Recently Shelved
A QUESTION OF PROOF.
New York and London: Harper & Brothers Publishers, 1935. Octavo, pp. [i-vii] viii [ix-x] 1-294, original orange cloth, front and spine stamped in black, fore edge uncut. First U. S. edition. The author's first mystery novel, the first Nigel Strangeways. Hubin, p. 78.
DANGER NEXT DOOR.
London: Cassell and Company Ltd., [1951]. Octavo, boards. First edition. NOT FINISHED Noir fiction. Possibly first published in 1937 in the pulp Street and Smiths's Detective Story Magazine. Hubin, p. 629.
A MAN LAY DEAD.
New York: Sheridan House, [1942]. Octavo, [1-6] 7 [8-10] 11-284, [285-288], original tan cloth, spine stamped in dark blue, fore-edge uncut, bottom edge rough cut. First U. S. edition. First published in the U.K. in 1934 this is the first Detective Inspector Alleyn mystery. "By the late 1930s, Marsh's reputation was secure as one of the great names-along with Christie, Sayers, and Allingham-in the Golden Age of detective fiction. The attractions of Marsh's work are well stated in a comment by the American writer Dorothy Cameron Disney: 'In her ironic and witty hands the mystery novel can be civilized literature...'" - Pronzini and Muller, 1001 Midnights, The Aficionado's Guide to Mystery and Detective Fiction, p. 557. Hubin, p. 553.
TEST TUBE BABY.
New York: Godwin, Publishers, 1936. Octavo, pp. [1-6] 7-292, original orange cloth, front and spine stamped in black. First edition. The author's second novel. A brilliant young Doctor has been raised to be a scientific genius. He is conducting experiments on producing life in the test tube. Cold and calculating in the laboratory and high strung in the outside world. He has a platonic relationship with his would be fiancé and yet picks up and becomes involved with a prostitute. Through her he meets a criminal and a large robbery is planned. With these two sides he is leading a "Jekyll and Hyde" life. - Clareson, Science Fiction in America, 1870s-1930s 317. Samuel Fuller who started as a newspaperman went on the become a screenwriter and film director, now well regarded. Reginald 05688. Not in Hubin.
THE PURPLE LEGION: A G-MAN THRILLER.
New York: The William Caslon Company, Inc., [1936]. Octavo, pp. [1-4] 5 [6] 7-255 [256: blank], original purple cloth, front and spine stamped in silver, fore edge untrimmed, bottom edge rough trimmed, top edge stained. First edition. Secret society wants to place America under authoritarian rule with a Dictator. From the jacket copy: "Major Eliot paints a picture almost too terrible to be looked upon. Yet it is a picture which every American should study...Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty." The Purple Legion is fought by Dan Fowler, G-Man. The authors second novel featuring Dan Fowler, G-Man. Dan Fowler was the main character in G-Men Detective pulp magazine (1935-1953). George Eliot wrote the majority of the stories under the C. K. M. Scanlon house pseudonym. Eliot also wrote for other pulp fiction magazines. This is one of the few if not the only pulp hero type character to have stand alone novels written and published contemporary to also appearing in magazine. Major Eliot served in World War I and was a reserve U. S. military intelligence officer in the 1920s and early 30s. He started writing pulp fiction in the mid-20s and also wrote a book with recommendations on the national defense. During WW II he worked as an analyst CBS news and continued to write articles on military matters which continued after the war. Hubin, p. 263.
FEDERAL BULLETS...
New York: The William Caslon Company, Inc., [1936]. Octavo, pp. [1-8] 9-256, original black cloth, front and spine stamped in orange, fore edge untrimmed, bottom edge rough trimmed, top edge stained orange. First edition. The author's first mystery novel. Dan Fowler, special agent of the Department of Justice fights crime. "Tireless, vigilant and daring, Dan faces the sinister forces of the underworld..." - from the front flap copy. The authors first novel to feature Dan Fowler, G-Man.Fowler was the main character in G-Men Detective pulp magazine (1935-1953). George Eliot wrote the majority of the stories under the C. K. M. Scanlon house pseudonym. Eliot also wrote for other pulp fiction magazines. This is one of the few if not the only pulp hero type character to have stand alone novels written and published contemporary to also appearing in magazine. Major Eliot served in World War I and was a reserve U. S. military intelligence officer in the 1920s and early 30s. He started writing pulp fiction in the mid-20s and also wrote a book with recommendations on the national defense. During WW II he worked as an analyst CBS news and continued to write articles on military matters which continued after the war. Filmed in 1937 with the lead character's name changed. Hubin, p. 263.
THE URGENT HANGMAN.
New York: Coward-McCann, Inc., n.d., [1939]. Octavo, pp. [1-8] [1-2] 3-247 [248: blank], original cream cloth, spine lettered in pink, top edge stained green. First edition. The first in the Slim Callaghan, London based private detective. "...one of the most popular storytellers of his time, and his time and his success inspired a long line of British hard-boiled writers such as James Hadley Chase, Hartley Howard, Peter Chambers, Hank Janson and Carter Brown." - Pederson (ed.), St. James Guide to Crime and Mystery Writers, (4th ed.), p. 185. Basis for the stage play Meet Mr. Callaghan, later filmed (in 1954). Hubin, pp. 160-161.
