Doyle, unsuccessful in his medical practice, in need of money and a more satisfying career, had already sold a number of magazine stories when he wrote the novella, "A Study in Scarlet," the first Sherlock Holmes story, which, after many rejections, was published in Beetons Christmas Annual for 1887. Doyle got twenty-five pounds for all rights to the story. He never received another penny for it, although fortunately, in one of those little contractual details that could have changed literary history forever, he retained rights to the character. Here is the book, A Study in Scarlet, that...

The Sign of the Four is the second Sherlock Holmes book. Its complex plot involves service in East India Company, India, the Indian Rebellion of 1857, a stolen treasure, and a secret pact among four convicts and two corrupt prison guards. It presents Sherlock Holmes drug habit and humanizes him in a way that had not been done in A Study in Scarlet. It also introduces Doctor Watsons future wife, Mary Morstan.

The miracle of Sherlock Holmes is that for twenty-five pounds in 1887, Conan Doyle created a truly universal and immortal literary figure. Sherlock Holmes is a household word in virtually every country in the world. A few of Shakespeares characters are nearly that well known, probably Hamlet and McBeth. Other possible rivals include Robinson Crusoe, Dracula, Tarzan, and James Bond, but beyond that, we have to turn to tradition and folklore. Sherlock Holmes is as instantly recognizable as Robin Hood. King Arthur may be somewhere in the same league. But thats about it. Here are 12 of Sherlock...

Doyle felt that the Sherlock Holmes stories were taking time and public attention away from his more serious work. So, with great deliberation he killed off his detective in the 24th story in the series, the ominously entitled "The Final Problem," sending both Holmes and his arch-nemesis created for the occasion, the "Napoleon of Crime," Dr. Moriarty, over the Reichenbach Falls in Switzerland. Of course, we all know that Holmes refused to stay dead. Prepare to be transported back in time to a gas lit, fog enshrouded London in these eleven Sherlock Holmes adventures.

Here is Sir Arthur Conan Doyles best known Sherlock Holmes novel. Holmes is persuaded to investigate the death of Sir Charles Baskerville. Is the death supernatural, is there really a family curse hunting Baskervilles down through the ages, or is it something more earthly. Only Holmes and his faithful sidekick, Watson, can find the answer to this mystery.

Under pressure from the reading public Arthur Conan Doyle brought his famous detective back from the dead in The Return of Sherlock Holmes. We learn that Holmes actually faked his own death in order to avoid being killed by one of his many enemies. Thirteen classic mysteries follow this admission.

In the Valley of Fear Sherlock Holmes once again matches wits with the most brilliant criminal mastermind of all time, Professor James Moriarty. Holmes and Watson receive a coded message that leads them to a murder in a castle and an adventure that will range half way around the world.

The most significant thing about Doyles London was that it was inhabited by Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson, who seem more real to us than most historical figures. Theyve managed to convince any number of people of their reality. Presumably the British post office no longer receives letters address to Sherlock Holmes from all over the world, but once upon a time, it received thousands.

Collected her are eight Sherlock Holmes adventures.

The third book of our well-received Speculative Japan series, this volume brings more outstanding authors from the Japanese archipelago to English, with a selection of never-before published stories covering a broad range of speculative fiction... from gritty SF to dark fantasy, enjoy a whole new dimension of the imagination