THE DOOR TO DOOM

by John Dickson Carr ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 27, 1980

Previously uncollected stories, essays, and miscellanea from the archives of the late titan (a.k.a. Carter Dickson)--lavishly annotated with a bibliography, forewords, afterwords, and notes that sometimes become hyperbolic (""Carr was probably the most innovative of all detective novelists"") or schoolmarmish (""As you read the remainder of the stories and plays in this book, watch for clues and beware of misdirection""). There are five stories written by the very young Carr for his college paper; they reveal an early-on preoccupation with locked-room puzzles, with historical intrigue (the Borgias), with the occult; and they feature first appearances by Paris police prefect Henri Bencolin. Plus: six radio plays from the early 1940s (one starring Dr. Gideon Fell), three ghost stories from 1930s pulps, two parodies of Sherlock Holmes, an historical essay on 18th-century highwaymen, and. . . a very valuable reprint of Carr's lively (if limited) 1946 credo on the art of the detective novel: ""The Grandest Game in the World."" A generous serving--for fans and scholars.

Pub Date: Aug. 27, 1980

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Harper & Row

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1980

Categories: FICTION