Search Results: Crippen from Murder By The Book

Norfolk, VA, U.S.A.: Crippen & Landru, 2008. 1st prtg. Fine, unread copy of trade paperback, still in shrinkwrap. NEVER BEFORE PUBLISHED! Four plays written during the early 1940s, two by John Dickson Carr alone and two in collaboration with the BBC's Val Gielgud. "Inspector Silence Takes the Air" is set during World War II at emergency BBC studios in a provincial town. There, a murder takes place - and the weapon disappears. In "13 to the Gallows", also set in a BBC studio, a woman falls to her death from a tower - it is murder, but no one is near her, and the only clue is a scattering of Arum Lilies. "Intruding Shadow" is filled with mysteries within mysteries, as Carr expertly shifts the audience's expectations from one suspect to another. "She Slept Lightly" features the ghostly appearances of a young woman during the Napoleonic Wars. The book concludes with an alternate ending for one of the plays, cast lists, and contemporary reviews… Read More

Norfolk: VA: Crippen & Landru, 2001. 1st paperback printing, fine, unread copy, still in shrink-wrap. Trade paperback.. Sixteen stories plus a checklist of Goulart's work. Ron Goulart's first collection of mystery short stories features two of his most famous characters. Five of the stories are about Scrib Merlin, a would-be comedian and disgruntled advertising copywriter, who seems always to be present whenever someone expires with a cryptic dying message on his lips. When a murder victims gasps "ninety-nine clop clop" or "six tablespoons molasses" or "Adam and Eve on a raft," Scrib becomes a sleuth hoping not only to solve the murder but also (often in vain) to feather his own nest. The Scrib Merlin tales are genuine challenge-to-the-reader mysteries. The unnamed California Adman, who narrates seven wry (and, some might say, wicked) stories, has an impressively large number of homicidal acquaintances, most of whom find that the table can easily be… Read More

Norfolk: VA: Crippen & Landru, 1999. 1st paperback printing, as new, unread, still in shrinkwrap. Oversize trade paperback. 7 stories and an introduction by the author. Dr. David Westbrook, a small-town veterinarian in Michigan, has a one-eyed, three-legged cat named Franken Kat, whom he found by the roadside and patched together. "She's a terrific mouser," David explains. "She can't catch anybody but she spooks the hell out of 'em and they change neighborhoods." All creatures can be dark and dangerous, but Dave knows that humans can be the most dangerous of all. With the cooperation of the local sheriff, David finds that his ministrations to cats, dogs, horses and other four-legged creatures lead him to dark side of a more complicated creatures -- the two-legged kind. And David discovers that just as he stitched Franken Kat back together, he sometimes has to reassemble people's lives, including his own. Doug Allyn is one of the most gifted short-story… Read More

Norfolk, VA, U.S.A.: Crippen & Landru, Publishers, 2004. 1st edition. A fine, unread copy fine in dust jacket. Number 11 in the Lost Classic Series. Low print run as the publisher states that "The first printing of each book will be small perhaps 400-500 copies, divided between clothbound copies in dustjacket, and trade softcover." In 1930, Anthony Berkeley Cox founded London's Detection Club. His novels and short stories are among the finest examples of the fair play, challange-to-the-reader tradition of the Golden Age. Berkeley punctiliously presented all the clues to the reader, but as Tony Medawar and Arthur Robinson point out in their introduction, he loved showing that clues could be interpreted in multiple ways and Sheringham is often wrong in his conclusions. The title story in "The Avenging Chance" has long been considered one of the five or six greatest formal detective stories. This book also collects seven additional Sheringham and Moresby, one of… Read More

