The Return of Sherlock Holmes - Arthur Conan Doyle

Summary
"The Return of Sherlock Holmes" is a collection of 13 short stories that mark the triumphant reappearance of Sherlock Holmes after his supposed death at Reichenbach Falls in "The Final Problem." Dr. Watson, still mourning his friend, is astonished when Holmes reveals himself alive, having faked his death to evade Professor Moriarty's surviving network. The collection showcases Holmes's unparalleled deductive brilliance as he and Watson tackle a range of perplexing cases, from elaborate blackmail schemes and kidnappings to mysterious murders and strange ciphers. Each story reaffirms Holmes's position as the world's greatest consulting detective, confronting a diverse cast of villains and victims across Victorian and Edwardian England.

Book Sections

Section: The Adventure of the Empty House

Dr. Watson, still grieving the loss of Sherlock Holmes three years after the Reichenbach Falls incident, investigates the bizarre murder of Ronald Adair, the son of a prominent nobleman, who was shot in a locked room. While attempting to understand the trajectory of the bullet, Watson encounters an old, stooped book collector. This elderly man suddenly transforms, revealing himself to be Sherlock Holmes. Watson is overwhelmed with shock and joy. Holmes explains that he faked his death to escape Moriarty's surviving network, particularly Colonel Sebastian Moran, Moriarty's second-in-command, a skilled marksman who was also at Reichenbach. Holmes reveals he spent the intervening years traveling and researching, emerging only now because Moran has returned to London and is attempting to kill him. Holmes and Watson stake out an empty house directly opposite Baker Street, knowing Moran intends to shoot Holmes from there. Holmes uses a wax dummy of himself to lure Moran, capturing him as he takes the shot. Moran is then implicated in Adair's murder, as Adair had discovered Moran cheating at cards and threatened to expose him.

Character	Characteristics	Motivations
Sherlock Holmes	Consulting detective, master of disguise and deduction, now returned.	Justice, intellectual challenge, protecting London from crime, evading Moriarty's surviving network.
Dr. John H. Watson	Holmes's loyal friend and biographer, a physician.	Friendship, chronicling Holmes's cases, assisting Holmes, seeking adventure.
Colonel Sebastian Moran	Moriarty's chief of staff, "the second most dangerous man in London," skilled shot.	Revenge against Holmes, professional criminal activities (including card cheating), personal gain, eliminating threats.
Inspector Lestrade	Scotland Yard detective, often baffled by cases, but respects Holmes.	Upholding law, solving crimes, seeking Holmes's expertise when stumped.

Section: The Adventure of the Norwood Builder

Holmes is consulted by John Hector McFarlane, a young lawyer from Norwood, who is accused of murdering Jonas Oldacre, a wealthy and eccentric builder. McFarlane had visited Oldacre the previous night to draft a will making him the sole heir. Oldacre's house was then found burnt, and a body, identified as Oldacre, was discovered in the ashes. The police find McFarlane's walking stick and burning papers that link him to the scene. Holmes quickly deduces that the body found is not Oldacre's. He uncovers evidence that Oldacre, a vindictive man, faked his death to frame McFarlane as an act of revenge stemming from a past grievance involving McFarlane's mother. Holmes finds Oldacre alive, hidden in a secret compartment within the burnt house, and exposes his elaborate scheme.

Character	Characteristics	Motivations
John Hector McFarlane	Young, naive, and easily framed lawyer.	To follow his legal career, innocently involved in Oldacre's will, seeking justice for his own framing.
Jonas Oldacre	Eccentric, wealthy builder; cunning and vindictive.	Revenge against McFarlane and his mother for a perceived past slight, financial gain from his estate.

