Just Finished re-Reading: A Study in Scarlet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (FP: 1887) [156pp] 

Recently returned from Afghanistan to recover his health it was fortune indeed that Dr John Watson encountered an old acquaintance on London's busy streets. Not only was it good to see a familiar face in the midst of so many strangers, the meeting also pointed Watson in the direction of a potential co-occupant of some affordable rooms. Despite rather vague warnings that Sherlock Holmes was a little strange, Watson took an instant liking to him and agreed to meet at the proposed location of their future habitation together - 221B, Baker Street. It was a seemingly mundane start to a long relationship full of mystery, intrigue and death. For Watson was unaware that Holmes was what he referred to as the world’s first consulting detective, who proffered his singular services to anyone with an interesting conundrum to solve. To Watson’s evident surprise these services were much sort after by Scotland Yard and one such case had arrived at their shared doorstep. A man had been found dead in an unoccupied building without a mark on him – despite fresh blood on the floor and elsewhere. He was an American had not been robbed. Despite the efforts of Scotland Yard's two finest men, they were at a loss at how to proceed. Would Holmes help them? Reluctantly, as Holmes clearly thought the case too simple for his time to be wasted, he agreed. Refreshingly for Holmes, and intriguingly for Watson, the case was nowhere near as simple as everyone thought. The game was afoot! 

I first read this, and the subsequent Holmes books, in my teens and early twenties. I was, however, already a decided Holmes fan – indeed Holmes is one of my 3 foundational heroes – after being introduced to the movie versions of his adventures starring the iconic Basil Rathbone (who, until Jeremy Brett starred in the role, was how I ‘saw’ Holmes in the books). Reading this around 40-45 years ago meant that I had forgotten almost all of the plot and was only reminded of pieces of it when it arrived on the page – the scratched word in the plaster for example. What I do remember being both fascinated and intrigued by was the Holmes method of deduction which he explained a few times throughout the book. This instructed me at an early(ish) age to be more observant than most – I think – and also to try to work things out logically and to try, as much as possible, not to add things into the mix based on pure speculation.  

As to the book itself... I can’t say that I was disappointed by it. After all it is very much an origin story – at least for the Holmes/Watson relationship – and only his second published work. Both Holmes and Watson are interesting constructions, and the book would’ve left the reader wanting to see more of their adventures and to know more about them both. It was interesting to see that Lestrade had a rival in Scotland Yard which I wasn’t expecting. I also wasn’t expecting the sudden arrival and importance of the ‘Baker Street Irregulars’ in the first book. For some reason I thought that these ‘street Arabs' was a latter addition. The ‘mystery’ itself was fine if not all that mysterious. What I hadn’t expected, until Marian H mentioned it over at her place, was a substantial 47 page aside in Utah. Honestly, I thought this was a pointless addition to the text. The antagonist, once caught, essentially reiterated the story to the police in a lot less than 47 pages, so the side plot detailed previously added little to the actual plot beyond deepening the motivation of the killer. That, I think, was by far the worse aspect of the short book although I understand that removing it would result in the novel being a rather long short story! So, not exactly a winner but an important read as it laid the foundation for one of THE iconic detectives of all time. Much more Holmes (and the others) to come. 

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