"Outside of a dog, man's best friend is a book. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read."
— Groucho Marx
Crime & Thrillers
His Last Bow. Some Reminiscences of Sherlock Holmes.
London: John Murray. 1917. FIRST EDITION. Octavo, pp. v, 305 [6]. In publisher's original red cloth with gilt titles to spine and upper board. In new matching red cloth jacket with matching gilt titles to spine. A well-handled copy with guttering of front end papers slightly split. Spine faded to..... More
His Last Bow. Some Reminiscences of Sherlock Holmes.
London: John Murray, 1917. FIRST EDITION. Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp.vii; [1]; 306; [6 of advertisements]. Publisher's red cloth, gilt titles to spine and upper. Some foxing to preliminaries, edges toned, rear endpapers partially split along the gutter, with the binding still sound. Binding slightly bumped and worn to extremities..... More
The Return of Sherlock Holmes.
London: Longmans, Green and Co., 1905. [Detective fiction] First Colonial Edition. Octavo (19 x 14cm), pp.[viii]; 403; [1], imprint; [8], advertisements. With a frontispiece illustration by Sidney Paget. Publisher's pictorial light blue-green cloth titled and decorated in gilt and black to the spine and front board, 'swan' patterned endpapers. Some..... More
A Study In Scarlet, and A Case of Identity.
Chicago, IL: E.A. Weeks and Company, no date [circa 1900]. [Sherlock Holmes] PIRATE EDITION. Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp.232. Publisher's green cloth with gilt titles to spine. Top edge gilt. Textblock browned. Cloth rubbed to extremities, especially to joints, corners and spine ends, some scuffs and marks. Very good... More
The Valley of Fear.
London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1915. First UK edition. Octavo, pp. 306, 6 pages of advertisements. Publisher's red cloth binding with gilt titles to spine and front, bottom edge untrimmed. With later red cloth protective wrapper. Some moderate spotting throughout. Slight lean to the bookblock. Covers shows quite heavy wear..... More
Rebecca.
London: Victor Gollancz, 1947. [Intrigue] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.446. Elegantly hand-bound in black half calf over matching cloth sides, spine gilt-lettered in six compartments with twin red title labels, raised bands, top edge gilt, publisher's original cloth bound in at rear. Contents clean, exterior as new; a...... More
Romance of a Spy.
London: Hurst and Blackett, 1945. Octavo, pp.192. Bound in publisher's green cloth, in a green pictorial dustjacket depicting characters from the book with a map. Advertisements to rear panel. Cloth in excellent condition with very limited signs of wear. Dustjacket creased with several minor losses, although colour remains very bright..... More
Run Scared.
London: for the Crime Club by Collins, 1964. [Detective novel] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.256. Publisher's red cloth with black titles to spine, illustrated dust-jacket with printed price of 13s 6d net. Discreet owner name else a lovely fine copy of the book in a near fine, slightly..... More
Confetti for a Killing.
London: Ward, Lock and Co., 1937. [Crime Fiction] FIRST EDITION, LATER ISSUE. Octavo (19 x 14cm), pp.280; [8]. Publisher's secondary binding of red cloth, black titles to spine, dust-jacket illustrated by Nina Miller Davidson. Neat ownership to flyleaf, light spotting and dustiness to edges. Jacket clipped and repriced at 4/6..... More
Murder Off Broadway.
London, John Hamilton Ltd. c 1930. 8vo. Publisher's bright orange cloth, lettered in black, in pictorial dust jacket. Minor bumping to extremities with slight fading to spine, trivial spotting to page edges, dust to top edge, very good. Attractive, rather fragile dust jacket with some chips and small losses, including..... More
The Late Uncle Max.
London: MacDonald. 1957. First edition. Octavo, pp. 192. Publisher's black cloth with yellow titles to spine, dynamic pictorial dustjacket. Small pen annotation on flyleaf, plus a small area of rough surface where a sticker or similar has been removed, some staining to the top edge. Dustwrapper shows well with just..... More
Diamonds are Forever.
London: Jonathan Cape, 1956. FIRST EDITION, Binding A (designated without priority). Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp.257; [1], blank. Publisher's black cloth titled in silver, with the pictorial dust-jacket designed by Pat Marriott, priced at 12/6. A near fine copy of the book in an attractive dust jacket now expertly restored..... More
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
The Amaranth Club.
