First detective novel back in print NEWS
After 150 years, the first ever detective novel, The Notting Hill Mystery by Charles Felix, is back in print.
Despite being serialised between 1862 and 1863 in the magazine Once a Week, the Felix detective novel has since been forgotten until now and has not been published in its entirety since 1864.
The story centres around the insurance investigate Ralph Henderson who works to make Baron 'R___' pay for murdering his wife for a large life insurance compensation. The Notting Hill mystery is said to feature 'innovative techniques that would not become common features of detective fiction until the 1920s' says the British Library.
The detective novel was well received at its time of publication, gaining many positive reviews. The British Library made the novel available via print-on-demand last March along with a large collection of other 19th century novels. While The Notting Hill Mystery sales took off following a gleaming review in the New York Times, the other books paled in comparison.
'It's a great read, written in a very matter-of-fact way' Paul Collins describes the novel in the New York Times.
'At the beginning of the book you know what the crime is, then he gradually leads you through all the events leading up to the crime, and only at the end reveals how it happened. He keeps you going through the book. Modern fans of crime fiction would definitely enjoy it,' said commissioning editor Lara Speicher.
The British Library's recent edition has been printed using photographs of the illustrated original.
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