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Unseemly Science
by Rod DuncanIn the divided land of England, Elizabeth Barnabus has been living a double life - as both herself and as her brother, the private detective. Witnessing the hanging of Alice Carter, the false duchess, Elizabeth resolves to throw the Bullet Catcher's Handbook into the fire, and forget her past. If only it were that easy!There is a new charitable organisation in town, run by some highly respectable women. But something doesn't feel right to Elizabeth. Perhaps it is time for her fictional brother to come out of retirement for one last case...? Her unstoppable curiosity leads her to a dark world of body-snatching, unseemly experimentation, politics and scandal. Never was it harder for a woman in a man's world...File Under: FantasyFrom the Paperback edition.
The Woman in White
by Wilkie CollinsOne of the earliest and most entrancing mystery novels ever written. The young Walter Hartright is employed as the wealthy Limmeridge House. He meets Laura, the patriarch's niece, and the mysterious white-clad Anne, her near-double, and becomes enmeshed in a dastardly plot by Laura's new husband, the scheming Percival Glyde, to steal her fortune. It will take all of Walter's wiles to solve the mystery of the woman in white and set things right. Penguin Random House Canada is proud to bring you classic works of literature in e-book form, with the highest quality production values. Find more today and rediscover books you never knew you loved.
Short Story Collection: The Continental Op (PDF)
by Dashiell Hammett'An acknowledged literary landmark' Robert Graves Dashiell Hammett is the true inventor of modern detective fiction and the creator of the private eye, the isolated hero in a world where treachery is the norm. The Continental Op was his great first contribution to the genre and these seven stories, which first appeared in the magazine Black Mask, are the best examples of Hammett's early writing, in which his formidable literary and moral imagination is already operating at full strength. The Continental Op is the dispassionate fat man working for the Continental Detective Agency, modelled on the Pinkerton Agency, whose only interest is in doing his job in a world of violence, passion, desperate action and great excitement.
Poirot: The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (PDF)
by Agatha ChristieRoger Ackroyd knew too much. He knew that the woman he loved had poisoned her brutal first husband. He suspected also that someone had been blackmailing her. Now, tragically, came the news that she had taken her own life with a drug overdose. But the evening post brought Roger one last fatal scrap of information. Unfortunately, before he could finish the letter, he was stabbed to death.
Master Crook's Crime Academy: Robbery For Rascals (PDF)
by Terry DearyAfter sending dozens of innocent people to jail, cruel Judge Fumble decides to rest at his country mansion. But he must ensure that the Fumble fortune remains safe on the journey home. . . On the other side of town, the students of the world's first crime academy are getting set for another lesson in crime-this time from the greatest highway robber Wildpool has ever seen. Books this funny should be against the law!
The Daughter of Time
by Josephine TeyWhat does a great detective do when he's stuck in bed? Inspector Grant is used to prowling the streets, solving crimes and unraveling mysteries, so when he finds himself bedridden in the hospital, he needs something to occupy his mind.<P> He turns his attention to the figure of Richard III--generally considered a murderous monster by history. But is the reputation really earned? Soon the inspector has his friends delivering stacks of history books to him, but can any detective, even one of his skill, solve a 400-year-old mystery? In 1990, the UK Crime Writers' Association ranked it at number one on their list of The Top 100 Crime Novels of All Time. Penguin Random House Canada is proud to bring you classic works of literature in e-book form, with the highest quality production values. Find more today and rediscover books you never knew you loved.
The Franchise Affair
by Josephine TeyRobert Blair has a quiet life as a solicitor in a small town until the Sharpes, a mother and daughter living in The Franchise, their country home, are accused of kidnapping and abuse. <P> Blair, with some guidance from Scotland Yard's brilliant Inspector Grant, dons the cap of the amateur detective, determined to get to the bottom of these startling accusations. Penguin Random House Canada is proud to bring you classic works of literature in e-book form, with the highest quality production values. Find more today and rediscover books you never knew you loved.
