Geri Schear’s Review Rocks The Keys of Death

“There are specific authors whose work I really cannot get enough of. One of these is Gretchen Altabef.”

Human nature being what it is, we can’t help but find favorites in films, music, books, etc. You won’t be surprised to learn that some of my favourite reading material comes in the form of Sherlock Holmes books. And out of that hoard of riches, there are specific authors whose work I really cannot get enough of. One of these is Gretchen Altabef.

Gretchen’s latest novel, The Keys of Death is Baker Street bedrock. Set in 1880, Sherlock Holmes, Doctor Watson, and Mrs. Hudson begin something great in the world.

Out of the fog three young souls unite in their common desire for justice. A genesis story about friendship with the power to change the world. Here, finally, Mrs. Hudson’s part in it can be told.

From the Foreword by Mattias Boström: “In the beginning, there was one Sherlock Holmes. That genesis was, however, just a short glimpse in time, and for ninety-seven percent of his existence in literature, there have been two of them: Original Holmes and Parallel Holmes.”

Our cast includes Paris’s gentleman thief, Arsene Lupin, West African pirate, Félix Calabar, London’s spectacular beauty, Lily Langtry, the Imperial Theatre Orchestra, the Irregular’s, and even the Prince of Wales has a part to play in Holmes’ solution to the murder mystery. Altabef’s exploration into women’s history brings to light the immensely creative approach to freedom crafted by the ladies of the Anglo-Jewish Community.

The Keys of Death rocks the heart of Holmes’ world. With a vengeful villain to match him. The world’s first consulting detective practice is born through one man’s unshakable belief in his gifts, his courage, and especially his friends. Through every challenge Sherlock Holmes upholds his vision of a merciful justice for our world.

The Keys of Death is published by MX Publishing.

I am an MX author of new Sherlock Holmes novels. My writing springs from the same sense of justice as Dr. Watson’s, and Dr. Doyle’s. My books brim with imagination and a news reporter’s excitement for the true history of the day. THESE SCATTERED HOUSES. A breakthrough novel for Holmes and for me, an historical murder mystery solved as only Holmes can. The sequel, Sherlock Holmes: REMARKABLE POWER OF STIMULUS is a Sherlock Holmes novel with heart. THE KEYS OF DEATH is the genesis story of No. 221B Baker Street.

Two short stories published this year: “In The Land of the Living” Mystery Magazine, October 2021. “Sir Arthur and the Time Machine” SHERLOCK HOLMES FURTHER ADVENTURES IN THE REALMS OF H. G. WELLS, a Belanger Anthology. I contributed Arthur Conan Doyle’s, and Sherlock Holmes’ history, and edited JEREMY BRETT – PLAYING A PART and JEREMY BRETT IS SHERLOCK HOLMES by Maureen Whittaker.

A member of the Sherlock Holmes Society of London, The Adventuresses of Sherlock Holmes, The John H. Watson Society, the Priory Scholars of New York, the ACD Society, the Sherlock Holmes Society of India, and the Philadelphia Dumpster Divers assemblage artist collective.