This anthology of rare stories of crime and suspense brings together 18 tales from the Golden Age of Detective Fiction for the first time in book form, including uncollected stories by Ngaio Marsh and John Dickson Carr. The Golden Age of detective fiction had begun inauspiciously with the publication of E.C. Bentley's schismatic Trent's Last Case in 1913, but it hit its stride in 1920 when both Agatha Christie and Freeman Wills Crofts - latterly crowned queen and king of the genre - had crime novels published for the first time. They ushered in two decades of exemplary mystery writing, the era of the whodunit, the impossible crime and the locked-room mystery, with stories that have thrilled and baffled generations of readers. This new volume in the Bodies from the Library series features the work of 18 prolific authors who, like Christie and Crofts, saw their popularity soar during the Golden Age. Aside from novels, they all wrote short fiction - stories, serials and plays - and although most of them have been collected in books over the last 100 years, here are the ones that got away… In this book you will encounter classic series detectives including Colonel Gore, Roger Sheringham, Hildegarde Withers and Henri Bencolin; Hercule Poirot solves 'The Incident of the Dog's Ball'; Roderick Alleyn returns to New Zealand in a recently discovered television drama by Ngaio Marsh; and Dorothy L. Sayers' chilling 'The House of the Poplars' is published for the first time. With a full-length novella by John Dickson Carr and an unpublished radio script by Cyril Hare, this diverse collection concludes with some early 'flash fiction' commissioned by Collins' Crime Club in 1938. Each mini story had to feature an orange, resulting in six very different tales from Peter Cheyney, Ethel Lina White, David Hume, Nicholas Blake, John Rhode and - in his only foray into writing detective fiction - the publisher himself, William Collins. Selected and introduced by Tony Medawar.

This anthology of rare stories of crime and suspense brings together 16 tales by masters of the Golden Age of Detective Fiction for the first time in book form, including a newly discovered Agatha Christie crime story that has not been seen since 1922. At a time when crime and thriller writing has once again overtaken the sales of general and literary fiction, Bodies from the Library unearths lost stories from the Golden Age, that period between the World Wars when detective fiction captured the public’s imagination and saw the emergence of some of the world’s cleverest and most popular storytellers. This anthology brings together 16 forgotten tales that have either been published only once before – perhaps in a newspaper or rare magazine – or have never before appeared in print. From a previously unpublished 1917 script featuring Ernest Bramah’s blind detective Max Carrados, to early 1950s crime stories written for London’s Evening Standard by Cyril Hare, Freeman Wills Crofts and A.A. Milne, it spans five decades of writing by masters of the Golden Age. Most anticipated of all are the contributions by women writers: the first detective story by Georgette Heyer, unseen since 1923; an unpublished story by Christianna Brand, creator of Nanny McPhee; and a dark tale by Agatha Christie published only in an Australian journal in 1922 during her ‘Grand Tour’ of the British Empire. With other stories by Detection Club stalwarts Anthony Berkeley, H.C. Bailey, J.J. Connington, John Rhode and Nicholas Blake, plus Vincent Cornier, Leo Bruce, Roy Vickers and Arthur Upfield, this essential collection harks back to a time before forensic science – when murder was a complex business.

This anthology of rare stories of crime and suspense brings together 15 tales from the Golden Age of Detective Fiction for the first time in book form, including newly discovered stories by Dorothy L. Sayers and Edmund Crispin that have never previously been published. With the Golden Age of detective fiction shining ever more brightly thanks to the recent reappearance of many forgotten crime novels, Bodies from the Library offers a rare opportunity to read lost stories from the first half of the twentieth century by some of the genre’s most accomplished writers. This second volume is a showcase for popular figures of the Golden Age, in stories that even their most ardent fans will not be aware of. It includes uncollected and unpublished stories by acclaimed queens and kings of crime fiction, from Helen Simpson, Ethel Lina White, E.C.R. Lorac, Christianna Brand, Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers, to S.S. Van Dine, Jonathan Latimer, Clayton Rawson, Cyril Alington and Antony and Peter Shaffer (writing as Peter Antony). This book also features two highly readable radio scripts by Margery Allingham (involving Jack the Ripper) and John Rhode, plus two full-length novellas – one from a rare magazine by Q Patrick, the other an unpublished Gervase Fen mystery by Edmund Crispin, written at the height of his career. It concludes with another remarkable discovery: ‘The Locked Room’ by Dorothy L. Sayers, a never-before-published case for Lord Peter Wimsey! Selected and introduced by Tony Medawar, who also provides fascinating pen portraits of each author, Bodies from the Library 2 is an indispensable collection for any bookshelf. Selected and introduced by Tony Medawar.

Classics, modern fiction, non-fiction and more. Written for secondary and adult students the Oxford Bookworms Library has seven reading levels from A1-C1 of the CEFR. The murder plan seems so neat, so clever. How can it possibly fail? And when Sonia's stupid, boring little husband is dead, she will be free to marry her handsome lover. But perhaps the boring little husband is not so stupid after all... Murder plans that go wrong, a burglar who makes a bad mistake, a famous jewel thief who meets a very unusual detective... These five stories from the golden age of crime writing are full of mystery and surprises. Retold by John Escott.