DARK DUET.
New York: Dodd, Mead & Company, 1943. Octavo, pp. [1-10] 1-240 [241-242: blank], original green cloth, front and spine stamped in dark green, fore-edge uncut. First U. S. edition. WW II espionage book. The first of the "Dark" series. "Cheyney does an excellent job of conveying the world of spying, with all its twists and double crosses. No one is what he seems, and everyone knows that; but no one is sure just what anyone else really is. Readers of John le Carré and William Haggard would recognize Cheyney's world at once." - Pronzini and Muller, 1001 Midnights, The Aficionado's Guide to Mystery and Detective Fiction, p. 136. Hubin, pp. 160-161.
DAY OF THE RAM.
New York: Random House, [1956]. Octavo, boards. First edition. Inscribed and signed by Gault on the front free end-paper. Brock Callahan, private investigator, becomes involved in the murder case of the star Los Angeles Rams quarterback. Hubin, p. 319.
DREADFUL SUMMIT.
New York: Simon and Schuster, 1948. Octavo, cloth. First edition. The author's first novel. Suspense novel of a teenage boy who plans to avenge his disgraced father. Basis for the 1951 film noir "The Big Night." Hubin, p. 263. Johnson, The Dark Page (2), p. 52. Silver and Ward (eds.), Film Noir: An Encyclopedic Reference to the American Style (3rd edition), pp. 31-33.
KISS THE BLOOD OFF MY HANDS.
New York: Farrar & Rinehart, Inc., [1946]. Octavo, cloth. First edition. A dark mystery. The violent protaganist kills a man and eventually lands in jail for another crime. A woman whom, he can't stay away from, tries to keep him out of trouble. A witness to the murder comes forward and the woman murders him. "A tight narrative of recklessness, ruthlessness, which in its way is holding." - Kirkus Review, 28 February, 1946. Basis for the film noir of the same title with Burt Lancaster and Joan Fontaine. Hubin, p. 123. Johnson, The Dark Page (1), p. 42. Selby, Dark City: The Film Noir, 220. Silver and Ward (eds.), Film Noir: An Encyclopedic Reference to the American Style (3rd edition), pp. 159-160.
NIGHTMARE IN MANHATTAN.
Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1950. Octavo, boards. First edition. Edgar Award winner for best first novel. Basis for the 1950 film noir "Union Station" starring William Holden and Barry Fitzgerald. The script by Sydney Boehm was also nominated for an Edgar Award. Hubin, p. 837. Johnson, The Dark Page (2), p. 194. Silver and Ward (eds.), Film Noir: An Encyclopedic Reference to the American Style (3rd edition), p. 303.
DEATH IS LIKE THAT.
New York: E. P. Dutton & Co., Inc., 1943. Octavo, pp. [1-8] 9-253 [254-256: blank], original black cloth, spine stamped in gold, fore-edge uncut. First edition. The second of three mystery novels using this pseudonym. Hardboiled. Hubin, p. 759.
THE CASE OF THE CONSTANT SUICIDES.
New York and London: Harper & Brothers, Publishers, [1941]. Octavo, pp. [1-6] 1-296 [297-298: Blank], original dark blue cloth, front and spine stamped in light blue, fore edge uncut, bottom edge rough cut. First edition. A Dr. Fell mystery novel. Hubin, p. 135. Adey, Locked Room Murders and Other Impossible Crimes (1991), #299.
MY LATE WIVES.
New York: William Morrow & Company, 1946. Octavo, cloth. First edition. A Sir Henry Merrivale mystery. Hubin, p. 234. Adey, Locked Room Murders and Other Impossible Crimes (1991), 611.
THE READER IS WARNED.
New York: William Morrow and Company, 1939. Octavo, pp. [1-10] [1-2] 3-306 [307-310: blank], original black cloth, front and spine panels stamped in reddish brown and green, top edge stained yellow, fore and bottom edges rough-trimmed. First edition. A Sir Henry Merrivale novel with a locked room mystery. Hubin, p. 234. Adey, Locked Room Murders and Other Impossible Crimes (1991), #614.
THE JUDAS WINDOW.
New York: William Morrow and Company, 1938. Octavo, pp. [i-iv] v-vi [1-2] 3-294 [295-298: blank] [note: last two leaves are blanks], original black cloth, front and spine panels stamped in red, top edge stained red, fore and bottom edges rough-trimmed. First edition. A Sir Henry Merrivale novel with a locked room mystery. Hubin, p. 234. Adey, Locked Room Murders and Other Impossible Crimes (1991), #608. A Haycraft-Queen cornerstone volume.
TROUBLE IN TRIPLICATE: A NERO WOLFE THREESOME.