The Glass Key
by Dashiell HammettUnlike most of Hammett's works, the protagonist of The Glass Key isn't a private detective; Ned Beaumont is a gambler, and the friend of a criminal boss. <P> The action starts when he discovers the body of a senator's son, and his friend wants him to help cover it up as a means of gaining the senator's favour. This draws Beaumont into a brewing gang war, and he has to solve the mystery if he wants to get out alive. It has been adapted for film twice. Penguin Random House Canada is proud to bring you classic works of literature in e-book form, with the highest quality production values. Find more today and rediscover books you never knew you loved.
A Dark Night's Work
by Elizabeth Cleghorn GaskellElizabeth Gaskell's books include Gothic mysteries and historical fiction, and much of her work was published in the journals of Charles Dickens. Her most famous novels are Cranford, North and South and Wives and Daughters. <P> <P> Her books tend to criticize social attitudes that were common at the time as well as exploring the roles of women in society with dynamic female characters. A Dark Night's Work is about a murder that was motivated due to class inequalities. The book was serialized by Charles Dickens in 1863.
A Fair Penitent
by Wilkie CollinsDelve into the seamy underside of eighteenth-century Paris in this gripping short story from beloved British author Wilkie Collins. <P> <P> The fair penitent of the title is a renowned stage actress who decides to give up her life of cultural refinement and cushy creature comforts to seek out a more spiritually fulfilling path. Will she find a way to make things right and repent?
The Hound Of The Baskervilles (PDF)
by Arthur Conan DoyleOne of the most iconic and memorable of all the Sherlock Holmes stories. A terrible beast, a house wreathed in fog, treacherous moorland and a cold-blooded murder - these are the things Sherlock and his faithful assistant Dr Watson are up against. THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES gripped readers when it was first published and continues to endure today.
The Quest of the Sacred Slipper
by Sax RohmerArthur Henry Sarsfield Ward, better known as Sax Rohmer, was a prolific English novelist. He is most remembered for his series of novels featuring Dr. Fu Manchu, the master criminal and perhaps the source of the literary notion of Yellow Peril. His first published work was in 1903, the short story "The Mysterious Mummy" for "Pearson's Weekly. " He published his first novel -- "Pause " -- anonymously in 1910 and the first Fu Manchu tale, "The Mystery of Dr. Fu Manchu," was serialized over 1912-13. The Fu Manchu stories, together with those featuring Gaston Max or Morris Klaw, made Rohmer one of the most successful and well-paid writers in of the 1920s and 1930s. In "The Quest of the Sacred Slipper," terror comes to Britain when a self-centered archeologist unearths one of Islam's holiest relics -- the sacred slipper of the prophet Mohammed. Until it is returned to its rightful people, the implacable Hassan of Allepo vows his reign of death and destruction shall not cease. Behind these inhuman outrages is a secret group of fanatics. Not even the best men of Scotland Yard seem able to apprehend them. For, in some mystical way, this phantom band had never been seen or even heard . . .
A House to Let
by Wilkie Collins Charles Dickens Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell Adelaide Anne ProcterI had been living at Tunbridge Wells and nowhere else, going on for ten years, when my medical man-very clever in his profession, and the prettiest player I ever saw in my life of a hand at Long Whist, which was a noble and a princely game before <P> <P> Short was heard of-said to me, one day, as he sat feeling my pulse on the actual sofa which my poor dear sister Jane worked before her spine came on, and laid her on a board for fifteen months at a stretch-the most upright woman that ever lived-said to me, "What we want, ma'am, is a fillip. ""Good gracious, goodness gracious, Doctor Towers!" says I, quite startled at the man, for he was so christened himself: "don't talk as if you were alluding to people's names; but say what you mean. ""I mean, my dear ma'am, that we want a little change of air and scene. ""Bless the man!" said I; "does he mean we or me!""I mean you, ma'am. ""Then Lard forgive you, Doctor Towers," I said; "why don't you get into a habit of expressing yourself in a straightforward manner, like a loyal subject of our gracious Queen Victoria, and a member of the Church of England?"Towers laughed, as he generally does when he has fidgetted me into any of my impatient ways-one of my states, as I call them-and then he began,-"Tone, ma'am, Tone, is all you require!" He appealed to Trottle, who just then came in with the coal-scuttle, looking, in his nice black suit, like an amiable man putting on coals from motives of benevolence.
