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The Adventure of the Illustrious Client: I was rather taken with this story. Less of a mystery, and more of an insolvable problem presented to Holmes in one of his less astute areas of study: women. I enjoyed the further references to Moran and Moriarty, which make the universe feel even more real than before. There's a real history to these stories, and it's a pleasure to waltz through them as we come to the end. 4*

His Last Bow: An Epilogue of Sherlock Holmes - Supposedly the final chronological appearance of Sherlock Holmes, this short story isn't a favorite of mine by any stretch - it's a spy story instead of a detective story, and it ill suits Holmes. Things I enjoy, though - references to Moran and Moriarty and Adler (cementing them as important), and the meetings of Holmes and Watson, their warm friendship, last talk. 3*

The Adventure of the Devil's Foot: For some reason, this one strikes me as one of my favorite Holmes stories so far. It crosses almost into a Lovecraftian nightmare - visions of some wild thing loose on the moors, frightening people to death and to insanity. It has a big game hunter, larger than life. And more so, Holmes solves the case, and exercises his judgement in a more unusual and compassionate way. 5 stars.

The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax: Honestly, an excellent little story. There's not much of a mystery, and every story beat is actually predictable, in its own way once Holmes arrives on the scene. What it DOES have is an excellent look at how Holmes deals with lapses in judgement, and his zest for doing the right thing. His verve for saving a life and his interactions with the culprits is top notch. 5 Stars.

The Adventure of the Dying Detective: AKA: Holmes is an asshole. This, I feel, is where the popular conception of him purposefully manipulating his friends for his own benefit comes in - well, this and the Reichenbach Falls. The story cuts off to early to see Watson's response to Holmes' ruse, and we get a small apology from Holmes to Watson for the deception, but he really does come off as an ass. 3 Stars.

The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans - It seems that the majority of Mycroft Holmes' characterization shows up in this story "he is, at times, the British Government" is a powerful statement. An espionage thriller, it's fun to see Holmes in a greater context from his common crimes, and put his mind to work for larger consequences. Between this and Moriarty, you can really see the fictional world take shape. 4*

The Adventure of the Red Circle - One of those Holmes stories that hints at a much larger world beyond our point of view characters - with secret societies and dastardly world-renowned criminals, histories of new characters and old. I'm constantly surprised at how fleshed out these are, and I'm sure so much of their popularity is what we'd call "worldbuilding" today. A solid story, if not really a mystery. 3 stars

The Adventure of the Cardboard Box: Honestly? One of the most chilling and true-crime style stories I've read thus far. Watson isn't kidding when he says he's avoided sensationalism in previous stories, this one really hits hard with the details of the murder and the backstory. I think I highlighted three passages in this one - Holmes solves it easily, but is disturbed by the crime, an emotional rarity from him. 5*

The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge: Notable, to me, for the introduction of perhaps an intellectual equal to Holmes in Inspector Baynes. For once, Holmes is solving the case in parallel with the police and is actually a half step behind this new inspector, and seems pleased by it. I enjoyed the story itself, although I feel it would have benefitted from being a novel given the extensive backstory in San Pedro. 4 stars

The Valley of Fear - An excellent novel that really is a bit of a retread that meshes the style of his first novel with the mythos of his later stories. Moriarty gets some excellent mentions here, built out even further as Holmes' intellectual equal and villain. The second half of the novel is a great adventure piece with a great twist. I'd enjoy seeing an updated adaptation of this one to be honest. 4 stars.

The Adventure of the Second Stain: pretty straightforward, but another solid example of Holmes' empathy and humanity, going far to try to save someone from embarrassment or shame, someone who could very easily be branded a criminal. It seems to be a theme in a few of his stories, he's on the side of the law, but he's not strictly on their side. It adds a dimension that I love. 3 stars.

Sword of Destiny: As with previous stories, I'm so impressed by the language and the tone that Sapkowski manages to foster in these stories. They feel like a perfect mixture of high and low fantasy, the best of Conan stories mixed with the destiny and wonder of Tolkien. This story is a charm, and keeps you guessing, while also introducing Ciri for the first time, who will become the series most important character. 4

The Hildebrand Rarity: My second favorite of the stories in this collection, and possibly a contender for my favorite bond story? It turns out that Bond is a more fascinating character when he's not inside his own story. Fantastic to watch a stone cold killer be ruled up by a rude, boorish, abusive American and see him get what he deserves. Bond is uncharacteristically empathetic here, and it makes a hell of a story.

The Adventure of the Abbey Grange: An excellent story that really shows Holmes' and Watson's humanity. You don't see Holmes solve a case and decide to pardon the murderer often, and in this case, he does exactly that, given the extenuating circumstances and the deeply felt love for a victim of domestic violence. Holmes loves logic and deduction, but at heart, he's a good man with a strong moral center. 5 stars

Risico: Read up a bit on this one, apparently it was to be part of a James Bond television series, one of three episodes adapted into short stories. It's okay for a bond story, kind of run of the mill, straightforward, none of the characters is particularly memorable, neither the villains or the eventual tenuous allies. Might be my least favorite bond story so far. Not traditional, not groundbreaking. Just there. 3*

The Adventure of the Missing Three-Quarter: A love story, and a nice one that shows off some depth to Holmes. He's a hunter of the truth and can't let go of a mystery, but he's not a blabbermouth and he most definitely understands discretion, grief, and love. It's a humanizing story, occasionally funny and occasionally grim. Holmes being baffled by rugby takes the cake though. 4 stars.

