In early 2026, the latest collection of new Solar Pons stories came out from Belanger Books: Solar Pons: A Year of Mystery 1919. This volume contains 20 stories by various authors, all set in 1919. This was done as a Kickstarter campaign, and I got the work as part of that.
Pons is a Sherlock Holmes “pastiche” created by August Derleth when he learned no new Holmes stories were forthcoming. Instead of making him a copy, he is a separate character who has Holmes as his mentor and predecessor. Holmes had retired to Sussex Downs around the turn of the century (1903, to be exact), though he did come out of retirement to aid Britain during WWI (and a few other times).
Pons’ career was mainly in the 1920s and ’30s, though he started his career in 1907, with a pause during WWI for military intelligence work, and in 1919 returned to living at 7B Praed Street, soon joined by Dr. Lyndon Parker. It is this period of 1919 that this volume is focused on, with Pons returning to London after the end of the war, re-establishing his Praed Street practice, and meeting Dr. Parker in June, and so on through December. All the stories here are in chronological order, with supplemental material by August Derleth sprinkled in between.
We get an introduction by David Marcum and stories by: Stephen Herczeg, Derrick Belanger, Paul Hiscock, David Marcum, Gustavo Bondoni, Geoff Holder, Paula Hammond, D.J. Tyrer, Ian Millsted, Tim Newton Anderson, Brett Fawcett, Naching T. Kassa, Robert Stapleton, Joshua Reynolds, Brenda Seabrooke, Thomas A. Burns Jr., I.A. Watson, and Steve Lockley. A couple of authors contributed two stories.
Stephen Herczeg starts off with a tale set in January. Pons gets called back by his brother Bancroft to decode some German messages from the war. This exposes a sleeper agent, and Pons is on the trail. What does he find, and will he be able to stop a potential tragedy?
From Derrick Belanger, we have a story that Pons relates to Parker. Some people from the government approach Pons with a problem. A couple had a strange incident that included encountering a German zeppelin. But the war is over. So Pons looks into what really happened, and it’s similar to something that happened to a U.S. couple in the ’50s.
Pons is approached by a young war widow in Paul Hiscock’s first story. Her husband and brother went to war, but her husband died and her brother came back permanently injured. But there have been some strange incidents at her home, and she thinks her husband is possessed. This time Pons is helped by Mrs. Johnson, his landlady.
From David Marcum, we get a story set after Parker and Pons met, but before Parker has moved in with Pons. Here we get a story tied to a case of Sherlock Holmes, as covered in a novel by Marcum. While out of the country, Pons receives a message from Bancroft to return, as several murder victims have been found, tied to that past case. It was thought this was addressed, but can Pons, with assistance from Watson and Parker, get to the bottom of things?
Gustavo Bondoni also gives us a story set after Parker and Pons met, but on the eve of Parker moving in with Pons. A young widow comes to Pons for help. She is from Liverpool, and her husband, a dock worker, recently was killed on the job. But she thinks it was murder, though the Liverpool police are on strike. She went to Scotland Yard and got no help, being directed to Pons. Was it murder or an accident? And can Pons prove this without leaving London?
In Geoff Holder’s tale, Pons is asked to find a valuable Egyptian artifact, and, in the process, we learn more about Parker’s work as a doctor. Will Pons be able to find the item, as it apparently has a dangerous aspect?
Pons is again called back to assist the government in the story by Paula Hammond. A government agent is found dead, and it’s unclear how he was killed. Is it tied to his wartime work overseeing a group of Belgian agents, or something else?
The sinking of the Titanic plays a key role in D.J. Tyrer’s tale. Pons is approached by a nobleman. He lost his wife when the Titanic sank, but recently saw a picture in a newspaper of someone wearing his wife’s sapphire, a family heirloom. How can this be? Can Pons track down this gem and learn its secret?
Parker brings us into the next work by Ian Millsted, when he is invited by an old acquaintance to join a cricket match at an estate. And as he can bring a friend, he brings along Pons. But things turn serious when a murder victim is found nearby. Can Pons figure out the culprit or culprits?
