The Hound of the Baskervilles

The Hound of the Baskervilles is a detective novel by Arthur Conan Doyle, first serialized in 1901–1902. It is one of the most famous stories featuring Sherlock Holmes. The story begins with the mysterious death of Sir Charles Baskerville on the gloomy Devonshire moors. Local legend claims the Baskerville family is cursed by a supernatural hound that brings death to its members. When Sir Henry Baskerville inherits the estate, he becomes the next target of fear and possible danger. Dr. Watson is sent to accompany and protect Sir Henry while Holmes investigates from London in secret. Strange events soon follow—anonymous warnings, shadowy figures on the moor, and the unsettling presence of escaped convict Selden nearby—all of which deepen the mystery. Holmes eventually reveals that the “hellish hound” is not supernatural at all, but a large dog used as part of a murder plot driven by greed over the Baskerville inheritance. The legend is exploited to create fear and disguise a very human crime.