THE IMPROBABLE TALES OF BASKERVILLE HALL

A young detective and his schoolmates embark on a fateful field trip in this trilogy closer.

Arthur Conan Doyle’s first year at Baskerville Hall has been immensely eventful, and a class trip to England’s Lake District will soon prove to be no exception. Challenges crop up even before the journey begins. Arthur receives a letter from Professor Dinah Grey, a conniving former teacher who recently regenerated herself as a young girl by using a mystical immortality machine. The note reveals that she’s staying at the Doyles’ Edinburgh home, and she has Arthur’s sister Mary in her clutches. Grey threatens Arthur, telling him that Professor Sherlock Holmes will be accompanying him on an expedition, and Arthur must get Holmes to accept a case that he’s offered. Arthur’s sister’s life will be in peril if he fails to “be the victor” at the end of Holmes’ mission. Arriving in the breathtakingly beautiful countryside, Arthur compiles clues that point him to a circle of stones concealing a series of trap-riddled underground tunnels and an imposing ancient relic that lets its user see the future. The story’s driving tension—that Arthur leads his friends into grave danger dishonestly, a morally murky move in service to his personal motives—adds an intriguing new layer to the young detective’s developing psyche.

A satisfying conclusion: a moody mystery with new layers that keep its concept fresh.