The story in one page
Dr. John Watson, recently returned from the Afghan war, moves into 221B Baker Street with Sherlock Holmes, a man who identifies a stranger's profession by their trouser knees and conducts indoor chemical experiments. Their domestic arrangement is interrupted by a corpse in a Brixton house, where the word 'RACHE' is scrawled in blood. As Scotland Yard detectives Gregson and Lestrade argue over conflicting theories, Holmes utilizes a group of street urchins to track a cabman seeking long-delayed vengeance for a past grievance involving religious persecution and a flight across the salt plains. The mystery shifts between the gas-lit streets of London and the desolate landscapes of Utah, where an old feud reaches its lethal, final destination in the heart of England.
Who's who
- Sherlock Holmes
A consulting detective who identifies tobacco ash and ignores Copernican theory.
- Dr. John Watson
An army surgeon whose Jezail bullet wound serves as his introduction.
- Jefferson Hope
A vengeful hunter from Nevada posing as a London cab driver.
- Enoch Drebber
The first victim, found dead in a house with no wounds.
- Lestrade and Gregson
Scotland Yard rivals who take credit for Holmes's investigative breakthroughs.
What it's really about
- Forensic Logic
- Applying scientific methods to solve crimes through minute physical evidence.
- Vengeance
- A lifelong pursuit of justice for a lost love across continents.
Why it's memorable
- Holmes striking a match to reveal blood-red letters scrawled on a yellow plaster wall.
- A sick terrier dying instantly after being fed a suspected poisonous pill.
The ending, explained
Spoilers — show the ending
Jefferson Hope dies of an aortic aneurysm before he can be tried, and the newspapers give all the credit for the capture to Lestrade and Gregson, leaving Watson to vow he will publish the true account.
For your book club
- The jarring transition from a London mystery to an American frontier survival story.
- Holmes's initial ignorance of basic astronomy versus his profound knowledge of criminal history.