{"title":"Literary Criticism--Mystery \u0026 Detective Fiction","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"the-murder-game-play-puzzles-and-the-golden-age","title":"The Murder Game: Play, Puzzles and the Golden Age","description":"\u003cp\u003eFrom \u003cem\u003eThe Murder of Roger Ackroyd\u003c\/em\u003e to \u003cem\u003eMagpie Murders\u003c\/em\u003e, and related diversions including cryptic crosswords and \u003cem\u003eCain's Jawbone\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Murder Game \u003c\/em\u003eexamines the games authors played with their readers and the importance of puzzles in Golden Age whodunits.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWith books flourishing in the 1920s and '30s like never before, no genre was more innovative or popular than detective fiction. It was an era that saw the emergence of Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers, John Dickson Carr, Ellery Queen and dozens of other authors who became household names for a generation of readers.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Golden Age of Detection has enjoyed a great resurgence of interest in recent years, with publishers mining back catalogues to bring the best of yesteryear to very receptive new audiences. What is it about a literary movement that took off in the 1920s that still appeals to book lovers in the 2020s?\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn this authoritative new study, John Curran reveals that it is the ludic qualities of classic crime fiction that continue to intrigue. At its heart is the 'whodunit' game between writer and reader, but there is also the game between detective and murderer, between publisher and book-buyer, even between the writers themselves.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCoinciding with an increase in leisure time and literacy, the Golden Age also saw the development of the crossword, the growth of bridge and Mahjong, the enduring popularity of jigsaws and the emergence of Cluedo - all activities requiring the 'little grey cells'. \u003cem\u003eThe Murder Game\u003c\/em\u003e considers all of these, and many other sporting and competitive recreations, helping to explain the reading public's ongoing love affair with the Golden Age.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv style=\"display:none\"\u003eISBN-10: 0008679886\u003cbr\u003eISBN-13: 9780008679880\u003cbr\u003eAuthor: Curran, John\u003cbr\u003ePublisher: Collins Crime Club\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Collins Crime Club","offers":[{"title":"HardCover (Jan 2026)","offer_id":45936682795205,"sku":"9780008679880","price":30.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0708\/6414\/2533\/files\/9780008679880.jpg?v=1772849818"},{"product_id":"reacher-the-stories-behind-the-stories","title":"Reacher: The Stories Behind the Stories","description":"After making his debut in 1997's \u003cem\u003eThe Killing Floor\u003c\/em\u003e, Jack Reacher has quickly become one of the most popular--and most enduring--fictional heroes to emerge in the past half century. Now, his creator tells the stories behind the stories.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e These are the origin tales of all of the Reacher novels written solely by Lee Child, chock full of colorful anecdotes and intriguing inspirations. One by one, they expand upon each novel and place it in the context not only of the author's life, but of the world outside the books. And taken together, they chart the rise of an action icon, from 1999's \u003cem\u003eThe Killing Floor\u003c\/em\u003e to 2019's \u003cem\u003eBlue Moon\u003c\/em\u003e. An afterword by crime fiction expert and bookseller Otto Penzler considers the importance of the character and novels in the canon of contemporary crime fiction.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e In addition to the essays, this collection also includes an original Reacher short story--the first new Reacher appearance entirely written by Lee Child since 2019. Entertaining and enlightening, \u003cem\u003eReacher: The Stories Behind the Stories\u003c\/em\u003e is a must-read for fans of the Jack Reacher series and a capstone to any collection of this excellent author.\u003cdiv style=\"display:none\"\u003eISBN-10: 1613167067\u003cbr\u003eISBN-13: 9781613167069\u003cbr\u003eAuthor: Child, Lee\u003cbr\u003ePublisher: Mysterious Press\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Mysterious Press","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover (Sep 2025)","offer_id":46080861012165,"sku":"9781613167069","price":26.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Hardcover - Large Print (Oct 2025)","offer_id":46080861044933,"sku":"9781420527865","price":38.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0708\/6414\/2533\/files\/9781613167069.jpg?v=1776041261"},{"product_id":"gardening-can-be-murder-how-poisonous-poppies-sinister-shovels-and-grim-gardens-have-inspired-mystery-writers","title":"Gardening Can Be Murder: How Poisonous Poppies, Sinister Shovels, and Grim Gardens Have Inspired Mystery Writers","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"This book is dangerous. A veritable cornucopia of crime fiction and gardening lore, it faces the reader with multiple temptations--books to seek out, plants to obtain, garden tours to book.\" --Vicki Lane, author of the Elizabeth \u003ci\u003eGoodweather Appalachian Mysteries\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"Belongs on the shelf of every Agatha Christie fan--and every gardener who enjoys a little mischief and mayhem.\" ―Amy Stewart, author of \u003ci\u003eWicked Plants\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e With their deadly plants, razor-sharp shears, shady corners, and ready-made burial sites, gardens make an ideal scene for the perfect murder. In \u003ci\u003eGardening Can Be Murder\u003c\/i\u003e Marta McDowell, a writer and gardener with a near-encyclopedic knowledge of the genre, illuminates the many ways in which our greatest mystery writers, from Edgar Allen Poe to authors on today's bestseller lists, have found inspiration in the sinister side of gardens. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e From the cozy to the hardboiled, the literary to the pulp, and the classic to the contemporary, this book explores the mystery genre's many surprising horticultural connections. Meet plant-obsessed detectives and spooky groundskeeper suspects, witness toxic teas served in foul play, and tour the gardens--both real and imagined--that have been the settings for fiction's ghastliest misdeeds. 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