Norfolk, VA, U.S.A.: Crippen & Landru, 2008. 1st ed. Fine, unread copy in dust jacket. Low print run as the publisher states that "The first printing of each book will be small perhaps 400-500 copies, divided between clothbound copies in dustjacket, and trade softcover." Hugh Pentecost, the pseudonym of Judson Philips (1903-1989), created one of the most memorable of fictional sleuths in the red-bearded artist, John Jericho. The stories combine interesting settings, skillful puzzles, social concerns, and earnest melodrama. Jericho's paintings reflect his anger against social injustice and violence, and his search for Truth; and when the downtrodden, the unfairly accused, and (frequently) a damsel in distress seek his help, he is willing to enter the fray. Jericho's skills as a detective are his skills as an artist. His painter's eye picks up details that others miss. And the energy he puts on his canvasses is reflected in the physical energy with which he fights for… Read More

Norfolk, VA, U.S.A.: Crippen & Landru, 2008. 1st ed. Fine, unread copy, still in shrinkwrap of the trade paperback published simultaneously with the hardcover. Low print run as the publisher states that "The first printing of each book will be small perhaps 400-500 copies, divided between clothbound copies in dustjacket, and trade softcover." Hugh Pentecost, the pseudonym of Judson Philips (1903-1989), created one of the most memorable of fictional sleuths in the red-bearded artist, John Jericho. The stories combine interesting settings, skillful puzzles, social concerns, and earnest melodrama. Jericho's paintings reflect his anger against social injustice and violence, and his search for Truth; and when the downtrodden, the unfairly accused, and (frequently) a damsel in distress seek his help, he is willing to enter the fray. Jericho's skills as a detective are his skills as an artist. His painter's eye picks up details that others miss. And the energy he puts on his… Read More

Norfolk, VA, U.S.A.: Crippen & Landru, 2004. 1st prtg. Fine unread copy of the trade paperback, still in shrinkwrap. A treasury of riches for Spillane fans. It includes in short-story form two Mike Hammer cases which later appeared as novels; a long lost Hammer story; the transcript of a Mike Hammer playlet; three reproductions of rare comic books featuring Mike's predecessors-- Mike Lance and Mike Danger-- who were also created by Spillane; as well as fourteen articles by Spillane when he himself lived a life of adventure --- diving for sunken treasure, racing sports cars, working in a circus, and chasing hot rod moonshiners. Edited and with an introduction by Spillane experts Max Allan Collins and Lynn F. Meyers Jr.. 1st Prtg. Pictorial Wrappers. New. Trade Paperback.

Norfolk, VA, U.S.A.: Crippen & Landru, 2004. 1st ed. Fine in dust jacket. Out-of-Print. LIMITED EDITION, one of 250 copies SIGNED by SPILLANE and by editors MAX ALLAN COLLINS and LYNN F. MEYERS, JR.. Cover Illustration by Gail Cross. A treasury of riches for Spillane fans. It includes in short-story form two Mike Hammer cases which later appeared as novels; a long lost Hammer story; the transcript of a Mike Hammer playlet; three reproductions of rare comic books featuring Mike's predecessors-- Mike Lance and Mike Danger-- who were also created by Spillane; as well as fourteen articles by Spillane when he himself lived a life of adventure --- diving for sunken treasure, racing sports cars, working in a circus, and chasing hot rod moonshiners. Edited and with an introduction by Spillane experts Max Allan Collins and Lynn F. Meyers Jr. Each copy of the Limited Edition contains an audio CD of three Mike Hammer radio adventures.. Signed by All Contributors. First Edition. Hard Cover.… Read More

Norfolk: VA: Crippen & Landru, 2001. 1st ed. Fine in dust jacket. Out-of-print. One of 250 clothbound copies SIGNED and NUMBERED by the author [this being #120]. Cover illustration by Carol Heyer. The first collection of short mystery stories by the Anthony Award winning author of the Jill Smith and Kiernan O'Shaughnessy detective novels. This anthology also collects two of the most imaginative detective stories ever written -- tales of "The Celestial Detective" who investigates crime in the Afterlife -- or, perhaps more accurately, crimes that sent someone to the Afterlife. Seventeen stories broken up into four sections with each having its own introduction by Dunlap. Includes a Dunlap checklist. Accompanying each copy is a seperately printed pamphlet, "A Tale of Two Cities: A Jill Smith Story".. Signed by Author. First Edition. Hard Cover. Fine/Fine. Illus. by Heyer, Carol. Book.

