War, Invasion & Spy
London, Robert Hale, 1952 [1953].
First UK edition. 8vo. Original blue cloth. Dust-jacket, priced 9/6.
Good first UK edition of this tale of romance and espionage, 'a breath-taking romance loaded with the dynamite of military secrets and international intrigue.' (jacket blurb)
Modern Literature
London, Robert Hale, [c.1950s].
First UK edition. 8vo. Original blue cloth. Dust-jacket, priced 7s6d.
"Margo Haynes is lovely and lovable but her love is dangerous" (jacket blurb).
Detective Fiction
London, Robert Hale, 1952.
First UK edition. 8vo. Original blue cloth. Dust-jacket.
An attractive first UK edition, packed with thrills, romance, mystery, and suspense.
Detective Fiction
London &c., Cassell, 1913.
First edition. 8vo. 4pp. advertisements. Original brown cloth. Dust-jacket, priced 6/-.
The first chapter of Mr. Edge's story is enough to indicate the mystery which is to be unravelled, and every succeeding chapter makes the mystery deeper until the final elucidation... (The Bookseller, Vol. 60, 1914).
An early detective fiction title, in a remarkably excellent pre WW1 dust-jacket. Exceptionally scarce, with only six copies recorded by WorldCat, and no copies in trade or at auction that we could trace.
Detective Fiction
First edition.
London. Arthur Baker, 1949
Curt Prentice drives across more than half a continent to kill Judd Mason in revenge for the deaths of his wife and brother-in-law. An uncommon pulp title by an author who became a Hollywood scriptwriter. Among the works for which Edgley became known are the scripts for many episodes of Perry Mason.
Detective Fiction
London, The Literary Press, [c.1930].
First edition thus. 8vo. Original green cloth lettered in gilt. Dust-jacket, correctly priced 2/-.
An early edition of this well-known Hollywood murder mystery, made into a 1929 film with Chester Conklin.
Detective Fiction
First edition.
London. Ward Lock, 1936
To a quiet West Country village comes Claude Weir, mystery man after which peace is transformed into horror. A very attractive example from the Golden Age era.
Modern Literature
A Tragedy of Manners
London, Denis Archer, 1933.
First edition. Inscribed presentation copy from the author to bohemian writer Edith Templeton. 8vo. Original blue cloth. Dust-jacket, price on spine ablated.
An attractive, inscribed first edition by the illustrator, writer and costume designer Beresford Egan. The full-page inscription is to the writer and bohemian Edith Templeton:
"For Edith Templeton, Have I exhumed this memory that she may perform a post mortem, & which can have but one verdict - MURDER in all degrees. Beresford Egan. 1951."
There follows a short, seemingly unpublished poem in Egan's hand:
"Time does not fly / Nor does a memory fade / Time is the Father / Who / Incestuous lies / With Memory, unfaded / True / But ever faithless Jade. BA"
Illustrated Books
A Novel in Black and White [London], Denis Archer, 1933. First edition. 8vo. Original terracotta cloth lettered in black. Glassine dust-jacket priced fifteen shillings net. An excellent example of this work derived from a lecture given by Egan in 1933 on the subject of drawing, and featuring drawings by the 20th century master of pen & ink himself. What truly sets this copy apart is the presence of the original glassine dust-jacket, extremely uncommon.
Modern Literature
London, Hutchinson, 1963.
First edition. 8vo. Original boards. Dust-jacket, price-clipped.
A very good first edition of this novel by Nigerian author Ekwensi, with possibly the most extensive "synopsis" to ever grace a dust-jacket's inner flaps.
Children's Books
London, Faber & Faber, 1939.
First edition, first impression. Large 8vo. Original yellow pictorial boards. Dust-jacket, correctly priced 3/6.
The first edition of Eliot's famous whimsical poems featuring feline protagonists - famously of course the inspiration and source for Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical, Cats. Eliot wrote the poems in the 1930s, and included them, under his assumed name "Old Possum", in letters to his godchildren. The illustrations in this edition were by the author himself, with subsequent editions illustrated by such luminaries as Nicolas Bentley, Edward Gorey and, most recently, Axel Scheffler of Gruffalo fame.
Victorian Literature
A Novel...Copyright Edition
Leipzig, Tauchnitz, 1891.
First edition. 8vo. Contemporary green cloth.
Uncommon first edition by a prolific female writer, somewhat faded from public consciousness today but hugely popular in her lifetime; friend to Dickens, muse to Wilkie Collins, and apparently a wicked author of "gossipy, sometimes scandalous, sketches" (Wikipedia).
London, Methuen, 1915.
First edition. 8vo. Original green cloth lettered in blind to upper cover and gilt to spine.