Section: The Adventure of the Dancing Men

Hilton Cubitt from Norfolk consults Holmes about a series of strange stick figures, or "dancing men," drawn by his American wife, Elsie Patrick. The figures appear on notes left around their estate, deeply distressing Elsie, who refuses to explain them. Holmes realizes they are a cipher. The messages become increasingly threatening. One morning, Elsie is found shot dead, and Cubitt is severely wounded (he later dies). Holmes deduces the "dancing men" messages were warnings from Elsie's past. He deciphers them, identifying Abe Slaney, an American gangster from Elsie's past whom she had fled to escape, as the sender. Slaney, believing Elsie had betrayed him, returned to England to reclaim her. Holmes sends a message using the cipher, luring Slaney to the Cubitt estate, where he is captured by the police and confesses to the murder.

Character	Characteristics	Motivations
Hilton Cubitt	English country gentleman, devoted husband.	To understand and resolve his wife's distress, protect his marriage.
Elsie Patrick Cubitt	American wife of Hilton Cubitt, secretive and fearful.	To escape her past life, protect her husband from danger.
Abe Slaney	American gangster, Elsie's former suitor, ruthless and possessive.	To reclaim Elsie, driven by jealousy and a sense of betrayal, revenge.

Section: The Adventure of the Solitary Cyclist

Miss Violet Smith, a young music teacher, seeks Holmes's help regarding peculiar incidents. She was offered a suspiciously well-paying job by a wealthy family, the Carruthers, but her employer insists she lives in a remote house. While cycling, she is repeatedly followed by a mysterious man on another bicycle. Holmes uncovers a plot orchestrated by Carruthers and another man, Woodley, to force Violet into marriage to gain her substantial inheritance. Violet's deceased uncle had appointed Carruthers and Woodley as executors, but they had stolen the money. Woodley, a violent criminal, seeks to marry Violet for her remaining inheritance. Carruthers, who has grown fond of Violet and feels remorse, intervenes during an attempted forced marriage, shooting Woodley. Holmes ensures justice is served, with Carruthers receiving a lenient sentence for his protective actions.

Character	Characteristics	Motivations
Miss Violet Smith	Young, attractive, independent music teacher.	To earn a living, live her own life, initially oblivious to the danger.
Mr. Carruthers	Violet's employer, secretly her guardian and a reformed criminal.	To right a past wrong by protecting Violet's inheritance, driven by guilt and genuine affection for her.
Mr. Woodley	Violent criminal, accomplice of Carruthers.	To gain Violet's inheritance by forced marriage, driven by greed and a brutal nature.

Section: The Adventure of the Priory School

Dr. Thorneycroft Huxtable, the headmaster of the prestigious Priory School, requests Holmes's aid in finding his missing pupil, Lord Saltire (the 10-year-old son of the Duke of Holdernesse), and his German master, Mr. Heidegger. Heidegger's bicycle is found near a pond. Holmes's investigation uncovers a complex conspiracy: Heidegger was murdered, and Lord Saltire was kidnapped by James Wilder, the Duke's illegitimate son and secretary, who collaborated with Reuben Hayes, an innkeeper. Wilder plotted to extort money from the Duke. Holmes tracks the kidnappers using bicycle trails and other subtle clues. The Duke, after his complicity in protecting Wilder is revealed, confesses to his part in trying to cover up the scandal, driven by family pride. Wilder and Hayes are arrested.

Character	Characteristics	Motivations
Dr. Thorneycroft Huxtable	Headmaster of the Priory School, earnest and dedicated.	To find his missing pupil and master, uphold the school's reputation, ensure the children's safety.
Duke of Holdernesse	One of England's most powerful noblemen, proud and secretive.	To recover his son, cover up a family scandal, protect his illegitimate son and family honor.
James Wilder	Secretary to the Duke, his illegitimate son, cunning and resentful.	To extort money from his father, driven by a sense of entitlement and resentment for his illegitimate status.
Reuben Hayes	Innkeeper, accomplice in the kidnapping, ruthless and mercenary.	Financial gain from the kidnapping.

