1st Edition

The Edwardian Detective 1901-15

By Professor Joseph Kestner Copyright 1997

    This title was first published in 1999 & examines the range of detective literature produced between 1901 and 1915 in Britain, during the reign of Edward VII and the early reign of George V. The book assesses the literature as cultural history, with a focus on issues such as legal reform, marital reform, surveillance, Germanophobia, masculinity/femininity, the "best-seller", the arms race, international diplomacy and the concept of "popular" literature. The work also addresses specific issues related to the relationship of law to literature, such as: the law in literature; the law as literature, the role of literature in surveillance and policing; the interpretation of legal issues by literature; the degree to which literature describes and interprets law; the description of legal processes in detective literature; and the connections between detective literature and cultural practices and transitions.

    1 The Edwardian Age and the Edwardian Detective 2 The Edwardian Detective, 1901-1905 Conan Doyle: The Hound of the Baskervilles (1901-1902) Freeman/Pitcairn: The Adventures of Romney Pringle (1902) Freeman/Pitcairn: The Further Adventures of Romney Pringle (1903) Meade/Eustace: The Sorceress of the Strand (1902-1903) Whitechurch: The Investigations of Godfrey Page, Railwayac (1903-1904) Childers: The Riddle of the Sands (1903) Freeman/Pitcairn: From a Surgeon's Diary (1904-1905) Conan Doyle: The Return of Sherlock Holmes (1905) Robinson: The Chronicles of Addington Peace (1905) Bennett: The Loot of Cities (1905) Wallace: The Four Just Men (1905) 3 The Edwardian Detective, 1906-1910 Barr: The Triumphs of Eugene Valmont (1906) Benson: Tracks in the Snow (1906) Freeman: The Red Thumb Mark (1907) Conrad: The Secret Agent (1907) Chesterton: The Man Who Was Thursday (1908) Blackwood: John Silence: Physician Extraordinary (1908) Mason: At the Villa Rose (1910) Orczy: Lady Molly of Scotland Yard (1910) Conan Doyle: His Last Bow (1908-1911) 4 The Edwardian Detective, 1911-1915 Chesterton: The Innocence of Father Brown (1911) Whitechurch: Thrilling Stories of the Railway (1912) Lowndes: The Lodger (1913) BenĂșey: Trent's Last Case (1913) Prichard: November Joe: The Detective of the Woods (1913) Buchan: The Power-House (1913) Bramah: Max Carrados (1914) Hornung: The Crime Doctor (1914) Conan Doyle: The Valley of Fear (1914-1915) Buchan: The Thirty-Nine Steps (1915), Conclusion

    Biography

    Kestner, Professor Joseph