A Study In Scarlet And The Sign Of The Four

A Study in Scarlet is an 1887 detective novel by Scottish author Arthur Conan Doyle. Written in 1886, the story marks the first appearance of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, who would become the most famous detective duo in popular fiction. The book's title derives from a speech given by Holmes, a consulting detective, to his friend and chronicler Watson on the nature of his work, in which he describes the story's murder investigation as his "study in scarlet" "There's the scarlet thread of murder running through the colourless skein of life, and our duty is to unravel it, and isolate it, and expose every inch of it."

Three of the enthralling novels that brought us the world’s greatest fictional detective are gathered here in one volume. In 1887, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s mystery novel A Study in Scarlet unleashed for the first time the unflappable Sherlock Holmes and his partner, Dr. John Watson. Watson and Holmes would go on to become two of the most widely admired characters in all of literature. The stories and novels that followed—including The Sign of Four and The Hound of the Baskervilles—expanded the duo’s practice at 221B Baker Street, thrilling readers with the impeccable powers of deduction that inevitably guide Holmes toward any mystery’s solution. A Study in Scarlet, a tale of Mormons and murder, is a drama of long-simmering revenge that plays out on the gaslit streets of London but has its dark roots in the pioneer settlements of Utah. The Sign of Four weaves together a stolen treasure from India, poison darts, and double-crossing thieves, while The Hound of the Baskervilles sets the legend of a diabolical hellhound and an old family curse against the backdrop of a desolate, moonlit moor. All three novels are gripping, timeless, and exquisitely plotted—beloved and indispensable classics of the detective genre.

Accessible exploration of Sherlock Holmes and his relationship to late-Victorian culture as well as his ongoing significance and popularity.

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