The Complete Sherlock Holmes, Vol. II of II (Barnes & Noble Classics)
by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
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The Complete Sherlock Holmes, Volume II, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is part of the Barnes & Noble Classics series, which offers quality editions at affordable prices to the student and the general reader, including new scholarship, thoughtful design, and pages of carefully crafted extras. Here are some of the remarkable features of Barnes & Noble Classics:- New introductions commissioned from today's top writers and scholars
- Biographies of the authors
- Chronologies of contemporary historical,
Volume II of The Complete Sherlock Holmes begins with The Return of Sherlock Holmes. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, tired of writing about Holmes, had killed him off at the end of “The Final Problem," the last tale in The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes (found in Volume I of The Complete Sherlock Holmes). Public demand for new Holmes stories was so great, however, that Conan Doyle eventually resurrected him. The first story in The Return, “The Adventure of the Empty House," features Conan Doyle's infamously inventive explanation of how Holmes escaped what seemed like certain death.
This volume also includes two other collections of Holmes stories, His Last Bow and The Case Book of Sherlock Holmes; Conan Doyle's final full-length Holmes novel, The Valley of Fear; a pair of parodies, “The Field Bazaar" and “How Watson Learned the Trick"; and two essays about the “private life" of the beloved sleuth.
Kyle Freeman, a Sherlock Holmes enthusiast for many years, earned two graduate degrees in English literature from Columbia University, where his major was twentieth-century British literature.
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I suppose I started reading this collection for the same reason I watch regular TV shows every week. I wanted consistently interesting short stories, and that's exactly what I got. However I made a mistake reading them all straight through in this convenient collection, and the formulaic plots bothered me more than they would have otherwise.
I did notice an improvement in terms of the mystery complexity, which I appreciated. No where is this more evident than in "The Valley of Fear", which uses an extremely similar set-up to "A Study in Scarlet". Both stories have two parts, the first of which takes place in 1890's England and the second some years previous in America. However everything else about "The Valley of Fear" is a vast show more improvement! The murder mystery is much more clever, the action is better paced, and the second part was well-introduced as well as being a mystery story in it's own right! Clearly Sir. Doyle had come into his own as an author by this point, and his skills greatly improved with practice.
I also enjoyed the change in Watson's "voice" over time. Sir Doyle seems much more comfortable in his writing abilities by "The Valley of Fear", and I felt there was less awkward prose. I noticed Sir Doyle has a very fanciful way of describing the scene, which appeals to me greatly. I shall always imagine a foggy London day as John Watson saw it.
More at: http://dragonldy.blogspot.com/2011/02/review-complete-sherlock-holmes-volume.htm... show less
I did notice an improvement in terms of the mystery complexity, which I appreciated. No where is this more evident than in "The Valley of Fear", which uses an extremely similar set-up to "A Study in Scarlet". Both stories have two parts, the first of which takes place in 1890's England and the second some years previous in America. However everything else about "The Valley of Fear" is a vast show more improvement! The murder mystery is much more clever, the action is better paced, and the second part was well-introduced as well as being a mystery story in it's own right! Clearly Sir. Doyle had come into his own as an author by this point, and his skills greatly improved with practice.
I also enjoyed the change in Watson's "voice" over time. Sir Doyle seems much more comfortable in his writing abilities by "The Valley of Fear", and I felt there was less awkward prose. I noticed Sir Doyle has a very fanciful way of describing the scene, which appeals to me greatly. I shall always imagine a foggy London day as John Watson saw it.
More at: http://dragonldy.blogspot.com/2011/02/review-complete-sherlock-holmes-volume.htm... show less
The world’s most revered and famous fictional detective first appeared from the pen of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle almost a 130 years ago, but the author did not finish with his greatest creation until almost 40 years later even after unsuccessfully killing him off. In this second volume of all the collected works that feature Sherlock Holmes and his friend Dr. John Watson, the reader gets reacquainted with the great detective and his friend through 33 short stories and a short novella with the added bonus of two Doyle written parodies as well as two essays by the author.
The second volume of the original works of Conan Doyle, in the American publication order, begins with Holmes return to life in “The Empty House”. The opening story of show more The Return of Sherlock Holmes is just an okay start to the detective return to practice before the story quality through most of the collection improves—“Priory School”, “Three Students”, “Solitary Cyclist”, and “Dancing Men” being the best—until the final three stories. The novella The Valley of Fear begins a noticeable drop in quality throughout the rest of the works, the first half the novella is Holmes at his best but then Conan Doyle repeats his great since with his first Holmes novella Study in Scarlett in which the second half is all flashback of dubious narration or not.
In the collections His Last Bow and The Case Book of Sherlock Holmes, only four of the 20 stories could be considered close to the same quality of the earlier Holmes stories. In “The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge”, Holmes finds competing with a county Inspector who’s methods of deduction gain Holmes’ respect while “The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans” is a well-written twist of an earlier Holmes story. The Holmes narrated “The Adventure of the Lion’s Mane” is the better of the two Holmes ‘written’ stories while “The Adventure of the Dying Detective” was Conan Doyle writing a wonderful counter-formulaic story.
