I've been reading Sherlock Holmes stories since my childhood, and I was already familiar with some of the stories featured in this collection; however, it was the first time I read the titular story, and I couldn't help but feel that this story featuring the notorious Irene Adler was something of an anticlimax after seeing dramatisations in both film and television. In my opinion the first two stories are the weakest: 'A Scandal in Bohemia' is utterly preposterous – more than usual – and 'A Case of Identity' not only shares that feature, but is predictable as well. The other four stories are entertaining with the right degree of peculiarity, though I have to say that Sherlock Holmes' smugness and his ability to be unerringly right in his wild deductions is becoming harder to tolerate as I get older. ( )