Section: The Adventure of Black Peter

Inspector Stanley Hopkins, a young Scotland Yard detective, again seeks Holmes's assistance with a particularly gruesome case: the brutal murder of "Black Peter" Carey, a retired whaling captain. Carey is found harpooned to the wall of his cabin. The cabin is locked from the inside, and the only clues are a locked wooden box, an empty tobacco pouch, and a ledger containing records of stocks and shares. Holmes focuses on the ledger and deduces that Carey was a man with a hidden past. He tracks down three young men, former Yale students with an interest in whaling. One of them, Patrick Cairns, is identified as the murderer. Cairns was a former shipmate of Carey's and killed him to recover a fortune that Carey had embezzled from him years ago, and for threatening to expose his past. Cairns had found incriminating evidence in Carey's ledger.

Character	Characteristics	Motivations
Inspector Stanley Hopkins	Young, ambitious Scotland Yard detective, often consults Holmes.	To solve difficult cases, impress Holmes, advance his career.
"Black Peter" Carey	Retired whaling captain, the murder victim; brutal, violent, and wealthy.	Greed, secrecy about his past, maintaining his ill-gotten wealth.
Patrick Cairns	Former shipmate of Carey, the murderer; desperate and vengeful.	To recover his stolen fortune, driven by old grievances and a desire for justice.

Section: The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton

Holmes and Watson are approached by Lady Eva Blackwell, who is being blackmailed by Charles Augustus Milverton, a ruthless individual known as the "King of the blackmailers." Milverton preys on wealthy individuals, particularly women, threatening to expose compromising letters. Holmes, under a disguise, attempts to negotiate with Milverton but finds him utterly cold and remorseless. Recognizing Milverton's evil, Holmes and Watson secretly break into his house on the night Milverton is scheduled to close a deal with Lady Eva. While inside, a masked woman (another of Milverton's victims) enters and shoots Milverton dead. Holmes and Watson, witnessing the murder, choose not to intervene. They then destroy Milverton's safe full of incriminating documents and allow the woman to escape, never revealing her identity to the baffled Inspector Lestrade.

Character	Characteristics	Motivations
Charles Augustus Milverton	"King of the blackmailers"; cold, calculating, utterly ruthless.	Wealth, power, perverse pleasure in destroying reputations, financial gain.
Lady Eva Blackwell	Aristocratic victim of Milverton; desperate and vulnerable.	To protect her reputation and engagement, avoid public scandal.

Section: The Adventure of the Six Napoleons

Inspector Lestrade consults Holmes about a peculiar series of crimes involving the smashing of plaster busts of Napoleon. The first two busts were destroyed in a shop and a doctor's house, with the doctor's assistant found murdered near the second. Holmes deduces that the culprit is not an anti-Bonapartist, but is searching for something specific hidden inside one of the busts. He links the busts to a particular manufacturer and realizes there were six identical busts from the same batch. Holmes races to find the remaining busts. The object of the search turns out to be a valuable black pearl, the "Black Pearl of the Borgias," stolen by a notorious Italian criminal named Beppo. Beppo, formerly a plaster worker, had hidden the pearl inside a freshly made bust to retrieve it later. Beppo is caught trying to smash the final bust and reveals the whole story.

Character	Characteristics	Motivations
Beppo	Italian criminal, formerly a plaster worker; cunning and ruthless.	To retrieve the stolen "Black Pearl of the Borgias" for financial gain.

Section: The Adventure of the Three Students

Mr. Hilton Soames, a university tutor at a prestigious college, discovers that someone has illegally accessed the proofs of a highly important Greek examination, threatening the integrity of the college. Three students live on the same floor and are the primary suspects: Daulat Ras, Gilchrist, and Macpherson. Holmes investigates, focusing on minute clues such as pencil shavings, a lump of clay, and a scratch on a desk. He deduces that Gilchrist, a talented athlete facing financial difficulties, was the culprit. Gilchrist had used a duplicate key, copied the exam, and accidentally left a piece of his athletic equipment, leaving behind clues. Filled with remorse, Gilchrist confesses, explaining his desperation to win a scholarship, and withdraws from the university, choosing a new path in South Africa.

