The appearance of Sherlock Holmes in The Strand Magazine in 1891 began a stampede of writers who wanted to emulate, build upon or even satirize Arthur Conan Doyle’s work. This book explores the development of detective fiction during the critical period between Conan Doyle’s creation of Holmes and the advent of the Golden Age of the detective story during World War I. Both British and American detective writers of the period are surveyed—as well as writers who turned to gentleman burglars and master criminals.

LeRoy Lad Panek, professor emeritus of English at McDaniel College (and “One of the most readable, prolific, and perceptive academic scholars of mystery fiction”—Mystery Scene), is the author of a number of books about detective fiction. He lives in Westminster, Maryland.

LeRoy Lad Panek
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 224
Bibliographic Info: appendix, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2014
pISBN: 978-0-7864-7765-4
eISBN: 978-1-4766-1810-4
Imprint: McFarland

Table of Contents

Preface 1
1. In the Beginning 5
2. What Is a Detective Story? 24
3. From “A Scandal in Bohemia” to The Hound of the Baskervilles 44
4. From The Hound of the Baskervilles to the Great War 89
5. Criminal Heroes 141
6. Master Criminals 174
Final Thoughts 197
Appendix: Biographical Notes 203
Works Cited 207
Index 213

“one of the most readable, prolific, and perceptive academic scholars of mystery fiction…most welcome. Panek comes to his topic more as a historian than a literary critic, and his writing holds as much for the serious fan as for his fellow professors”—Mystery Scene.