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proffy's review against another edition
3.0
Griffin Sharpe's visit to his uncle takes an unexpected and exciting turn when the two find themselves investigating a mysterious disappearance. His skills of observation honed and ready, Griffin is reminiscent of a young Sherlock Holmes, who happens to live in the apartment above Griffin's uncle.
This book is adorable. And I mean that in an entirely non-condescending way. Griffin is a perfect young detective, displaying a keen mind and a kind heart. While his powers of observation and deduction are well beyond the pale for one his age, Griffin is still portrayed as a sweet, amiable kid - a feat I believe deserving of some applause for Lethcoe's writing ability. Creating that combination of intelligence and innocence takes great skill in my opinion. Griffin reads as a precocious but delightful thirteen year old.
The plot is fast-paced and exciting without relying too heavily on spectacle or melodrama. The clues Griffin finds and his conclusions deducted from them are explained, but briefly and simply in a way perfect for a middle grade fiction novel (or for an adult brain that's looking for light and easy).
I really only have two complaints. One involves a plot spoiler, so skip the rest of this paragraph if that bothers you. The novel maintains a middle grade level of violence until the end when suddenly death is a very real option. I wasn't a fan of this sudden turn to knives and stabbings and would have preferred the work stay consistently in the non-violent realm.
My second complaint regards religion. The son of a Methodist minister, Griffin's religious nature permeates the text, not necessarily dominating the tale, but still maintaining a consistent presence. Griffin calls upon God in his hour of need and despairs of his Uncle's lack of belief. There were a few moments that felt trite, unnecessary and cliched. Then again, I have to admit a bit of a prejudice when it comes to religion in novels; if it's not central to the story, I find the inclusion annoying.
I first requested the book because of its connection to Sherlock Holmes. I had just read Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Holmes and taught the modern film Sherlock Holmes, so I was on a Holmesian (Sherlockian?) bender. While Sherlock doesn't have a large role in the book, he is still a constant character. Snodgrass suffers from severe bouts of jealousy against his competitor, in part fueled by a callousness on Holmes' part when Snodgrass was a child. And of course, Holmes flits around in the background throughout the story. And yet again, a Sherlockian (Holmesian?) book has me slapping my forehead over my neglect of the original canon. I really must rectify the situation soon and read some Holmes.
This book is adorable. And I mean that in an entirely non-condescending way. Griffin is a perfect young detective, displaying a keen mind and a kind heart. While his powers of observation and deduction are well beyond the pale for one his age, Griffin is still portrayed as a sweet, amiable kid - a feat I believe deserving of some applause for Lethcoe's writing ability. Creating that combination of intelligence and innocence takes great skill in my opinion. Griffin reads as a precocious but delightful thirteen year old.
The plot is fast-paced and exciting without relying too heavily on spectacle or melodrama. The clues Griffin finds and his conclusions deducted from them are explained, but briefly and simply in a way perfect for a middle grade fiction novel (or for an adult brain that's looking for light and easy).
I really only have two complaints. One involves a plot spoiler, so skip the rest of this paragraph if that bothers you. The novel maintains a middle grade level of violence until the end when suddenly death is a very real option. I wasn't a fan of this sudden turn to knives and stabbings and would have preferred the work stay consistently in the non-violent realm.
My second complaint regards religion. The son of a Methodist minister, Griffin's religious nature permeates the text, not necessarily dominating the tale, but still maintaining a consistent presence. Griffin calls upon God in his hour of need and despairs of his Uncle's lack of belief. There were a few moments that felt trite, unnecessary and cliched. Then again, I have to admit a bit of a prejudice when it comes to religion in novels; if it's not central to the story, I find the inclusion annoying.
I first requested the book because of its connection to Sherlock Holmes. I had just read Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Holmes and taught the modern film Sherlock Holmes, so I was on a Holmesian (Sherlockian?) bender. While Sherlock doesn't have a large role in the book, he is still a constant character. Snodgrass suffers from severe bouts of jealousy against his competitor, in part fueled by a callousness on Holmes' part when Snodgrass was a child. And of course, Holmes flits around in the background throughout the story. And yet again, a Sherlockian (Holmesian?) book has me slapping my forehead over my neglect of the original canon. I really must rectify the situation soon and read some Holmes.
baleypetersen's review against another edition
3.0
>>Original post: http://thereadersbookblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/no-place-like-holmes-jason-lethcoe.html
What do you get when you introduce Encyclopedia Brown to Sherlock Holmes? You get Griffin Sharpe--a genius with a knack for observation.
Griffin Sharpe is a very observant boy. His keen eye and mathematical mind have caused him a bit of trouble in his short life, but Griffin knows that his skills will serve a purpose. In 1903 he is sent to his uncle's for the summer. On his journey to London, England, Griffin learns about the great detective, Sherlock Holmes. Inaccurately believing that the uncle he has never met is Mr. Holmes, Griffin is surprised to find that his uncle is actually Rupert Snodgrass: a lesser-known detective who happens to live in the same building as Sherlock Holmes--literally in his shadow. Griffin proves to be an invaluable asset to his grumpy uncle as they set out to unravel the mystery of a man believed to have been eaten by the Lochness Monster.
