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The Adventure of the Lion's Mane
The Adventure of the Lion's Mane | Arthur Conan Doyle
5 posts | 1 read
Sherlock has retired. Now living in Sussex, hes enjoying a pleasant walk along the beach when he runs into a friend, Harold Stackhurst, headmaster at The Gables. The two acquaintances have just started chatting when theyre interrupted by one of the teachers at Stackhursts school, Fitzroy McPherson. The man appears to be in a great deal of pain and only manages to mutter something about a lions mane before collapsing, dead. He has strange wounds on his back. Then comes another of the teachers, Ian Murdoch, who claims to have no idea what happened, having just arrived himself. But there is no one else close by. "The Adventure of the Lions Mane" is part of "The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes". Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930) was born in Scotland and studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh. After his studies, he worked as a ships surgeon on various boats. During the Second Boer War, he was an army doctor in South Africa. When he came back to the United Kingdom, he opened his own practice and started writing crime books. He is best known for his thrilling stories about the adventures of Sherlock Holmes. He published four novels and more than 50 short-stories starring the detective and Dr Watson, and they play an important role in the history of crime fiction. Other than the Sherlock Holmes series, Doyle wrote around thirty more books, in genres such as science-fiction, fantasy, historical novels, but also poetry, plays, and non-fiction.
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Cuilin
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Daisey I enjoyed this one, but it‘s also one that I solved fairly quickly. The title and the initial details seemed pretty clear. I was in no way disappointed that there wasn‘t actually a crime. 2mo
Librarybelle I was not disappointed it wasn‘t a crime, but I was surprised by the culprit. I‘m not up on my sea creature knowledge, so I had no clue that a jellyfish could resemble a lion‘s mane. 😂 2mo
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Cuilin @Daisey @librarybelle When I saw the title I‘ve got to admit that I thought of mushrooms and wondered if someone would be poisoned. (edited) 2mo
eeclayton @Librarybelle Same 😂 2mo
CatLass007 I think anyone who criticizes the story because there‘s no actual crime is missing the point that everyone thought it was a crime, including Holmes. 2mo
Cuilin @CatLass007 🎯 exactly!!! That‘s the mystery. 2mo
dabbe @Cuilin @Daisey @Librarybelle @eeclayton @CatLass007 Excellent observations, everyone! To me, this story proves that Holmes isn't just a crime solver; he's a true investigator, and his skills apply to scientific mysteries and not just human malice. Perhaps Doyle is daring to ask: “Must every villain be human? Can nature itself be the antagonist?“ In the world of conflicts, we have human vs. human, human vs. himself/herself/theirself, ⬇️ 2mo
dabbe human vs. society, and human vs. nature. Kudos to Doyle for giving us one with nature as the so-called villain. Perhaps this “eco-horror“ story could be seen as a precursor to movies like JAWS or THE BIRDS. I found it a refreshing take and bold experiment in the canon. And I can't believe we only have three stories left! 2mo
CogsOfEncouragement I agree with you all. A mysterious death requires answers and SH gets to the bottom of the matter. Entertaining short story. 2mo
CatLass007 I may not participate in next Saturday‘s discussion. I am having surgery on Friday and I have no idea how I will feel on Saturday. But I will catch up and I will keep you posted. 2mo
Cuilin @CatLass007 Hope all goes well. Let us know. 🤞for a speedy recovery. Jump in to a discussion whenever works for you. 2mo
Cuilin @dabbe Yes, I love this take. More horror than cozy In nature do we ever fully know what‘s out there? I can see someone after reading this story, in the 1920s, living near the Sussex Coast going “well, I‘m not swimming today!”. 2mo
dabbe @Cuilin IKR? 🩵🎯🩵 2mo
dabbe @Cuilin P.S. I just sent you an email regarding the possible Sherlock pastiche reads! 🤩😍🤩 2mo
31 likes15 comments
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Cuilin
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Librarybelle As I said for the first question, Holmes‘s telling is more methodical. I actually found this easier to read. Holmes is thorough, and we can see his thinking throughout. 2mo
Cuilin @Librarybelle The two stories from Holmes POV are heavily criticised and considered dry. I agree with you. I think they‘re clear and easier to read. I love that we see him “show his work” 2mo