London: Ward, Lock and Co., no date [1930s]. [Mystery] First Ward Lock Edition. PUBLISHER'S FILE COPY. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.320. Publisher's grey-green cloth, titles in black to spine and upper, dust-jacket by Abbey, with printed price of 3/6s net. Publisher's file copy signified by paper label to the upper..... More
Bid for Fortune.
Edinburgh: The Moray Press, 1934. [Crime Thriller] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.278 [6]. Publisher's blue cloth with darker blue titles to spine. With the colour-illustrated dust-jacket designed by 'VCB,' priced at 7/6. Light browning and spotting to top edge. Very light offsetting to endpapers. Light wear to board..... More
The Great K and A Train Robbery.
New York, Dodd, Mead and Company. 1897. First Edition. 8vo. Publisher's blue cloth titled in gilt to spine and front cover, decorated with western locomotives in red and black. A little spotting to front boards, darkening to spine and cosmetic wear to spine ends. Top edge gilt, all other page..... More
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Hornblower in the West Indies [In John Bull magazine for June 1958]
London. 1958. First appearance of 'Hornblower in the West Indies' in periodical parts (advertised under the title 'Hornblower and The Pirates'). Three issues, quarto, newspaper format. Minor edgewear otherwise clean and bright, scarce thus. Very good indeed. A rather elusive periodical serial of the final Hornblower novel in order of..... More
Payment Deferred
John Lane, The Bodley Head, London, 1926. Mystery novel. First Edition. 8vo.; pp.304 + 8 (adverts). Original red cloth, lettered to spine and upper cover in gilt. Occasional light spotting, joints a little rubbed, minor sunning to back-strip. An attractive example. A Hubin- listed crime title, and a Haycraft-Queen cornerstone..... More
Studies in Black and Red.
London: Ward and Downey. 1896. First Edition. 8vo. 318pp + 2pp ads, Publisher's black pebble grain cloth strikingly decorated in red and gilt with snakes, gilt lightning bolts and what appears to be some sort of river of blood...quite understated really. Internally clean, some light toning, black endpapers. Very good..... More
Odd Woman Out.
London: J.M. Dent and Sons ltd., 1958. [Detective novel] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.217; [1], blank. Publisher's black cloth, gilt titles to spine, pictorial dust-jacket designed by Val Biro, priced at 13s. 6d.. Some dustiness and spotting, minor soiling; a very good copy. An accomplished English village mystery..... More
In the Frame.
London: Michael Joseph, 1976. FIRST EDITION. Octavo, pp.252. Bound in publisher's black cloth with silver titles to spine, in a photographic dustjacket. Book is in fine condition with no visible signs of wear; clean and bright throughout excepting very light age toning to first and final few leaves. Dustjacket in..... More
Odds Against.
London: Michael Joseph, 1965. [Crime thriller] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (21 x 15cm), pp.256. Publisher's brown cloth hardcovers with illustrated dust-wrapper designed by Broome Lynn, in the style of James Bond jacket artist Richard Chopping. Contents clean, some dustiness to page edges, price clipped jacket with a few marks to flaps;..... More
Flashman and the Angel of the Lord. The Flashman Papers 1858-1859.
London, Harvill, 1994. FIRST EDITION, the tenth book in the series. Publisher's cloth in dustwrapper. Some spine lean, edges thumbed, jacket is near fine. If only Flashman had got on with his dinner and ignored the handkerchief dropped by a flirtatious hussy in a Calcutta hotel... well, American history might..... More
The Reavers.
London: Harper Collins, 2007. [Historical Fiction] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (24 x 16cm), pp.[viii]; 230. Author's final novel. Publisher's black cloth hardcovers blocked in gilt to spine, pictorial endpapers, illustrated dust-wrapper priced at £18.99. A fine/as new copy in like jacket. 'The Reavers' is an historical romp of espionage and intrigue..... More
The Second Freeling Omnibus. Comprising Double-Barrell, The King of the Rainy Country, The Dresden Green.
London: Victor Gollancz, 1972. [Crime Fiction] FIRST EDITION THUS. Octavo (19 x 14cm), pp.[4]; 176; 158; 221; [1]. Publisher's red cloth with gilt titles to spine. With the distinctive yellow Gollancz jacket with black and red titles. Light spotting to edges and preliminaries, otherwise internally fine. Price clipped wrapper shows..... More