The Hound of the Baskervilles (Sherlock Holmes #5)


The Hound of the Baskervilles (Sherlock Holmes #5) by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Blurb:

Holmes and Watson are faced with their most terrifying case yet. The legend of the devil-beast that haunts the moors around the Baskerville family's home warns the descendants of that ancient clan never to venture out in those dark hours when the power of evil is exalted. Now, the most recent Baskerville, Sir Charles, is dead and the footprints of a giant hound have been found near his body. Will the new heir meet the same fate?

Review:

“Do you not find it interesting?”
“To a collector of fairy tales.”

The difference between the Sherlock Holmes short stories and this longer tale, for me, really comes down to one aspect: I had no idea whom to suspect. In all of the short stories I'm rather quick in coming to a conclusion (sometimes I'm right, sometimes I'm not but that's beside the point) but in this story I was completely in the dark, which is really interesting because it made me rather dependant on Watson and his observations (and sometimes careful theories). This made for an interesting kind of suspense I hadn't really anticipated.

“There go two of my threads, Watson. There is nothing more stimulating than a case where everything goes against you. We must cast round for another scent.”

However, apart from that suspense I confess to not really being fazed by the creepiness of the moor-setting or the case itself. I generally don't really get scared by a book but usually I'd have expected to be more in-tune with the atmosphere, which I wasn't in this case. But, honestly, that didn't really matter that much because I'm so much more focused on the case and the characters, rather than their setting.

The characters did not disappoint. Sherlock Holmes is as charmingly pesky as ever, Watson is as greedy for his approval as ever and the moor-folks are as eccentric as one would suspect. There was more than one occasion where I snorted a little laugh. Generally, this was great fun and I'm really excited to continue reading his adventures.

He burst into one of his rare fits of laughter as he turned away from the picture. I have not heard him laugh often, and it has always boded ill to somebody.

Rating:

There's not much left to say: I'm giving this one 4 out of 5 stars.

Details:

Name: The Hound of the Baskervilles
Deutscher Titel: Der Hund der Baskervilles
Series: Sherlock Holmes
Author: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Previous Books in this Series: Eine Studie in Scharlachrot (#1), Das Zeichen der Vier (#2), Die Abenteuer des Sherlock Holmes (#3), The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes (#4) The Return of Sherlock Holmes (#6) (Yes, I know, I skipped a book but that's how my edition is structured.)
Publisher: Penguin
Pages: 394

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