"If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all. "
— Oscar Wilde
Crime & Thrillers
Sloop Of War.
London: Hutchinson, 1972. First Edition. A fine copy in like dustwrapper. Spring 1778: The year in which the American War of Independence changed to an all-out struggle for freedom from British rule and the year Bolitho took command of the Sparrow. As the pace of war increased, the Sparrow was..... More
Captain Shannon.
London: Ward, Lock, and co., 1897. First Edition, signed presentation copy. Octavo. Bound in publisher's black cloth, with red embossed "By order, Captain Shannon" to front board, and red embossed titles to spine; uncut. Illustrated with sixteen full-page illustrations. Binding is rubbed, bumped to spine ends, slightly worn to extremities..... More
The Jackal.
London: Ward Lock and Company. 1905. First Edition. 8vo. 352pp. Publisher's black embossed cloth titled and decorated in gilt with applied pictorial paper label to front board (depicting a woman with what appears to be a turkey on her head falling through some ice). Light edgewear, bumping to head and..... More
Wreath For A Dead Angel.
London: Clerke and Cockeran, 1951. [Crime fiction] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp.193; [1] blank. Publisher's brown cloth with black titles, in pictorial dust-jacket designed by Anderson, originally priced 9/6. Internally fresh and presentable, negligible spotting to front edge. Fragile dust-wrapper shows well; clean and bright, with some inevitable..... More
The Delacott Mystery
London: Ward, Lock and Co., 1941. [Mystery] FIRST EDITION, PUBLISHER'S FILE COPY. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.288. Mid-green cloth, titles in black to spine, dust-jacket by Abbey, with printed price of 7/6. Publisher's file copy signified by an ink stamp to title page and paper label to the upper board..... More
Kim.
London: Macmillan and Co., 1901. [Spy novel] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (21 x 14cm), pp.[8]; 413; [1]; [2 of advertisements]. Publisher's red cloth, gilt titles to spine, gilt medallion to upper board, top edge gilt. Illustrated with ten plates. Contents clean, edges toned with a few light spots, discreet stamp (Overton..... More
Murder Against the Grain.
London: Victor Gollancz, 1967. [Crime Fiction] FIRST UK EDITION. Octavo (21 x 14cm), pp.[8]; 184. Publisher's red cloth with gilt titles to spine. With the distinctive yellow Gollancz jacket titled in red and black. Lightly toned to edges, clean inside. Jacket toned to spine with some closed tears and small..... More
Crow Lake.
Toronto, ON: Alfred A Knopf, 2002. SIGNED TRUE FIRST EDITION. Octavo, pp.294. Fore edge untrimmed. Bound in publisher's teal paper-covered boards, in a photographic dustjacket depicting a lake. Fine condition. Spotless throughout, as new. Dustjacket in like. The book is signed by Mary Lawson to the title page. This edition..... More
Arsene Lupin; Super-Sleuth.
New York. Macaulay. 1927. First US Edition. 8vo. Bound in publisher's bright orange cloth, some fingermarks, a tiny bit of shelwear and a vertical crease running three quarters of the length of the spine panel, possible cause by incautious shelving. A bright, attractive copy, titled in dark red to spine..... More
A Small Town In Germany.
London: Heinemann, 1968. [Spy thriller] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (22 x 15cm) pp.306; [2], blank. Publisher's burgundy cloth, gilt titles to spine, pictorial dust-jacket. Internally fine, some light toning and spotting to edges, small mark to flyleaf from a removed label. Cloth lightly handled. Price clipped wrapper with light bruising to..... More
The Mission Song.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 2006. [Thriller] SIGNED FIRST EDITION, limited issue. Octavo (25 x 17cm), pp.[6]; 339; [6], with a map of Africa at rear. Publisher's hardback in pictorial cloth slip-case. A fine, unopened copy in the publisher's slipcase title and pictured in silver, with original shrinkwrap intact. One of..... More
A Delicate Truth.
