# Sherlock Holmes — The Valley of Fear character guide

> Sherlock Holmes in The Valley of Fear by Arthur Conan Doyle.

**Role:** major

**Also known as:** Holmes, Mr. Holmes, Mr. Sherlock Holmes

**First appearance:** 0001-i-the-warning

## Snapshot

The detective who reads a country-house murder as a web of deliberate lies, trusting a missing dumbbell over the testimony of witnesses.

## Who they are

Holmes arrives at Birlstone Manor as an independent investigator, answerable to no one but his own judgment, and immediately alarms the official police by declaring their case hopeless. He works in cheerful secrecy, refusing to share half-proved theories, and finds his surest clue in an absurd detail everyone else overlooked. His appetite, his mischief, and his insistence that the whole story told by Barker is a thumping lie set the tempo for the investigation.

## Relationships

### [Cecil Barker](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_valley_of_fear_se/characters/cecil_barker)

_professional_

Barker cooperates with Holmes during the murder investigation, though he initially withholds information to protect the Douglas family secret.

### [Mrs. Douglas](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_valley_of_fear_se/characters/mrs_douglas)

_professional_

Mrs. Douglas is a key witness and client of Holmes, who helps unravel the mystery of her husband's apparent murder.

### [White Mason](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_valley_of_fear_se/characters/white_mason)

_professional_

White Mason is a local detective who collaborates with Holmes on the Birlstone case, respecting Holmes's expertise.

### [Mrs. Douglas](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_valley_of_fear_se/characters/mrs_douglas)

_professional_

Mrs. Douglas is a key witness and client of Holmes, who helps unravel the mystery of her husband's apparent murder.

### [Cecil Barker](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_valley_of_fear_se/characters/cecil_barker)

_professional_

Barker cooperates with Holmes during the murder investigation, though he initially withholds information to protect the Douglas family secret.

### [White Mason](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_valley_of_fear_se/characters/white_mason)

_professional_

White Mason is a local detective who collaborates with Holmes on the Birlstone case, respecting Holmes's expertise.

### [Cecil Barker](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_valley_of_fear_se/characters/cecil_barker)

_professional_

Barker cooperates with Holmes during the murder investigation, though he initially withholds information to protect the Douglas family secret.

### [White Mason](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_valley_of_fear_se/characters/white_mason)

_professional_

White Mason is a local detective who collaborates with Holmes on the Birlstone case, respecting Holmes's expertise.

### [Mrs. Douglas](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_valley_of_fear_se/characters/mrs_douglas)

_professional_

Mrs. Douglas is a key witness and client of Holmes, who helps unravel the mystery of her husband's apparent murder.

## In the story

### [The Tragedy of Birlstone](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_valley_of_fear_se/chapters/part-i-the-tragedy-of-birlstone)

Receives Porlock's warning and leads the investigation at Birlstone.

### [The Warning](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_valley_of_fear_se/chapters/i-the-warning)

Receives and analyzes a cipher message from Porlock, deducing it refers to a common almanac.

### [II: Sherlock Holmes Discourses](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_valley_of_fear_se/chapters/ii-sherlock-holmes-discourses)

Discourses on Moriarty's criminal empire, analyzes the Porlock warning, and decides to investigate the Birlstone murder.

### [Darkness](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_valley_of_fear_se/chapters/iv-darkness)

Listens intently to the evidence, identifies the sawed-off shotgun as from the Pennsylvania Small Arms Company, and asserts his right to work in his own way.

### [The People of the Drama](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_valley_of_fear_se/chapters/v-the-people-of-the-drama)

Observes the witnesses quietly, asking a pointed question about the phrase 'Valley of Fear' that reveals a key clue.

### [VI: A Dawning Light](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_valley_of_fear_se/chapters/vi-a-dawning-light)

Presents a hypothetical theory of the crime involving a guilty secret and an avenger, and plans a private investigation.

### [The Solution](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_valley_of_fear_se/chapters/vii-the-solution)

Reveals the solution to the case, advising the detectives to abandon their investigation and orchestrating the revelation of John Douglas's survival.

### [Epilogue](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_valley_of_fear_se/chapters/epilogue)

Receives a cryptic note, warns of Moriarty's involvement, and vows to eventually defeat him.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_valley_of_fear_se/characters/sherlock_holmes
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_valley_of_fear_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_valley_of_fear_se/characters