My Quarantine Project

My Quarantine Project

 

I think a vast majority of the population can agree that 2020 is hands down the craziest year in recent memory, and it’s not even two-thirds of the way through yet.  We’ve all found different ways to keep ourselves occupied during our increased time at home, though some of us have been more productive than others.  Not that I am bragging.  

 

Sherlock & Irene: The Secret Truth Behind “A Scandal in Bohemia” has been my quarantine project, or at least, my first major quarantine project.  I have worked on others since then.  I had been mulling over this project for a few years, but it wasn’t until mid-March that I, having plenty of time to dedicate myself to this literary analysis, decided to devote my attention to the unanswered questions of “A Scandal in Bohemia,” and to prove that Sherlock Holmes was more competent than we all thought in his attempt to retrieve incriminating information from Irene Adler. 

 

I started by drawing up a list of unanswered questions I had about the story.  Why would the King trust burglars?  Why didn’t Holmes take the picture and run?  Why was Irene Adler’s drawing-room ransacked?  After pondering these and several other questions, I started writing short essays to answer them one by one.  Along the way, I came up with more questions to address.  When I had finally resolved all of my concerns to my own satisfaction, and I had written everything I had to say about the subject, I now I had the challenge of figuring out what order the chapters should go in the book.  Once I arranged them into a reasonably well-flowing narrative, having polished and edited the chapters along the way, I sent my manuscript to MX Publishing in mid-May.  

 

It was quickly accepted, and given a release date of August 27^th.  That’s today.  Hopefully, fans of Sherlock Holmes will gain a new appreciation of his skills by reading my book.

 

 

–Chris Chan

 

 

Chris Chan’s first book, Sherlock & Irene: The Secret Truth Behind “A Scandal in Bohemia” will be released on August 27^th from MX Publishing, and is available for sale at Amazon.com and the MX Publishing website, as well as at Book Depository (with free worldwide shipping there).  It is also available in a Kindle edition.

Sherlock & Irene is Almost Here!

 Sherlock & Irene is Almost Here!

 

Hello!  My first book Sherlock & Irene: The Secret Truth Behind “A Scandal in Bohemia” is coming out in less than a week!  The release date is August 27^th, and it is available for sale at Amazon.com and the MX Publishing website, as well as at Book Depository (with free worldwide shipping there).  It is also available in a Kindle edition.

 

Do you have any questions about my theories, ideas, or other comments on the book or the theme?  Please leave a comment and I’ll get back to you.  Thanks!

 

–Chris Chan

My Work for Strand Magazine

 My Work for Strand Magazine

 

The Strand is famous for being the original home of the Sherlock Holmes short stories, and the periodical still exists todayas a quarterly magazine publishing new crime fiction, long-lost stories by legendary authors, interviews with prominent figures in the mystery writing field, and reviews of new releases.

 

Since 2015, I’ve written reviews of books for The Strand, ranging from fiction to true crime to literary criticism, and even a cookbook based on the television series Hannibal.  I also cover reviews of crime TV shows and movies– the one prerequisite is that they must be released on DVD.

 

For the most part, I try to review works I enjoyed, though if I see a way that the work can be improved, I explain how.  I prefer to recommend works that I think will delight other readers and viewers rather than tear into stuff I despise, though you’ll find a takedown of a clunker here and there.

 

If you’re interested in finding something good to read or watch, take a look at my collected reviews here!

 

 

–Chris Chan

 

 

Chris Chan’s first book, Sherlock & Irene: The Secret Truth Behind “A Scandal in Bohemia” will be released on August 27^th from MX Publishing, and is available for sale at Amazon.com and the MX Publishing website, as well as at Book Depository (with free worldwide shipping there).

 

 

Story Profile: “The Adventure of the Villainous Victim”

Story Profile: “The Adventure of the Villainous Victim”

 

Many casual readers have misconceptions about Sherlock Holmes & Dr. Watson.  In large swaths of the public imagination, they’re seen as stolid, middle-aged figures.  Yet at the time of their first meeting, in A Study in Scarlet, they’re both in their mid-twenties.  Interestingly, the Canon tells us very little about the first years of their partnership, as there’s a gap of almost three years between the events of A Study in Scarlet and the first chronologically-dated story, “The Speckled Band.” 

 

What happened during that time?  Nobody knows for sure, but writers of pastiches can explore their pet theories.  When Belanger Books announced calls for submissions for their anthology series “Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson: The Early Adventures” (which would turn out to be a three-volume set), I decided to contribute.  

 

I did some digging, having an idea about basing a case on a real-life crime from the past.  I soon discovered the case of the murder of Issac Gold, from 1881, a particularly shocking death that took place on a railway.  When I learned that a detective named Holmes played a pivotal role in the case, I knew that I had the makings of a historical mystery.  I kept the basic details of the facts of the story, and added Holmes and Watson.  The result was “The Adventure of the Villainous Victim.”

 

 

–Chris Chan

 

 

Chris Chan’s first book, Sherlock & Irene: The Secret Truth Behind “A Scandal in Bohemia” will be released on August 27^th from MX Publishing, and is available for sale at Amazon.com and the MX Publishing website, as well as at Book Depository (with free worldwide shipping there).

 

“The Chapel of the Holy Blood” can be found in Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson: The Early Adventures Volume I, and is available from Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle editions.