In the story by Tim Newton Anderson, Pons is approached by a young lady. Her father, a duke, died suddenly of a heart attack after a tarot reading. But she wonders if there is more to it than that. Was it murder or just a bad heart? Will Pons work it all out?
Pons is asked to look into the mystery of an actor who strangely disappears while on holiday in Swansea in Steve Lockley’s first story. Is he dead, or has he gone into hiding, and can Pons find him and figure out why he disappeared?
In Brett Fawcett’s story, Pons is on the trail of a real historical mystery, the location of a piece of artwork known as the Mystic Ark, which may or may not exist. Surprisingly, information gathered by Parker’s lost wife, a victim of the Titanic, is able to assist them. I was not aware of this item, so this mystery was made more interesting by learning about it.
A doctor researching poisons visits Pons with a serious problem in the tale by Naching T. Kassa. He had been working on both a poison and its antidote, and both are missing, with a note that indicates someone will die. Pons and Parker head to the doctor’s residence to find there is much more to what’s going on, tied to Holmes and another Holmes: H.H. Holmes.
A British admiral comes to Pons, sent by his brother, in the work by Robert Stapleton. During the recent scuttling of the German fleet, one destroyer escaped. And the admiral needs help in finding it. This will lead them to Ireland. Will Pons be able to find it and put an end to the threat? This is the first time I am aware of Pons getting involved in any way with Irish independence.
In Joshua Reynolds’ piece, a financier who likes to gamble seems to have run afoul of a devil who wants him to return a favor he did for him. Or less. Or is this just an evil human? Pons reluctantly works to help him. What will be the outcome?
Parker is invited to a ball hosted by a duke in the story by Brenda Seabrooke. During the war Parker had helped both of his sons, and we learn that Pons had encountered one of them during the war as well. The purpose of the ball is to announce the engagement of the eldest son. But something goes awry, and the son is struck down by something. Can Parker save him again, and can Pons figure out what happened?
Parker is mistaken for Pons and attacked in Thomas A. Burns Jr.’s tale. Pons has been on the trail of a con artist, and he tried to strike at Pons first, but got the wrong person. Now both Pons and Parker are on his trail. Can they put an end to his career?
From I.A. Watson, we get a work filled with his many footnotes. This time a young woman seeks out Pons on the anniversary of the end of WWI. She is the fiancée of a former officer, a viscount wounded in the war. But he has apparently broken off the engagement. He is horribly wounded, under the constant care of his batman. But she believes there is something going on, maybe due to the soldier helping her fiancé. Is there something going on, and can Pons unravel it?
A similar tale from Steve Lockley has Pons approached by a father who lost his only son, accompanied by the son’s fiancée. He had been killed at Ypres, and had some of his effects returned. But later, on the body of another soldier, a tobacco tin was found with his letters. After those were returned, there are questions as to how this happened. Can Pons figure out how this happened?
And finally, with Christmas fast approaching, in Paul Hiscock’s second story, we find Pons and Parker, along with Inspector Jamison, in Liverpool on the trail of a kidnapper. After capturing him, he claims he can provide information on his employer in exchange for a lighter sentence. So the four are traveling back on the train to London. But is there an assassin on the trail after the man? Especially after he is stabbed and killed? Can Pons expose the assassin? And will Pons and Parker return in time for Mrs. Johnson’s Christmas dinner?
Overall, this was a good collection of stories, with a mix of different types of mysteries. I was wondering how they’d handle the stories set before Pons met Parker. They handled these well, and I like that each one was different. I was surprised by several stories using footnotes.
What’s next? We had a Kickstarter in April for the Essential Solar Pons, which is a collection of over a dozen essays on the essential Pons tales, which are themselves included. This should be out in October. And I expect the next Pontine Dossier toward the end of 2026. We will have to see what 2027 brings us. Plans are for two further volumes similar to this one, one covering the 1920s and the other the 1930s. I look forward to that. Solar Pons will return…
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