The Valley of Fear

Front Cover
JonRose Publishing, LLC, May 16, 2022 - Fiction
The Valley of Fear is the fourth and final Sherlock Holmes novel by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Similar to A Study in Scarlet, it is divided into two distinct parts The Tragedy of Birlstone and The Scowrers. The first is the murder mystery while the second brings to light the motive behind the murder. However, there is also an epilogue with an unexpected twist that will certainly keep readers on their toes.Interestingly, the novel is loosely based on the actions of undercover operative James MacParland who inflitrated and helped dismantle the Molly Maguires coal miner's organization in Pennsylvania. It starts with Sherlock Holmes receiving a cipher message from Fred Porlock, a pseudonymous agent working with Professor Moriarty. After sending the message, however, Porlock changes his mind fearing Moriarty's retaliation and decides not to provide the key to the cipher, sending Holmes a note telling of this decision.Using the cipher message and the second note, however, Holmes manages to decipher the letter and learn that someone at the Birlstone House is about to be murdered. Just a few minutes later, Inspector MacDonald arrives at Baker Street with the news that Mr. John Douglas has been murdered.Thus begins the spellbinding and riveting mystery of The Valley of Fear. While Sherlock and Watson wrestle with the devious and dangerous mind of Professor Moriarty, the English and American police are confronted with blackmail, murder, finance, romance, and social injustice.Illustrated by Frank Wiles, The Valley of Fear is a masterfully written murder mystery filled with suspense, nail-biting thrills, and unforgettable characters. If you enjoy classic British whodunnit mysteries with witty dialogue and suspenseful twists then Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson fit the bill.

About the author (2022)

The most famous fictional detective in the world is Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes. However, Doyle was, at best, ambivalent about his immensely successful literary creation and, at worst, resentful that his more "serious" fiction was relatively ignored. Born in Edinburgh, Doyle studied medicine from 1876 to 1881 and received his M.D. in 1885. He worked as a military physician in South Africa during the Boer War and was knighted in 1902 for his exceptional service. Doyle was drawn to writing at an early age. Although he attempted to enter private practice in Southsea, Portsmouth, in 1882, he soon turned to writing in his spare time; it eventually became his profession. As a Liberal Unionist, Doyle ran, unsuccessfully, for Parliament in 1903. During his later years, Doyle became an avowed spiritualist. Doyle sold his first story, "The Mystery of the Sasassa Valley," to Chambers' Journal in 1879. When Doyle published the novel, A Study in Scarlet in 1887, Sherlock Holmes was introduced to an avid public. Doyle is reputed to have used one of his medical professors, Dr. Joseph Bell, as a model for Holmes's character. Eventually, Doyle wrote three additional Holmes novels and five collections of Holmes short stories. A brilliant, though somewhat eccentric, detective, Holmes employs scientific methods of observation and deduction to solve the mysteries that he investigates. Although an "amateur" private detective, he is frequently called upon by Scotland Yard for assistance. Holmes's assistant, the faithful Dr. Watson, provides a striking contrast to Holmes's brilliant intellect and, in Doyle's day at least, serves as a character with whom the reader can readily identify. Having tired of Holmes's popularity, Doyle even tried to kill the great detective in "The Final Problem" but was forced by an outraged public to resurrect him in 1903. Although Holmes remained Doyle's most popular literary creation, Doyle wrote prolifically in other genres, including historical adventure, science fiction, and supernatural fiction. Despite Doyle's sometimes careless writing, he was a superb storyteller. His great skill as a popular author lay in his technique of involving readers in his highly entertaining adventures.

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