Pretty good, I liked it a lot

It makes me very pleased to be able to say I've read all of Sherlock Holmes. Thank goodness for these awesome classics collections.

I found myself really interested in what changes I'd encounter in this volume, especially after reading the warning in the introduction. Indeed. Sherlock Holmes seemed to have changed in some subtle and not-so-subtle ways, but I think that tends to happen, especially when a writer gets downright tired of the protagonist.

While it's likely that none of the stories will become my favorites (and not a huge fan of The Valley of Fear), I very much liked reading this collection. I was looking forward to reading the stories that Holmes himself narrated, and I couldn't help but be amused that Holmes saw that he needed to use Watson's format in order to keep the tale accessible to readers. I was expecting the writing to be a bit more esoteric, but all the same, I'm glad it wasn't.

I feel a bit off in that I didn't really care much for the parodies at the end, and the essays were interesting to be from Doyle's own writing, though the material is sufficiently covered in the introduction.

All in all, this was a great read, and I'm so glad I took on this task.

I was more comfortable with Doyle’s writing style in this volume. Also fangirling a little bit at the notion that he likes Poe too. I would like to re-rate the entire collection after reading it again with a closer eye for deduction and see from Holmes POV. I love the parallels that Doyle alludes to using his medical background of reaching a diagnosis to deductions in crime. Next time I watch House MD, I might have a greater appreciation for it! No doubt, Doyle’s a gifted writer!

Really fun and easy read. This anthology had lots of interesting footnotes and notes from Doyle about his writing process, the creation of Sherlock Holmes, and even how he himself was involved in the solving of some mysteries because of his stories.

A great collection of Sherlock Holmes novels and short stories. The Complete Sherlock Holmes, Volume II contains one novel, three books of short stories, two parodies, and two essays.

Novel:
1. The Valley of Fear

Short Stories:
1. The Return of Sherlock Holmes
- The Adventure of the Empty House
- The Adventure of the Norwood Builder
- The Adventure of the Dancing Men
- The Adventure of the Solitary Cyclist
- The Adventure of the Priory School
- The Adventure of Black Peter
- The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton
- The Adventure of the Six Napoleons
- The Adventure of the Three Students
- The Adventure of the Golden Pince-Nez
- The Adventure of the Missing Three-Quarter
- The Adventure of the Abbey Grange
- The Adventure of the Second Stain
2. His Last Bow
- The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge
- The Adventure of the Cardboard Box
- The Adventure of the Red Circle
- The Adventure of Bruce-Partington Plans
- The Adventure of the Dying Detective
- The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax
- The Adventure of the Devil's Foot
- His Last Bow
3. The Case Book of Sherlock Holmes
- The Adventure of the Illustrious Client
- The Adventure of the Blanched Soldier
- The Adventure of the Mazarin Stone
- The Adventure of the Three Gables
- The Adventure of the Sussex Vampire
- The Adventure of the Three Garridebs
- The Problem of Thor Bridge
- The Adventure of the Creeping Man
- The Adventure of the Lion's Mane
- The Adventure of the Veiled Lodger
- The Adventure of Shoscombe Old Place
- The Adventure of the Retired Colourman

Parodies:
1. The Field Bazaar
2. How Watson Learned the Trick

Essays:
1. The Truth about Sherlock Holmes
2. Some Personalia about Mr. Sherlock Holmes

In Vol. 2, the short stories are superior to the one novel, with the best ones in the 2 collections: Return of S.H., and His Last Bow. The Case Book stories are not of the same quality as Doyle's earlier writing, but are still entertaining. This edition contains 2 interesting essays by the author discussing the origin/formation of Holmes, and a very funny and spot-on parody written by J.M. Barrie, the author of Peter Pan. It's refreshing to finally say I have read every original S.H. work.

No

I read Volume 2 after Vol 1. Volume 1 was very entertaining and comforting. And so in January when the coronavirus was in China, I started in on some comforting Sherlock Holmes Vol 2. About 25% of the stories were good and entertaining. Then they seemed forced and eventually there were questions about whether some were even by Conan Doyle at all. Still fun. But Vol 1 much better!

For Wiki, I check, correct, verify, add, such as synopsis for Mazarin Stone, so slow progress here. Summaries have spoilers, so here I'll extract teasers, enough to remind me, postpone opinions to after cogitation. I prefer plots outside set format. I first thought I'd rather skip Baker Street and starts with what he's given, dive right into the clues he finds, then wrap-up. But consistent openings do increase our familiarity with the setting - sips of tepid tea, crumbs of crisp crumpet, morning newspapers, wreathed puffs of aromatic pipe - we are right in there all the way. Doyle doesn't go out of print because he wrote right.

