Shelfology Book Pairing

by Arthur Conan Doyle

Dr. James Mortimer asks Sherlock Holmes for advice following the death of his friend, Sir Charles Baskerville. Sir Charles was found dead on the grounds of his Devonshire estate, Baskerville Hall. Mortimer now fears for Sir Charles's nephew and sole heir, Sir Henry Baskerville, who is the new master of Baskerville Hall. The death was attributed to a heart attack, but Mortimer is suspicious, because Sir Charles died with an expression of horror on his face, and Mortimer noticed "the footprints of a gigantic hound" about 50 yards from where Sir Charles lay dead. The Baskerville family has supposedly been under a curse since the era of the English Civil War when ancestor Hugo Baskerville allegedly offered his soul to the devil for help in abducting a woman and was reportedly killed by a giant spectral hound. Sir Charles believed in the curse and was apparently fleeing from something in fright when he died. Intrigued, Holmes meets with Sir Henry, newly arrived from Canada.

(Timeless Classic Books)

by Arthur Conan Doyle

Originally entitled "A Tangled Skein", "A Study in Scarlet" is a mystery novel written by Arthur Conan Doyle in 1887. This was the first introduction of Detective Sherlock Holmes to the world.Sherlock Holmes meets Dr. John H. Watson through an old acquaintance of his. The doctor had been injured and became severely ill while serving in India. He has now returned to London and he and Holmes become fast friends. They decide to room together and lease a house on Baker Street.Sherlock Holmes tell Watson about the current murder investigation he is working on. At the scene a woman's wedding ring has been found as well as two letters; one to the dead man and one to Joseph Stangerson from a Steamship Company, both are addressed to the American exchange. In one corner of the room the word "Rache" is written on the wall in blood.Holmes calls this case "A Study in Scarlet". He tells Watson "There's the scarlet thread of murder running through the colourless skein of life, and our duty is to unravel it, and isolate it, and expose every inch of it."Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote this book in under three weeks at the age of 27. The was the first work of fiction ever to incorporation the use of a magnifying glass as an investigative tool.