sherlock60 | Canon Discussion Post: The Blue Carbuncle (Reply)

It's canon discussion time, everybody! What did you think about The Blue Carbuncle? As always, I've written up a few of my own random thoughts and questions, which are behind the jump. Add your own in the comments!

Granada discussion is available in the Granada discussion post.

Special note: Next week is the first half of The Valley of Fear (chapters 1-7) here at sherlock60, so get reading, everybody!

- Sidney Paget's illustrations of these stories are always elegantly beautiful in their detailing. I love the way Holmes holds his hands here: one in the air, finger and thumb together as he thinks, and the other linked around his ankle as he lounges, such a natural motion. The shading is incredible in these pieces.

- What do you think the cut was of the reward money? How much went to Peterson? How much to Holmes? It seems likely the detective got a slice for his work. But shouldn't Henry Baker have gotten at least a little of the rewards for all his troubles? Twenty or fifty pounds out of a thousand is a tiny fraction, but it would have meant the world to him.

- I love the trap Holmes sets for the goose seller, inventing the bet on the fly, knowing the man wouldn't be able to resist getting in on the action. And he gets some acting in too, feigning fury and embarrassment instead of delight at a game well played. He got the exact information he needed and then some for the best possible price.

- It's another intervention into the law here, and it troubles me as a reader. Holmes lets James Ryder go, despite his thievery and his craven willingness to throw an innocent man to the wolves to save his own skin. And despite the fact that although Ryder is terrified by this experience, Holmes himself says "there is the making of a very pretty villain" in him. Will he leave the country as he said? What are they going to tell the Countess and the police? Will everyone be happy with simply getting the stone back with no explanation?

- And for all the fury Holmes unleashes on Ryder for framing John Horner, he lets poor Horner languish locked up as he and Watson enjoy their Christmas dinner. "If Horner were in danger it would be another thing; but this fellow will not appear against him, and the case must collapse." Holmes is going to let it go all the way to court? Poor Horner!

Comment away, and join us next week for the first half (chapters 1-7) of The Valley of Fear!