Classic crime fiction's 'Indiana Jones' Tony Medawar unearths more unpublished and uncollected stories from the Golden Age of suspense, including John Bude, John Dickson Carr, Dorothy L. Sayers and Julian Symons. ‘Five books in, and the selection here might well be the strongest yet. This series continues to delight with the high standard of forgotten gems that Medawar uncovers, and there’s sufficient range to ensure that all fans of the genre will find something to enjoy. Book 6 can’t come soon enough.’ Jim Noy, author of The Red Death Murders The end of the First World War saw the rise of an insatiable public appetite for clever and thrilling mystery fiction and a new kind of hero – the modern crime writer. As the genre soared in popularity, so did the inventiveness of its best authors, ushering in a “Golden Age” of detective fiction – two decades of exemplary mystery writing: the era of the whodunit, the impossible crime and the locked-room mystery, with stories that have thrilled and baffled generations of readers. The Golden Age still casts a long shadow, with many of the authors who were published at that time still hugely popular today. Aside from novels, they all wrote short fiction – stories, serials and plays – and although many have been republished in books over the last 100 years, Bodies from the Library collects the ones that are impossible to find: stories that appeared in a newspaper, magazine or an anthology that has long been out of print; ephemeral works such as plays not aired, staged or screened for decades; and unpublished stories that were absorbed into an author’s archive when they died . . . Complete with fascinating biographies by Tony Medawar of all the featured authors, this latest volume in the annual Bodies from the Library series once again brings into the daylight the forgotten, the lost and the unknown, and is an indispensable collection for any bookshelf.

This wonderful collection brings together some classic adventures of amateur detective Father Brown. This genial and perceptive priest-sleuth is a major figure in the world of whodunit fiction and continues to charm readers today. Father Brown is one of the best-loved sleuths from Golden Age of detective fiction. This handsome hardback volume collects four of his classic cases, presented with a modern cover design, dust jacket and gorgeous endpapers. Hiding behind his genial appearance, this priest-come-detective has a razor-sharp mind. Through his experience as a confessor, Father Brown has gained has an intrinsic knowledge of humanity's capacity for evil which makes him an expert at solving crimes. This gifted sleuth uses intuition over scientific method, putting himself in the shoes and minds of the criminals he seeks. Stories include: • The Resurrection of Father Brown • The Oracle of the Dog • The Mirror of the Magistrate • The Actor and the Alibi

Arthur Conan Doyle was a British writer best known for his detective fiction featuring the character Sherlock Holmes. His works also include fantasy and science fiction, as well as plays, romances, non-fiction and historical novels. The White Company is a huge historical novel set during the Hundred Years War. Together with the heroes of this story, you will visit England, France, and Spain, and take part in the events of one of the longest wars in human history.

A landmark of science fiction`s "Golden Age," Isaac Asimov`s Foundation Trilogy--which comprises the novels Foundation, Foundation and Empire, and Second Foundation - has long been regarded a visionary masterpiece whose astonishing historical scope perfectly conveys science fiction`s sense of wonder.

Arthur Conan Doyle was a British writer best known for his detective fiction featuring the character Sherlock Holmes. His works also include fantasy and science fiction, as well as plays, romances, non-fiction and historical novels. This book is the first part of a "Mysteries and Adventures" series, containing author's earliest fiction stories. The narratives revolve around different themes, such as romance, crime, colonial life, politics, and even supernatural.

Arthur Conan Doyle was a British writer best known for his detective fiction featuring the character Sherlock Holmes. His works also include fantasy and science fiction, as well as plays, romances, non-fiction and historical novels. This book is the second part of a "Mysteries and Adventures" series, containing author's earliest fiction stories. The narratives revolve around different themes, such as romance, crime, colonial life, politics, and even supernatural.

Arthur Conan Doyle was a British writer best known for his detective fiction featuring the character Sherlock Holmes. His works also include fantasy and science fiction, as well as plays, romances, non-fiction and historical novels. This book is the second part of a "Mysteries and Adventures" series, containing author's earliest fiction stories. The narratives revolve around different themes, such as romance, crime, colonial life, politics, and even supernatural.

Arthur Conan Doyle was a British writer best known for his detective fiction featuring the character Sherlock Holmes. His works also include fantasy and science fiction, as well as plays, romances, non-fiction and historical novels. This book is the first part of a "Mysteries and Adventures" series, containing author's earliest fiction stories. The narratives revolve around different themes, such as romance, crime, colonial life, politics, and even supernatural.

Arthur Conan Doyle was a British writer best known for his detective fiction featuring the character Sherlock Holmes. His works also include fantasy and science fiction, as well as plays, romances, non-fiction and historical novels. This book is the first part of a "Mysteries and Adventures" series, containing author's earliest fiction stories. The narratives revolve around different themes, such as romance, crime, colonial life, politics, and even supernatural..

Arthur Conan Doyle was a British writer best known for his detective fiction featuring the character Sherlock Holmes. His works also include fantasy and science fiction, as well as plays, romances, non-fiction and historical novels. This book is the second part of a "Mysteries and Adventures" series, containing author's earliest fiction stories. The narratives revolve around different themes, such as romance, crime, colonial life, politics, and even supernatural...

Arthur Conan Doyle was a British writer best known for his detective fiction featuring the character Sherlock Holmes. His works also include fantasy and science fiction, as well as plays, romances, non-fiction and historical novels. This book is the second part of a "Mysteries and Adventures" series, containing author's earliest fiction stories. The narratives revolve around different themes, such as romance, crime, colonial life, politics, and even supernatural.

Arthur Conan Doyle was a British writer best known for his detective fiction featuring the character Sherlock Holmes. His works also include fantasy and science fiction, as well as plays, romances, non-fiction and historical novels. This book is the first part of a "Mysteries and Adventures" series, containing author's earliest fiction stories. The narratives revolve around different themes, such as romance, crime, colonial life, politics, and even supernatural.