Classic Detective

Ed McBain made his debut in 1956. In 2004, more than a hundred books later, he personally collected twenty-five of his stories written before he was Ed McBain. All but five of them were first published in the detective magazine Manhunt and none of them appeared under the Ed McBain byline. They...

What's playing at the Calliope Club may draw a furtive crowd, but as far as the CID's Andrew Dalziel can tell it's all perfectly legal. His partner, Peter Pascoe, begs to differ. From what he hears, an actress's violent ordeal on film looked all too real. When she turns up unharmed, it appears his suspicions were wrong . . . if Andrew and Peter can trust what they see. Because if this dirty business is well and good, why has the film in question vanished? Why has the theater been set ablaze? And why has its proprietor been beaten to death?

In the Welsh borders, isolated by heavy snow and flooding from the thaw, cut off from telephone access, a tragedy has occurred. Old Dr Robinson known to be 'a menace' on the roads has met his end in a car crash, his big saloon thrown from the track down the steep hillside. But when the police arrive there is more to the tragedy than meets the eye: why was there a second body - an outsider to these parts - in the back of the vehicle?

The Duke of Denver, accused of murder, stands trial for his life in the House of Lords. Naturally, his brother Lord Peter Wimsey is investigating the crime - this is a family affair. The murder took place at the duke's shooting lodge and Lord Peter's sister was engaged to marry the dead man. But why does the duke refuse to co-operate with the investigation? Can he really be guilty, or is he covering up for someone?

She was about twenty, with long blond hair, and her body was found a few days after she fell from the cliffs to her death on the rocks below. No one identified her; no one reported a missing girl. All the police knew was her rough age, that she’d had a child recently, and that she was very...

The 15th installment in the Aubrey/Maturin series. This splendid installment in Patrick O'Brian's widely acclaimed series of Aubrey/Maturin novels is in equal parts mystery, adventure, and psychological drama. A British whaler has been captured by an ambitious chief in the Friendly Isles (Tonga)...

“An amazing, beautiful book . . . It shows how one dog’s dignified presence can bring connection and love to a fractured world.” ―Cat Warren, New York Times bestselling author of What the Dog Knows One dog changes the life of everyone who takes him in on his journey to reunite with his...

“There isn’t a human alive who can resist the charm of Jessica Anya Blau’s novels! A coming-of-age tale for the new millennium, The Trouble with Lexie is one of the most deeply enjoyable—and deeply satisfying—novels I’ve read in ages.” —Joanna Rakoff, author of My Salinger Year...

The Birches was one of the grand mansions of the 1920s, with a ballroom, tennis courts, and, of course, a swimming pool. But after the crash of '29, when Lois and Judith's father killed himself to escape his debts, the family turned the summer home into a fulltime retreat from the world. Decades later, Judith is the queen of New York society, a fast-living beauty whose nerves are beginning to fray, while Lois still lives in the dilapidated old mansion, writing mystery novels to pay the bills. She is about to encounter a mystery of her own.

In The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, Dr. Watson chronicles some of the more interesting detective cases that he and his good friend, Mr. Sherlock Holmes, have encountered during their association. We see the cases unfold as he does, scratch our heads as he does while the evidence is collected - then marvel at the impeccable observations, remarkable insight, and doggedness which Holmes displays as he teases apart the tangled clues.

In 1852, young Walt Whitman—a down-on-his-luck housebuilder in Brooklyn—was hard at work writing two books. One would become one of the most famous volumes of poetry in American history, a free-verse revelation beloved the world over, Leaves of Grass. The other, a novel, would be published...

Since his retirement from King's University, life has been rather quiet for Professor Daly. When he is invited back to King's University to deliver a series of prestigious lectures, his heart leaps. But on arrival he discovers that he has not been called back to the university on account of his literary knowledge. Somebody has been sending the president of King's threatening letters. Somebody within the university, it seems, wants him dead. Perhaps aware of his own arrogant, materialistic, and bullying nature and the effects it may produce, President Bradley seems genuinely worried.

The novel that launched the astonishing career of one of the 20th century’s greatest writers of action and suspense – an acclaimed classic of heroism and the sea in World War II. Constant patrols have pushed the crew of the HMS Ulysses beyond the limits of endurance. And now they must be put...

Winner of the 2016 EDGAR, AGATHA, MACAVITY and H.R.F.KEATING crime writing awards, this real-life detective story investigates how Agatha Christie and colleagues in a mysterious literary club transformed crime fiction. Detective stories of the Twenties and Thirties have long been stereotyped as...

Con ánimo de vengarse de una pasada humillación, Montresor busca a Fortunato en plenos carnavales de alguna ciudad italiana (al parecer, Venecia) del siglo XIX. Ambos van disfrazados y gracias a que Fortunato está ebrio, el narrador logra convencerlo de que lo acompañe a la cueva de su palacio, las catacumbas de los Montresor, con el pretexto de probar un nuevo vino amontillado. Anímate a descubrir cómo el vengativo narrador, con una notable maligna inteligencia, humor negro, ironía y sadismo, consuma la más horrible venganza.

The latest in a new series of classic detective stories from the vaults of HarperCollins is a reissue of one of literature’s most audacious and thought-provoking novels of murder and intrigue, performed by Richard E. Grant. Includes John Inglisham’s foreword from the original Detective Story...

Ezekiel "Coop" Cooper is lonely. He's no longer with the NYPD due to cancer that's in remission. His daughter Bette is in New Jersey, and he doesn't talk with her about anything personal, but he loves her. He's looking forward to seeing her at the family bungalow, but when he gets there, he...

From the Collins Crime Club archive, the first Inspector French novel by Freeman Wills Crofts, once dubbed ‘The King of Detective Story Writers’. THE FIRST INSPECTOR FRENCH MYSTERY At the offices of the Hatton Garden diamond merchant Duke and Peabody, the body of old Mr Gething is discovered...

From Edgar-nominated author Lyndsay Faye comes what Gillian Flynn calls “a brilliant new mystery.” One of The Wall Street Journal’s Ten Best Mysteries of the Year Six months after the formation of the NYPD, its most reluctant and talented officer, Timothy Wilde, thinks himself well versed...

A brilliant collection of bestselling stories from Julia Donaldson and friends. Read aloud by stars Alexander Armstrong, Floella Benjamin, Noma Dumezweni, Justin Fletcher, Lauren Laverne and Imelda Staunton. Perfect for listening to at home, in the car, at bedtime or any time at all! Help solve...