Full-length novels have second part backstory, 20 year-old trigger for crime, based on real events: Mormon vigilantes (Study in Scarlet), Pinkerton undercover ops (Valley of Fear). Timeline for Holmes is tricksy; Doyle drops false identities for 'confidentiality'. Fascinating. Gutenberg says keep author spelling, yet changes Wistaria to Wisteria. Intro by Kyle Freeman adds to my understanding of how Doyle's life, age, and events, influenced his styles.

Other extras: a brief Bio, World - listing of important years for Doyle: events, publications, Note on Conveyances - still leaves questions I've researched since my first "historical" romances, so I'll write my own Carriage Comparison, maybe for Wiki. End extras, two each parodies and essays, are, like the back cover, black print on dark purple background, not worth the effort.

In Further Reading, internal dates and minute detail attracts me to a two-volume The Annoted SH set, edited by William Baring-Gould. pub Clarkson NY 1968, one source for Brad Keefauver 2001.
http://www.sherlockpeoria.net/Who_is_...
Keefauver is too precise for me. "August 20, Saturday -- "The Retired Colourman" (Y-S)" I'd set more generally to "summer" ("within 2 years" after marriage "early 1897" is 1898).

Plot Details (some enlarged in Wiki):
The Return has 13 cases. See my review of "The Illustrated 2nd Volume" for Valley of Fear, His Last Bow (except Cardboard Box), and Case-Book sets.

Return (13 cases):
Added Synopsis for: and corrected other cases
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Adve...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Adve...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Adve...

Empty house across from Baker St flat has clear shot of wax Holmes, bait for Colonel Sebastian Moran, surviving lieutenant of villain Moriarty. When widower Watson checks Park Lane, where gambler Ronald Adair was shot in closed room the week before, a wizened book-seller bumps into him and follows him home.

Norwood Builder, Jonas Oldacre, reclusive retired bachelor, could not be found when the lumber in his yard caught fire in a tremendous conflagration. Signs of struggle, object dragged from safe to woodpile then burned, and blood on an oak cane belonging to late-night visitor, junior lawyer John McFarlane.

Dancing Men are stick figures representing letters for coded messages, found by Hilton Cubitt. The notes terrify his wife of one year, Elsie, who warned that she had a troubled past she wished left behind in America.

Solitary Cyclist is a bearded dogged follower of young Violet Smith on a lonely stretch of the route home to her mother on weekend visits. She consults Holmes, then vanishes.

Priory School headmaster Thorneycroft Huxtable is distraught over the disappearance of ten-year old Lord Saltire, only son and heir of recently estranged Duke of Holdernesse, left fully dressed, no sign of force, along with the resident of the opposite room, quiet German teacher Heidegger, no shirt or socks, by bicycle. There are cow tracks, but no cattle evident.

Black Peter was for the beard and nature of Captain Carey, seal and whale fisher retired after a voyage to Norway, known for attacking his wife and daughter after drinking, found harpooned in the ship-style cabin where he slept.

Charles Augustus Milverton advertises for compromising letters, then blackmails without remorse, until "the most beautiful debutante" Lady Eva Blackwell, to be married in two weeks, asks Holmes to intercede and mediate.

Three Students are suspect when Mr Hilton Soames, lecturer and tutor in Greek, sees next day's exam papers disturbed after he departed for tea, door key left in the outer lock by his servant Bannister asking about tea.

Golden Pince-Nez were found gripped in the hand of the well-liked Willoughby Smith, secretary to invalid Professor Coram. As he died from a neck wound stab by a small sealing-wax knife, he said "it was she".

Three Quarter is Godfrey Staunton, "crack" young Varsity International football player, crucial to an upcoming game against Oxford, heir to "one of the richest men in England", who vanishes in the company of an older worried "rough" man. friend".

Abbey Grange owner, violent drunkard Sir Eustace Brackenstall, had head bashed in by fireplace poker, after Lady Mary née Fraser, wife of one year, says she was tied up and gagged by burglars.

Second Stain is the blood on the wooden floor set differently than on the covering rug, beneath the knifed corpse of Eduardo Lucas, one of only three spies bold enough to steal a foreign potentate's regretted rant, rash enough to cause war if disclosed.

Last Bow:

Cardboard Box holds two ears, a lady, and a man (presumably a sailor by the earring hole) preserved in salt, addressed to Miss S. Cushing. Meek Susan hasn't heard from sister Mary or her naval steward husband Jim Browner, for weeks, since sister Sarah quarrelled with all and moved out.

A well written book. Enjoyed reading it.

when i think of mystery, i think of sherlock holmes. a true classic that can never be beat.

n  4.5 starsn

Unlike my usual style of novel reading, this whooper book is a collection of short stories to which I found myself enjoying far more than I originally thought. There is no wasted words in this book, it is straight to the point; just how I like it. I realised whilst reading this that this was the first classic book I’ve read written by a man and I actually found it much easier to follow than the likes of Jane Austen (I do love her stories though) - I suppose this is down to the short, snappy and logical way of portraying his adventures. All in all a great read but a long one if you are to read all the stories contained.