Adventure of the Speckled Band

Conan Doyle Sir Arthur

Description

Sherlock Holmes, the world's "only unofficial consulting detective", was first introduced to readers in A Study in Scarlet published by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in 1887. It was with the publication of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, however, that the master sleuth grew tremendously in popularity, later to become one of the most beloved literary characters of all time.In this book series, the short stories comprising The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes have been amusingly illustrated using only Lego(R) brand minifigures and bricks. The illustrations recreate, through custom designed Lego models, the composition of the black and white drawings by Sidney Paget that accompanied the original publication of these adventures appearing in The Strand Magazine from July 1891 to June 1892. Paget's iconic illustrations are largely responsible for the popular image of Sherlock Holmes, including his deerstalker cap and Inverness cape, details never mentioned in the writings of Conan Doyle.This uniquely illustrated collection, which features some of the most famous and enjoyable cases investigated by Sherlock Holmes and his devoted friend and biographer Dr. John H. Watson, including A Sandal in Bohemia and The Red-Headed League, is sure to delight Lego enthusiasts, as well as fans of the Great Detective, both old and new.LEGO(R) is a trademark of the LEGO Group of Companies. The LEGO Group has not been involved in nor has it in any other way licensed or authorised the publication of this book.THE ADVENTURE OF THE SPECKLED BAND: A distraught young woman named Helen Stoner arrives at Baker Street early one morning to ask Sherlock Holmes for help as she fears that her life is being threatened by her stepfather, Dr. Grimesby Roylott. At Stoke Moran, the estate where Miss Stoner and her stepfather live, Holmes carefully inspects the recent, but unnecessary, repairs to the manor-house and in doing so exposesamurderous plot.

Informations

• Publié par: Andrews UK
• Date de parution: 31 août 2016
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781780928838
• Langue: English

Extrait

Title Page
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
The Adventure of the Speckled Band
By
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Illustrated by
P. James Macaluso Jr.



Publisher Information
First edition published in 2015 by
MX Publishing
335 Princess Park Manor, Royal Drive
London, N11 3GX
www.mxpublishing.com
Digital edition converted and distributed in 2016 by
Andrews UK Limited
www.andrewsuk.com
Images © Copyright 2015, 2016 P. James Macaluso Jr.
The right of P. James Macaluso Jr. to be identified as the editor and illustrator of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1998.
All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without express prior written permission. No paragraph of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted except with express prior written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright Act 1956 (as amended). Any person who commits any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damage.
All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. The opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of MX Publishing or Andrews UK.
Cover compiled by www.staunch.com



A Note from the Illustrator
My interest in Sherlock Holmes, the world’s “only unofficial consulting detective”, developed shortly after college when I obtained employment at a small aquarium, which provided ample time for reading on the job during the slow winter months. Over the course of a year, I read and enjoyed for the first time many classics of literature, including works by Jules Verne, Mark Twain, Charles Dickens, and Edgar Allen Poe to name just a few. However, it was a single volume containing the most notable cases of Sherlock Holmes that really captured my attention and left me with a strong desire to read more. I therefore eagerly sought out the remaining short stories and novels featuring the celebrated detective. Since that time I have been an avid Sherlockian, reading newly published accounts of Holmes and his faithful companion Dr. Watson written by various authors, as well as re-examining, on numerous occasions, the original stories penned by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
My enthusiasm for Lego® products, on the other hand, began early in life when my sister and I received our first Fabuland® play sets as Christmas presents from “Santa Claus”. For many years building with Lego bricks, including space, castle, and city themed sets, remained an integral part of my childhood. As with most children, however, I stopped “playing” with Legos as I reached adolescence, and it was not until I was in graduate school that I became reacquainted with the building blocks of my youth. At that time, I was looking for an activity which could offer a much needed distraction from my doctoral research as well as provide a creative outlet. I accordingly bought assorted Lego bricks and parts from various Internet websites and I took possession of the thousands of pieces, left over from my childhood as well as that of my two siblings, stored in the attic of our parents’ house. It was not long before I had combined my two interests and began building a Lego model of Victorian London complete with train station and horse drawn carriages.
The illustrations in this series of volumes reproduce, as faithfully as possible, the composition of the black-and-white drawings by Sidney Paget that accompanied the original publication of Sherlock Holmes stories appearing in The Strand Magazine . All of the models depicted in the photographs use only genuine Lego minifigures and bricks, and are of my own creation or inspired by the designs of other Lego enthusiasts posted on the Internet. In creating many of the Lego models, I also drew inspiration from the depictions of 221b Baker Street, and Victorian London in general, presented in the screen adaptations of Conan Doyle’s original stories produced by Britain’s Granada Television, staring the late Jeremy Brett as the definitive Sherlock Holmes.
I hope you enjoy the following adventures as well as my contribution to these stories.
PJM



The Adventure of the Speckled Band
In glancing over my notes of the seventy odd cases in which I have during the last eight years studied the methods of my friend Sherlock Holmes, I find many tragic, some comic, a large number merely strange, but none commonplace; for, working as he did rather for the love of his art than for the acquirement of wealth, he refused to associate himself with any investigation which did not tend towards the unusual, and even the fantastic. Of all these varied cases, however, I cannot recall any which presented more singular features than that which was associated with the well-known Surrey family of the Roylotts of Stoke Moran. The events in question occurred in the early days of my association with Holmes, when we were sharing rooms as bachelors in Baker Street. It is possible that I might have placed them upon record before, but a promise of secrecy was made at the time, from which I have only been freed during the last month by the untimely death of the lady to whom the pledge was given. It is perhaps as well that the facts should now come to light, for I have reasons to know that there are widespread rumours as to the death of Dr. Grimesby Roylott which tend to make the matter even more terrible than the truth.
It was early in April in the year ‘83 that I woke one morning to find Sherlock Holmes standing, fully dressed, by the side of my bed. He was a late riser, as a rule, and as the clock on the mantelpiece showed me that it was only a quarter-past seven, I blinked up at him in some surprise, and perhaps just a little resentment, for I was myself regular in my habits.
“Very sorry to knock you up, Watson,” said he, “but it’s the common lot this morning. Mrs. Hudson has been knocked up, she retorted upon me, and I on you.”
“What is it, then - a fire?”
“No, a client. It seems that a young lady has arrived in a considerable state of excitement, who insists upon seeing me. She is waiting now in the sitting-room. Now, when young ladies wander about the metropolis at this hour of the morning, and knock sleepy people up out of their beds, I presume that it is something very pressing which they have to communicate. Should it prove to be an interesting case, you would, I am sure, wish to follow it from the outset. I thought, at any rate, that I should call you and give you the chance.”
“My dear fellow, I would not miss it for anything.”
I had no keener pleasure than in following Holmes in his professional investigations, and in admiring the rapid deductions, as swift as intuitions, and yet always founded on a logical basis with which he unravelled the problems which were submitted to him. I rapidly threw on my clothes and was ready in a few minutes to accompany my friend down to the sitting-room. A lady dressed in black and heavily veiled, who had been sitting in the window, rose as we entered.
“Good-morning, madam,” said Holmes cheerily.