Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽'s Reviews > The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, published in 1892, and available for free online reading or downloading here on Project Gutenberg (or many other places), is a collection of twelve Sherlock Holmes short stories. Doyle's formula for his Sherlock stories gets a little bit worn and visible after you read several of them back to back. But there are some jewels in this collection, and they all have something to offer the interested reader, even if it's only an insight into Sherlock's or Dr. Watson's characters or Victorian society.

My full reviews for these stories are at the links, but I've posted my star ratings and brief comments here:

4* - "A Scandal in Bohemia" - Notable mostly for the appearance of Irene Adler, probably the best and most intelligent female character Doyle ever created.

3* "The Red Headed League" - Reading about a massive crowd of redheads was fun, but otherwise this is a fairly standard Sherlock Holmes story.

2* "A Case of Identity" - The rare swing and miss, it's lightweight and predictable, with a patronizing Victorian view of women that thoroughly irritated me.

3.4* "The Boscombe Valley Mystery" - A son is accused of his father's murder ... understandable since he was found at the scene covered in blood, but of course there's more to the story than that.

3.5* "The Five Orange Pips" - Five dried-up orange seeds in an envelope are ... a serious threat? Apparently so, when they're accompanied by the letters K.K.K. and followed by death. This one is atmospheric and compelling reading, but I'm dinging it for Doyle's complete disregard for actual historical facts about the KKK. This story is also notable for (view spoiler)[being one of the few total fails by Sherlock Holmes (hide spoiler)].

3.5* "The Man with the Twisted Lip" - This disappearing husband case is worth reading for the insights into Dr. Watson's character and for the evocative description of Victorian era drug abuse and opium dens.

4* "The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle" - A missing blue jewel and ... a goose. Doyle slips up again on his research (Sherlock would be ashamed) because carbuncles are, by definition, red jewels (rubies), but that aside, this was a really fun jewel thievery escapade.

5* "The Speckled Band" - A dying young woman, with her final breath, gasps "The speckled band!" And now her twin sister fears for her own life. The best mystery in this collection! Don't miss it.

3.75* "The Adventure of the Engineer's Thumb" - This mystery about an injured engineer involves not only thumbs but a sinister hydraulic stamping machine. I mean, if one of these could take out the Terminator, clearly there's some grave danger here!

3* "The Adventure of the Noble Bachelor" - This story is interesting for its dealing with the once-popular social practice of American heiresses marrying British nobility, Downton Abbey-style. Otherwise, sadly, it's pretty forgettable.

4* "The Adventure of the Beryl Coronet" - A desperate banker tells Sherlock that a valuable gold and beryl coronet has been stolen from his keeping, and the main suspect is the banker's son. A subtler and better mystery than I expected.

4* "The Adventure of the Copper Beeches" - A red-headed governess becomes embroiled in a very odd situation. There's a strange employer, a giant dog that prowls the premises looking for people to eat, and a servant with a surprising story.

These stories are easy to pop down like so many potato chips, but I found I enjoyed them more when I spaced them out a little. Just a suggestion!