Crime Classics: The Mystery Story from Poe to the Present

by Rex Burns (Editor), Mary Rose Sullivan (Editor)

With its high stakes and uncertain outcome, the mystery tale is the most popular form of fiction in the United States. Crime Classics presents spellbinding works by such masters as Edgar Allen Poe, Arthur Conan Doyle, Dashiell Hammett, Dorothy Sayers, and Agatha Christie, as well as delightful gems from less familiar writers like Cornell Woolrich and intriguing tales by authors not usually associated with mystery writing--Flannery O'Connor, Jorge Luis Borges, and William Faulkner.

Burns and Sullivan introduce the anthology by tracing the history of the genre and providing a biography of each author. Mystery stories demand superb craftsmanship and attention to detail; these enticing pieces combine fine writing, inventive plots, and challenges that readers will find irresistible.

"Crime Classics lives up to its name, collecting outstanding stories as entertaining as they are worthy of literary note."--Los Angeles Reader

Genres: Short Stories, Mystery, Anthologies, Fiction

Paperback

First published November 19, 1990

About the author

Rex Burns (b. 1935) is the author of numerous thrillers set in and around Denver, Colorado. Born in California, he served in the Marine Corps and attended Stanford University and the University of Minnesota before becoming a writer. His Edgar Award–winning first novel, The Alvarez Journal (1975), introduced Gabe Wager, a Denver police detective first working in an organized crime unit, then in homicide. Burns continued this hardboiled series through ten more novels, concluding it with 1997’s The Leaning Land. His second series (3 volumes) features Devlin Kirk and "Bunch" Bunchcroft, a private investigator series set in Colorado. The third series, beginning in 2013, follows the adventures of a father/daughter private detective team. The first, "Body Slam," focuses on the world of professional wrestling. The second, set in England and the Middle East, deals with theft from an oil tanker. His short story series, appearing in "Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine," features Aboriginal Constable Leonard Smith of the Western Australia Police.

Reviews

[Jane Wilson]

Includes:

The Murders in the Rue Morgue
Edgar Allen Poe
The Purloined Letter-Edgar Allen Poe
A Scandal in Bohemia-Arthur Conan Doyle
The Adventure of the Speckled Band-Arthur Conan Doyle
The Problem of Cell 13-Jacques Futrelle
The Invisible Man-G.K. Chesterton
A Jury of Her Peers-Susan Glaspell
The House in Turk Street-Dashiell Hammett
The Adventurous Exploit of the Cave of Ali Baba-Dorothy Sayers
The Blue Geranium-Agatha Christie
Murder at the Automat-Cornell Woolrich
Hand Upon the Waters-William Faulkner
Death and the Compass-Jorge Luis Borges
THe Adventure of Abraham Lincoln's Clue-Ellery Queen
The Comforts of Home-Flannery O'Connor
The SLeeping Dog-ROss MacDonald
Sadie When She Died-Ed McBain

[D. Wickles · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a quick read for me for I had already read a few of these stories but I enjoyed the rest. Any mystery lover would enjoy this old book.

[Mark Mallett · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this collection of mystery and detective stories. The editors did a good job of selecting stories published over a long span of years, representing changing styles and yet showing fairly consistent homage to Poe. Practically every one made me want to track down more by the author (while of course making me feel woefully under-read).

My one problem with this book is that each story has an introduction by the editors, and the introduction makes a not-so-veiled reference to how the story ends. While the preparatory remarks are mostly helpful while reading each story, the allegedly coy descriptions of the endings should be saved for a postscript.

I should also mention that this goodreads entry does not exactly match the copy that I have. The main thing is that the names of one of the editors, Mary Rose Sullivan, has been omitted. (My copy doesn't have an ISBN, as it was an old book club edition, and it doesn't match the other listing that goodreads has). Hopefully this will be updated at some point.

[Kate S]

Includes:

The Murders in the Rue Morgue
Edgar Allen Poe
The Purloined Letter-Edgar Allen Poe
A Scandal in Bohemia-Arthur Conan Doyle
The Adventure of the Speckled Band-Arthur Conan Doyle
The Problem of Cell 13-Jacques Futrelle
The Invisible Man-G.K. Chesterton
A Jury of Her Peers-Susan Glaspell
The House in Turk Street-Dashiell Hammett
The Adventurous Exploit of the Cave of Ali Baba-Dorothy Sayers
The Blue Geranium-Agatha Christie
Murder at the Automat-Cornell Woolrich
Hand Upon the Waters-William Faulkner
Death and the Compass-Jorge Luis Borges
THe Adventure of Abraham Lincoln's Clue-Ellery Queen
The Comforts of Home-Flannery O'Connor
The SLeeping Dog-ROss MacDonald
Sadie When She Died-Ed McBain

[Clayton · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting collection. I picked it up from a used book sale because of what I had read in an introduction to the Sherlock Holmes stories; the introduction had outlined some characters that preceded Holmes, such as Poe's Dupin. Though some of the stories are a bit slow, most of them were quite intriguing and presented me with some new author's to pursue.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun to see the progression of the genre.