The Triumphs of Eugene Valmont

London: Hurst and Blackett, Limited Edge and corner wear, scuffed and scratched, pages are toning, moderate shelf wear, spine is creased, overall a very clean and collectible first Hurst and Blackett edition! No publisher's date but judging from the advertising on the rear and inner front cover pages the book seems to be from around the turn of the 20th century. Red front cover with white and black lettering. Very very rare and hard-to-find! 188 unmarked and uncreased, suspense-filled and mystery-riddled pages! Extremely scarce! "The Triumphs of Eugene Valmont brings together tales of the multifarious exploits of Robert Barr's elegant and cunning sleuth, Valmont, a brilliantly ironic parody of Sherlock Holmes. Exhibiting the crucial combination of realism and imagination that characterizes the finest crime writing, the stories exude playfulness and blend mystery and quasi-Gothic thrills with humorous detours and romantic adventure. A notable figure in 1890s literary London and a friend of Conan Doyle, Barr was acutely aware of style as a form of statement and the stories are full of literary effects, commentary on the detective mystery genre, and Valmont's disparaging reflections on English values.". First Thus. Stapled Soft Cover. Good. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.