Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
A love triangle turns deadly in the first full-length detective novel by an American author Published a decade prior to Anna Katharine Green's The Leavenworth Case (1878), The Dead Letter concerns the murder of Henry Moreland, whose body is found just a few steps from the home of John Argyll, Esq. Moreland was engaged to Argyll's daughter, Eleanor, and suspicion soon falls upon the lawyer's prot g , Richard Redfield. Desperate to clear his name, Redfield seeks the help of Mr. Burton, a famous New York City detective--but the case has more twists and turns than either of the two men could possibly imagine.
Set against the political turmoil of the Reconstruction Era, The Dead Letter is a fascinating historical document, a pioneering work of genre fiction, and a mystery with a cleverly satisfying conclusion.
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Synopsis
A deadly puncture from the sharp heel of a stiletto gives "love triangle" murderous new meaning in this gripping gothic mystery
Henry Moreland is stabbed in the back and found lying on the road outside his young lover's house. There is no blood, however, and the only clues are an anonymous letter and a triangular hole in his coat. The murder weapon? A sharp stiletto.
Richard Redfield, a lawyer who seems to be infatuated with the dead man's girlfriend, offers to help a New York City detective and his psychic daughter unravel the crime. Blending the gothic with a hard-boiled investigator, more than 150 years after its publication, the book still surprises and shocks
Synopsis
An undelivered letter with a cryptic message holds the key to an unsolved murder
When Henry Moreland is found dead on a lonely New York road after a violent storm, it seems he died of natural causes while walking to the home of his betrothed, Eleanor Argyll. An examination of the corpse reveals, however, that he was killed by a single, powerful stab wound. His wallet was untouched, eliminating robbery as the motive--but who would want to murder the well-liked and respected man?
Richard Redfield, an old family friend who harbors a secret love for Eleanor, vows to bring Henry's killer to justice. Richard soon finds himself out of his element. Together with a legendary detective named Mr. Burton, he embarks on an unsuccessful mission to find the murderer. When suspicion turns to Richard himself, he leaves the family behind and goes to work in the "Dead Letter" office in Washington. Then a mysterious letter from the past turns up, and a new hunt begins...
Synopsis
Another triumph with this pioneering crime novel.--Publishers Weekly
The sixth book in the Library of Congress Crime Classics, an exciting new classic mystery series created in exclusive partnership with the Library of Congress. This classic crime fiction mystery features a love triangle with a murderous twist.
An undelivered letter with a cryptic message holds the key to an unsolved murder
When Henry Moreland is found dead on a lonely New York road after a violent storm, it seems he died of natural causes while walking to the home of his betrothed, Eleanor Argyll. An examination of the corpse reveals, however, that he was killed by a single, powerful stab wound. His wallet was untouched, eliminating robbery as the motive--but who would want to murder the well-liked and respected man?
Richard Redfield, an old family friend who harbors a secret love for Eleanor, vows to bring Henry's killer to justice. Richard soon finds himself out of his element. Together with a legendary detective named Mr. Burton, he embarks on an unsuccessful mission to find the murderer. When suspicion turns to Richard himself, he leaves the family behind and goes to work in the Dead Letter office in Washington. Then a mysterious letter from the past turns up, and a new hunt begins...
This twisting tale is the first full-length American detective novel, written under a pseudonym by Metta Victor in the 1860s. It revived American crime fiction, which had languished after Edgar Allan Poe's short stories of the 1840s. Combining elements of Wilkie Collins's The Moonstone and the sensation novels popular in England, it opened the doors for generations of American crime writers to follow.