I’ll be uploading rankings of Sherlock Holmes stories from my new book, Wherever Fact May Lead Me: A Ranking of the Sherlock Holmes Stories, every day till we reach the best story. After that, I’ll share my ranking of the best villains in the Holmes canon. You can find the rankings on my website, and you can buy a copy of the book on Amazon.
Ranking the Sherlock Holmes Stories
The First Tier: The Crown Jewels
These are the stories that, more often than not, I turn to when I am looking for a Holmes story at bedtime. Like the stories in the second tier, the five stories in this one are stories that I have loved ever since I first read them. These “crown jewels” give me a sense of total contentment on a cold winter’s night when I am cozying up with a familiar story. I enjoy reading them, again and again, and, as if they have drunk from the fountain of youth, they never seem to get old.
5. The Norwood Builder (November 1903, Return)
I never cease to be amused by the passage in The Norwood Builder in which Holmes is gratified by the prospect of a devilish mystery, even one that threatens to put his prospective client’s neck in the noose:
“‘Arrest you!’ said Holmes. ‘This is really most grati—most interesting. On what charge do you expect to be arrested?’
“‘Upon the charge of murdering Mr. Jonas Oldacre, of Lower Norwood.’
“My companion’s expressive face showed a sympathy which was not, I am afraid, entirely unmixed with satisfaction.”
Holmes, who loves a case as the artist loves art for art’s sake, has been bored nearly to death by the dearth of cases, so, when a fascinating mystery regarding the ostensible murder of the vengeful and reclusive Jonas Oldacre crops up, he’s delighted. In this charming mystery, we have a case in which Holmes’ spirit rises in rebellion against the very idea that John McFarlane is culpable for the murder of Oldacre, but Holmes cannot prove it. It is only when Oldacre, in a final attempt to assure blame for McFarlane, overextends himself, that Holmes is able to satisfy himself that something is definitely amiss in the case. After Holmes finds that one passage in the house is shorter than the others, then Holmes, quite literally and very dramatically, smokes his quarry out.
Norwood Builder is a case that bears multiple readings, and each time it is re-read, it enriches the reader anew. The secret passage/hidden room trope is one that Doyle is careful not to overuse, and here he employs it with great effect. Time and again, as readers peruse this story, we are satisfied to see the cunning and devilish Oldacre spring from his hiding place as the cry of fire echoes through the house and as the smoke rises. What a treacherous old fiend Oldacre is! What a monster! Part of what makes Norwood Builder so good is the incredible vindictiveness of Oldacre himself. For years the old miser (who reminds me of Ebeneezer Balfour in Kidnapped)has nursed a grudge against the woman who jilted him, and he finally, like a snake, lashes out at poor McFarlane, who is quite innocent of all the turmoil that transpired to bring about this grotesque state of affairs. That Oldacre would go so far as to pretend to bring about his own death, secret himself in a hidden room, and then—as he seeks to escape his looming creditors—frame an innocent man for his murder is a truly heinous act. The action makes him, at once, one of Doyle’s most fascinating and eyebrow-raising villains, mostly because there is no doubt that such people exist in real life. And what’s most frightening is that such spiteful people may not be so rare as to only be someone else’s problem. Many of us know an Oldacre personality type, and, what’s more, many of us might not put it past that person to try a stunt equivalent to what Oldacre himself has attempted. And, it almost goes without saying, but, as soon as the Oldacre-personality type is caught, their reaction is just as Doyle portrays it: They minimize the consequences of their vile actions.
An absolutely captivating story, Doyle blends drama, mystery, double-edged, crafty statements (“It is a lesson to us not to trust our own judgment, is it not, Lestrade?) and an abominable villain in The Adventure of the Norwood Builder.