Grace Ellison (d. 1935) was a journalist and suffragette with a fascination for Turkish culture. This book, first published in 1915, is a collection of accounts originally written for The Daily Telegraph about her stay in the harem of a Turkish nobleman. Keen to dispel the sensationalist Western view of the harem, Ellison paints an intimate portrait of the luxurious but secluded life of women in their segregated portion of the household. Subjects covered include fashion, social events, polygamy and the bonds between family members.
Weird & Supernatural
Erckmann-Chatrian (nom-de-plume, Émile Erckmann & Alexandre Chatrian) Stories of the Rhine
London, Ward Lock & Co., c.1882-84.
Early English edition. 8vo. Publisher's adverts to rear. Original decorative cloth blocked in black & gilt.
This copy dates from sometime between 1882 and 1884 based on the title page. Ward, Lock & Co. did not open an office in New York at 10 Bond Street until June of 1882. In November of 1884 that office moved to 31 Bond Street. The first edition of Stories of the Rhine was published by Ward, Lock & Tyler in 1875, and in addition to stating "Ward, Lock& Tyler" on the title page, it would only have their earlier address of Warwick House, Salisbury Square. Ward, Lock & Tyler became Ward, Lock, & Co, in 1877.
Collection of short stories, set in the late 18th century and in the 19th century, most with a weird element including 'The Buried Treasure' where the treasure of Gontran the Miser is found by supernatural means. All Victorian editions of Erckmann-Chatrian titles are uncommon especially in original cloth.
Detective Fiction
Erskine (Firth, pseud. Gladys Erskine & Ivan Firth) Naked Murder
London, Thornton Butterworth, 1935.
First edition. 8vo. Original blue cloth lettered in red. Dust-jacket, priced 7/6.
The criminologist Cyrus K. Mantel investigates a serial decapitator.
Horror & Gothic
London, Philip Allan, 1920.
First edition. 8vo. Modern blue cloth with red leather spine label tooled in gilt.
A handsome copy of this second collection of supernatural tales by Henrietta Dorothy Everett, presumed the first appearance in book form. Includes one of the author's most famous stories, 'The Crimson Blind'.
with the one-hand gun
Edinburgh & London, Oliver & Boyd, 1942.
First edition. 8vo. Original green cloth. Dust-jacket, priced 2/6.
A very rare first printing in an even scarcer original dust-jacket. Drawing on the authors' practical experience, Shooting to Live covers the gamut of handgun-usage, including concepts, applications, maintenance and more. Fairbairn was an Assistant Commissioner of Shanghai Municipal Police, and Sykes was the officer in charge of the Snipers Unit of the same force.
War, Invasion & Spy
Fairlie (Gerard) and ‘Sapper’ [pseud. H.C. McNeile]. Bulldog Drummond on Dartmoor
London, Hodder & Stoughton, 1938.
First edition. 8vo. Original blue cloth. Dust-jacket, priced 7/6.
An important work in the Bulldog Drummond canon, marking the transition from 'Sapper' to Fairlie. The two had worked on the story together, but McNeile died before it was finished, leaving Fairlie to take on the mantle.
Detective Fiction
London, Hodder & Stoughton, 1939.
First edition. 8vo. Original cloth. Dust-jacket, priced 7/6.
'In "Bulldog Drummond Attacks" the old enemies live again, recreated by Gerard Fairlie, who has himself the original of Sapper's Bulldog Drummond.' (jacket)
Detective Fiction
London, Hodder & Stoughton, 1934.
First edition. 8vo. Original pale blue cloth. Dust-jacket, correctly priced 3/6.
An attractive edition of this thriller title by Fairlie, on whom 'Sapper' supposedly based the character of Bulldog Drummond. After Sapper's death in 1937, Fairlie continued the Bulldog Drummond book series.
Detective Fiction
London, Hodder & Stoughton, 1938.
First edition. 8vo. Original cloth. Dust-jacket, priced 7/6.
A hard book to find in the jacket, written by purportedly by the man who inspired the character 'Bulldog Drummond'.
Detective Fiction
London, Hodder & Stoughton, 1933.
First edition. 8vo. Original blue cloth. Dust-jacket, correctly priced 3/6.
An attractive edition of this thriller title by Fairlie, on whom 'Sapper' supposedly based the character of Bulldog Drummond. After Sapper's death in 1937, Fairlie continued the Bulldog Drummond book series.
Detective Fiction
London, The Bodley Head, 1947
First UK edition, first impression. 8vo. Original red cloth, Dust-jacket.
