The Adventure of Shoscombe Old Place

"The Adventure of Shoscombe Old Place" is the very last Sherlock Holmes story. This ultimate investigation takes him to Berkshire, to a racing stable called Shoscombe Old Place. It’s the head trainer, John Mason, who has asked for Holmes’ help, although he is not sure exactly what he wants him to investigate. All he knows is that strange things have been happening. The owner of the stables, Lady Beatrice Falder, has suddenly stopped coming to greet her favourite horse. Sir Robert, her brother, has been looking very strange of late. Furthermore, he has given his sister’s dog away and has been seen at night meeting an unknown man in the old crypt. And human bones have been found in the furnace. This is enough to spark Holmes curiosity and he takes on the case.

"The Adventure of Shoscombe Old Place" is part of "The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes". Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930) was born in Scotland and studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh. After his studies, he worked as a ship’s surgeon on various boats. During the Second Boer War, he was an army doctor in South Africa. When he came back to the United Kingdom, he opened his own practice and started writing crime books. He is best known for his thrilling stories about the adventures of Sherlock Holmes. He published four novels and more than 50 short-stories starring the detective and Dr Watson, and they play an important role in the history of crime fiction. Other than the Sherlock Holmes series, Doyle wrote around thirty more books, in genres such as science-fiction, fantasy, historical novels, but also poetry, plays, and non-fiction.