The Case of Lady Sannox (also published as "The Kiss of Blood") is a
short story
A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...
by Sir
Arthur Conan Doyle
Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle (22 May 1859 – 7 July 1930) was a British writer and physician. He created the character Sherlock Holmes in 1887 for ''A Study in Scarlet'', the first of four novels and fifty-six short stories about Ho ...
The story features an arrogant surgeon, Douglas Stone, who is in love with the married Lady Sannox, one of the most beautiful women in London. On his way to a rendezvous with her, the surgeon is asked by a Turkish man to operate on the latter's wife, who has cut her lip with a poison envenomed
scimitar
A scimitar ( or ) is a single-edged sword with a convex curved blade associated with Middle Eastern, South Asian, or North African cultures. A European term, ''scimitar'' does not refer to one specific sword type, but an assortment of different ...
. The doctor is informed the woman will die if the poison is not cut out.
Because of his desire to meet his lover, his need for money, his professional arrogance, and the opinion of the Turk that any delay would kill his wife, the surgeon goes ahead with the operation on the heavily drugged wife, whose face is obscured by a veil. After he has performed the operation, Dr. Stone realizes his patient is Lady Sannox, and the Turk her husband, who believes the disfigurement will be morally good for his wife. The surgeon suffers a
breakdown
Breakdown may refer to:
Breaking down
*Breakdown (vehicle), failure of a motor vehicle in such a way that it cannot be operated
*Chemical decomposition, also called chemical breakdown, the breakdown of a substance into simpler components
*Decompo ...
.
Reviews
Charles Prepolec, in ''bakerstreetdozen.com'', calls it "Doyle’s strongest horror story" and says that "Doyle’s ability to involve the reader is masterfully demonstrated in the wonderfully intriguing hook in the opening paragraph."
Adaptations
"The Case of Lady Sannox" was adapted for television in 1949 as an episode of the American television anthology series '' Suspense''. The episode is one of the surviving episodes of the series. The cast included
Stella Adler
Stella Adler (February 10, 1901 – December 21, 1992) was an American actress and acting teacher. ''
Henry Brandon as Dr. Douglas Stone, and
Berry Kroeger
Berry Kroeger (October 16, 1912 – January 4, 1991) was an American film, television and stage actor.
Career
Kroeger was born in San Antonio, Texas. He got his acting start on radio as an announcer on ''Suspense'' and as an actor, playing fo ...
as Lord Sannox.
The story was incorporated into an episode of the
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes () is a fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a " consulting detective" in the stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with observation, deduction, forensic science and ...
radio series ''The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes'', on the radio program '' Imagination Theatre''. The episode, titled "The Lady Sannox Investigation", was first broadcast on 28 September 2008. In the episode, which is set after the events of the original short story, Holmes investigates the cause of Dr. Stone's mental breakdown. Lord Sannox was played by Stephan Weyte.