Official Review: The Count of Samerand and the Ghost of B...

[Airam Velarde]

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Count of Samerand and the Ghost of Belgravia" by Bryan Porrter.]

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April 5th, 1864 - Robert Melburne, a wealthy landowner originally from the States, is found murdered in his study. The house staff have no witness of the murderer, who seems to have vanished from a room that is completely sealed and barred from all sides. It appears only the supernatural could have accomplished such a task. However, Inspector James Wright has just the man with the unique skill and worldly knowledge to solve such a case. He calls upon his good friend, the Count of Samerand, to aide him in solving this mystery. Will the Count, being himself the final authority on crime, be able to find this ghost killer?

The Count of Samerand and the Ghost of Belgravia is the first in a series of short stories by author Bryan Porter. Wishing to pay homage to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Porter introduces us to the character of the Count of Samerand and his adventures when aiding his good friend, Inspector James Wright. While being presented in a format greatly resembling that of the Sherlock Holmes series, the author creates and captures the essentials of the classic detective stories.

We are first met with our narrator, Inspector James Wright. Similarly to Dr. John Watson in the classic Sherlock Holmes stories, he is publishing the memoirs of the many adventures he partook in with the Count of Samerand. He does this to commemorate and have record of his good friend and his skills. This leads us to our protagonist, the Count of Samerand himself. He is described as having a grand manner that makes him a giant amongst men. I found him to have what could be the beginnings of a charming character, however, no further development was made in this. I feel this introduction left me with more questions than answers. If detective work is not the Count’s life’s pursuit, then what kind of work does he engage in? He has great skill at solving cases, but what exactly are his methods? Many questions like these I asked myself as I read through the story. I felt only a glimpse of the characters was given and not enough development. Because this is a short story, and only the beginning of a series, I feel that I must give it the benefit of the doubt, however. Maybe this tale was only to serve the purpose of a light introduction to the characters and we may yet be able to find out more about them in stories to come. If this is the case, then it definitely left me more interested, as now I will want to read further stories to seek the answers to the questions aforementioned.

The storyline in itself, I found to be very good and it most certainly made me want to keep reading for the sake of finding out how this mystery is solved. The Count of Samerand and the Ghost of Belgravia, introduces a very interesting plot with the retelling of what is the now classic “locked room murder mystery”. However, I also felt the story ended too quickly. By this I mean that there wasn’t enough depth to the plot, not enough details to engulf the reader in the mystery. It felt too simple and to the point. For example, we know that the Count of Samerand is sought out by the Inspector because of his notable expertise in solving puzzling cases. Yet we are not given any insight as to how he solves these cases. We are told he examines the crime scene but not with sufficient details as to be able to believe the Count’s conclusion when he arrives at it. I feel this short story has great potential for shadowing classic works such as those of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, if only a more thorough recounting of the story was given.

Although I was left with the need for more in depth looks at both the murder case and the characters, I still enjoyed reading this simple, yet entertaining detective story. I would recommend this to readers who prefer light, short stories and that have an interest in classic detective works. For the reasons above mentioned, I give The Count of Samerand and the Ghost of Belgravia 3 out of 4 stars.

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Buy "The Count of Samerand and the Ghost of Belgravia" on Barnes and Noble

[AVK2913]

I'm always looking for short mystery stories to read and I actually have come across this one before. I definitely agree with what you said about it being too simple. It has a great mystery and it is entertaining, but when I finished it I felt like "wow, that was quick." Maybe it was specifically made for lighter reading and to keep you questioning Great review by the way!

[Airam Velarde]

Thank you so much for the comment!

[AVK2913]

You're welcome!