The Valley of Fear: The Valley of Fear by Arthur Conan Doyle - "Holmes's Enthralling Encounter with the Criminal Underworld"

The plot of the novel is based very loosely on the real-life activities of the Molly Maguire’s and, particularly, of Pinkerton agent James McFarland.

The novel is divided into two parts: in the first, Holmes investigates an apparent murder and discovers that the body belongs to another man; and in the second, the story of the man originally thought to have been the victim is told.