Chronicles of the Lost Years (The Sherlock Holmes Series)
Read Chronicles of the Lost Years (The Sherlock Holmes Series) Online
Authors: Tracy Cooper-Posey
Tags: #Romance
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• Chronicles •
of the
• Lost Years •
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by
Tracy Cooper-Posey
When Sherlock Holmes was at the peak of his success he disappeared, abruptly, for three years. Dr. Watson believed him to be dead. No one knows what happened to him in those years…until now.
Watson takes up his pen one last time to describe in a private memoir the true tale of Holmes’ adventures during his three-year absence from
Baker Street
and provides a fictional explanation for many of the mysteries and inaccuracies found within the Sherlock Holmes collection of stories and novels.
The answers come in the shape of a woman – Elizabeth Sigerson.
Elizabeth
is independent, practical, a crack shot with a pistol and definitely not a woman of her time.
Elizabeth
is embroiled in Holmes’ life just when Holmes scheme to expose Moriarty is culminating. She can more than hold her own against Holmes’ abilities but she has a secret that Holmes is compelled to solve…
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Praise for
• Chronicles of the Lost Years •
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This one, yet another account of the Great Hiatus, when Holmes hid out from the infamous Moriarty, is better than most. Cooper-Posey attempts to account for the change in Watson/Conan Doyle’s writing style once Holmes returns, and does a mighty good job.
Margaret Cannon for
The Globe and Mail
Cooper-Posey does a masterful job of recreating the style of Doyle in this vivid, exciting tale.
Toby Bromberg for
Romantic Times Magazine
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FIRST EDITION: March 2000
SECOND EDITION: December, 2012
Cooper-Posey,
Tracy
Chronicles of the Lost Years/
1. Suspense—Fiction 2. Romantic Suspense 3. Mystery 4. Sherlock Holmes 5. Dr. John Watson 6. Baker Street 7. Victorian London 8. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle 9. The Great Hiatus, Moriarty 10. The Final Problem
• Chronology of Events •
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(Events particular to Watson’s last chronicle are in italics)
1878
Watson graduates as Doctor of Medicine—London University
Second Afghan war begins
Watson travels to Bombay
Date uncertain—events of “The Adventure of the Gloria Scott”—Holmes’ first case, while still in college.
1880
Battle of Maiwand—Watson received his wound in the shoulder (which later became a wounded leg)
Two unnamed cases while Holmes was living in Montague Street.
Year uncertain—the events of “The Adventure of The Musgrave Ritual”—third case in Montague Street.
1881
Watson returns to London, meets Sherlock Holmes, and together they move into 221B Baker Street.
October—the events of “The Adventure of the Resident Patient.”
1882
March 4 (year imprecise)—events of “A Study in Scarlet,” Watson’s first introduction to Holmes’ work.
Events of the Trepoff Murder case in Odessa—a case mentioned in passing by Watson.
Events of the case of the Atkinson Brothers at Trincomalee—a case mentioned in passing by Watson.
Events of the Case concerning the Royal family of Holland—a case mentioned in passing by Watson.
1883
Early April—the events of “The Adventure of the Speckled Band.”
Date uncertain—the events of “The Adventure of Silver Blaze”—Watson living at Baker Street.
Early spring (year uncertain—the events of “The Adventure of the Yellow Face”—Watson living at Baker Street.
August (year uncertain)—the events of “The Adventure of the Cardboard Box”—Watson living at Baker Street
Summer (year uncertain)—the events of “The Adventure of the Greek Interpreter.”
October (year uncertain)—the events of
The Hound of the Baskervilles.
1887
February (year uncertain—Watson still living at Baker Street)—the events of “The Adventure of the Beryl Coronet.”
April 14—Holmes falls ill in Lyon, from overwork. Watson summoned.
April—the events of “The Adventure of the Reigate Squire.”
July 7/September (both months are mentioned.) Year uncertain, might be 1886—the events of “The Sign of Four.”