Character	Characteristics	Motivations
Mr. Hilton Soames	University tutor, conscientious and distressed.	To uncover the cheater, prevent a scandal, uphold academic fairness and the college's reputation.
Gilchrist	One of the three students, an athlete; intelligent but financially desperate.	To secure a scholarship by cheating, driven by ambition and financial strain; later remorseful and seeking redemption.

Section: The Adventure of the Golden Pince-Nez

Inspector Hopkins calls on Holmes for another perplexing case. Willoughby Smith, a young private secretary, is found dead in the study of Professor Coram, an aging and reclusive scholar, at his remote country home. Smith was clutching a golden pince-nez in his hand. Holmes's keen observation quickly leads him to deduce that the glasses belong to a woman. Through meticulous investigation, Holmes uncovers a secret room and finds Anna, the professor's Russian wife, who has been imprisoned there for years. She confesses that she visited Smith's room to retrieve a letter that would incriminate her and her anarchist friends in Russia. Smith died of a heart attack when startled by her. Anna, attempting to retrieve the pince-nez she dropped, accidentally sealed her fate by leaving clues. She reveals the full, tragic story of her marriage to Coram and her past as a revolutionary.

Character	Characteristics	Motivations
Professor Coram	Elderly, reclusive scholar; cunning and manipulative.	To maintain his secrets, control his wife, prevent exposure of their past, for scholarly pursuits.
Anna	Professor Coram's Russian wife; desperate, secretive, former anarchist.	To retrieve incriminating letters, escape her imprisonment, protect her past and friends in Russia.

Section: The Adventure of the Missing Three-Quarter

Cyril Overton, captain of the Cambridge rugby team, consults Holmes about the mysterious disappearance of Godfrey Staunton, his star "three-quarter" player, just before a crucial match against Oxford. Staunton had received a cryptic telegram and vanished. Holmes's investigation uncovers that Staunton was secretly married to a young woman who was dying. The telegram was from a relative, summoning Staunton to his wife's bedside. Dr. Leslie Armstrong, a physician connected to Staunton's wife's family, had been trying to keep the secret from Staunton's wealthy and strict uncle, Lord Mount-James, who would disinherit him if he married a poor woman. Staunton was hiding with his dying wife, aided by Dr. Armstrong, who tried to protect their secret and Staunton's inheritance.

Character	Characteristics	Motivations
Godfrey Staunton	Cambridge rugby player, talented, secretive, devoted.	To be with his dying wife, keep his marriage secret from his uncle, fulfill his personal obligations.
Dr. Leslie Armstrong	Physician, secretive and protective of Staunton and his wife's secret.	To help Staunton and his dying wife, avoid the wrath of Lord Mount-James, protect their private affairs.

Section: The Adventure of the Abbey Grange

Holmes and Watson are called to Abbey Grange by Inspector Hopkins, where Sir Eustace Brackenstall is found murdered, supposedly by a notorious gang of burglars known as the Randall gang. His wife, Lady Brackenstall, and her maid are found tied up. Lady Brackenstall recounts a terrifying home invasion. Holmes quickly finds inconsistencies in her story. Through meticulous examination of the scene and a bit of theatrical staging, Holmes deduces that Captain Jack Croker, a former lover of Lady Brackenstall, killed Sir Eustace, who was a cruel and abusive husband. Croker, protecting Lady Brackenstall from her violent spouse, then staged the burglary to cover his tracks. Holmes, convinced of Sir Eustace's extreme cruelty and Croker's honorable motives, allows Croker to escape justice, deeming it an act of righteous self-defense and protection.

Character	Characteristics	Motivations
Sir Eustace Brackenstall	The murder victim, a baronet; cruel, abusive, alcoholic.	Selfishness, domestic tyranny, maintaining control over his wife.
Lady Brackenstall	Wife of Sir Eustace; suffering, initially deceptive, later truthful.	To escape abuse, protect her lover, avoid scandal.
Captain Croker	Lady Brackenstall's former lover; honorable, protective, resourceful.	To protect Lady Brackenstall from her abusive husband, justice for her suffering, driven by love and chivalry.

