Sherlock Holmes: The Empty House

By Alex Woolf and Eve O'Brien

Join world-famous detective Sherlock Holmes and his ever-loyal sidekick Dr. Watson as they embark on a daring adventure.

The whole of London is shocked and baffled by the murder of Ronald Adair. It seems like an impossible crime! Can our sensational sleuth solve the mystery of how Adair was killed before the murderer strikes again?

This thrilling tale has been retold and adapted with new illustrations, making it perfect for younger readers. Adapted by award-winning children's fiction author Alex Woolf, it will delight bright young things aged 7+.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Arcturus Publishing
• Release date: Jul 1, 2022
• ISBN: 9781398818262

Alex Woolf

Alex Woolf is a senior lecturer in history at the University of St Andrews. He holds a BA in Medieval History and Medieval English, an MPhil in Archaeology and a PhD from the University of St Andrews. He is the author of a number of articles and books on medieval Scottish history, including From Pictland to Alba: Scotland, 789 to 1070, Scandinavian Scotland: 20 Years After and Beyondthe Gododdin: Dark Age Scotland in Medieval Wales.

Book preview

Chapter 1

The Murder of Ronald Adair

It was the spring of 1894 and the whole of London was reeling as details emerged about the appalling murder of Mr. Ronald Adair. How I wished that my late friend Sherlock Holmes was still here, for there was a strangeness and mystery to this crime that I know would have appealed to the great detective.

Three years had passed since Holmes’s death. During a violent struggle with his arch enemy, Professor James Moriarty, above the Reichenbach Falls in Switzerland, they had both plunged to their doom in its foaming waters. Now all I had left were my memories of a dear friend, and a treasure trove of stories about our adventures together.

My years spent with Holmes had also left me with an enduring interest in crime, and every day I scoured the newspapers for accounts of unsolved thefts and murders. Sometimes I even tried using Holmes’s techniques to unravel them, though without much success.

The murder of Ronald Adair held a particular fascination for me, and I read very carefully the evidence presented at the inquest. All day long, as I went on my rounds visiting patients, I turned the case over in my mind. Yet I could not work out how the murder was done, let alone who did it.

Ronald Adair was the second son of the Earl of Maynooth, governor of one of the Australian colonies. Adair’s mother returned to England from Australia in the summer of 1893 to have an operation on her eye. She, Ronald, and her daughter Hilda lived together at 427 Park Lane in London. Ronald quickly became friendly with the elite of London society. He was, as far as I can tell, a popular young man with no enemies. In the autumn of that year, he became betrothed