I am two (climactic) chapters away from finishing The Hound of the Baskervilles. Actually the next chapter is where I expect all to be revealed! I hate having to stop reading a book at moments like these, but work calls. I don't think I will say much more about it, since I have already posted several times on the book. I have enjoyed reading it. At first I was afraid Holmes's analytical reasoning might be a bit wearing on me if it continued through the book as it did in the first chapter, but it is diluted in such a way that it flows throughout the book. I have read that Conan Doyle had a professor who solved problems in such a manner and that is where he learned this reasoning skills. I am now curious what ages Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson are meant to be. I am not sure why this is important to me or why it even matters, but I always like to know these little details--ages and what period in time the story is set. I sort of figure Watson is older and Holmes is perhaps in his 40s. Maybe reading the short stories would help put this in perspective. I may have to check out Arthur and George by Julian Barnes now that I have some point of reference on the author and his work! Anyway, first book (nearly) down, and a very good choice!
When I made my reading list it was only a matter of picking and choosing from reading suggestions that I received as well as using this list of the top 100 crime novels. I chose whatever sounded appealing to me. It appears that nearly everything I chose (by chance really) was published in the 1930s or thereabouts (or slightly earlier or slightly later). I wonder if this is the sort of "golden age" of crime/mystery writing? Originally I was going to read these books in a more chronological manner, but then it was Arthur Conan Doyle's birthday recently, so I started with him. Now I believe I will go back read Wilkie Collins's The Moonstone, which has been called the first detective novel in the English language. Time to see where it all started.