Holmes story faves (spoiler warning)

i've been working out a list of my favourite Sherlock Holmes tales (not as easy as it sounds!) - not necessarily the best dozen but those which i can read and re-read with undiminished pleasure despite the passage of time.

the illustrious client - casebook
the devil's foot - last bow
the red headed league - adventures
the dancing men - return
charles augustus milverton - return
the greek interpreter - memoirs
the bruce partington plans - last bow
the man with the twisted lip - adventures
the final problem - memoirs
the lion's mane - casebook
the cardboard box - memoirs
a scandal in bohemia - adventures

As for which stories i dislike... well there are a few of course, considering the number of stories, the time span in writing (30 odd years) and the circumstances of their composition it would be impossible for there NOT to be a few duds. 

However, there is a story that i dislike strongly but which is often touted as one of the very best in the canon: The Speckled Band, that melodramatic blot on the Holmesian copybook.

Here's why:

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