5 June 2026.
ISBN: 978-1-80055389-7 (PB
These early adventures of Sherlock Holmes are narrated by Arthur Stamford, the young doctor who was Holmes biographer before he met Watson. Now that Stamford has completed his medical training, he is a young junior surgeon at Bart’s hospital, which means that he has less time to assist Holmes with his investigations. Holmes has started to advertise himself as a consulting detective but has not yet fully established himself in his chosen profession, although his reputation is increasingly respected.
Holmes and Stamford meet occasionally and still have an amicable relationship but have little time to work together until a case occurs that involves them both. At first, it seems like an ordinary day for Stamford when a young man is brought into the hospital after he was struck by a falling roof tile. When the man regains consciousness, he appears confused and cannot remember his name. Stamford has him admitted to a ward and is confident that his patient will soon recover, but he is concerned when he discovers that a senior surgeon has allowed the young man to leave with a man who claimed to be his friend. Unfortunately, nobody has recorded either of the young men’s names or addresses. Stamford does not consider the matter any further until Inspector Lestrade of Scotland asks him to come to the mortuary to identify a young man who had been run down by a delivery wagon and whose body shows signs of treatment for recent injuries. The victim is indeed the unfortunate man that Stamford had treated, but there is no sign of the man who removed the patient from the hospital. When Stamford leaves the mortuary, Lestrade asks him to speak to the father of the dead man, who has identified the victim as Aubrey Soames, and to Stamford’s surprise Holmes is also present. Aubrey Soames’ father, Sir Finlay Soames, is a senior official at the War Office, and Aubrey had been an outstanding mathematician who tutored young men facing examinations. Lestrade is content to assume that Aubrey’s death was an accident, presuming that Aubrey’s companion had been careless and had panicked and abandoned him when he was struck by the wagon. However, Sir Finlay is unconvinced and employs Holmes to investigate his son’s death. Because of Sir Finlay’s national importance, Stamford is given leave from the hospital to assist in the investigation.
Stamford has one clue to kickstart the
investigation. When Aubrey was regaining consciousness, he had muttered
something about what Stamford assumed was ‘a calendar’, but Sir Finlay suggests
that he had referred to Callender, because Lord Callender is a close family
friend. Holmes and Stamford go to visit Lord Callender and arrive just in time
to rescue the noble adventurer when he is trapped by the ropes of his flagpole
after he had an accident while trying to make repairs to his hot air balloon.
Lord Callender is an elderly, heavily built man who still has an ebullient love
for adventure and tries to live his life as if he was a character in the newly
published Adventure Magazine. Lord Callender tells them that he does not know
why Aubrey Soames had muttered his name but says that the young mathematician
had been helping him to perfect the design of a balloon that he intends to
enter in a cross channel competition with a significant cash prize. Lord
Callender cares less about the money than the adventure and the joy of being an
innovator, but he has two major problems, one is the need to keep his design a
secret, and the other is that his competition entry requires a pilot to try out
the balloon who is strong but not tall or heavy. Lord Callender and his
daughter, Lady Grace, who acts as his chief mechanic, are both too tall to
pilot the balloon and, to Stamford’s dismay, it is obvious that they think he is
an ideal candidate for the job. Stamford is not a coward, but this sort of risk
horrifies him. However, he is the son of poor parents who have made many
sacrifices to help him to train as a surgeon, and he knows that the generous
payment that Lord Callender is offering will move him nearer to his ambition of
purchasing his own medical practice.
Holmes returns to London to continue investigations there, but Stamford stays
at the Callender estate to trial the balloon as soon as the weather is
suitable. During this time, he tries to discover whether Aubrey Soames’ death
is connected to Lord Callender’s adventurous ambitions, and if so whether it is
because of a villainous ballooning rival or connected with the school of
ballooning at Woolwich Arsenal, who are considering the military potential of
balloon flight. Despite Stamford’s best efforts, another death occurs, and the
young surgeon is in great danger as the killer grows increasingly desperate.
Sherlock Holmes and the Aeronauts is the eleventh book in the series featuring Stamford and
Holmes. Stamford is an engaging narrator and his interaction with the young
Holmes reveals the great detective as a reserved and driven but fundamentally
decent man. The plot is well constructed and the historical details are impeccable.
This is an interesting addition to an excellent series, which I recommend.
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Reviewer:
Carol Westron
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