Norfolk: VA: Crippen & Landru, 2000. 1st prtg. A fine, unread copy still in shrinkwrap of this trade paperback. An Edgar Award Winner in the past, Howard recently set a record by WINNING his 5th ELLERY QUEEN READER'S AWARD. 12 stories and a chronology of Howard's work. First Printing. Pictorial Wrappers. New. Book.

Norfolk: VA: Crippen & Landru, 2000. 1st ed. Fine in dust jacket. LIMITED EDITION, one of 225 NUMBERED COPIES, this being #125, SIGNED by Howard. Accompanying each copy is a seperately printed pamphlet, "The Killing Floor". An Edgar Award Winner in the past, Howard recently set a record by winning his 5th Ellery Queen Readers Award. 12 stories and a chronology of Howard's work. Signed by Author. First Edition. Cloth. Fine/Fine. Illus. by Russell, Victoria. Limited Edition.

Norfolk, VA, U.S.A.: Crippen & Landru, Publishers, 2003. 1st prtg, trade paperback published simultaneously with the limited edition hardcover edition. A Fine, unread copy. Published in honor of Cave's 92nd birthday. Eleven stories with a new introduction by Cave.. 1st Prtg. Pictorial Wrappers. Fine/No Jacket. Trade Paperback.

Norfolk, VA, U.S.A.: Crippen & Landru, Publishers, 2003. 1st ed. Fine, unread copy in dust jacket. Outof-print. Published in honor of Cave's 92nd birthday. LIMITED EDITION. One of 250 clothbound copies [this being #174]; SIGNED and numbered by the author. Accompanying each copy is a seperately printed pamphlet, "Desperate Character" by Cave. Eleven stories with a new introduction by Cave. "Hugh B. Cave was one of the most popular and prolific writers during the Golden Age of the Pulp Magazines between the late 1920's and the early 1940's. His name on the cover of Dime Detective, Detective Fiction Weekly, Weird Tales, Short Stories, Clues, Argosy, Horror Story, Black Mask, Adventure, Astounding, and countless other all-fiction magazines guaranteed a story with vivid characters and crackling pace. In his new introduction, Cave writes, "What I had, in many of my tales for Detective Fiction Weekly, were folks like you and you and you, who never wore a… Read More

Norfolk, VA, U.S.A.: Crippen & Landru, Publishers, 2003. 1st prtg published simultaneously with the limited edition hardcover edition. A Fine, unread copy. Published in honor of Cave's 92nd birthday. Eleven stories with a new introduction by Cave.. 1st Prtg. Pictorial Wrappers. Fine/No Jacket. Trade Paperback.

Norfolk, VA: Crippen & Landru, 1998. 1st Printing. A fine, unread copy in shrinkwrap. Trade size paperback issued simutaneously with the Limited edition. 17 stories. One of the most popular and admired of current crime writers, Healy has been honored by his fellow writers by eleven Shamus nominations (five for short stories, all of which appear in this volume), and his second novel, The Staked Goat, won the Shamus for Best Private Eye Novel. The Concise Cuddy contains seventeen short stories about John Francis Cuddy with settings ranging from rural Maine, to Boston's mean streets, to a highway on the way to Florida, and characters who may be homeless or living in penthouses, and cases that run the gamut from brutal murder to a missing parakeet. To all these cases Cuddy brings the skills of a private eye and the humanity of a concerned human being.. First Printing. Pictorial Wrappers. New. Trade Paperback.