Section: The Adventure of the Second Stain

The Prime Minister, Lord Bellinger, and the Secretary for European Affairs, Trelawney Hope, visit Holmes to recover a highly sensitive political letter stolen from Hope's dispatch box. The letter, if leaked, could trigger a major international conflict. Holmes discovers that the letter was not stolen by a foreign agent but by a woman who then attempted to return it to avoid scandal. After a series of clever deductions and observations, including identifying a bloodstain on a carpet, a secret compartment, and the unique method of the letter's concealment, Holmes recovers the letter. The culprit is revealed to be Lady Hilda Trelawney Hope, the Secretary's wife, who was being blackmailed by a notorious spy. Holmes handles the matter with extreme discretion, ensuring the letter's safe return and preventing international crisis and personal scandal.

Character	Characteristics	Motivations
Lord Bellinger	The Prime Minister; grave, concerned about national security.	To recover the sensitive letter, prevent international crisis, maintain political stability.
Trelawney Hope	Secretary for European Affairs; distraught, responsible for the missing letter.	To recover the letter, protect his career and national interests, avoid public disgrace.
Lady Hilda Trelawney Hope	Wife of Trelawney Hope; elegant, secretive, under duress.	To protect herself from blackmail, retrieve a compromising letter, avoid personal and political ruin.

Literary Genre
Detective Fiction, Mystery.

Author Facts

• Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930) was a Scottish writer and physician.
• He is most celebrated for his creation of the iconic detective Sherlock Holmes, whose adventures are considered foundational works of crime fiction.
• Conan Doyle was a prolific writer across various genres, including historical novels, science fiction, plays, and non-fiction.
• He initially trained as a doctor, practicing as a general practitioner and serving as a ship's surgeon before dedicating himself fully to writing.
• Late in his life, following personal tragedies, he became a prominent and controversial advocate for Spiritualism.

Morale of the book
"The Return of Sherlock Holmes" underscores the enduring power of intellect and reason to bring order to chaos and justice to the wronged. It highlights that even after facing insurmountable odds, the pursuit of truth and resolution remains a noble and necessary endeavor. The collection explores the diverse and often dark motivations of human nature – greed, revenge, love, and desperation – and how these drive individuals to commit both heinous crimes and acts of profound loyalty. Ultimately, the book reinforces the idea that justice, though sometimes unconventional in Holmes's hands, often finds a way to prevail against deception and malice.

Curiosities of the book

• The Great Hiatus: This collection is famous for marking the return of Sherlock Holmes after his "death" at Reichenbach Falls in "The Final Problem" (1893). Conan Doyle had grown tired of Holmes and wanted to focus on other literary work, but immense public pressure and financial incentives, including an outcry from readers (reportedly 20,000 cancelled subscriptions to The Strand Magazine), compelled him to revive the character.
• Holmes's Return Explanation: "The Adventure of the Empty House" specifically details how Holmes faked his death, explaining his three-year absence (known as "The Great Hiatus" from 1891-1894) and his travels in Tibet and Persia.
• Holmes's Evolving Character: While his deductive brilliance remains supreme, some readers note a subtle shift in Holmes's character upon his return. He seems slightly more tolerant and less rigid in his adherence to the law in certain cases, notably allowing Captain Croker to escape justice in "The Adventure of the Abbey Grange," a rare departure from his usual methods.
• Real-Life Inspirations: Like many of Conan Doyle's stories, some in this collection are believed to have real-life roots. For example, the character of the ruthless blackmailer Charles Augustus Milverton ("The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton") is widely thought to be inspired by a notorious real-life blackmailer, Charles Augustus Howell.
• The Power of Deduction: The stories in this collection are prime examples of Holmes's observational and deductive powers, often using the smallest clues – like bicycle tracks, types of clay, or pencil shavings – to unravel complex mysteries that baffle Scotland Yard.