DEVIL'S SHELTER.
London: Herbert Jenkins Limited, [1937]. Octavo, pp. [1-8] 9-312 [313-320: ads], original orange cloth, front, spine and rear stamped in black. First edition. The third R. R. Ryan novel. "Weird thriller in which musical star seeks shelter from storm in old dark house on Yorkshire moors, finds the lunatics have taken over the asylum. As usual, Ryan brings a skewed, ironic perspective to formula situations, in this case subverting the Gothic 'heroine-in-jeopardy' plot with a wicked parody of the society romance. Identities are confused as well; indeed, the chaos within the asylum is meant to be analogous to 'the world's insane state' in the late 1930s; 'Maniacs, perverts ... demanding, enforcing chaos ... a wild horde of blood-lusting maniacs prowling ...'" -- Robert Knowlton. [Reference: Sullivan, ed., The Penguin Encyclopedia of Horror and the Supernatural, p. 365. Hubin (1994), p. 710]. Foxing to page edges, some darkening to spine, a very good copy. Rare. (30736). Item #30736
Price: $3,250.00