New York: The Viking Press, 1949. Octavo, cloth. First edition. The fourteenth Nero Wolfe mystery. Collects three Nero Wolfe short fictions. "Help Wanted, Male," "Before I Die," and "Instead of Evidence." All first published in The American Magazine. "A particularly good bunch of early shorts ... All three start with victims or potential victims—of murder chiefly, but also of blackmail. The plots and their unraveling by Wolfe and Archie are superior examples of art, with plenty of drama, humor, and exact reasoning." - Barzun & Taylor, A Catalogue of Crime (1989), 4142. Hubin, pp. 777-778. Townsend, Rex Stout: An Annotated and Secondary Bibliography, C3a.
ALL ACES: A NERO WOLFE OMNIBUS.
New York: The Viking Press, 1958. Octavo, boards. First edition. Inscrbied and signed by Stout on the front free end paper. First collected edition of these works. Collects the novels Some Buried Caesar, Too Many Women and the stories from the collection Trouble in Triplicate.
CURTAINS FOR THREE: A NERO WOLFE THREESOME.
New York: The Viking Press, 1951. Octavo, cloth. First edition. Collects three Nero Wolfe mystery stories. "The Gun With Wings," "Bullet For One," and "Disguise for Murder." All first published in The American Magazine. Hubin, pp. 777-778. Townsend, Rex Stout: An Annotated and Secondary Bibliography, C5a.
TOO MANY WOMEN.
New York: The Viking Press, 1947. Octavo, original blue green cloth, front and spine stamped in black and yellow, top edge stained dark green. First edition. The twelfth Nero Wolfe mystery. "Archie is the center of a seraglio of designing creatures, who want to bribe or seduce him as he helps Nero discover who killed (the victim in a firm) that employs 500 women. Longer than the later tales, this one has a great many lively turns and a good surprise ending." - Barzun & Taylor, A Catalogue of Crime (1989), 3094. Hubin, pp. 777-778. Townsend, Rex Stout: An Annotated and Secondary Bibliography, A28a.
TOO MANY WOMEN.
New York: The Viking Press, 1947. Octavo, original blue green cloth, front and spine stamped in black and yellow, top edge stained dark green. First edition. The twelfth Nero Wolfe mystery. "Archie is the center of a seraglio of designing creatures, who want to bribe or seduce him as he helps Nero discover who killed (the victim in a firm) that employs 500 women. Longer than the later tales, this one has a great many lively turns and a good surprise ending." - Barzun & Taylor, A Catalogue of Crime (1989), 3094. Hubin, pp. 777-778. Townsend, Rex Stout: An Annotated and Secondary Bibliography, A28a.
THE SECOND CONFESSION.
New York: The Viking Press, 1949. Octavo, cloth. First edition. Inscribed and signed by Stout, dated in the year of publication, on the half title page. The fifteenth Nero Wolfe mystery. The second novel with master criminal Arnold Zeck. "Stylish, timely, and brilliantly plotted, with Archie and his boss functioning at full speed — Nero even leaves home to snare killer. Very good." - The Saturday Review of Literature, 15 October, 1949. Hubin, pp. 777-778. Townsend, Rex Stout: An Annotated and Secondary Bibliography, A30a. Pronzini and Muller, 1001 Midnights, The Aficionado's Guide to Mystery and Detective Fiction, pp. 758-759.
AND BE A VILLAIN.
New York: The Viking Press, 1948. Octavo, boards. First edition. The thirteenth Nero Wolfe mystery. The first of three novels that feature Nero's criminal nemesis Zeck. "Zeck is a modern 'Napolean of Crime,' and his confrontation with Wolfe can be compared to Sherlock Holmes versus Professor Moriarty." - Pronzini and Muller, 1001 Midnights, The Aficionado's Guide to Mystery and Detective Fiction, pp. 758-759. "A first-rate sample of the author's art, this tale brings us face to face with the radio advertising of a beverage which the lady who promotes it cannot abide. Hence hanky-panky with the bottle of substitute liquid and resulting doubt as to whom the dose was intended for. Archie is spectacular in word and deed." - Barzun & Taylor, A Catalogue of Crime (1989), 3061. Hubin, pp. 777-778. Townsend, Rex Stout: An Annotated and Secondary Bibliography, A29a.
THREE DOORS TO DEATH: A NERO WOLFE THREESOME.
New York: The Viking Press, 1950. Octavo, cloth. First edition. Collects three Nero Wolfe mystery stories. "Man Alive," "Omit Flowers," and "Door to Death." All first published in The American Magazine. "The West 35th Street wonderman up and at three long shorts. Man Alive brings two suicides to life to solve the eventual murder of one of them and is concerned with the dress designing world: Omit Flowers proves the innocence of a once famous chef charged with murder: Door To Death has Nero Wolfe sitting tight until he demonstrates that his new gardener could not have killed a nurse. The bright-eyed brigand as before." - Kirkus Reviews, 21 April, 1949. Hubin, pp. 777-778. Townsend, Rex Stout: An Annotated and Secondary Bibliography, C4a.