Yet while those four stories stood out as the best of the late Holmes stories, the others were of subpar quality and included two of the worst. The third person narrative of “Mazarin Stone” doomed the story from the start and details within the study defied the reader’s suspicion of disbelief. The very next story was in my opinion the worst of all Holmes stories, “The Adventure of the Three Gables”, mainly due to the fact that the Sherlock Holmes presented in that story was not the Holmes in all previous stories and all those that followed.
Although the majority of the volume saw for the most part the quality of Conan Doyle’s storytelling fall, one cannot fail to notice that the author who at one time loathed his creation would do ensure that his—both Sherlock’s and his own—legacy endure with as best writing as he could produce. Within the collected 34 original works, there are many diamonds in the rough that any reader will enjoy reading whether they have read other Holmes works or not. show less
The second volume of the original works of Conan Doyle, in the American publication order, begins with Holmes return to life in “The Empty House”. The opening story of show more The Return of Sherlock Holmes is just an okay start to the detective return to practice before the story quality through most of the collection improves—“Priory School”, “Three Students”, “Solitary Cyclist”, and “Dancing Men” being the best—until the final three stories. The novella The Valley of Fear begins a noticeable drop in quality throughout the rest of the works, the first half the novella is Holmes at his best but then Conan Doyle repeats his great since with his first Holmes novella Study in Scarlett in which the second half is all flashback of dubious narration or not.
In the collections His Last Bow and The Case Book of Sherlock Holmes, only four of the 20 stories could be considered close to the same quality of the earlier Holmes stories. In “The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge”, Holmes finds competing with a county Inspector who’s methods of deduction gain Holmes’ respect while “The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans” is a well-written twist of an earlier Holmes story. The Holmes narrated “The Adventure of the Lion’s Mane” is the better of the two Holmes ‘written’ stories while “The Adventure of the Dying Detective” was Conan Doyle writing a wonderful counter-formulaic story.
Yet while those four stories stood out as the best of the late Holmes stories, the others were of subpar quality and included two of the worst. The third person narrative of “Mazarin Stone” doomed the story from the start and details within the study defied the reader’s suspicion of disbelief. The very next story was in my opinion the worst of all Holmes stories, “The Adventure of the Three Gables”, mainly due to the fact that the Sherlock Holmes presented in that story was not the Holmes in all previous stories and all those that followed.
Although the majority of the volume saw for the most part the quality of Conan Doyle’s storytelling fall, one cannot fail to notice that the author who at one time loathed his creation would do ensure that his—both Sherlock’s and his own—legacy endure with as best writing as he could produce. Within the collected 34 original works, there are many diamonds in the rough that any reader will enjoy reading whether they have read other Holmes works or not. show less
The second volume of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's collected Sherlock Holmes stories and novellas, and a substantial body of work it is, the complete output coming in at over 1100 pages. By now, Doyle has settled into a routine that he occasionally breaks out of, with a couple of stories purportedly penned by Holmes rather than the ever-faithful chronicler Doctor Watson. In tone and method, the stories remind me of the TV series "Monk", although considerably lighter on the humor. Also, Holmes is much more competent in his dealings with men and society.
It's remarkable to me that after reading over 1100 pages of Sherlock Holmes stories in a month or two, I was never bored by the adventures of a singular detective written over a century ago. I show more will admit that as much as I enjoyed nearly every story, most of the plots didn't really stick in my memory. The exceptions are the departures in style. There was one where Holmes' death from poison appears imminent, and another where Holmes inadvertently guides Watson into a dangerous situation that results in a gunshot wound to the good Doctor. These are unusual stories that illuminate the depth of feeling that exists between these two men. Had the stories been written in more modern times, it would have been natural to wonder about a physical relationship between them, save for passages that clearly label Watson as a heterosexual (he was happily married twice), and Holmes most likely as asexual.
I don't know if I'll ever re-read Sherlock Holmes' adventures, but I thoroughly enjoyed them. There was a brief mention of the giant rat of Sumatra, which was only mentioned in a reminiscence, and has figured since then in the writings of several other authors since then. And I was amazed that as much as Professor Moriarty figures in the public mythos of Sherlock Holmes, he only appeared (and died) in a single story in the first volume, and is mentioned in this volume in an apparent prequel story. I understand that the Sherlock Holmes stories have never gone out of print, a streak which places them in rare company indeed. show less
It's remarkable to me that after reading over 1100 pages of Sherlock Holmes stories in a month or two, I was never bored by the adventures of a singular detective written over a century ago. I show more will admit that as much as I enjoyed nearly every story, most of the plots didn't really stick in my memory. The exceptions are the departures in style. There was one where Holmes' death from poison appears imminent, and another where Holmes inadvertently guides Watson into a dangerous situation that results in a gunshot wound to the good Doctor. These are unusual stories that illuminate the depth of feeling that exists between these two men. Had the stories been written in more modern times, it would have been natural to wonder about a physical relationship between them, save for passages that clearly label Watson as a heterosexual (he was happily married twice), and Holmes most likely as asexual.
