Best Novel Classics

10 primary works

Sign of the Four

by Arthur Conan Doyle

Published 1 February 1890

Since her father disappeared ten years ago, Mary has received annually and anonymously a pearl. When she is finally requested to meet the sender she is accompanied by Holmes and Watson. The stranger relates to them a tale of secrecy, hidden treasure and sudden death.

The Lost World

by Arthur Conan Doyle

Published 4 April 1912

Professor Challenger leads an expedition--which includes a journalist, an adventurer, and an aristocrat--into the deepest jungles of South America in search of the rumored country of dinosaurs. Original.

The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge

by Arthur Conan Doyle

Published 24 May 1908

The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge: An enjoyable treat for all fans of world-famous detective Sherlock Holmes. Holmes is called upon to solve a murder which takes place at Wisteria Lodge. Along with his associate Dr. Watson, he investigates the crime with amazing dexterity and panache. A definite page-turner!

A Study in Scarlet

by Arthur Conan Doyle

Published 1 December 1887

This book is intended for general; gift market; fans of Sherlock Holmes.

Through the Magic Door

by Arthur Conan Doyle

Published 12 July 1907

Through the Magic Door (1907) is an essay by Arthur Conan Doyle: his subject is the charisma and charm of books. Doyle invites readers to enjoy the greatest minds of all times through what they have left behind and argues that, when we read, the selfishness and hopelessness of the world can be left behind.

Adventures of Gerard

by Arthur Conan Doyle

Published 24 May 1903

"Have I ever told you, my friends, the circumstances connected with my joining the Hussars of Conflans at the time of the siege of Saragossa and the very remarkable exploit which I performed in connection with the taking of that city? No? Then you have indeed something still to learn. I will tell it to you exactly as it occurred. Save for two or three men and a score or two of women, you are the first who have ever heard the story." Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's classic "The Adventures of Gerard" originally published in 1903. A true literary gem.

The Valley of Fear

by Arthur Conan Doyle

Published 1 May 1915

To the police it is a formidable case and they are grateful for the razor brain of the great detective Sherlock Holmes. There are perplexing details - wedding ring missing together with one dumb-bell, the odd behaviour of the widow and a card inscribed VV 341 lying by the faceless body.

The Poison Belt

by Arthur Conan Doyle

Published 13 July 1913

'Nothing could be done. The thing was universal and beyond our human knowledge or control. It was death - painless but inevitable - death for young and old, for weak and strong, for rich and poor, without hope or possibility of escape'. Just returned from his famous adventure in the Lost World, the resourceful Professor George Challenger faces his greatest danger yet: the planet will pass through a belt of poisonous ether, and mankind might not survive. Despite the professor's dire warnings about the coming catastrophe, no one listens. As the poison enters the atmosphere, terror and madness sweep the globe.Cities are wracked by riots, societies crumble, and soon all communication ceases. Professor Challenger and his friends, barricaded in a sealed room, can only watch their planet die. "The Poison Belt" stands as one of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's finest stories. A first-rate sequel to "The Lost World", this novel continues the adventures of one of the most memorable characters in speculative fiction. Brilliant, witty, insufferable, and blessed with a booming voice and a huge black beard, Professor George Challenger is an eccentric and able champion of the human race.
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930) is the renowned author of the Sherlock Holmes stories. His books also include the science fiction and fantasy novels "The Lost World", "The Land of the Mist", and "The Coming of the Fairies". Respected fantasy writer Katya Reimann is the author of the "Chronicles of Tielmark" series, including "Wind from a Foreign Sky", "A Tremor in the Bitter Earth", and "Prince of Fire and Ashes".

The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans

by Arthur Conan Doyle

Published 24 May 1908

Arthur Conan Doyle's The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans (1912) features Mycroft, Sherlock Holmes' brother. The intricate plot involves stolen manuscripts containing designs of the Bruce-Partington submarine. The documents are of national importance, but their recovery is hindered by murder, missing persons, and treason.

The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes

by Arthur Conan Doyle

Published 1 April 1893

Dr Watson records eleven stories revealing the astonishing abilities of the famous consulting detective similar only in exhibiting those unusual and outre features so dear to Holmes, his chronicler and their myriad readers. Watson includes the earliest case of the champion of the law and what tragically seems to be his last. In their Baker Street rooms the two men have heard many a strange secret and brought peace to more than one troubled soul. But murderers and thieves - and even that Napoleon of crime, Professor Moriarty - can never escape from the untiring and indefatiguable Holmes...