The West End Horror: A Posthumous Memoir of John H. Watson, MD by Nicholas Me...

The West End Horror
A Posthumous Memoir of John H. Watson, M.D.
As Edited by Nicholas Meyer
Publisher:  E. P. Dutton & Co., Inc.
Copyright:  1976
FIRST EDITION

In 1974, readers were enthralled when Sherlock Holmes met Sigmund Freud in The Seven-Per-Cent Solution, one of the big bestsellers of the year.  In The West End Horror, Nicholas Meyer has brought to light another previously unpublished episode in the career of the famous detective Sherlock Holmes as recorded by his close associate and friend Dr. John H. Watson.

March, 1895.  London.  A month of singular occurrences in the West End.  First there was the bizarre murder of theatre critic Jonathan McCarthy; the police were baffled.  Then came the lawsuit against the Marquis of Queensberry for libel; the public was scandalized.  And what of the ingenue at the Savoy, discovered with her throat slashed?  Or the police surgeon who disappeared taking with him two corpses from the mortuary?

Some of the theatre district's most fashionable and creative luminaries (as well as a number of more marginal participants) were involved or affected by these events:  a penniless stage critic and writer named Bernard Shaw; Ellen Terry, the gifted actress and the loveliest woman in London; Gilbert and Sullivan; a suspicious box office clerk named Bram Stoker; an aging matinee idol, Henry Irving; an unscrupulous publisher calling himself Frank Harris; and a controversial wit by the name of Oscar Wilde.

Scotland Yard is mystified by what appears to be unrelated cases, but to Holmes the matter is elementary:  a maniac is on the loose.

John Hamish Watson was born in England in 1847.  After a childhood spent abroad, he returned in 1872 and enrolled in the University of London Medical School, where he took his degree six years later.  After finishing the course at Netley prescribed for Army surgeons, he was attached to the Fifth Northumberland Fusiliers and sent to India.  Severely wounded by a Jezail bullet at the Battle of Maiwand during the Second Afghan War, in 1880, he returned to England, his health ruined, with no specific plans other than to live as best he could on his Army pension.  In January of the following year, quite by accident, he met Sherlock Holmes, who was then looking for someone to share his lodgings.  The ensuing friendship, which lasted until Holmes' death, found Watson his niche as the great detective's biographer through more than sixty cases.  In his spare time he resumed the practice of medicine.  In 1889 he married Mary Morstan.  He died in Britain in 1940.

Condition:  Used.  Hardcover.  Dust cover shows discoloration and a bit of edge wear.  ges.  Inside covers and pages are tanning from age.  The previous owner's "Library Of" stamp is on the full title page.

**************************

Don't Delay. Buy It Now!

Why Buy From Me?

* Shipping Speed Most people are extremely amazed at how fast I get their item delivered to them. I ship the same day you pay for your item, whenever possible.

• Strong Positive Feedback 100% positive feedback. Customers are overwhelmingly pleased with the quality of the item they receive, the accuracy of the item's description, the prompt and informative email notifications, and of course the speedy delivery.
  
  * Blujay Member Since 2005 I'm here to stay.
  
  * ID Verified My feedback profile also displays the ID Verified icon. An extra level of safety and security for buyers to know.
  
  * PayPal Buyer Protection All of my listings display the PayPal Buyer Protection icon to qualify for up to $1000.00 of protection for you, the buyer.