Autumn—the events of “The Adventure of the Noble Bachelor.”
(Month uncertain)—Watson’s marriage to Mary Morston
Late September—the events of “The Five Orange Pips,”—in the story Watson says his wife is visiting her mother, yet his wife (Mary Morston, who he met in the case of “The Sign of Four”) is an orphan.
Events of the Adventure of the Paradol Chamber—a case referred to by Watson, but never written up.
Events of the British barque “Sophy Anderson”—a case referred to by Watson, but never written up.
Events of the Camberwell poisoning—a case referred to by Watson, but never written up.
1888
March (year uncertain)—Watson buys medical practice in Paddington.
July—first of two possible dates for the events of “The Adventure of the Norwood Builder”—Hilton Cubitt refers to the Jubilee of the previous year, and Watson is living at Baker Street (which is anachronistic for both possible dates—see 1889). Logically this is the more likely year, for if Cubitt had been referring to the second Jubilee, it would have been natural for him to qualify that he meant the second Jubilee, not the first.
20th March—events of “A Scandal in Bohemia.”
Summer—the events of “The Adventure of the Crooked Man”—shortly after Watson’s marriage.
June 3, Monday (year uncertain)—the events of “The Boscombe Valley Mystery.”
June (year uncertain)—the events of “The Adventure of the Stockbroker’s Clerk”—Watson dates this case three months after the purchase of his private practice.
July—the events of “The Adventure of the Naval Treaty,”—occurs in “the July which immediately succeeded my marriage” (Watson).
July—the events of “The Adventure of the Second Stain”—in this story, Watson state that the case’s international ramifications mean that the year and date should remain vague. Yet he states the year and the month in passing reference in an earlier story as July, 1888. This is contradicted in the actual story, in which Watson states the events occur in autumn. Assumed that Watson is attempting to misdirect.
July—the events of “The Adventure of the Tired Captain.”
1889
Early Spring (year uncertain)—the events of “The Adventure of the Copper Beeches”—In this case, Watson appears to be living at Baker Street, which would place the date as pre-1887, yet Holmes talks about
the cases of “A Scandal in Bohemia” and “A Case of Identity.” Assumed Watson is a temporary guest.
Friday, June 19th—the events of “The Man with the Twisted Lip”—Watson’s wife calls him “James”. It is from the slip that it has been established that John Watson’s second initial must stand for Hamish, which is Scottish for James.
Summer—the events of “The Adventure of the Engineer’s Thumb.”
December 27 (year uncertain)—the events of “The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle.”
November—the events of “The Adventure of the Dying Detective”—occurred in the second year of Watson’s marriage.
Year uncertain—events of “The Valley of Fear”—Watson states it is the end of the ‘eighties.
1890
Month uncertain—events of “A Case of Identity.”
June—Events of “The Red-Headed League.”
1891
Holmes in France working for French Government
January 4—Holmes “crossed swords” with Moriarty.
January 23—Holmes “incommoded” Moriarty.
Mid February—Moriarty “seriously inconvenienced” by Holmes.
Friday April 24—the events of “The Adventure of the Final Problem*”:
- (a.m.) Moriarty visits Holmes
- (p.m.) Holmes visits Watson
- Saturday April 25: Moriarty visits Homes—a.m.
- Sunday April 26: Travel to Brussels
- Monday April 27: Brussels—Holmes telegraphs London police
- Travel to Strasbourg
- Evening—away reply
- Move on toward Geneva
- Tuesday April 28—Sunday May 3
- Travel up the Rhone Valley to Leuk
- Across the Gemmi Pass (in snow) along the Daubensee, through Interlaken to Meirengen
- Sunday May 3: Stay at Englischer Hof., Meirengen
- Monday May 4: Intend to cross the hill and spend the night at Rosenlaui
- Stop off at the Reichenbach Falls. There the Swiss boy delivers the message which sends Watson back down the hill to Meirengen.