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eeclayton I think there's less “clutter“ with Holmes. Since he knows what he knows, there is no need to fill the narrative with red herrings, descriptive details or false theories, which are often used by Watson when he has no clue about the solution of a case. 2mo
CatLass007 @Librarybelle @Cuilin @eeclayton I agree with the three of you. When Holmes tells the story we get to see his thought processes and I find that much more enjoyable than going from Point A to Point C without going through Point B. It‘s actually easier for me to figure out things along with Holmes rather than having everything filtered through Watson. 2mo
dabbe @Cuilin @Librarybelle @eeclayton @CatLass007 Agree 💯 with all of your points. To me, Holmes's narration reads more like clinical nonfiction, whereas Watson's reads like dramatic fiction. I enjoy both, but I prefer the dramatic flair of Watson and like trying to figure out the puzzle through his eyes because he is usually lost like the reader is. Holmes's tone is clinical, intellectual, and detached. Watson's is dramatic, admiring of Holmes's ⬇️ 2mo
dabbe larger-than-life detective capabilities, and suspenseful. If Watson‘s stories are like watching Holmes perform on stage, “The Lion‘s Mane“ is like reading Holmes's private case notes—enlightening, but not as entertaining. 2mo
CogsOfEncouragement I was amused how the reader was not told of SH‘s guess because it was withheld via convo with the Inspector and SH refused to tell him prematurely. SH was writing directly to us for other parts of the account, and then kept us in the dark this way. 2mo
CatLass007 @CogsOfEncouragement I don‘t necessarily think that Holmes was keeping us in the dark. And I don‘t think it was a guess. I think he realized he needed a different theory. A theory is not a guess. This is in line with the clues that Holmes has and shares with us. Holmes realizes he doesn‘t have all the pieces yet and begins to do research based on something he read ages ago. 2mo
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Cuilin
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Librarybelle I liked this. Holmes‘s telling of the story is more methodical and laid out than a story told by Watson. The end was a surprise for me. 2mo
eeclayton I liked it, too. For me personally, Watson is a more enjoyable narrator, but it's interesting now and then to have a closer look at how SH himself is thinking. 2mo
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CatLass007 It made me sad that Holmes and Watson saw each other infrequently at this point in their lives. But I did like the narration by Holmes and I was unsurprised about the culprit in the murder. It was nice to hear Holmes admit he had been wrong when he thought the victim had not been in the water merely because his towel was dry. 2mo
Cuilin @CatLass007 A humble Holmes!! Who‘d a thought! 2mo
dabbe @Cuilin @LIbrarybelle @eeclayton @CatLass007 I believe this is the one story where we get a glimpse of Holmes's life in retirement. I loved the coastal setting and agree 💯 with @CatLas007 about missing the relationship between H & W. I did found it hard to grasp that Holmes is okay with doing nothing but beekeeping. This is the man who once took drugs because he couldn't handle idleness. But people do change over time--even our beloved detective. 2mo
CogsOfEncouragement I thought maybe the death was not by human hands. Then when the answer was revealed, I remembered SH began this tale by saying “soothing life of Nature” and realized that was certainly meant as foreshadowing. 2mo
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LitsyEvents
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Repost for @dabbe

#NoPlaceLikeHolmes @Cuilin @LitsyEvents

Interesting discussion on Saturday, Sherlockians. Can you believe we're down to our last FOUR stories? 😱 Next up: “(TAo The Lion's Mane“. Discussion will be on July 19th and will be led by @Cuilin. Hope your week goes well.

Original post - https://www.litsy.com/web/post/2883166

dabbe Thanks for posting! 💚 2mo
32 likes1 comment
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dabbe
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#NoPlaceLikeHolmes @Cuilin @LitsyEvents

Interesting discussion on Saturday, Sherlockians. Can you believe we're down to our last FOUR stories? 😱 Next up: “(TAo The Lion's Mane“. Discussion will be on July 19th and will be led by @Cuilin. Hope your week goes well. 🩵

Link to summary and analysis (spoiler alert): https://drive.google.com/file/d/1nR1U1fpvL5Nxwm-iBOH5jLM3tmWkbVpZ/view?usp=shari...