London: Viking, an imprint of Penguin Books, 2013. [Spy novel] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (24 x 16cm), pp.310; [1], Acknowledgements; [1], blank. Publisher's black cloth with gilt titles to the spine, navy blue endpapers, pictorial dust-wrapper priced at £18.99 with 'As heard on BBC Radio 4' sticker present to front panel..... More
The Constant Gardener.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 2001. [Thriller] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (24 x 16cm), pp.508. Publisher's blue cloth hardback, brown endpapers, in pictorial dust-wrapper priced at £16.99. A clean, near fine copy. Le Carre's acclaimed novel was filmed during 2005 and stars Ralph Fiennes as Kenya-based English diplomat Justin Quayle, whose wife..... More
The Little Drummer Girl.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1983. [Thriller] SIGNED FIRST EDITION. Octavo (25 x 17cm), pp.430. Publisher's brown cloth, gilt titles to spine, top edge tinted brown, in bronze-effect dust-jacket. With author's signature in blue ink to title page (not dated or dedicated). Trivial toning to text block; jacket price clipped. An..... More
The Little Drummer Girl.
New York, NY: Alfred A. Knopf, 1983. [Spy Novel] SIGNED LIMITED EDITION. Large octavo (27 x 19cm), pp.[14] 430 [4]. Number 419 of just 1048 copies specially produced for the Book-of-the-Month Club, SIGNED by the author in black ink to limitation page. Publisher's tan quarter buckram with green cloth over..... More
The Looking-Glass War.
London: Heinemann, 1965. [Spy Thriller] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (21 x 14cm), pp.[10] 246. Publisher's black cloth with silver titles to spine. With the yellow and orange dust-jacket, priced at 18s. Blue ink ownership inscription to flyleaf. A few scuffs to cloth, couple of marks to edges. Some rubbing and marking..... More
A Most Wanted Man.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 2008. [Thriller] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (25 x 17 cm). Publisher's hardback in pictorial dust-wrapper priced at £18.99. Minor dustiness to top edge, jacket with a few small marks; fine. Basis for the acclaimed movie starring Philip Seymour Hoffman. More
The Secret Pilgrim.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1991. [Spy thriller] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (24 x 16cm), pp.335; [1], Note. Publisher's hardback cloth with navy blue endpapers, dust-wrapper priced at £14.95. Simply a lovely fine, unread copy in jacket. More
A Small Town In Germany.
London: Heinemann, 1968. [Spy thriller] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (22 x 15cm) pp.306; [2], blank. Publisher's burgundy cloth, gilt titles to spine, pictorial dust-jacket priced at 30s. Some spotting to edges, cloth bumped to corners, a very good copy in similar wrapper, sunned to the spine. Shows well. 'A Small Town..... More
Smiley's People.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1980. [Spy Thriller] SIGNED FIRST EDITION. Octavo (22 x 14cm), pp.327; [1], blank. Publisher's blue cloth, plain endpapers, pictorial dust-jacket. With author's signature in black ink to title page, contemporary to publication but without date or dedication. A lightly handled copy in similar price-clipped wrapper with..... More
Smiley's People.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1980. [Spy Thriller] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (22 x 14cm), pp.327; [1], blank. Publisher's blue cloth, plain endpapers, pictorial dust-jacket. Discreet blindstamp to flyleaf, marginally shot wrapper a little edgeworn else fine. The acclaimed novel, part of the 'Quest for Karla' series starring Le Carre's famous hero..... More
The Tailor of Panama.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1996. [Thriller] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (25 x 17cm), pp.410. Publisher's grey quarter cloth over purple boards, gilt titles to spine, pictorial dust-jacket priced at £16.99, illustrated endpapers. Light variations in toning to the textblock otherwise a lovely fine copy. Legal thriller from the award-winning novelist. Harry..... More
Number 70, Berlin: A Story of Britain's Peril.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1916. First Edition. Octavo. pp. viii, 248. In publisher's blue cloth with black titles to spine and black/green titles to upper board. Purple pencil inscription to front paste-down errased, dated 1916. Some soiling to lower board, otherwise very good indeed. '[Le Queux] wrote scores of espionage..... More
A Secret Service. Being Strange Tales of a Nihilist.
London: Ward, Lock and Bowden, Limited, 1896. FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 14cm), pp.320. Publisher's green cloth blocked in black and red to spine and upper board, gilt titles to spine. Neat contemporary ownership inscription and 'W.H. Smith and Son, London' bookseller's blind stamp to flyleaf, some toning to endpapers..... More
The Stretton Street Affair.
London: Cassell and Co., 1924. [Spy fiction] ASSOCIATION COPY. Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp.320. Publisher's burgundy cloth titled and decorated in black to spine and front board. Gift inscription to title page: "To Enid Agabeg | from Uncle | William Le Queux ". Internally clean, very light spoting to page..... More