"Always read something that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it."
— P.J. O'Rourke
Crime & Thrillers
Towards Zero.
London: Published by The Crime Club by Collins, 1944. [Crime thriller]. FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.160. Publisher's red cloth in dust-wrapper designed by J.Z. Atkinson, correctly priced at 7/6. A fine copy of the book; wrapper with some chips and soiling, rubbed to joints. An inexpensive copy of..... More
Towards Zero.
London: Published by The Crime Club by Collins, 1944. [Crime thriller] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.160. Publisher's red cloth in dust-wrapper designed by J.Z. Atkinson (the correct issue with the small illustration of a bell on the spine - omitted on reprints). Price clipped, a few tiny taped..... More
The Ariadne Clue
London: Collins Crime Club 1983. Detective novel. FIRST UK EDITION, winner of the Scribner Crime Novel Award, although this UK edition is rather more elusive than the US hardcover. Near fine in jacket (slightly sunned to spine). With a printed endorsement by acclaimed crime novelist P.D.James to front flap. More
Congo Song.
London: Collins, 1943. FIRST EDITION. Octavo, pp.320. Bound in publisher's red cloth with titles and publisher's imprint in blue to spine; bottom edge uncut. Black, pink, and blue patterned dustjacket, with titles in white and blue to front cover and spine, rear cover publisher's advertisements; unclipped, originally priced 9s 6d..... More
Carrington's Cases.
London, William Blackwood and Sons, 1920. FIRST EDITION. 8vo. Publisher's bright red cloth titled and decorated in black to front board and spine. A trifle rubbed but otherwise bright and clean. Light toning to page edges, internally clean. A lovely copy of this Queen's Quorum mystery featuring the cases of..... More
The Spy in Black.
Edinburgh: William Blackwood and Sons, 1917. First Edition. Publisher's red cloth with titles in gilt to spine and upper. Faded spine, dusty edges, extremities lightly rubbed. A sound and tight copy of this scarce title. A Great War espionage tale from the author of 'Carrington's Cases', etc. More
Carrington's Cases. With original Dustwrapper Artwork.
London: William Blackwood and Sons. 1920. FIRST EDITION. Octavo. Publisher's bright red cloth titled and decorated in black to front board and spine. A trifle rubbed, slight lean but otherwise bright and clean. Together with the original silhouette design for the cover, pen and ink on paper, now archivally framed..... More
The Two Strange Men.
London: Eveleigh Nash and Grayson Limited, 1924. OTTO PENZLER'S COPY. The first edition. Octavo, pp.vi; 288. Simply bound in publisher's red cloth with blind ruling to front board, gilt titles to front board and spine, and gilt ruling to spine at endcaps. Externally near-fine, slightly sunned to spine, with endcaps..... More
The Blanchington Tangle.
New York, NY: Macmillan, 1926. First US Edition, Author's Own Copy. Octavo, pp.279. Bound in publisher's black cloth, with titles in gilt to front board, blind stamped to spine. Binding shows well, with a little bumping to spine ends, spine somewhat sunned. This copy was bequeathed by Dame Margaret Cole..... More
The Nature of a Crime.
New York, NY: Doubleday, Page and Company, 1924. [Modern Literature]. FIRST US EDITION. Octavo (21 x 14cm), pp.[2] xviii; 108; [2]. Publisher's black quarter cloth with floral patterned black and gilt paper-covered boards. Dark green titles to green paper labels on spine and upper board. With the light green illustrated..... More
The Secret Agent.
London: Methuen and Co., 1907. [Landmark Spy novel] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp.[viii]; 442; [1], imprint; [1], blank; [40], advertisement catalogue dated September 1907. Bound in publisher's burgundy coloured cloth with gilt titles to the spine. Edges of text block toned/browned, binding a little sunned to the spine..... More
The Strange Case of Eleanor Cuyler.
New York. Dodd Mead and Co. 1910. First US Edition. Publisher's ribbed brown cloth. Decorated in red and white with applied paper illustration label to top right of front board. Slight fading to spine panel otherwise bright and clean. Bookplate of notable collector Ned Guymon to front pastedown. Erased pencil..... More
Murmurs In The Rue Morgue.
