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  • The Complete Sherlock Holmes

  • The Heirloom Collection
  • By: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
  • Narrated by: Simon Vance
  • Length: 58 hrs and 4 mins
  • 4.7 out of 5 stars (2,194 ratings)
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The Complete Sherlock Holmes cover art

The Complete Sherlock Holmes

By: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Narrated by: Simon Vance
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Editor reviews

The legendary detective is brought back to life in The Complete Sherlock Holmes, written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and is in a complete and unabridged classic audiobook narrated by the talented Simon Vance. Audio listeners can enjoy Doyle’s famous novels and short stories as he takes them on wild, mystery adventures throughout London with the eternally likeable and impossibly skilled character. This book is a feat of literary accomplishments and is available now from Audible.

Summary

Winner of the 2014 Audie Award for Classics

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes tales are rightly ranked among the seminal works of mystery and detective fiction. Included in this collection are all four full-length Holmes novels and more than forty short masterpieces—from the inaugural adventure A Study in Scarlet to timeless favorites like “The Speckled Band” and more. At the center of each stands the iconic figure of Holmes—brilliant, eccentric, and capable of amazing feats of deductive reasoning. By his side is Dr. John Watson, his steadfast assistant and our trusty narrator. This set is a must-have for every discriminating bibliophile and Sherlock Holmes fan.

Volume 1
A Study in Scarlet: A Novel
A Sign of Four: A Novel
Adventures of Sherlock Holmes: Short Stories

Volume 2
Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes: Short Stories
The Hound of the Baskervilles: A Novel

Volume 3
The Return of Sherlock Holmes: Short Stories
The Valley of Fear: A Novel

Volume 4
His Last Bow: A Novel
The Case Book of Sherlock Holmes: Short Stories

Public Domain (P)2013 Brillance Audio, all rights reserved.

What listeners say about The Complete Sherlock Holmes

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,708
  • 4 Stars
    359
  • 3 Stars
    84
  • 2 Stars
    22
  • 1 Stars
    21
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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    1,608
  • 4 Stars
    291
  • 3 Stars
    70
  • 2 Stars
    11
  • 1 Stars
    18
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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  • 4 Stars
    301
  • 3 Stars
    66
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    10
  • 1 Stars
    14

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

A long and rewarding listen....

Fifty two hours is a long time to pay attention to a narrative but don't let that dissuade you from giving this a go.

The audiobook contains many different stories that are usually 30 - 120 minutes in length so everything can be broken down into much smaller chunks. Audible has also sliced the book into seven downloads so it doesn't fill your device for months on end.

I listen most days for about thirty minutes and it has taken me about five months to get through it and I'm very pleased I did.

The whole book is narrated by Simon Vance who is, as you would expect, wonderfully versatile as his craft. The distinction between the characters is very clear but the main vocal contrast between the two main characters - Holmes and Watson is perfectly pitched. Vance's Sherlock booms with confidence, mischief and intrigue whilst Watson semi-simpers three paces behind his better, hoping that Holmes will propose and they can run off and keep bees together on the South Downs.

Vance's remarkable vocal talent is not to be glossed over and only the imperious Jim Dale could produce the wide range of voices needed for this book.

The stories themselves are mostly well known and Conan-Doyle’s crown jewels such as Hound of the Baskervilles and A Study in Scarlet or The Sign of the Four are brilliantly realised but many of the lesser known treasures really do come to life.

Some of the language is now archaic and sometime a little unpalatable particularly on subjects of race or religion. One should remember that most of the stories are well over a century old and the world has turned since.

However the archaic language provides some laugh-out-loud moments for a puerile mind such as my own - Watson will constantly 'ejaculate' his exclamations and one scene sees a lady arrive at Baker Street on a cold, damp evening where she proceeds to pull and handkerchief from her muff and blow her nose on it - all perfectly innocent but very snigger-able is the mood takes one.

There is a downside and it's a technical one.

The producers of the book or Audible have labelled each of the chapters numerically which fulfils a function but could be so much better over a long book such as this (or indeed any book). The audiobook standard allows for chapters to properly names and it would have been great to have each chapter named according to the story being read. A couple of times, my MP3 player has dropped my position and it has taken me a long time to find it again. Properly labelled chapters would really help this and it wouldn't take much extra effort from the people producing the books.

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103 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

The ESSENTIAL Sherlock Holmes Collection

This is THE download of your ENTIRE - LIFE.

If you read, you need this download. There are other complete Sherlock Holmes - they're badly read. Simon Vance is why God invented audiobooks.

I actually look forward to listening to this again. It is a pleasure to listen.

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82 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Essential for any Holmes fan!

Where does The Complete Sherlock Holmes rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This is the best audiobook I've got so far - absolutely captivating and it really captures the flavour of the original, legendary, stories.

What did you like best about this story?

One of my favourite collections, I wasn't sure this would translate well to audio but have been pleasantly surprised and it feels like discovering them all over again.

Which character – as performed by Simon Vance – was your favourite?

Excellent performance - capturing Holmes and Watson very well - without making any real effort to "act" the parts. His voice is a perfect vehicle for these stories.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No chance! This is an audiobook that I will be dipping in to for a long, long time to come!

Any additional comments?

Highly recommended - whether you have read Conan Doyle before, or not!

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43 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Mr
  • 04-07-14

Fabulous!

Any additional comments?

This audiobook is superb! I'm new to Sherlock Holmes but am now a convert and intend to read all the stories. Sherlock is a great literary creation, who it seems has not been done justice by the various TV and films I've seen. I've had this on while decorating the house for hours on end and I'm just not tiring of hearing of Holmes' and Watson's adventures. The narrator has just the right voice and he does a great job of bringing the characters to life, particulalry Holmes. For stories and narrator performance this is the best audiobook I've bought so far. Add to that the superb value and you just can't go wrong. If you have been disappointed as some other listeners have by other readings of holmes with "unusual" accents or pronunciation, give this a try.

