A Study in Scarlet (by Arthur Conan Doyle)

When I was growing up, I had an anthology of Sherlock Holmes stories that I read obsessively. ("The Red-Headed League" was always my favorite.) But I'd never read A Study in Scarlet, so I picked it up for the "classic of genre fiction" category of the Read Harder Challenge.

Having seen the first episode of Sherlock many times, and having read a lot of Sherlock-related fanfiction, it was fun to see the origin of so many of the elements of the pilot. It reminded me of finally seeing Star Wars after having seen Spaceballs over and over again. I was surprised by the random "Mormons are evil" interlude, which has a compelling plot but feels to me like padding on a short story. 

I think ultimately I prefer Holmes more concentrated, in the short-story format. But that said, I always enjoy Holmes stories and overall enjoyed finally getting to experience this essential part of the Holmes canon.