"The Adventure of the Speckled Band" by Arthur Conan Doyle follows Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson as they investigate the mysterious death of a woman in a locked room. Her sister, fearing for her life, seeks Holmes' help. The clues point to a chilling family secret and a strange sound in the night, leading Holmes to uncover a sinister plot hidden in plain sight.
"It was the band. The speckled band!" After her sister Julia dies suddenly, Helen Stoner worries that she is the killer's next target. With her last words, Julia insisted that the "speckled band" murdered her. Can Holmes and Watson discover the identity of the speckled band before Helen falls victim as well?
It is with great sadness that we report the death of Miss Julia Stoner of Stoke Moran. The cause of death remains unknown. The mysterious noises last heard around the time of Julia's death are back, and her sister Helen knows it is simply a matter of time before she suffers the same fate. There is a dark plot afoot and the only way to catch the culprit is to walk into a deadly trap... About The Sherlock Holmes Children's Collection Elementary-age reading, my dear Watson This fun series adapts the classic mysteries of Holmes & Watson for young readers, and makes the perfect introduction to whodunit fun for ages 7 and up. All titles are also leveled for classroom use, including GRLs.
Is Sherlock Holmes really as rational as he seems? He talks about the importance of reasoning and logic, but why then does he sometimes seem like a "strange Buddha"? On the other hand, why in The Sign of the Four does Watson smash a Buddha? What is going on in The Sign of the Four, that strange tale of Empire? What is going on in all the original sixty stories in "the canon"? In this study of the stories, Sheldon Goldfarb explores questions like these, from the significance of the eggs in "Thor Bridge" to the reason Watson keeps leaving Holmes for an insubstantial wife. What meanings lurk beneath the surface of these detective stories? Why is there an obsession with Napoleon in this story or an article on free trade in this other? Can we find answers to these questions? Perhaps. In any case, in this collection of essays (or "Musings") on each of the 60 stories, Dr. Goldfarb, an award-nominated mystery writer himself and the holder of a PhD in English literature, light-heartedly tries out a variety of perspectives, allowing readers to come to their own conclusions about such matters as the nature of the angel in "A Case of Identity" or the reason Holmes abandons his magnifying glass for binoculars in "Silver Blaze." Who brings binoculars to a horse race? Indeed.
A mysterious package reveals a revolting surprise! When Miss Susan Cushing receives a package with gruesome contents, she cannot imagine who sent it. While Inspector Lestrade dismisses the package as a practical joke, Holmes fears the worst. Can Holmes and Watson discover the sender?
Curated new collections. The fascination with Conan Doyle’s enigmatic anti-hero Sherlock Holmes, and his pompous narrator Dr Watson, has barely subsided over the years. Inspiring a long line of detective stories and Whodunnits, Holmes is a constant feature on TV, and movie screens, with new audio and radio shows joining the frenzy. The Holmes tales have earned their place amongst the most influential of popular fantasy, crime and gothic stories.
On June 4th, 1910 footlights at the Adelphi Theatre in London kindled. Sherlock Holmes walked the stage. Holmes & Watson worked their usual magic on the audiences; but this time they were nearly overshadowed by the burly villain, Dr. Grimesby Rylott, who petted his giant snake in its wicker basket while the Hindu servant played eerie music on a pipe. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's bow at curtain call was upstaged when the villain appeared with the snake draped around his neck. The only fault of the play was the terrible ending. The form of the Sherlock Holmes short stories was missing. The conclusion lacked Holmes' explanations of how he came to his deductions - considered de rigeur among Holmes aficionados. The editor of "The Speckled Band: Author's Expanded Edition" has attempted to correct some of the play's shortcomings by reintroducing material from the short story & integrating elements from other adaptations (notably the BBC radio & television series) with the original Conan Doyle stageplay.
Sorry, Holmes fans, not a snake in the entire book. The Spotted Band is a rock group of jungle cats: an Ocelot, Jaguar, Himalayan Snow Leopard and the irrepressible Cheetah, Chita. (She left Arch Villain Imperius Drake in a hurry in Book One.) The story begins in Reno, Nevada where Imperius and Bigg Baboon (recovering from their near misses with death in Book One) are searching for a replacement for Chita. They think they may have found him in an absolutely terrible magician appearing in, or being fired from, the show lounges in Reno casinos. Hairy Otter, soon to be renamed Otto the Magnificent becomes a pawn in the claws of Imperius but Otto turns out to be much more than Imperius can handle with some special talents all his own. Meanwhile, in Rio attending Carnaval for some well deserved R&R, Maury, Inspector Wallaroo and Howard Watt encounter the Spotted Band in a Brazilian bistro and the story further unfolds. They end up battling Pontius Puma, a gangster who controls all entertainment in Brazil and does substantial trading in stolen military and industrial secrets. They destroy his vast computer network with the help of L.Condor, a cyber net genius with a 12 foot wingspan and no voice. Back in the States, Imperius plans to use Otto as his Weapon of Bear Destruction. But Otto escapes and through a series of deucedly clever twists, ends up along with Chita, assisting Octavius in his simultaneous defense against Imperius and an enraged Pontius Puma who has come to Cincinnati to avenge the destruction of his empire of crime. The Puma and Bigg are arrested. Imperius Drake is believed killed in a mid-air collision with the Condor over the Ohio River. Wanna Bet?
