I'd already read about a dozen of them before and enjoyed each of them, so it figures that I should enjoy the rest too. Luckily since the list is a bit dated it doesn't have any Dan Brown or Steig Larsson.
After deciding that, I figured the best place to start is with a book that I a) already own, b) haven't read yet, c) is near the top of the list, and d) is something that I've always wanted to read and haven't yet. So with that in mind it was pretty easy to choose the first Sherlock Holmes book which has literally been staring at me from my bookcase for months and is at the top of the list. Overall there are nine Sherlock Holmes "books". Four are novels and five are books of short stories. The first is A Study in Scarlet. The book quickly introduces us to John Watson and tells us how he first met Sherlock. Right after becoming roommates Watson follows Holmes to a murder scene out of curiosity. At the scene is a dead body without any marks and the word "Rache" written in blood on the walls. Sherlock follows the clues that he finds and allows the official detectives to go off and investigate the case separately. Of course the detectives get everything wrong and Sherlock actually manages to have the killer arrive right to his apartment not knowing that he's about to be arrested. That's all in the first half of the book. Then a good chunk of the second half is the back story of who the murderer was and why he committed the crime. That story was totally unexpected and really compelling, maybe because it has nothing to do with Sherlock Holmes or even London. Then at the very end the narrative returns to Watson's narration and an explanation of how Holmes was able to figure out the mystery. Overall it is a fun short read that lays the groundwork for the series and makes me want to read the next book very soon. I can see why it is regarded as a classic. The characters are unique, they mystery is compelling and the writing is terrific. I'll have to give it an A
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