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Third Holmes novel (fourth in publication order), serialised in The Strand 1901–02, published in book form 1902. Fifteen chapters. Narrated by John Watson, with embedded diary entries. Set primarily on Dartmoor, Devon. The most famous and widely read Holmes novel; written as a period piece set before Holmes’s “death” at the Reichenbach Falls (FINA, 1893).
Chapter summary
| Chapter | Title | Key events |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mr. Sherlock Holmes | Watson and Holmes examine Dr. Mortimer’s stick; Mortimer arrives |
| 2 | The Curse of the Baskervilles | The legend of Hugo Baskerville and the spectral hound |
| 3 | The Problem | Sir Charles Baskerville found dead; the footprints; Holmes declines to go to Devon |
| 4 | Sir Henry Baskerville | Sir Henry arrives from Canada; the warning letter; stolen boot |
| 5 | Three Broken Threads | Shadowing in London; the bearded stranger; Barrymore telegram check |
| 6 | Baskerville Hall | Watson and Sir Henry arrive on Dartmoor; first impressions |
| 7 | The Stapletons of Merripit House | Watson meets Jack Stapleton and his “sister” (actually wife) Beryl |
| 8 | First Report of Dr. Watson | Watson’s letters to Holmes; Barrymore and the candle signal |
| 9 | The Light upon the Moor | The escaped convict Selden; the man on the tor |
| 10 | Extract from the Diary of Dr. Watson | Frankland and his telescope; a boy on the moor |
| 11 | The Man on the Tor | Holmes reveals he has been on Dartmoor the whole time |
| 12 | Death on the Moor | Selden killed (wearing Sir Henry’s old clothes); Stapleton threatens Holmes |
| 13 | Fixing the Nets | Holmes’s trap laid; Stapleton’s true identity beginning to surface |
| 14 | The Hound of the Baskervilles | The climax; the hound killed; Stapleton flees into the Grimpen Mire |
| 15 | A Retrospection | Holmes’s full explanation; Stapleton’s fate presumed dead in the bog |
Key takeaways
- Stapleton is one of the Canon’s most carefully constructed villains. His true identity — Roger Baskerville, the rightful heir who faked his death — is revealed gradually. He phosphorescently painted the hound to terrorise Sir Charles into a fatal heart attack.
- Holmes’s absence: Holmes stays behind in London (ostensibly), but has actually been on Dartmoor the entire time, living in a stone hut on the moor. This structure creates a long middle section where Watson must carry the investigation alone, which is unusual in the Canon.
- Gothic atmosphere: Dartmoor, the Grimpen Mire, the ancient hall, the legend, the escaped convict — Doyle is working in the Gothic thriller tradition here, not purely the detective-puzzle tradition.
- The hound is a real (if phosphorescent) creature — a large, ferocious dog. The supernatural is ultimately rationalised, but the atmosphere lingers.
- Watson as competent investigator: This novel does the most to present Watson as genuinely capable rather than merely an admiring audience for Holmes.
- Continuity note: Written after Holmes’s “death” (FINA, 1891 in-universe) but set before it. Doyle used this to return Holmes without having to resurrect him.
First appearances / unique elements
- Henry Baskerville (Sir Henry) — client and potential victim
- Stapleton (Jack Stapleton / Roger Baskerville) — principal villain
- Beryl Stapleton (née Garcia) — Stapleton’s wife, presented as his sister
- Dr. James Mortimer — the narrator’s point of entry
- The Grimpen Mire — the bog where Stapleton meets his end
Illustrations
Illustrated by Sidney Paget for The Strand Magazine serialisation (August 1901–April 1902). 61 illustrations — the most of any single Holmes work. Doyle specifically requested Paget for this project.
Browse all: Hound category on Wikimedia Commons (61 illustrations)
