First published in August 1908 in Collier’s Magazine in the US and in two parts in the September and October editions of the Strand Magazine in the UK, The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge is the first story in the fourth collection of short stories, His Last Bow.

What’s It About?

John Scott Eccles comes to Holmes with a curious problem – a strange visit to a country house that led to his host being murdered despite his host visiting Eccles in the night at a time after the murder.

Is It A Mystery?

Not remotely – the oddity of the night-time visit is almost dismissed by Holmes as a triviality before the story becomes a fairly bog-standard thriller.

Is It Any Good?

Did you spot the use of the word “bog-standard” in the previous paragraph? This is dull stuff, split into two parts making it relatively long. And dull. I’ll be honest, I’d tuned out well before the end – and this is a short story…

Anything Else?

The one redeeming feature is Inspector Baynes, a policeman who is just as smart as Holmes despite having different methods – even fooling Holmes into thinking he has lost the scent at one point.