A Study in Scarlet

A Study in Scarlet 
by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
BBC Books, 2011, 212 pgs, Mystery.

 Dr. John Watson meets Mr. Sherlock Holmes for the first time in A Study in Scarlet. Recently returned from the war due to injury and illness, Dr. Watson happens across an acquaintance who knows of a man looking for someone to share lodgings with at 221B Baker Street in London. Dr. Watson tries and fails to figure out the strange Mr. Holmes. Eventually Sherlock tells him that he is a consulting detective, and when a note from Scotland Yard arrives about a strange apparent murder, Dr. Watson convinces Sherlock to go investigate. Together they visit the crime scene at an abandoned house. The scene is covered in blood, but the deceased has no wounds, only a grotesque look of horror on his face. A woman’s wedding ring is found near the body, and the German word for revenge written on the wall in blood. The best detectives in Scotland Yard, Inspectors Lestrade and Gregson, are stumped. But after a look around the crime scene, Sherlock Holmes knows nearly everything about the murderer and how he committed the crime. But will he be able to catch the man?

 I have seen a lot of different film adaptations of Sherlock Holmes so it was quite fascinating to read the original source material to compare. I feel like the book and TV shows/movies didn’t ruin each other, which seldom happens. I got the impression that the author didn’t much care for the Mormon settlers, but it worked really well with the plot. I definitely will be reading the rest of the Sherlock Holmes novels.

ER