Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle originally worked as an optometrist; when this proved to be a failure, he began writing the Sherlock Holmes stories. He wrote four novels and fifty-six short stories concerning Holmes (many more were written by other authors who came after him). Doyle wasn't content to simply write about crime -- he also investigated two closed cases and was integral in changes to the British legal system.

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Available books:

• Beyond the City
• The Doings of Raffles Haw
• A Duet With an Occasional Chorus
• The Exploits Of Brigadier Gerard
• The Firm of Girdlestone
• The Great Boer War
• The Great Shadow and Other Napoleonic Tales
• The Green Flag
• The Hound of the Baskervilles
• The Last Galley Impressions and Tales
• The Lost World
• Micah Clarke
• The Mystery of Cloomber
• The Parasite
• The Poison Belt
• The Refugees
• Rodney Stone
• The Sign of Four
• Sir Nigel
• The Stark Munto Letters
• A Study in Scarlet
• Through the Magic Door
• The Tragedy of The Korosko
• Uncle Bernac, A Memory of the Empire
• The Valley of Fear
• The Vital Message
• The White Company

• The New Revelation
• Round The Red Lamp

• The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
• The Captain of the Polestar and Other Tales
• His Last Bow (Sherlock Holmes)
• The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes
• The Return of Sherlock Holmes
• Tales of Terror and Mystery