The Hound of the Baskervilles
This is the 3rd and by far most well known of the Sherlock Holmes novels by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
It was originally serialised in The Strand Magazine from August 1901 to April 1902.
Illustration of Hound of the Baskervilles
by Sidney Paget from Strand Magazine (1901)
It is the 1st appearance of Holmes since his death in ‘The Final Problem’, the last adventure in ‘The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes’ published in 1894. Conan Doyle had intended to stop writing about Holmes as he felt that this was distracting him from his more serious literary works and aspirations. His solution was the famous battle with Moriarty at the Reichenbach Falls, to kill the character off one and for all. ‘I must save my mind for better things, even if it means I must bury my pocketbook with him (SH)’.
Thankfully, he subsequently bowed to considerable pressure from his growing fans. He wrote ‘The Hound of the Baskervilles’ (set before ‘The Final Problem’) in 1902, before formally resurrecting him in ‘The Adventure of the Empty House’, the 1st instalment in ‘The Adventure of Sherlock Holmes’ published in 1903.
The Plot
The story is largely set on Dartmoor in Devon, and tells the story of an attempted murder of Sir Henry Baskerville, inspired by the legend of a fearsome, diabolical and supernatural hound (the fabled ‘Hound of the Baskervilles’).
The story begins with Holmes testing Watson’s powers of deduction, by suggesting the he describe the owner of a walking stick (which had been left at 221B Baker Street), purely from the evidence of the stick itself. True to form, Holmes revels in Watson’s mistakes!! Dr James Mortimer, the owner, returns to consult Holmes regarding the imminent arrival of the next and last Baskerville heir, Sir Henry who had recently inherited the Baskerville Estate following the untimely death of his uncle, Sir Charles Baskerville, apparently from heart failure.
It is Dr Mortimer who relates the ‘legend of the hound’ and explains that contrary to popular opinion, he feels that Sir Charles died of fear, and that he himself had discovered the footprints of a gigantic hound near the body. He is naturally, worried regarding the safety of Sir Henry who is due to arrive from America that day. Holmes eventually dispatches Sir Henry off to Dartmoor, with his trusty Watson in tow, with instructions ‘to avoid the moor when the powers of evil are exalted’.
Original Poster from 1939 production (my favourite adaptation!)
And so begins a rollercoaster of an adventure, which will thrill and chill you to the core…..enjoy!!!