Jason Lethcoe has brought a classical fiction character to new light, as seen through the eyes of an intelligent young detective. What a wonderful way for a new generation to fall in love with Sherlock Holmes! All the old fellas are there, including Watson and Moriarty. The adventure and excitement of this novel may seem predictable to adult readers, but to the young audience, it is a maze of intrigue that every young sleuth will enjoy unraveling.
No Place Like Holmes wraps up in such a way that leads me to believe--to hope!--that we haven't seen the last of Griffin Sharpe and his eccentric uncle.
Rating: $$
ARC received courtesy of Tommy Nelson.
What do you get when you introduce Encyclopedia Brown to Sherlock Holmes? You get Griffin Sharpe--a genius with a knack for observation.
Griffin Sharpe is a very observant boy. His keen eye and mathematical mind have caused him a bit of trouble in his short life, but Griffin knows that his skills will serve a purpose. In 1903 he is sent to his uncle's for the summer. On his journey to London, England, Griffin learns about the great detective, Sherlock Holmes. Inaccurately believing that the uncle he has never met is Mr. Holmes, Griffin is surprised to find that his uncle is actually Rupert Snodgrass: a lesser-known detective who happens to live in the same building as Sherlock Holmes--literally in his shadow. Griffin proves to be an invaluable asset to his grumpy uncle as they set out to unravel the mystery of a man believed to have been eaten by the Lochness Monster.
Jason Lethcoe has brought a classical fiction character to new light, as seen through the eyes of an intelligent young detective. What a wonderful way for a new generation to fall in love with Sherlock Holmes! All the old fellas are there, including Watson and Moriarty. The adventure and excitement of this novel may seem predictable to adult readers, but to the young audience, it is a maze of intrigue that every young sleuth will enjoy unraveling.
No Place Like Holmes wraps up in such a way that leads me to believe--to hope!--that we haven't seen the last of Griffin Sharpe and his eccentric uncle.
Rating: $$
ARC received courtesy of Tommy Nelson.
wakela's review against another edition
5.0
What a great concept for a book! It really delivered too! I loved it so much. I felt bad for Griffin when he found out that the great Sherlock Holmes was not his uncle. But he still found out that his uncle was a detective and decided to make due with what he had.
Some of the situations that the two get into made me chuckle. This was a nice light read with an interesting mystery.
This is perfect for those middle grade readers who have a penchant to try to figure things out.
In conjunction with the Wakela's World Disclosure Statement, I received a product in order to enable my review. No other compensation has been received. My statements are an honest account of my experience with the brand. The opinions stated here are mine alone.
Some of the situations that the two get into made me chuckle. This was a nice light read with an interesting mystery.
This is perfect for those middle grade readers who have a penchant to try to figure things out.
In conjunction with the Wakela's World Disclosure Statement, I received a product in order to enable my review. No other compensation has been received. My statements are an honest account of my experience with the brand. The opinions stated here are mine alone.
booksforchristiangirls's review against another edition
3.0
This is a mini ‘Books For Christian Girls’ review. It is not a full content review and will not receive one. These mini-reviews are years old and just for clarity on the rating the book received on Goodreads.
12/3/2014-
“2.5 stars.
This was a light mystery and pretty good. I wasn't expecting it to be a historical (set in 1903) due to the cover giving me the impression that it was a modern young boy who wanted to be like Sherlock. The dog scene did break my heart though, so this book is lucky to get 2.5 stars from me.”
*Main Content-
Mentions of a dog getting hurt (up to semi-detailed).
12/3/2014-
“2.5 stars.
This was a light mystery and pretty good. I wasn't expecting it to be a historical (set in 1903) due to the cover giving me the impression that it was a modern young boy who wanted to be like Sherlock. The dog scene did break my heart though, so this book is lucky to get 2.5 stars from me.”
*Main Content-
Mentions of a dog getting hurt (up to semi-detailed).
wizzardofxxxx's review against another edition
2.0
*I recieved an ARC of this book from Net-galley.*
If I was a kid I think I would have enjoyed this much more than I did. It’s a cute book, but the description of everything Griffin sees with his all-knowing detectives’ eyes gets a little bit irritating. His uncle’s an ass, as it the obsession with beating Sherlock Holmes, but luckily towards the end of the book that gets dropped. I was not a fan of the whole twee “I’ve got a robot butler named Watts and a Moriarty of my own” bit, but I doubt a younger child would pick up on the similarity. I thought the steampunk elements seemed pretty forced, but its big business these days so it’s understandable.
This book was very well written, the mystery was engaging, and it was fun to ‘solve’ it along with Griffin. He’s a good kid and a great role model. I especially liked the mini-mystery at the end of the books as I was a huge fan of Encyclopedia Brown and the CLUE series as a kid so it was nice to see that the tradition lives on. I would definitely give this book to a kid, as I think they would really enjoy it. Overall it was a great children’s book read!
*This is a Christian book. Griffin’s father is an Especial minister, so there is some talk of praying and God. It’s not shown in a huge way, nor is it a really big plot point, but it is there.