I don't know if I'll ever re-read Sherlock Holmes' adventures, but I thoroughly enjoyed them. There was a brief mention of the giant rat of Sumatra, which was only mentioned in a reminiscence, and has figured since then in the writings of several other authors since then. And I was amazed that as much as Professor Moriarty figures in the public mythos of Sherlock Holmes, he only appeared (and died) in a single story in the first volume, and is mentioned in this volume in an apparent prequel story. I understand that the Sherlock Holmes stories have never gone out of print, a streak which places them in rare company indeed. show less
Brilliant. Arthur Conan Doyle writes so well. Holmes deductions are usually out of our comprehension, but they become elementary after he explains to us.
I fell in love with Sherlock Holmes in high school, and remain so to this day. I was really excited to find this set of books, which includes all of the Sherlock Holmes stories.
In Volume II, Sherlock Holmes returns from death with a wild tale of how he escaped the tragedy at the falls. It also includes many more Holmes short stories as well as parodies. It has two essays on the private life of Mr. Holmes.
Same review as the first volume...A great read for anyone who loves Sherlock Holmes!
In Volume II, Sherlock Holmes returns from death with a wild tale of how he escaped the tragedy at the falls. It also includes many more Holmes short stories as well as parodies. It has two essays on the private life of Mr. Holmes.
Same review as the first volume...A great read for anyone who loves Sherlock Holmes!
Great read, excellent writing and a great trip into Victorian London and England.
The complete Canon in a nice hardcover, a readable copy with sparse notes and introduction.
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The most famous fictional detective in the world is Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes. However, Doyle was, at best, ambivalent about his immensely successful literary creation and, at worst, resentful that his more "serious" fiction was relatively ignored. Born in Edinburgh, Doyle studied medicine from 1876 to 1881 and received his M.D. in show more 1885. He worked as a military physician in South Africa during the Boer War and was knighted in 1902 for his exceptional service. Doyle was drawn to writing at an early age. Although he attempted to enter private practice in Southsea, Portsmouth, in 1882, he soon turned to writing in his spare time; it eventually became his profession. As a Liberal Unionist, Doyle ran, unsuccessfully, for Parliament in 1903. During his later years, Doyle became an avowed spiritualist. Doyle sold his first story, "The Mystery of the Sasassa Valley," to Chambers' Journal in 1879. When Doyle published the novel, A Study in Scarlet in 1887, Sherlock Holmes was introduced to an avid public. Doyle is reputed to have used one of his medical professors, Dr. Joseph Bell, as a model for Holmes's character. Eventually, Doyle wrote three additional Holmes novels and five collections of Holmes short stories. A brilliant, though somewhat eccentric, detective, Holmes employs scientific methods of observation and deduction to solve the mysteries that he investigates. Although an "amateur" private detective, he is frequently called upon by Scotland Yard for assistance. Holmes's assistant, the faithful Dr. Watson, provides a striking contrast to Holmes's brilliant intellect and, in Doyle's day at least, serves as a character with whom the reader can readily identify. Having tired of Holmes's popularity, Doyle even tried to kill the great detective in "The Final Problem" but was forced by an outraged public to resurrect him in 1903. Although Holmes remained Doyle's most popular literary creation, Doyle wrote prolifically in other genres, including historical adventure, science fiction, and supernatural fiction. Despite Doyle's sometimes careless writing, he was a superb storyteller. His great skill as a popular author lay in his technique of involving readers in his highly entertaining adventures. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Arthur Conan Doyle has a Legacy Library. Legacy libraries are the personal libraries of famous readers, entered by LibraryThing members from the Legacy Libraries group.
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- Canonical title
- The Return of Sherlock Holmes / The Valley of Fear / His Last Bow / The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes (Complete Sherlock Holmes, B&N Classics 2/2) (Complete Sherlock Holmes, B&N Classics 2/2); The Complete Sherlock Holmes, Vol. II of II (Barnes & Noble Classics) (Barnes & Noble Classics)
- First words
- It was in the spring of the year 1894 that all London was interested, and the fashionable world dismayed, by the murder of the Honourable Ronald Adair under most unusual and inexplicable circumstances.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)I cannot end my remarks more fittingly than by my thanks to the man who changed a creature of thin air into an absolutely convincing human being.
- Disambiguation notice
- This is volume 2 of the Barnes & Noble Classics edition (ISBN 1-593-08040-9, ISBN 1-593-08204-5, and ISBN 1-411-43198-7), which does not contain the same works as other editions.
Individual volumes should no... (show all)t be combined with the complete set or different volumes of the same set.
This work contains:- The World of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Sherlock Holmes--General Indroduction by Kyle Freeman
- Introduction to Volume 2 by Kyle Freeman
- A Note on Conveyances
- The Return of Sherlock Holmes
- The Valley of Fear
His Last Bow (the short story collection)- The Case Book of Sherlock Holmes
- Two Parodies by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the Field Bazaar, How Watson Learned the Trick
- Two essays by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, The truth about Sherlock Homes, Some Personalia about Mr. Sherlock Holmes
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