his detective abilities…but that's not what he's after. Fortunately young Griffin is a much better detective than his uncle. Griffin has the innate hyper-observant abilities we've seen and loved in Sherlock Holmes stories over the years. He is critically aware of his surroundings. He's able to quickly identify nuances and discrepancies that escape the notice of casual observers. In other words, he's Sherlock Holmes in young-boy form.Apparently in the first book Griffin and Rupert work to solve a mystery involving the Moriarty family. To keep the dynamic balanced, the famous Professor Moriarty also has a young counterpart about Griffin's age. Since I haven't read the first book, I'm not entirely sure of what happened, but what quickly becomes clear is that the Moriartys recognize the skill and persistence of Griffin and his uncle and intend to keep them "out of the way." Furthermore, they've recognized the inventive skills of Rupert and have their eye on one of his inventions in particular. As the title might suggest, "Time" (with a capital "T") plays a factor in this book. Rupert has invented (but not perfected) a Time Machine…and the Moriartys want it.Because this is a mystery novel, I don't want to give away anything more about the plot. It is aimed at kids but I still found it fun and engaging as an adult. There were still twists and turns to be had that left me wondering what might happen as the story progressed. The author did a good job of handling the paradoxes and intricacies of time travel (which can certainly be problematic) without being either too confusing or too simplistic…either of which was possible. I thought the way the "Future" was presented was interesting and humorous, albeit a little cheesy and tongue in cheek at times.One thing I found interesting when I received the book is that it was (according to an insert) subcategorized not only into mystery and children's fiction, but also into "religious" fiction. This was definitely not off-putting to me, but it made me curious and so as I read, I kept an eye out for religious elements. As it turned out, I didn't need Holmes-like scrutiny to find them, but I also acknowledge that the religious nature was not terribly overt. Griffin is the son of a Methodist preacher and as such he speaks and acts like the good son of a preacher might…there are moments when Griffin is in a jam for one reason or another and in a single sentence or two he whispers a brief (but not formal) prayer to God for help. He also has a couple of very short comments on the morality and mortality of characters in the book. Each of these instances were casual and simple and could be glossed over without thinking much of anything about religion. There was only one small scene where religion was explicitly and specifically on display…when in the Future, Griffin finds a Bible and opens to one of his favorite verses of scripture which states that God is the same yesterday, today and forever. Griffin comments that any future that still has God can't be all bad. The scene was short and was handled very well. It didn't attempt to preach or rebuke in any way, but it did acknowledge the nature of God and the nature of the world. I felt like it was well done…but any anti-religionists may want to be warned. ;-)Semi-related to the small religious aspects of the book, I can also say that this book is very well suited for a young audience. Even though it is a mystery (with theft, violence and murder) I dare say the book is "wholesome" and very child friendly. Any actual violence happens "off-page" and is tactfully presented in a way to propel the story and the tension without being problematic for younger readers. The language is also very child appropriate which I appreciated.Overall I found this book to be a lot of fun. It vaguely reminded me of Encyclopedia Brown or the Three Investigators mysteries that I read back in grade school. The world of Baker Street and London was familiar, yet unique. The mystery and adventure were well paced and entertaining. Now I need to go back and read the first book in the series and keep my eye out for a possible third book. I also need to get my kids to read this one. I'm sure they'll enjoy it.****4 out of 5 stars

[starrk_3 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

For me this was just an okay read. I have tried to put the story in the context of the characters, but again I didn’t think it was all that believable. But, I am not so sure that the believability matters. After all, how believable is Sherlock Holmes (I say that as a huge Holmes fan.) Again, this was a fun and light read. If you don’t think about it too much then you’ll definitely enjoy it.I like the dynamics between Griffin and Snodgrass a lot more in this book than in the first. I was not at all shocked to discover that the ending in No Place Like Holmes was a set up for the story here. It’s an adventure for Griffin and Snodgrass, and one that holds many challenges for the duo. Maybe I was not the best fit for this read, but I do think this is perfect reading for middle graders.I received this book for review from the Booksneeze book blogger program, free, in exchange for my honest review.