The first British edition of the American author's most famous novel, originally appearing in abridged form in The American Magazine (October 1946). The work was adapted into film three times, and in 2006 was reprinted 'New York Review Books Classics' series.
American Literature
London, Heinemann, 1931.
First UK edition. 8vo. Original red cloth. Dust-jacket, priced 7s6d.
The first UK edition of this tale of Polish immigrant workers in New England which weaves a complex social history of the period, commencing with the stock market crash of 1929. Ferber is best known today perhaps as the author of Show Boat and Giant.
Modern Literature
London, Heinemann, 1927.
First UK edition. 8vo. Original red cloth. Dust-jacket, priced 7/6.
A collection of short stories by the Pulitzer Prize winning author Edna Ferber, famously author of So Big, Show Boat and Giant. The jacket with its 'vignette' illustrations is definitely uncommon, and in our opinion more attractive than the first US equivalent.
Modern Literature
London, Secker & Warburg, 1966.
First edition. 8vo. Original black boards. Dust-jacket, priced 21s.
Harrowing portrayal of a year in the life of a writer losing the motivation to continue after a recent miscarriage while her marriage comes apart. It examines the breakup of a marriage and the protagonist's subsequent struggle to rebuild her world. It was published about the time of the author's own divorce from George Figes. No copies currently for sale online.
Detective Fiction
London, Michael Joseph, 1944. First edition. 8vo. Original dark grey cloth. Dust-jacket, priced 9/6. A posthumous biographical bequest proves problematic to the appointed biographer, who finds herself at loggerheads with the family of the deceased, leading to suspicions of murder... uncommon.
An Anthology
Dublin & London, Browne & Nolan; Harrap, 1935.
First edition. 8vo. Original turquoise cloth. Dust-jacket, priced 5/-.
An anthology of poetry of primarily Irish origin, many inspired by the Easter Rising in 1916. Poets include Roger Casement, Thomas MacDonagh, Padriac Pearse, W.B. Yeats, 'AE' and James Stephens.
Detective Fiction
London, Hutchinson, [1933].
First UK edition. 8vo. Original cloth. Dust-jacket, with ?publisher's price-sticker 2/6 overlaid on original price.
A good+ copy of this title, uncommon in US or UK edition - the author is well-known for his sport-related crime novels, including 70,000 Witnesses.
Detective Fiction
The Case of the Murdered Band Leader
London, John Lane The Bodley Head, 1939.
First UK edition. 8vo. 2pp. advertisements. Original teal cloth lettered in red. Dust-jacket, correctly priced 7s6d.
Set in the glittering background of an ultra-modern night club in San Francisco, peopled by famous stars, Sudden Silence has an interest rivalled only by the strangeness of its incidents. (jacket).
War, Invasion & Spy
First edition, first impression. London, Jonathan Cape, 1959. The seventh James Bond title.
War, Invasion & Spy
London, Jonathan Cape, 1965.
First edition, first impression. 8vo. Original plain black boards. Dust-jacket, priced 18s.
A very decent first edition of the last full-length James Bond novel by Ian Fleming, in the plain second state boards. Under the heat of the Caribbean sun, Bond faces a seemingly impossible task: win a duel against Scaramanga, the Man with the Golden Gun, and regain M's trust.
Uncategorized
London, John Long, [1930s].
50th thousand. 8vo. Original cloth. Dust-jacket, priced 7/6.
Originally published by Long in 1914, this popular title by a highly prodigious author is here "rebooted" with an attractive jacket design by an unidentified artist. The title was published as The Bartenstein Mystery in the US.
Weird & Supernatural
London, Collins, [1930].
First edition. 8vo. Original black cloth, blocked in red.
A very good first edition of this collection of short stories by hugely prolific crime writer J.S. Fletcher. The title story is about a mysterious death of a magistrate who was an avid collector of rare books and antiques. Other stories involve a haunted lighthouse, a family feud, a stolen diamond, a secret tunnel and a murder at sea.
Detective Fiction
London, Ward Lock, 1919.
First edition. Signed presentation copy from the author. 8vo. Original green cloth blocked in black. Dust-jacket, priced 6/-.
An excellent copy of this uncommon first edition, especially rare signed and in the original dust-jacket. British-born journalist and novelist Fletcher us considered to be one of the foremost detective fiction writers of his day.
Detective Fiction
London, John Long, [1934].
First edition. 8vo. Original coth. Dust-jacket, correctly priced at 7s 6d on front flap.
A Hubin-listed title featuring author's serial investigator, Anthony Bathurst this time called to the city of Antwerp to solve the strange puzzle set by the sinister "League of Matthias'' - a problem which is brought to the peak by the murder of Inspector Rawlinson.
Very elusive in a jacket.