How to read the Young Sherlock books in order
The new Prime Video series focuses on Sherlock's investigations at age 19.
Following on from his Sherlock Holmes films released in 2009 and 2011, director Guy Ritchie has returned to Arthur Conan Doyle's iconic character with Young Sherlock, a new Prime Video series starring Hero Fiennes Tiffin as the title character.
The series sees a 19-year-old Sherlock team up with a new friend, one who will go on to be his arch-nemesis - James Moriarty.
At this point, they are detectives together, looking into a case which unravels a globe-trotting conspiracy and leads to an explosive showdown that alters the course of Sherlock's life forever.
All eight episodes of the series are available to stream now, but is the show based on a book or series of books?
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Read on for everything you need to know about the Young Sherlock book series.
Is Young Sherlock based on a book?
Yes and no. Young Sherlock is loosely based on the spin-off books by Andrew Lane, the Young Sherlock Holmes series, but the use of the word 'loosely' is key. Predominantly, the series tells a brand-new story, and focuses on Sherlock's investigations at a later age than the books.
While the books start with Sherlock being aged 14, in the series he is 19 at the start of the run.
The novels are all written by Andrew Lane, who has also written a number of books and audio dramas related to Doctor Who and Torchwood.
There have been a number of links between Doctor Who and Sherlock Holmes over the years, most prominently the fact that Sherlock, the BBC series which transposed Holmes's adventures to the modern day, was created by two Who writers, Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss.
Episodes of that series were also written by Steve Thompson, another screenwriter who has worked on Doctor Who and who has also returned to writing for Holmes in the new series. Thompson is not only a writer on Young Sherlock, but also an executive producer.
How many books are there in the Young Sherlock Holmes series?
There are eight novels in the Young Sherlock Holmes series in total.
They were released between 2010 and 2015.
How to read the Young Sherlock Holmes series in order
The Young Sherlock Holmes novels are designed to be read in release order, with each story leading into the next. That means readers should start with 2010's Death Cloud, and finish with 2015's Night Break.
Here's the full list of Young Sherlock Holmes novels in order.
- Death Cloud (2010)
- Red Leech (2010)
- Black Ice (2011)
- Fire Storm (2011)
- Snake Bite (2012)
- Knife Edge (2013)
- Stone Cold (2014)
- Night Break (2015)
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Authors
James Hibbs is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering programmes across both streaming platforms and linear channels. He previously worked in PR, first for a B2B agency and subsequently for international TV production company Fremantle. He possesses a BA in English and Theatre Studies and an NCTJ Level 5 Diploma in Journalism.