A Little Sacrifice - I'm continually impressed by the tone and language in these Witcher novels. They're at the same time romantic and realistic, complex and simple. This one is a beautiful, winding story that turns out to be a romance, a beautiful chapter in the witcher's life that doesn't do much more than add beautiful flavor. Each thread is picked up and abandoned. It's a beautiful story. 5 stars.

Eternal Flame: A fun story, but a little boring at times. The main thrust is a Doppler who is wreaking havok in Novigrad, and weirdly there's a lot of talk about figures and taxes and commerce. It's an interesting sort of witcher story, very different in a way that would normally excite me, but this one just left me a bit cold. Not sure why that is. It was finely written just... Not my thing, I guess? 3 stars.

Quantum of Solace: Now realizing this is one of my favorite Bond stories. A very simple story, Bond listens to a Governor's recounting of a man and a woman's meeting, courtship, affair, and subsequent divorce, as Bond feels thoroughly disinterested in the human element of a story. He's drawn in and given new meaning, putting his own pulp adventures into stark context. Fleming outdoes himself on this one. 5 stars.

A Shard of Ice: I'm continually impressed by this fantasy series as it sits when you're expecting a zag. This story is about a relationship, and in every way, it does not disappoint. A chekov's duel is squashed easily. Another duel seems inevitable and is avoided because the characters make sense with their emotions and feelings. Perfectly written, I love the witcher series. 5 stars.

For Your Eyes Only: An interesting story, in that it covers how cold bond is, he's truly a bit of a psychopath. A government assassin, less a spy honestly. Racist, sexist - both come out in droves in this story. M gets some interesting characterization, about the man who makes the decisions. But all told, after a striking opening, the rest of the story is pretty straightforward and a bit boring. 3 stars.

The Adventure of the Golden Pince-Nez: I feel like this is one of those stories my mom wasn't happy with when she read these - where some piece of information was left out intentionally that makes it not possible for you to solve the crime along with Sherlock Holmes. The motive stuff comes a little out of left field, but I like the introduction of the new detective and the mystery is solid. An enjoyable entry. 3 star

The Bounds of Reason: Once again, coming back to the Witcher series is a revelation. The writing is so damn good, the characterization is nuanced, the world is interesting, and the plot always twists about. It's almost like the perfect fantasy. This story was enjoyable.as a group goes off to slay or save dragon, cross purposes and motivations abound. Geralt and Yen's developing unconventional love story rocks. 5 star

From a View to Kill: It'll be interesting to read some bond short stories alongside Sherlock Holmes short stories, arguably two of the most famous British pulp inventions. I've enjoyed just about every other bond story, but for my money this is just... Fine? It doesn't bring much new to the table, no interesting villain, no twist in Bond's character, just an easy breezy somewhat murder mystery. It's fine. 3 stars.

The Adventure of the Three Students - It's weird that this one starts with a disclaimer to "keep the guilty parties' honor preserved" as you kind of expect some massive scandal. In fact it's a pretty simple little story about cheating in school, and a somewhat heavy handed message about preconceived notions. I liked it but more than anything, this didn't need to be a Holmes story particularly. Three stars.

The Adventure of the Six Napoleons - A solid, of predictable tale. The idea of hiding something in a bust is old as literature, I suspect likely stemming from this very story perhaps. But we get to spend some time with Lestrade and Watson gets to wax on about Holmes' more human traits, his desire for appreciation and an audience. The story is swift and classic, though I WOULD like to see Holmes take on the mafia. 3*

The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton: Honestly one of my favorite stories thus far in that it's such an atypical Holmes story. Holmes is confronted by a villain he can't legally or logically beat, and resorts to extralegal activity to gain his goal. While he's doing the crime, he's witness to a murder, and then the constables come to him to ask him to solve it. He refuses. Brilliant and original. 5 stars.

The Adventure of Black Peter: A solid story, if a little weirdly predictable. I like the introduction of Hopkins as a sort of protege to Holmes who works on the police force, as we get another viewpoint of Holmes that we're not fully used to. You kind of get the feeling by now that Doyle is a bit over the whole thing though and wants to move on to greener pastures? I still enjoy the stories though. 3 stars.

Blood Games: As always Dan Abnett shines on these Warhammer stories. The first introduction to the custodes is a pretty great adventure and sci Fi story that doesn't have to focus on the trappings of it's universe. The characters as are barely there, but moreso than usual. It's nice to see some stories take place on earth, though I still want to see more of the emperor than we're ever allowed.

The Adventure of the Priory School - it feels good to be back at Sherlock Holmes for a minute. This is an interesting tale where Holmes's smarts don't seem to be the center of the story for once. The mystery is pretty easy to follow along with, and Holmes is even surprised once at a revelation. That said, it's a pretty good tale, though I suspect it's considered one of the filler stories for Holmes. 3 stars.