The House Party Murders
Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott Company, 1940. 2nd Printing. Hard Cover. Very Good / No Jacket. Item #2333202
2nd printing. Lacks jacket. Boards soiled, speckled black spots on top edge, 1/2 inch split to cloth near top corner of front joint.
305 pp. First mystery novel by the direct descendant of Edgar Allan Poe, often credited with the invention of the genre. From the foreword: "While motoring to Wilmington, Delaware, to attend a smart week-end house party, three young New Yorkers are warned of approaching trouble when someone takes a pot-shot at their car. Arriving at the large country estate of their host they hear of the surprise entertainment that is to be the high point in the first evening's fun. An unusual summer house, which had been remodeled from an old spring-house, is the setting but the surprise proves a rude awakening for the hilarious group when they are forced to gaze upon a ghastly scene - two dead bodies realistically arranged. Inspector Grimes, tough but efficient, takes over. Brutal murder, keen detection and a sophisticated setting make The House Party Murders a clever, fast-moving and ever-puzzling mystery."
Price: $150.00