A Millionaire of Yesterday
by E. Phillips OppenheimE Phillips Oppenheim was a British writer known for his thriller novels. He is credited with writing over 100 novels including suspense, international intrigue, romance, parables, and comedies. <P> <P> His protagonists are known for their love of luxury, gourmet meals, and their enjoyment of criminal activities. Two men, one old, one young, go on an African expedition. They join together in a mining venture that they think will make them rich when the English government recognizes their claim. They agree that, should one of them die, the other will get everything. When the older man dies the younger returns to England a wealthy man where his partner's daughter refers to him as a millionaire of yesterday.
Dangerous Days
by Mary Roberts RinehartIf you're a fan of tightly plotted historical mysteries, don't miss Mary Roberts Rinehart's Dangerous Days. This tale blends disparate elements such as industrial spies, intrigue among the American aristocracy, and the political and social climate that led up to World War I into a fast-paced and eminently satisfying read.
Red Pepper Burns
by Grace S. Richmond1910. With illustrations by C. M Relyea and John Jackson. In this novel Richmond writes about R. P. Burns, whose fiery hairy (not to mention a similar temper), earned him the nickname of Red Pepper among his friends. He was a country doctor of the old school-one of those whole-souled enthusiasts who would rather relieve some neighbor's suffering than eat his own dinner. And Mrs. Richmond, who has clearly studied her hero from life, makes a highly lovable personality out of this impetuous, brilliant, powerful, high-minded young doctor. This romance with Ellen Lessing, makes a delightfully interesting and wholesome story which ends with wedding bells gaily ringing as it needs must end. See other titles by this author available from Kessinger Publishing.
A Poor Wise Man
by Mary Roberts RinehartA Poor Wise Man mixes romantic fiction with political analysis. This engrossing story begins, "The city turned its dreariest aspect toward the railway on blackened walls, irregular and ill-paved streets, gloomy warehouses, and over all a gray, smoke-laden atmosphere which gave it mystery and often beauty. <P> <P> Sometimes the softened towers of the great steel bridges rose above the river mist like fairy towers suspended between Heaven and earth. And again the sun tipped the surrounding hills with gold, while the city lay buried in its smoke shroud, and white ghosts of river boats moved spectrally along.
A Strange Disappearance
by Anna Katharine GreenAnna Green was an early 20th century novelist. She was one of the first authors to write detective stories in America. Her stories are known for their well thought out plots and their legal accuracy. <P> <P> Although Green wrote in a genre previously dominated by men she did n think much of feminists and opposed women's suffrage. Her second novel A Strange Disappearance was published in 1880. Other books by Ana Green include: The House of the Whispering Pines, Miss Hurd, An Enigma, Leavenworth Case, That Affair Next Door, and Sword of Damocles
A Study in Scarlet
by Arthur Conan DoyleIn the debut of literature's most famous sleuth, a dead man is discovered in a bloodstained room in Brixton. <P> <P> The only clues are a wedding ring, a gold watch, a pocket edition of Boccaccio's Decameron, and a word scrawled in blood on the wall. With this investigation begins the partnership of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. Their search for the murderer uncovers a story of love and revenge-and heralds a franchise of detective mysteries starring the formidable Holmes.
Aaron Trow
by Anthony TrollopeAaron Trow, because of his murder of a man during a strike in England, is shipped off to a prison in Bermuda. He escapes and breaks into the house of a pastor and his daughter on a night when the daughter is alone. <P> <P> He demands food, drink and money. She gives him the first two but protests she hasn't a penny to give him. He gets physical and they have a knock-down, drag-out brawl until the girl's fiance comes to the rescue. Trow escapes and a posse is sent out after him, a chase that ends in a cliff cave over the crashing sea. By the time it is all over, everyone who has been a part of this drama has been changed for the rest of their lives.
Bug Club, Purple, A: Fireflash (PDF)
by Deborah NashPart of the Bug Club whole school reading programme for Reception, KS1 and KS2 that transforms young readers into life-long readers. Children are instantly engaged by the characters they know and love and want to read more and more.
