The Hound of the Baskervilles is the third of the crime novels written
by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle featuring the detective Sherlock Holmes.
Originally serialized in The Strand Magazine from August 1901 to April
1902, it is set largely on Dartmoor in Devon in England's West Country
and tells the story of an attempted murder inspired by the legend of a
fearsome, diabolical hound of supernatural origin. Sherlock Holmes and
his companion Dr. Watson investigate the case. This was the first
appearance of Holmes since his intended death in "The Final Problem",
and the success of The Hound of the Baskervilles led to the character's
eventual revival.
In 2003, the book was listed as number 128 of 200 on the BBC's The Big
Read poll of the UK's "best-loved novel." In 1999, it was listed as the
top Holmes novel, with a perfect rating from Sherlockian scholars of
100.