Norfolk, VA, U.S.A.: Crippen & Landru, 2005. 1st ed. Fine, unread copy, still in shrinkwrap of the trade paperback. "The Confessions of Owen Keane" is the first short fiction collection by the Edgar-nominated and Shamus-winning author Terence Faherty. It brings together six short stories and a novella from the casebook of failed seminarian turned investigator Owen Keane. Called a "metaphysical detective" by the New York Times and "the ultimate amateur sleuth" by the Drood Review, Keane is a compulsive solver of mysteries. These mysteries can be as public as gang murder and gun running or as private as the loss of faith. But whether the stakes involved are large or small, these tales all feature the hallmarks of Faherty's novels: meticulous plotting, offbeat twists, and what the Philadelphia Inquirer called "a prose style that's a pleasure to spend time with." Included are two previously unpublished stories, "St. Jimmy," the very first… Read More

Norfolk, VA, U.S.A.: Crippen & Landru, 2005. First edition, so stated. Fine in fine dust jacket, not price clipped, in protective mylar cover. LIMITED EDITION, one of only 200 copies (this being #88), bound in cloth and SIGNED and numbered by Faherty. Accompanying each copy is a seperately printed pamphlet, "Goodnight, Dr. Kobel" by Faherty. "Confessions" is the first short fiction collection by the Edgar-nominated and Shamus-winning author and brings together six short stories and a novella from the casebook of Owen Keane, failed seminarian turned investigator. Called a "metaphysical detective" by the New York Times and "the ultimate amateur sleuth" by the Drood Review, Keane is a compulsive solver of mysteries. These mysteries can be as public as gang murder and gun running or as private as the loss of faith. But whether the stakes involved are large or small, these tales all feature the hallmarks of Faherty's novels: meticulous plotting,… Read More

Norfolk, VA, U.S.A.: Crippen & Landru, Publishers, 2003. 1st ed. Fine in dust jacket. Out-of-Print. LIMITED EDITION, one of 250 copies [this being #175] sewn in cloth and SIGNED and numbered by the author. Accomoanying each copy of the Limited Edition is a seperately printed pamphlet, "The Safest Little Town in Texas". Thirteen previously uncollected cases about Cuddy -- including four SHAMUS AWARD Nominees for Best Private-Eye Short story, and two stories that appeared in the annual Best American Stories. As a special bonus, the book adds a "plus one," -- the first short story featuring young female attorney Mairead O'Clare.. Signed by Author. First Edition. Hard Cover. Fine/Fine. Limited/ Numbered Edition.

Norfolk: VA: Crippen & Landru, 1999. 1st paperback printing. . Fine, unread copy, still in shrink-wrap, of this Trade size paperback. 12 stories and an introduction by the author. "Gorman is great; possibly one of THE greats," writes the British mystery journal Shots about Ed Gorman's short stories. "If George Orwell had written thrillers," Shots continues, "he might have written them this way; never a word too many, never a word too few, never a word that doesn't come from the heart." Ed Gorman's mystery short stories have a flavor found nowhere else among contemporary writers. His tales have an amazing breadth of style and plot?classical detection, private eye stories, biter-bit tales in which criminous schemes turn back on the perpetrator, and straight crime stories. What they all have in common is a recognition that we cannot escape our past. The Judge Whitney-Cody McCain stories are filled with the sights and sounds of small-town America around… Read More

Norfolk: VA: Crippen & Landru, 1999. 1st edition with complete number line beginning with 1. Fine in fine dust jacket, not price clipped, with protective mylar cover. LIMITED EDITION, 1 of 200 copies SIGNED and numbered by the author [this being copy #121.] Accompanying each copy is a seperately printed pamphlet, "Mom and Dad at Home". 12 stories and an introduction by the author. "Gorman is great; possibly one of THE greats," writes the British mystery journal Shots about Ed Gorman's short stories. "If George Orwell had written thrillers," Shots continues, "he might have written them this way; never a word too many, never a word too few, never a word that doesn't come from the heart." Ed Gorman's mystery short stories have a flavor found nowhere else among contemporary writers. His tales have an amazing breadth of style and plot?classical detection, private eye stories, biter-bit tales in which criminous schemes turn back on the… Read More