The Devil's Paw
by E. Phillips OppenheimExcerpt: . . . Thats the way these fellows who dont know any better chuck their money about," he added, swinging around in his chair towards her. "The clothes I have on cost me exactly four pounds fifteen cash, and I guarantee his were no better. " Catherine frowned impatiently. "We did not come here, did we, Mr. Fenn, to discuss Mr. Ordens tailors bill? I can see no object at all in going through his correspondence in this way. What you have to search for is a packet wrapped up in thin yellow oilskin, with Number 17 on the outside in black ink. " "Oh, he might have slipped it in anywhere," Fenn pointed out. "Besides, theres always a chance that one of his letters may give us a clue as to where he has hidden the document. Come and sit down by the side of me, wont you, Miss Abbeway? Do " "I would rather stand, thank you," she replied. "You seem to find your present occupation to your taste. I should loathe it " "Never think of my own feelings," Fenn said briskly, "when theres a job to be done. I wish youd be a bit more friendly, though, Miss Abbeway. Let me pull that chair up by the side of mine. I like to have you near. You know, Ive been a bachelor for a good many years," he went on impressively, "but a little homey place like this always makes me think of things. Ive nothing against marriage if only a man can be lucky enough to get the right sort of girl, and although advanced thinkers like you and me and some of the others are looking at things differently, nowadays, I wouldnt mind much which way it was," he confided, dropping his voice a little and laying his hand upon her arm, "if you could make up your mind
The Crystal Stopper
by Maurice LeblancThis early work by Maurice Leblanc was originally published in 1912 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introductory biography. "The Crystal Stopper" is another favourite mystery novel by Leblanc where during a burglary at the home of Deputy Daubrecq, a crime is committed and two accomplices of Arsene Lupin are arrested by the police. Maurice Marie Emile Leblanc was born on 11th November 1864 in Rouen, Normandy, France. He was a novelist and writer of short stories, known primarily as the creator of the fictional gentleman thief and detective, Arsene Lupin. From the start, Leblanc wrote both short crime stories and longer novels - and his lengthier tomes, heavily influenced by writers such as Flaubert and Maupassant, were critically admired, but met with little commercial success. Leblanc was largely considered little more than a writer of short stories for various French periodicals when the first Arsene Lupin story appeared. It was published as a series of stories in the magazine 'Je Sais Trout', starting on 15th July, 1905. Clearly created at editorial request under the influence of, and in reaction to, the wildly successful Sherlock Holmes stories, the roguish and glamorous Lupin was a surprise success and Leblanc's fame and fortune beckoned. In total, Leblanc went on to write twenty-one Lupin novels or collections of short stories. On this success, he later moved to a beautiful country-side retreat in Etreat (in the Haute-Normandie region in north-western France), which today is a museum dedicated to the Arsene Lupin books. Leblanc was awarded the Legion d'Honneur - the highest decoration in France - for his services to literature. He is buried in the prestigious Montparnasse Cemetery of Paris. "
Dope
by Sax RohmerDope, a Story of Chinatown is a non-Fu Manchu novel that marks the first appearance of Chief Inspector Red Kerry. Kerry is a smart cop who uses his brain as well as his brawn to outwit and capture the criminals that threaten his city and its people. He is a physically tough man with red hair (Rohmer plays up the description more than once during the book). He brooks very little BS from anyone including his fellow officers. Because he is incorruptible and gets results, he has the backing of his superiors.
Dracula
by Bram Stoker Beth JohnsonDuring a business visit to Count Dracula's castle in Transylvania, a young English solicitor finds himself at the center of a series of horrifying incidents. Jonathan Harker is attacked by three phantom women, observes the Count's transformation from human to bat form, and discovers puncture wounds on his own neck that seem to have been made by teeth. Harker returns home upon his escape from Dracula's grim fortress, but a friend's strange malady — involving sleepwalking, inexplicable blood loss, and mysterious throat wounds — initiates a frantic vampire hunt. The popularity of Bram Stoker's 1897 horror romance is as deathless as any vampire. Its supernatural appeal has spawned a host of film and stage adaptations, and more than a century after its initial publication, it continues to hold readers spellbound.