In 2021, Storytel signed an exclusive agreement with The Conan Doyle Estate to develop entirely new Sherlock Holmes stories written primarily for the audio format. The Red Circle, the first audiobook of three in the Becoming Sherlock series, will be released exclusively on Storytel on December 7.

Becoming Sherlock is a series written under the creative direction of the bestselling TV, film, and novel writer Anthony Horowitz, together with the acclaimed thriller writer Sarah J Naughton.

– I knew that it was a huge responsibility to remake such a beloved character, but fortunately I had an excellent guide in Anthony Horowitz, who knows the Sherlock Holmes universe like the back of his hand, says Sarah J Naughton.

– Becoming Sherlock takes these much-loved characters – Holmes, Watson, Mrs Hudson, Lestrade – and moves them into an imagined future. At the same time, I’ve tried to stay true to who and what they are. For the reader, this means that everything is both familiar and unfamiliar at the same time and I hope this rediscovery will be both challenging and entertaining, says Anthony Horowitz.

The adventure is set 40 years into the future in London, a city in decay. Pandemics, environmental destruction, war, and chaos have turned the whole society into something reminiscent of the 19th-century London where Sherlock Holmes normally operates.
John Watson has returned from medical service in the war in Afghanistan and lives by himself in a run-down part of ​town. On his way home from work, he stumbles upon a beaten man in the street – unconscious and completely naked. His chances of survival are minimal.
The same evening, a passenger plane crashes in Richmond Park. There are several hundred victims, and Watson and the mysterious man are left to their own devices. 
When the man wakes up the following day, he has no memory of who he is or where he came from but reveals excellent detection skills. This is the start of a mystery that unravels rapidly. 

– Anthony came up with the original idea and outlines for the first two stories. I loved them immediately. We worked chapter by chapter, getting together for intense brain-storming sessions.  At the end of the process the manuscript was sent to the Conan Doyle estate for their approval. We were delighted they liked it so much. Hopefully listeners will love it as much as we loved writing it, says Sarah J Naughton.

 – We are tremendously proud and excited to finally get to present this new Sherlock adventure, says Helena Gustafsson, Chief Content Officer at Storytel. 

The Red Circle will be released exclusively on Storytel on December 7.

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