The Mystery at Number 31 New Inn

If you enjoyed the Sherlock Holmes mysteries of Conan Doyle, give Freeman's Dr. Thorndyke mysteries a try. They are similar in many ways. Freeman focuses on physical evidence, and many of Thorndyke's experiments were things Freeman himself tried out. Freeman had little interest in character development. So, this is heavy on "clues" and quite weak on human interest and plotting. Nevertheless, if you enjoy the old-style detective stories, you will find this to be fun. This one appears to be an early short story Freeman later expanded into a novel. So, it serves as a good introduction to the series.

If you truly like to delve into a mystery and figure it out, Freeman's mysteries are at the top. This one is truly weird. Dr. Jervis is approached in his office by a man who tells him he has a friend who is very ill and needs his help-he cannot tell him where the man is but he is desperately ill. Dr. Jervis dispite his ill feelings about this decides to go. He gets into a coach with no windows-completely dark so he will not know where he is going-what the address is. When he gets there, heis let out at a side entrance-he cannot see the house itself and finds a middle age man seemingly in a coma from what Dr. Jervis thinks is from opium or morphine poisining. Two very strange Germans-a man and woman are the only people attending him and cannot imagine how he could get morphine and insist it must be sleeping sickness. Dr. Jervis still does not know where he went but immediately consulted his friend, Dr. Thorndyke who figures out the solution in a very intricate way. Have fun along with him in this diabolical mystery.