Rating: 
Summary: A very strong four stars
Review: Whenever the words "Sir Arthur Conan Doyle" appear on the dust jacket of a novel it's a must read for me. And so when I read the synopsis for The Arcanum I was thrilled.Luckily I wasn't disappointed. The concepts explored in the novel are interesting enough on their own, however, as a side note, they may have been even more powerful in the hands of another writer. But Wheeler presents them in a way to truly advance the plot and make the reader wonder at the possibility of it all. But what really caught and held my attention were the characters. As I said previously, Conan Doyle is a huge drawing point for me. And Wheeler did a good job of bringing in Conan Doyle's spiritual beliefs and conveying a sense that, for his age, he was still steadfast, sure and strong. One problem I had, though, was that Conan Doyle, as a character, was uneven. He dropped the ball, so to speak, on numerous occasions, which belied some of his earlier actions and thought processes. He starts off an equal, if not superior, to his own creation in Holmes, but by the end he makes very stupid moves that leave the reader shaking their heads. I kept thinking that an editor really should have pointed it out and suggested that Wheeler rethink what he was doing with Conan Doyle. But Conan Doyle took a back seat in this novel to one H.P. Lovecraft. Of course I was aware of Lovecraft, the genre he chose to write in, and that he is widely considered to be a big influence in the horror/speculative fiction field. But I wasn't aware of what an interesting person he was. Out of all the characters, Lovecraft intrigued me the most. The way he was written, well, it made me want to go out and learn more about the man--and that is always a sign, for me, that a novel has done a good job. If it provokes enough thought that I can't wait to get back to a bookstore or library to pick up some related books then it has been well worth it. Add to the mix Houdini, whose beliefs and exploits in the world of psychics tie in very well with the themes presented by Wheeler, and Marie Leveau and you've got a very interesting circle. How these very varied characters interacted was a wonderful plus. Granted, they may not come across true to form, but it is fiction after all. I was also very pleased by the demons that are unleashed. Wheeler made them very visual creatures. Often in horror novels you're given similar creatures, but they're easily passed over because you can't see them or imagine them. That is not the case here and it really added to my reading. In the end I really enjoyed The Arcanum and was most glad to have purchased it. And it would not sadden me to hear that Wheeler was planning on writing a sequel.
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