Sherlock Holmes' detective genius and uncanny powers of deduction actually existed. His ability to draw startling conclusions from the barest of evidence and to solve cases which baffled the police was shared by his creator, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, pioneer, author, doctor and master criminologist. This book draws on entirely new research, the author tells the story of the crimes that inspired Holmes' exploits, and the cases in which Conan Doyle became involved himself, often when the police had failed and he had received a request for Sherlock Holmes' help. Other cases and insights inito how closely many of the Sherlock Holmes stories were influenced by real cases are revealed by the author who also wrote Leopold Bloom .