The Return of Sherlock Holmes

Doyle finally caved in 1903 and brought Holmes back, partly for money and partly because the demand had not let up in a decade. The Return collects thirteen stories from 1903 to 1904, starting with The Adventure of the Empty House, where Holmes walks back into Watson’s life disguised as a bookseller and explains that he had faked his death at Reichenbach to evade Moriarty’s remaining gang.

The stories in this collection are sometimes called slightly weaker than the early Strand stuff, and there is something to that complaint. Doyle was writing Holmes more out of obligation than inspiration. But the highlights are excellent. The Six Napoleons is a tight detective puzzle. The Norwood Builder has one of the cleverest false-confession setups in the canon. Black Peter is dark and good. The Dancing Men is the cipher story everyone remembers from school. The Solitary Cyclist and Charles Augustus Milverton round out the collection with strong moral edge. If you have read the first two short story books, this one is the necessary follow-up, even if Doyle’s heart was only partly in it.