After a three-year absence, the presumed-dead Sherlock Holmes returns, incognito, to London. Now discovered in a local shop by his friend and former partner, Dr. John Watson, Holmes resumes his detective business just in time to avert an assassination attempt and secure his safe return to public life. Coming after what Holmes fans refer to as "The Great Hiatus," The Return of Sherlock Holmes contains thirteen short stories including "The Adventure of the Empty House," in which Holmes explains his return from the dead, as well as three of what Arthur Conan Doyle considered to be his best stories: "The Adventure of the Dancing Men," "The Adventure of the Priory School," and "The Adventure of the Second Stain."