New York, NY: London House and Maxwell Inc., 1959. First Edition. Octavo. pp.208. Bound in publisher's black cloth, with titles in white and lime green to spine. Pictorial dust wrapper by Stein shows titles and the figure of a man to front cover, titles and Saturnin Dax to spine, list..... More
Vixen 03.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1978. [Thriller] FIRST UK EDITION. Octavo (21 x 13cm), pp.318; [2], blank. Publisher's black cloth, lettered in gilt to spine, pictorial dust-jacket by Terry Hadler priced at £4.95. A near fine copy of the book, in lightly edge worn jacket, sunned to spine. The author's fourth..... More
Shadows in Bronze. - A Falco novel, the long awaited sequel to 'The Silver Pigs'.
London, Sidgewick and Jackson Ltd. 1990. First Edition, large 8vo. Publisher's black cloth with titles in gilt to spine, in pictorial dust jacket designed by Shirley Barker. 3 maps to the front, just before start of text. An unread, near fine copy. Author's second Falco mystery. More
The Silver Pigs.
London: Sidgewick and Jackson, 1989. First Edition. Large octavo. Publisher's black cloth with titles in gilt to spine, in pictorial dust jacket designed by Shirley Barker. An unread, near fine copy. Author's first Falco mystery. More
Ranson's Folly. With 16 Illustrations by Frederic Remington, Walter Appleton Clark, Howard Chandler Christy, E.M. Ashe, and F. Dorr Steele.
New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1902. First Edition. Publisher's brick coloured cloth with gilt titles to upper with colour illustration to centre, gilt titles to spine; top edge gilt, others rough trimmed. Rubbed to extremities; internally clean and sound. Very good indeed. More
Soldiers of Fortune.
New York, Scribners. 1897. First US Edition. 8vo. Publisher's pale yellow decorated cloth titled in blue to spine and titled and decorated in blue and gilt to front board. Very good indeed with only very slight edgewear and light bumping to the spine ends. Slightly dusty top edge, internally bright..... More
Twisted Face Defends His Title.
London; Herbert Jenkins. 1940. First Edition. 8vo. Near fine in publisher's bright and sharp red cloth titled in black to spine and front board. In a bright, clean dustwrapper with some marginal wear and creascing and a closed tear with some very slight loss to the spine ends. Very good..... More
Waste lands.
London: Ward Lock and Co. 1935. Mystery novel. FIRST EDITION, later state. Octavo. In the secondary binding of green cloth, lettered in black, in original jacket repriced to 5/- and with publisher's book number overprinted to spine. The striking dust-wrapper depicts 'reaching' hands, with a leather glove motif to the..... More
The Blue Lagoon.
London, Newnes. n.d. Newnes Copyright Novels Shilling paperback edition. 8vo. Very good indeed in publisher's pictorial card wraps. Minor wear to spine ends, otherwise crisp, clean and bright. Internally clean. A scarce early paperback edition of a novel that was extraordinarily popular in its day. More
Billion Dollar Brain.
London: Jonathan Cape, 1966. [Cold War thriller] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.312. Publisher's hardback cloth in a metallic-effect pictorial dust-wrapper designed by Raymond Hawkey. Near fine, in similar priced-clipped jacket with some inevitable nicks/marks to the thin foil. Shows well. Author's fourth novel, featuring Deighton's unnamed working-class protagonist..... More
An Expensive Place to Die
Jonathan Cape, London, 1967. FIRST EDITION. Cold War -era spy thriller, set in Paris. 8vo. Publisher's cloth in original dust-wrapper. Near fine, with a slight lean to book and jacket sunned to backstrip. Includes the original loose 'In Transit Docket', designed by Raymond Hawkey. HUBIN; CRIME FICTION IV. Milward-Oliver; Len..... More
An Expensive Place to Die.
London: Jonathan Cape, 1967. Cold War-era spy thriller, set in Paris. FIRST EDITION. Octavo, pp.254. Publisher's cloth in original dust-wrapper, with the original loose 'In Transit Docket', designed by Raymond Hawkey. A lightly used copy in similar edgeworn jacket, slightly sun-lightened to spine panel. HUBIN; Crime Fiction IV. Milward-Oliver; Len..... More
An Expensive Place to Die.
London: Jonathan Cape, 1967. [Cold War spy thriller] UNCORRECTED PROOF COPY in oversized PROOF-ONLY dust-wrapper. Octavo (20 x 13cm), pp.254;[2] blank. Publisher's lime-green softcovers in jacket, with traces of the bold printed word 'ENGLISH' to extreme front edge of the flap and 'PROOF ONLY' in bold to rear with provisional..... More