A Study in Scarlet

Sherlock Holmes is synonymous with the idea of a fictional detective, yet I realized I had never read a single one of his stories.

A Study in Scarlet, the story that introduces Holmes and Watson, exceeded my expectations. I did assume I would be in for a dry, dusty, 18th-century novel with a pretty good mystery to solve in there somewhere. But, as a fan of mystery, pop culture, history and so on, I figured I should dive in anyway.

Instead, this seemed fresh, bright, energetic. Telling the story through Watson's eyes was a great way to show Holmes' talents and eccentricities insight of someone a bit more average, I suppose.

The mystery itself was also excellent, full of interesting details, compelling motivation and not something you could easily guess.