If I was a kid I think I would have enjoyed this much more than I did. It’s a cute book, but the description of everything Griffin sees with his all-knowing detectives’ eyes gets a little bit irritating. His uncle’s an ass, as it the obsession with beating Sherlock Holmes, but luckily towards the end of the book that gets dropped. I was not a fan of the whole twee “I’ve got a robot butler named Watts and a Moriarty of my own” bit, but I doubt a younger child would pick up on the similarity. I thought the steampunk elements seemed pretty forced, but its big business these days so it’s understandable.
This book was very well written, the mystery was engaging, and it was fun to ‘solve’ it along with Griffin. He’s a good kid and a great role model. I especially liked the mini-mystery at the end of the books as I was a huge fan of Encyclopedia Brown and the CLUE series as a kid so it was nice to see that the tradition lives on. I would definitely give this book to a kid, as I think they would really enjoy it. Overall it was a great children’s book read!
*This is a Christian book. Griffin’s father is an Especial minister, so there is some talk of praying and God. It’s not shown in a huge way, nor is it a really big plot point, but it is there.
pandemoniumpizza's review
4.0
Reminiscent of Encyclopedia Brown, No Place Like Holmes is a fun mystery story set in the time of Sherlock Holmes and actually has a cameo from the good detective himself.
Griffin Sharpe has the same powers of deduction that Sherlock Holmes has, and at the same time his uncle uses a lot of science and inventions to solve crime. The two of them team up in this book to work together to solve a case of a missing man.
I thought that No Place Like Holmes was really fun. It’s got a bit of mystery and a bit of action that it satisfies those of a younger audience, say 10-14.
Not only was I impressed with the writing style and the whole story itself, I was impressed at the mini mysteries in the back of the book. I absolutely adore mini mysteries. I would go through books of two-minute mysteries for a really long time when I was younger, so the Griffin Sharper mini-mysteries were a great addition to the books.
If you like mystery stories and are familiar with Encyclopedia Brown and like those, then I think that you’d be in for a really fun treat with Jason Lethcoe’s No Place Like Holmes.
Griffin Sharpe has the same powers of deduction that Sherlock Holmes has, and at the same time his uncle uses a lot of science and inventions to solve crime. The two of them team up in this book to work together to solve a case of a missing man.
I thought that No Place Like Holmes was really fun. It’s got a bit of mystery and a bit of action that it satisfies those of a younger audience, say 10-14.
Not only was I impressed with the writing style and the whole story itself, I was impressed at the mini mysteries in the back of the book. I absolutely adore mini mysteries. I would go through books of two-minute mysteries for a really long time when I was younger, so the Griffin Sharper mini-mysteries were a great addition to the books.
If you like mystery stories and are familiar with Encyclopedia Brown and like those, then I think that you’d be in for a really fun treat with Jason Lethcoe’s No Place Like Holmes.
peridotmage's review
3.0
A good light read, but it doesn't leave much to the imagination, & not a lot goes on at any one time.
marycfindley's review
3.0
As many other reviewers have said, this is very reminiscent of the Encyclopedia Brown series. I thought some of the observations were kind of pointless, like how many frayed threads varied from one sleeve to the other. I did enjoy the adventure itself, though I wish the (no spoiler) mechanism of the disappearance in the beginning had been explained more or at least come up again. I especially enjoyed the Steampunk aspects and the reference to artistic accomplishments. The fact that Griffin wrongly interpreted one observation (a costly oversight) was a great touch! The Christian aspects seemed both a bit forced and also superficial. I objected strongly to the life-threatening incident near the end. A moderate amount of violence is expected in an adventure. One reviewer mentioned Treasure Island, and that is an excellent example of how to handle violence in a young reader-targeted story. This one went into gratuitous territory, and I couldn’t recommend it to as young an audience as it might otherwise be intended for.
pages_and_procrastination's review
I am a huge Sherlock Holmes fan. So to read a story from the perspective of what would be his rivalry was interesting, but a little awkward. No Place Like Holmes kind of makes you think of what Sherlock Holmes would be like as a kid – sort of. Griffin is also a Christian, and I am not sure if Holmes ever had a faith. Anyway, I really don’t want to compare and contrast Holmes and Griffin, it wouldn’t be fair. (Yes, I have to agree that I think Holmes is still the world’s greatest detective-sorry.) But I like Griffin a lot as well. I think he is such a great kid, and the gift he bears can be a heavy load at times but he carries it well. There are some minor issues I had with the story, only because they would be so farfetched. On the one hand I understand that it has to be for a kid to play a vital role in saving the world from evil in the first place.
If you forget about the bits that are not believable and just enjoy the story, it was a fun and light reading. It was nice to see very very little of Holmes’ presence in this book and I liked the commentary in Griffin’s head. Though I didn’t think I would I even started sort of liking Uncle Snodgrass. I think this is perfect reading for middle graders.
If you forget about the bits that are not believable and just enjoy the story, it was a fun and light reading. It was nice to see very very little of Holmes’ presence in this book and I liked the commentary in Griffin’s head. Though I didn’t think I would I even started sort of liking Uncle Snodgrass. I think this is perfect reading for middle graders.
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