The Best Crime Stories Ever Told

Paperback / softback

Main Details

Title The Best Crime Stories Ever Told
Authors and Contributors      Edited by Dorothy L. Sayers
Introduction by Otto Penzler
SeriesBest Stories Ever Told
Physical Properties
Format:Paperback / softback
Pages:576
Dimensions(mm): Height 229,Width 152
Category/GenreAnthologies
Crime and mystery
ISBN/Barcode 9781620870495
ClassificationsDewey:823.087208
Audience
General

Publishing Details

Publisher Skyhorse Publishing
Imprint Skyhorse Publishing
Publication Date 20 September 2012
Publication Country United States

Description

When acclaimed mystery writer Dorothy L. Sayers first began compiling anthologies of the best crime stories in the 1920s and '30s, the genre was in the flush of its first golden age. While it is hard to imagine today-after every possible mystery plot has been told, retold, subverted, and played straight again by hundreds of writers over nearly a century-in Sayers's day there were still twists that had never been seen, and machinations of crime that would shock even jaded Jazz Age readers. Now today's fans of mystery and crime can experience a handpicked collection of over thirty of the most outstanding stories from this era, originally chosen by Sayers and newly introduced by Otto Penzler, a leading expert and connoisseur in the field of mystery literature. As a prolific writer of the genre, Sayers understood the difficulty of putting together a mystery that was not only sufficiently challenging (so that the solution was not immediately obvious to the reader), but also solvable without forcing the writer to cheat. That balance between opacity and solvability remains the greatest challenge of writing great crime stories-and these are some of the greatest. Authors appearing in this collection include: Edgar Allen Poe Herman Melville H. G. Wells Wilkie Collins Stephen Crane J. S. Le Fanu This is a treasure trove for real fans!

Author Biography

Dorothy L. Sayers (1893-1957) was a renowned English writer best known for her crime stories, featuring detective and aristocrat Lord Peter Wimsey. Otto Penzler is the proprietor of The Mysterious Bookshop, the founder of The Mysterious Press, the creator of Otto Penzler Books, and the editor of many books and anthologies.