If you love Sherlock Holmes and Victorian mystery, you will most assuredly enjoy Carole Nelson Douglas' "Irene At Large.” This is the third tale which Douglas has crafted using Doyle’s Irene Adler as a central character. How interesting and enjoyable it is to see Adler developed into an even more dynamic, complex character; here the creative mind of Douglas gives us a deeper look at Irene Adler, who was one of the few people and the only woman to thwart Sherlock Holmes. The story is told by Penelope Huxleigh (Adler's Dr. Watson) who was enjoyable as a character and a narrator. The pairing of these two dissimilar characters, the ultra-respectable, country parson's daughter Penelope with the Bohemian Irene, the "do as I want to do," convention breaking, smoking and drinking American singer, provides for delightful situations and an evolving friendship which moves from book to book. However, although Penelope’s character does change, she does remain a delightful and at times frustrating foil to the shrewd Irene.Douglas cleverly picks elements from Doyle’s Holmes books and develops them into her own web of mystery. In “Irene At Large,” she develops two major strands from Doyle: first and foremost, an explanation of Watson’s war wound and then the background of Col. Sebastian Moran, Moriarty’s right hand man. Holmes fans will recognize Col. Sebastian Moran from the short story "The Adventure of the Empty House". Holmes once described Moran as "the second most dangerous man in London" - the most dangerous - Professor Moriarty. The prologue hints at treachery in the 1880 Afghanistan campaign (Holmes fans should recognize the reference to Dr. Watson’s past). Irene, her husband, and her confidante Nell Huxleigh are living in self imposed exile in Paris, when a poorly dressed stranger approaches them and is found to be poisoned. The poisoned stranger turns out to be Quentin Stanhope, an old acquaintance from Nell's past. After another attempt on his life, Quentin vanishes. And now the “game is afoot,” or perhaps we should say, the “game is a cobra” as deadly snakes are used to kill several people from Paris to London.Douglas' Irene Adler series are clever and enjoyable; the characterization is exceptional. Here Douglas has not just attempted to re-tell or recreate the character of Holmes, rather, she has carefully developed Adler and others from Doyle’s works and made them her own. Carol Nelson Douglas has created an exceptional series of detective novels based on Irene Adler. I really like this series. and I strongly recommend them to you or to any fan of Holmes.
'Irene at Large' is fanfic before fanfic had a name. Taking her prompt from the Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, Carole Nelson Douglas has scooped out the exotic character of Irene Adler and given her her own series of adventures. Sherlock Holmes himself and Dr. Watson also feature prominently, and I suppose that some die-hard fans may take exception to this, but I found that their characters were treated respectfully.The story is narrated by Penelope Huxleigh, conservative companion to Irene, through her extensive diary entries, and herein lies one of my first slight niggles with the book. I confess that I found Miss Huxleigh rather too school-marmish for my taste, and Irene's supposed brilliance and beauty somewhat irritating. They didn't really grate on my nerves, but it did make it harder for me to engage with either character.My only other issue was the ending, which had built up to be rather exciting, but then was left a little flat and unresolved.However, overall I enjoyed reading 'Irene at Large', and towards the end it did become gripping enough that I almost missed my train station stop, which is surely a good recommendation for any novel!
What do You think about Irene At Large (1993)?
This is a really good addition to the Irene Addler series. I loved it becasue it featured a lot more Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. The plot line coincides with the events recounted in Doyle's "The Adventure of the Naval Treaty" and ties up the mystery of Dr. Watson's second wound. The story starts when an old aquantence of Nell's showes up in Paris -- posioned. This is very exciting because it places Penelope Huxleigh in the center of everything which is good becasue she is a much more interesting character than Irene Addler.
—Cathrine Bonham
This is the second work on Irene Adler, solver of mysteries and antagonist of Sherlock Holmes, that I have read. Here, we have a tale of treachery in the English war in Afghanistan in the 1880s. A spy, "Cobra" (born Quentin Stanhope), discovers a double cross by his superior, "Tiger." A battle is lost as a result. And the plot thickens when, after he is injured, a "Dr. Watson" treats him before being shot in the shoulder.Move to Paris some years later. Irene Adler, now married to Godfrey Norton (and now Mrs. Norton), lives with her confederate Penelope "Nell" Huxleigh. She and Godfrey have been declared dead because their names were on the list of passengers of a train that was destroyed in an accident."Cobra" enters their life and, just as mysteriously, leaves, wishing to find someone to help save Dr. Watson's life. Irene, clever as always, deduces that this Watson might be Sherlock Holmes' associate. And we are off to another adventure in this series of books.Irene does her usual job in deception. We see historical figures enter the narrative (e.g., Sarah Bernhardt). Irene, Godfrey, and Nell head to England to try to protect Watson and solve a mystery. Their efforts intertwine with those of Holmes himself. The end result features cobras, mongooses, deception, and treachery.A nice addition to the series, but the allure of this series has begun to wear off for me. However, this volume will be enjoyable for those who like historical mysteries.
—Steven Peterson
