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The adventures of Dr. Thorndyke (The singing bone)

by R. Austin Freeman (1862–1943)

  • Free to read
  • 5 hours to read
  • 11 chapters
  • Reading level: 7th grade

"The Adventures of Dr. Thorndyke" by R. Austin Freeman is a collection of detective stories written in the early 20th century. The protagonist is Dr. Thorndyke, a forensic expert and detective, who uses scientific principles to solve crimes. The stories promise to engage readers with intricate plots and the intellectual challenges typical of the detective genre. The opening of "The Adventures of Dr. Thorndyke" introduces the first case, "The Case of Oscar Brodski," in which we meet Silas Hickler, a gentleman with a hidden life as a burglar. As he prepares to leave for Amsterdam with valuable diamonds, he encounters Oscar Brodski, a diamond merchant. When Hickler is momentarily tempted to commit murder for the loot, a violent struggle ensues, leading to Brodski's death. The narrative unfolds as Thorndyke arrives on the scene to investigate the suspicious train accident that killed Brodski, leading to an exploration of various clues and an intricate dissection of the events surrounding the murder. Overall, the beginning effectively sets the stage for a mystery that will challenge both the detective and the reader.

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  • London (England)
  • Thorndyke, Doctor (Fictitious character)
  • Physicians
  • Detective and mystery stories, English

Read the opening

Part I

THE MECHANISM OF CRIME

A surprising amount of nonsense has been talked about conscience. On the one hand remorse (or the “again-bite,” as certain scholars of ultra-Teutonic leanings would prefer to call it); on the other hand “an easy conscience”: these have been accepted as the determining factors of happiness or the reverse.

Of course there is an element of truth in the “easy conscience” view, but it begs the whole question. A particularly hardy conscience may be quite easy under the most unfavourable conditions—conditions in which the more feeble conscience might be severely afflicted with the “again-bite.” And, then, it seems to be the fact that some fortunate persons have no conscience at all; a negative gift that raises them above the mental vicissitudes of the common herd of humanity.

Now, Silas Hickler was a case in point. No one, looking into his cheerful, round face, beaming with benevolence and wreathed in perpetual smiles, would have imagined him to be a criminal. Least of all, his worthy, high-church house keeper, who was a witness to his unvarying amiability, who constantly heard him carolling light-heartedly about the house and noted his appreciative zest at meal-times.

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Contents

  1. Preface
  2. Part I
  3. Part II
  4. Part I
  5. Part II
  6. Part I
  7. Part II: “The Singing Bone”
  8. Part I
  9. Part II
  10. Part I
  11. Part II

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About this edition

This free edition of The adventures of Dr. Thorndyke (The singing bone) by R. Austin Freeman comes from Project Gutenberg eBook #59478, released 2019-05-11. It is in the public domain in the United States, so you can read it here in full at no cost, on any phone, tablet or computer. Genre: Short Stories, Crime, Thrillers and Mystery, British Literature.

Summary provided by Project Gutenberg (automatically generated).

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