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30 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

the best audiobook I've listened to

Would you listen to The Complete Sherlock Holmes again? Why?

I listen to the this complete collection over and over again. I find something different everytime and have now bookmarked each chapter so I can find my favourite stories eaaily. Simon vance is brilliant and really brings these amazing stories to life.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Complete Sherlock Holmes?

The hound of baskervilles and charles august milverton are memorable stories..

What does Simon Vance bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

Simon vance voice acting is brilliant and I now deliberately listen to books he has voiced as he brings the books to life.

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

There's been plenty of film adaptations and tv series of the books. The latest being on the BBC, set in modern day andbcompletely faithful to Arthur Conan Doyle's stories

Any additional comments?

Just brilliant

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23 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Stunning stories, excellent performance

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Oh yes, I would recommend this book. The stories are good and Simon Vance performes it with great gusto. The whole is very enjoyable indeed!

Who was your favorite character and why?

It's hard not to pick Sherlock Holmes himself. Mr Vance gives him such a great character, it's a joy to listen to. He really comes to life.

What about Simon Vance’s performance did you like?

My Vance uses his voice to his best advantage by giving all the characters their own voice, he even does a reasonable female voice! And when he doesn't keep up the, of necessity rather strenuous, use of these female voices continually, they still remain believable. In short, a joy to listen to, time and time again!

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

The unabridged Sherlock Holmes - come and see!

Any additional comments?

A must for all Sherlock Holmes lovers!

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22 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

And yet......and yet....

What did you like most about The Complete Sherlock Holmes?

It's Holmes, what's not to like? It feels to me like everyone must be familiar with these stories....

What other book might you compare The Complete Sherlock Holmes to, and why?

There's nothing quite like the orginal Holmes stories....there are many imitators, but that's not quite the same thing now, is it?

Have you listened to any of Simon Vance’s other performances? How does this one compare?

Vance's performances are uniformly excellent and were the main reason for me choosing to re-visit the Holmes canon in audibook format. I first came across his work many years ago in a performance of Arturo PerezReverte's "Purity of Blood" and since then I've yet to be disappointed by anything of his to which I have listened.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Holmes stories are many things to many people but I can't really imagine any of them being described as 'moving'. This is not a fault, in my opinion. To use a much-overused phrase "they are what they are".

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17 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

A long and rewarding listen....

Fifty two hours is a long time to pay attention to a narrative but don't let that dissuade you from giving this a go.

The audiobook contains many different stories that are usually 30 - 120 minutes in length so everything can be broken down into much smaller chunks. Audible has also sliced the book into seven downloads so it doesn't fill your device for months on end.

I listen most days for about thirty minutes and it has taken me about five months to get through it and I'm very pleased I did.

The whole book is narrated by Simon Vance who is, as you would expect, wonderfully versatile as his craft. The distinction between the characters is very clear but the main vocal contrast between the two main characters - Holmes and Watson is perfectly pitched. Vance's Sherlock booms with confidence, mischief and intrigue whilst Watson semi-simpers three paces behind his better, hoping that Holmes will propose and they can run off and keep bees together on the South Downs.

Vance's remarkable vocal talent is not to be glossed over and only the imperious Jim Dale could produce the wide range of voices needed for this book.

The stories themselves are mostly well known and Conan-Doyle’s crown jewels such as Hound of the Baskervilles and A Study in Scarlet or The Sign of the Four are brilliantly realised but many of the lesser known treasures really do come to life.

Some of the language is now archaic and sometime a little unpalatable particularly on subjects of race or religion. One should remember that most of the stories are well over a century old and the world has turned since.

However the archaic language provides some laugh-out-loud moments for a puerile mind such as my own - Watson will constantly 'ejaculate' his exclamations and one scene sees a lady arrive at Baker Street on a cold, damp evening where she proceeds to pull and handkerchief from her muff and blow her nose on it - all perfectly innocent but very snigger-able is the mood takes one.

There is a downside and it's a technical one.

The producers of the book or Audible have labelled each of the chapters numerically which fulfils a function but could be so much better over a long book such as this (or indeed any book). The audiobook standard allows for chapters to properly names and it would have been great to have each chapter named according to the story being read. A couple of times, my MP3 player has dropped my position and it has taken me a long time to find it again. Properly labelled chapters would really help this and it wouldn't take much extra effort from the people producing the books.

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14 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Familiar Stories Brought to Life

What did you like most about The Complete Sherlock Holmes?

Even though the Sherlock Holmes stories are familiar to almost everyone through the printed page, films and TV series, the audiobook is a new and refreshing way of experiencing them. Great on car journeys and good value for one member credit: the quantity of material will last for many miles!

Who was your favorite character and why?

Surprisingly, Dr Watson, who emerges as a sympathetic and emotional character.

What about Simon Vance’s performance did you like?

Simon Vance has a pleasantly mellifluous voice and distinguishes between the dialogue of the different characters effectively but without overdoing the changes of timbre and accent.

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Just enjoyable to follow the plots.

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12 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Incredible value

What made the experience of listening to The Complete Sherlock Holmes the most enjoyable?

The narration is perfect for these well-known characters

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Complete Sherlock Holmes?

Impossible to pick one moment from the entire works!!

What about Simon Vance’s performance did you like?

The individual characterisations were well maintained.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I did find it hard to turn it off

Any additional comments?

I was nervous that there would be catch with buying the whole works, but I'm over halfway through and still going strong

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