S&S UK to publish authorised Sherlock Holmes novel by Gareth Rubin

Simon & Schuster UK is poised to publish the first Sherlock Holmes novel to be authorised by the Conan Doyle Estate since Anthony Horowitz’s The House of Silk (Orion, 2018). 

Deputy publishing director for adult fiction, Katherine Armstrong, acquired world all-language rights to Gareth Rubin’s Holmes and Moriarty from Jon Wood at Rogers, Coleridge & White. 

Scheduled for publication on 12^th September, it is the second in a two-book deal that included Rubin’s novel, The Turnglass, published in 2023.

The forthcoming title, Holmes and Moriarty, is told from the perspectives of Dr Watson and Moran, Professor Moriarty’s second in command and the “second most dangerous man in London”. When their separate investigations lead them to a shadowy figure and organisation, they realise that they will have to work together not only to survive, but also to prevent a national catastrophe.

The Conan Doyle Estate said: “The partnership between Holmes and Watson has been developed in so many different ways by countless writers. What Rubin has done so brilliantly is to flesh out a colourful partnership between Moriarty and his sidekick Moran, and then devised a plot which requires the two opposing partnerships to have to work together. Very clever. And such fun to read."

Armstrong said: “Gareth has beautifully captured the spirit of the Sherlock Holmes stories, while also giving this his own unique spin. What Holmes and Moriarty does so brilliantly is to capture Doyle’s interests – in Egyptology, treasure hunters, adventure – and create a story that includes all of these, as well as being an engrossing mystery where you want both Holmes and Moriarty – and Watson and Moran – to succeed together. We are thrilled to have the Conan Doyle Estate’s authorisation for this wonderful book.”

Rubin commented: “It’s a daunting job writing a new authorised story about the world’s most famous detective. All the while I’ve been working on it, I’ve had Moriarty, Mycroft and The Hound of the Baskervilles stalking my every move and that’s a damned dangerous place to be. But like so many people, I grew up reading the Holmes stories so the chance to create a new one has been an incredible gift.”