A review by emmonsannae
Sherlock Holmes: The Complete Novels and Stories, Volume I by Arthur Conan Doyle

adventurous mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

An old favorite! Fun to have on hand to be able to read in small chunks. ACD is truly the unparallelled small mystery author. I love how eccentric and kind Sherlock is. My favorite novel is still The Hound of the Baskervilles. Some notes: ACD's language is really rough with regards to racism/colonialism. These were written at the height of Britain's colonial empire in India, so the colonialism/racism in stories that deal with those themes is to such an extent that it is hard to read them (The Sign of Four is particularly difficult). It is worth reading, in my opinion, for the good historical tension of seeing how ACD was actually ahead of his time in some ways (racial equality in particular) even though his language is appalling by our standards now. It's also worth reading because those attitudes were real and reading them helps us understand that better. All in all, I enjoy the stories and appreciate them as an accurate window into a historical time/place—but I would be thoughtful about who I would recommend them to, and I wouldn't recommend them without discussing these things. 
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