I read a collection of Poe's Dupin Tales a couple years ago, and as I reread this story for a class, I was surprised how much had stuck with me, probably due to the sheer absurdity of the murders.

C. Auguste Dupin and his unnamed companion/scribe/man who exists solely as a receptacle for Dupin's brilliant monologues meet, exchange intellectual pleasantries, and decide to live together and read all day. First of all, this is the lifestyle that I want. Secondly, I don't really understand their relationship. Poe is unconcerned with character development, preferring instead to present All The Facts for Dupin to thoughtfully unravel aloud, and the narrator figures in as little more than a placeholder.

Before long, the new roommates hear about a mysterious crime and decide to investigate. Two women have been murdered with extreme force and violence in a room that was locked from the inside. The younger of the two was stuffed up the chimney, while her mother was found on the lawn with a nearly severed head. The police force has essentially given up any hope of solving the ridiculously unusual case, but Dupin can figure it out.

I wasn't a huge fan of the way the information was presented; Dupin gets most of his evidence from a newspaper, meaning that the story involves very little action or in-person detection work. The resolution is so strange, though, that this story has unique lasting power.