Exploring the friendship of the inscrutable sleuth Sherlock Holmes and his redoubtable companion, Doctor Watson -- a bond that survived forty-six years -- this scrupulously researched biography constructs the fascinating story of their relationship, for the most part from evidence in the massive canon of Arthur Conan Doyle. Speculative only when precise data is wanting, the book examines the personalities of its principals, traces the development of their partnership in crime detection, and considers such disputed aspects as the possible homosexual implications of their relationship, Holmes's disappearance for three years, and the identity of the second Mrs. Watson.With theories as to the location of 221B Baker Street, the person of the King of Bohemia, the dating of The Hound of the Baskervilles, and other matters long debated by Holmes experts, this volume will prove to be invaluable to all students of the Great Detective. And for anyone who has enjoyed Holmes in print or in film, television, and radio adaptations, it provides a detailed and engaging biographical account of one of literature's great immortal friendships.