A Study in Scarlet

Description

Convalescing in London after a disastrous experience of war in Afghanistan, Dr John Watson finds himself sharing rooms with his enigmatic new acquaintance, Sherlock Holmes. But their quiet bachelor life at 221B Baker Street is soon interrupted by the grisly discovery of a dead man in a grimy ill-omened' house in south-east London, his face contorted by an expression of horror and hatred such as Watson has never seen before. On the wall, the word rache German for revenge' is written in blood, yet there are no wounds on the victim or signs of a struggle. Watson's head is in a whirl, but the formidable Holmes relishes this challenge to his deductive powers, and so begins their famous investigative partnership.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930) was born in Edinburgh where he qualified as a doctor, but it was his writing which brought him fame, with the creation of Sherlock Holmes, the first scientific detective. He was also a convert to spiritualism and a social reformer who used his investigative skills to prove the innocence of individuals. Iain Sinclair is the author of Crash, Lights Out for the Territory and, with Rachel Lichtenstein, Rodinsky's Room. He is a regular broadcaster and interviewer. Ed Glinert is the author of A Literary Guide to London.

"[Holmes] is probably the only literary creation since the creations of Dickens which has really passed into the life and language of the people."-G. K. Chesterton