"Hungry man, reach for the book: it is a weapon. "
— Bertolt Brecht
Eric Ambler | First Editions
1909 - 1998
Eric Clifford Ambler OBE (28 June 1909 – 22 October 1998) was an influential British author, who contributed immensely to the thriller genre - particularly in terms of spy novels. Ambler also worked as a screenwriter, and co-wrote several books with Charles Rodda under the pseudonym 'Eliot Reed'.Born into a family of puppeteers, Ambler spent his early life in the entertainment industry helping his parents, before moving on to study engineering at Northampton Polytechnic in Islington - now known as City University, London. However, his upbringing as an entertainer proved dominant, and he soon began writing plays and other works. Ambler was staunchly anti-Fascist, and his political leanings can be highlighted in his early literature, with the sympathetic portrayal of Soviet agents. War and politics would continue to impact Ambler's fiction throughout his lifetime.
See below our stock of Eric Ambler Signed and First Editions.
Results 1 - 14 (of 14)
The Ability to Kill.....And Other Pieces.
London: The Bodley Head Ltd. 1962. FIRST EDITION, octavo, pp.222. Publisher's light red cloth in a rather chilling pictorial dust jacket, illustrated by Don Higgins. Minor handling; a near fine copy. Not exactly bed-time reading! -Ambler's examination of what kind of mentality is required to become a killer. The present... More about The Ability to Kill.....And Other Pieces
The Ability to Kill.....And Other Pieces.
London: The Bodley Head Ltd., 1963. [Murder/true crime] FIRST EDITION, corrected state. Octavo (21 x 14cm), pp.222. Publisher's light red cloth in a rather chilling pictorial dust jacket, illustrated by Don Higgins. Usual laminate shrinkage at joint else a fine copy. Not exactly bed-time reading! Ambler's examination of what kind... More about The Ability to Kill.....And Other Pieces
The Ability to Kill.....And Other Pieces.
London: The Bodley Head Ltd., 1963. [Murder/true crime] FIRST EDITION, corrected state. Octavo (21 x 14cm), pp.222. Publisher's light red cloth in a rather chilling pictorial dust-jacket, illustrated by Don Higgins. Illustrated bookplate to flyleaf. Usual laminate shrinkage at joint, some soiling, spine and extremities toned. Very good. More about The Ability to Kill.....And Other Pieces
Background to Danger.
New York, NY: Alfred A. Knopf, 1937. [Intrigue] FIRST U.S. EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.280; [1], blank; [1], advertisements; [2], blank. Publisher's orange cloth lettered in burgundy, pictorial jacket priced at $2.00. Edges of text block toned, ink ownership to flyleaf, jacket with a few chips and tears, clipped... More about Background to Danger
The Care of Time.
New York, NY: Farrar Straus Giroux, 1981. [Spy Thriller] INSCRIBED FIRST US EDITION. Octavo (24 x 16cm), pp.[10] 277 [1]. INSCRIBED by the author in blue ink to title page: 'With best wishes from | an ever-grateful patient | Eric Ambler | London 14 May 82'. Publisher's purple quarter cloth... More about The Care of Time
The Dark Frontier.
London, Hodder and Stoughton. 1936. First Edition of the author's first novel. 8vo, pp.320. Association copy, belonging to a leading British Army lawyer. Bound in contemporary native red oasis over marbled sides, spine titled and ruled in gilt, with speckled edges. Bumped to lower corners. Internally very clean. Some dustiness... More about The Dark Frontier
Epitaph For A Spy.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1938. [Haycraft-Queen cornerstone novel]. FIRST EDITION. Octavo (18 x 13cm), pp.287; [1], advertisement. Bound by the W.H. Smith and Son bindery in green cloth, titled in gilt to the spine. Some spotting and toning to page edges, cloth a little rubbed and darkened to extremities. Very... More about Epitaph For A Spy
The Mask Of Dimitrios.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1939. FIRST EDITION, INSCRIBED BY THE AUTHOR. A Haycraft-Queen cornerstone novel. Octavo, pp.320. Publisher's cloth, lightly worn with a few small marks, spine sunned. A very good copy. With an important presentation note to the title-page; Roy Baker / from Eric Ambler / 16 August 46... More about The Mask Of Dimitrios
The Mask Of Dimitrios.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1939. FIRST EDITION. A Haycraft-Queen cornerstone novel. Octavo (19 x 14cm), pp.320. Publisher's red cloth with gilt titles to spine. Internally very clean with no ownership marks, bookplates or inscriptions. Covers are fresh but for a little sunning to spine, a few small marks and the... More about The Mask Of Dimitrios
The Night-Comers.
London: William Heinemann, 1956. FIRST EDITION. Octavo, pp.[6]; 233. Publisher's orange cloth with gilt titles to spine, in decorative dust-jacket designed by Judith Bledsoe. Small area of toning to the bottom right corner of a few of the early pages, price clipped dust-jacket shows well with a couple of small... More about The Night-Comers
Passage of Arms.
London: Heinemann, 1959. [Gun-running thriller] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (21 x 14cm), pp.250. Publisher's hardback cloth binding in pictorial dust-jacket priced at 16s. Lightly toned and spotted to edges. Jacket a touch toned to spine, lightly rubbed to edges. Near fine. A modern day pirate adventure, set in the South-Seas. This... More about Passage of Arms
The Schirmer Inheritance.
London: William Heinemann Ltd., 1953. [Post-war spy thriller] FIRST EDITION. Octavo, pp.[vi]; 270. Publisher's red cloth with gilt titles to spine, pictorial dust-wrapper by Biro priced at 12/6. A lovely fine copy of the book in a lightly used jacket with one neat tear to upper. Most attractive. Eric Ambler... More about The Schirmer Inheritance
Uncommon Danger.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1937. [Intrigue] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.314; [6], advertisements. Publisher's pale blue cloth lettered in black, mid-blue endpapers, pictorial jacket by Gibbs, priced 7/6. Trivial toning to edge of text block, jacket with very light rubbing/wear to extremities. Overall a lovely fine copy of... More about Uncommon Danger
To Catch A Spy. An Anthology of Favourite Spy Stories Edited and Introduced by Eric Ambler.
London: The Bodley Head, 1964. [Anthology] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (21 x 14cm), pp.224. Publisher's brown cloth, gilt titles to spine, dust-jacket designed by Michael Harvey. Internally fine, some spotting to edges. Cloth lightly handled. Price clipped wrapper a little rubbed and worn with some marking to edges and a few... More about To Catch A Spy. An Anthology of Favourite Spy Stories Edited and Introduced by Eric Ambler
Results 1 - 14 (of 14)