The Fifth Heart
by Dan Simmons
Paris, 1893: On a bridge above the Seine, two figures, each bent on suicide, unexpectedly encounter one another. One is the great American novelist Henry James, whose personal and professional fortunes have dramatically declined. The other is Sherlock Holmes, who has an unusual reason for wanting to die. He has come to believe that he may not be real, that he may just be some “scribbler’s” fictional creation. This chance encounter at a vulnerable moment will have enormous ramifications for both men.
Abandoning thoughts of suicide, the two make their way to America, where the fastidious James finds himself caught up in a violent, frequently lethal world he could never have imagined. A pair of interconnected investigations dominates that world. The first concerns the supposed suicide of Clover Adams, wife of historian Henry Adams and member of an elite social circle called The Five Hearts. The second involves a vast, overarching conspiracy which, if successful, will affect the fates of entire nations. For both Holmes and his unlikely partner, the path to personal redemption leads through these two very different mysteries.
Seamlessly combining melodrama and metaphysical speculation with a brilliantly detailed portrait of Gilded Age America, The Fifth Heart is something truly special: a novel of depth and character that is also a world-class entertainment. Colorful, gripping, and ultimately quite moving, it is a formidable addition to a unique—and irreplaceable—body of work.
2 editions available
Editions
Paris, 1893: On a bridge above the Seine, two figures, each bent on suicide, unexpectedly encounter one another. One is the great American novelist Henry James, whose personal and professional fortunes have dramatically declined. The other is Sherlock Holmes, who has an unusual reason for wanting to die. He has come to believe that he may not be real, that he may just be some “scribbler’s” fictional creation. This chance encounter at a vulnerable moment will have enormous ramifications for both men. Abandoning thoughts of suicide, the two make their way to America, where the fastidious James finds himself caught up in a violent, frequently lethal world he could never have imagined. A pair of interconnected investigations dominates that world. The first concerns the supposed suicide of Clover Adams, wife of historian Henry Adams and member of an elite social circle called The Five Hearts. The second involves a vast, overarching conspiracy which, if successful, will affect the fates of entire nations. For both Holmes and his unlikely partner, the path to personal redemption leads through these two very different mysteries. Seamlessly combining melodrama and metaphysical speculation with a brilliantly detailed portrait of Gilded Age America, The Fifth Heart is something truly special: a novel of depth and character that is also a world-class entertainment. Colorful, gripping, and ultimately quite moving, it is a formidable addition to a unique—and irreplaceable—body of work.