Arthur Conan Doyle wrote the collection of Sherlock Holmes stories in the late 1800's and early 1900's. They were first published in the Strand Magazine, and had a popular appeal with audiences of that time. They were based upon a real person - Doctor Joseph Bell (an early forensic scientist). Conan Doyle killed off Sherlock Holmes at the end of one of the short stories, but was forced to bring him back to life after the huge public outcry at his death.

Most mystery stories invite the readers to pick up the clues, and the Sherlock Holmes stories seem to fit into this category. All of the Sherlock Holmes stories we read are `whodunits' except for `The Speckled Band', which is a `howdunit'. The Sherlock Holmes stories have a traditional pattern of whodunit stories - they build to a climax, there is a time to reflect and recover...