Classic Detective

A short story from the British Library Crime Classic collection Final Acts. The Affair at the Semiramis Hotel sees A .E. W. Mason's famous detective, Inspector Hanaud, and amateur detective Ricardo investigate the theft of a pearl necklace and the murder of its owner, set within the world of opera.

A short story from the British Library Crime Classic collection Final Acts. Anthony Wynne's series detective Dr Eustace Hailey becomes involved in the affairs of Lord and Lady Rushmore, the dancer Lalette Yorke, and their acquaintance Michael Dale, as lies and secrets escalate to a life-threatening climax.

A short story from the British Library Crime Classic collection Final Acts. The cast and crew of a play quickly find themselves under suspicion when their lead actor is discovered dead in his dressing room between acts, with his face made-up a horrifying picture.

A short story from the British Library Crime Classic collection Final Acts. When playwright James Annixter is hit by a taxi and forgets the ingenious resolution of his locked room mystery play, he struggles to find the mysterious man he explained it to...

Twenty classic authors from the Golden Age of Detective Fiction are brought together in the latest “Bodies from the Library” anthology series of previously unpublished and uncollected stories of crime and suspense.

Emile Gaboriau first introduced the young police officer and detective Monsieur Lecoq in his novel L'Affaire Lerouge. He based his character on an actual thief who later became no less than the head of the Paris police -- Eugine Francois Vidocq. As a character, Lecoq would later influence Arthur Conan Doyle in his creation of Sherlock Holmes. In this, his first foray into detection, Lecoq reveals his mastery of the art of disguise and his zeal for detection. Monsieur Lecoq: Volume I is the first of a two-part novel and details the crime and ensuing investigation.

Sherlock Holmes and Watson are asked to assist on a home invasion and murder case. A woman reports that a gang of men broke into her home, killed her husband, tied her up, and stole the family silver. Though it seems like a clear-cut case of robbery gone wrong, Holmes' gut tells him otherwise. But what motive lies behind this erstwhile victim’s story?

Is the world’s most famous detective on his deathbed? When Dr Watson finds Sherlock Holmes wasting away from a rare tropical disease, he must act fast if he is to save the life of his best friend. Sherlock Holmes, of course, may well have one more trick up his sleeve....

Whilst the retired Art Supplier Josiah Amberley was at the theatre, his wife ran away with a young man and a good deal of their money. Amberley wants Holmes to track her down, but the latter is too busy and sends Watson in his stead. But it soon turns out that Holmes is not the only one who has been asked to solve this case. Arthur Conan Doyle’s atmospheric short story is brought vividly to life by Robert Hardy.

"The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes" is the series of short stories that made the fortunes of the Strand magazine, in which they were first published, and won immense popularity for Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson. The detective is at the height of his powers and the volume is full of famous cases, including The Red-Headed League, The Blue Carbuncle, and The Speckled Band. Although Holmes gained a reputation for infallibility, Conan Doyle showed his own realism and feminism by having the great detective defeated by Irene Adler - the woman - in the very first story, A Scandal in Bohemia.

As a dense yellow fog swirls through the streets of London, a deep melancholy has descended on Sherlock Holmes, who sits in a cocaine-induced haze at 221B Baker Street. His mood is only lifted by a visit from a beautiful but distressed young woman - Mary Morstan, whose father vanished ten years before. Four years later she began to receive an exquisite gift every year: a large, lustrous pearl. Now she has had an intriguing invitation to meet her unknown benefactor and urges Holmes and Watson to accompany her.

Reginald Musgrave, a school friend of Holmes, saw his butler searching through private family papers. Then, Butler Brunton got caught red-handed with an ancestral ritual of the Musgraves as well. The ritual seemed worthless to the family but Brunton was determined to decipher it. A few days after Brunton disappeared. Arthur Conan Doyle’s gripping short story is brought vividly to life by Robert Hardy.

"Mr. Holmes, they were the footprints of a gigantic hound!" The death, quite suddenly, of Sir Charles Baskerville in mysterious circumstances is the trigger for one of the most extraordinary cases ever to challenge the brilliant analytical mind of Sherlock Holmes. As rumours of a legendary hound said to haunt the Baskerville family circulate, Holmes and Watson are asked to ensure the protection of Sir Charles' only heir, Sir Henry - who has travelled all the way from America to reside at Baskerville Hall in Devon.

Natalie Spencer was giving a dinner. She was not an easy hostess. Like most women of futile lives, she lacked a sense of proportion, and the small and unimportant details of the service absorbed her. Such conversation as she threw at random, to right and left, was trivial and distracted. Yet, the dinner was an unimportant one. It had been given with an eye more to the menu than to the guest list, which was characteristic of Natalie's mental processes.

El Dr. James Mortimer pide ayuda a Sherlock Holmes después de la muerte de su amigo, Sir Charles Baskerville, hallado muerto en su propiedad de Devonshire. A pesar de que la muerte de Charles fue diagnosticada por un ataque al corazón, Mortimer no termina de creérselo, ya que en el rostro del difunto se percibía una expresión de pánico.

Holmes recibe un mensaje de Porlock, uno de los agentes del profesor Moriarty. A pesar de que la ley ve a Moriarty como inocente, el detective cree firmemente que es artífice y señor de todo un inframundo criminal. Sherlock, ayudado por Watson, descifra el mensaje de Porlock y descubren que la vida de John Douglas, que reside en Birlstone, está en peligro. Poco después, Scotland Yard informa a Sherlock y Watson que el Sr. Douglas fue encontrado asesinado.

La sra. Warren, ama de llaves de Sherlock Holmes, está preocupada por un extraño huésped que ha recibido en su casa y al que nunca se le ve fuera de su habitación. Al fin, sucede algo que la hace recurrir a Sherlock Holmes.A regañadientes, Holmes se hace cargo del caso y empieza a tirar del hilo, hasta llegar a toda una conspiración criminal, que le hará colaborar con Scotland Yard y una agencia americana para resolver lo que, en contra de su criterio original, se convertirá en un trepidante caso.

Cuando un escarabajo que pareciera estar hecho de oro puro aparece llega a las manos de William Legrand, comienza un misterio que cambiará su vida por siempre. El insecto pica con un misterioso veneno, y cuando el Sr. Legrand aparenta haber perdido la razón, un amigo le acompañará a encontrar lo que el distraído señor busca. Este es el misterio de El Escarabajo de Oro.

El cadáver del magnate inglés Charles Baskerville es encontrado en el páramo de Devonshire. La incertidumbre generada por las características de la escena del crimen apunta a que la maldición de los Baskerville se está haciendo realidad y que la vida de Sir Henry, el nuevo heredero, corre peligro.

A doctor preparing for his wedding is interrupted by a detective with an errand requiring great discretion. Can the doctor identify a mysterious woman at a hotel? He can. She is weeping...she is distraught...she is his fiancee. Leaving her in her misery, he returns to the wedding site to discover his bride-to-be has been there for hours. From there, the mystery only deepens.