Max Carrados

The classic crime novel featuring blind detective Max Carrados, whose popularity rivalled that of Sherlock Holmes, complete with a new introduction and an extra short story. In his dark little curio shop Julian Joolby is weaving an extravagant scheme to smash the financial machinery of the world by flooding the Oriental market with forged banknotes. But this monster of wickedness has not reckoned on Max Carrados, the suave and resourceful investigator whose visual impairment gives him heightened powers of perception that ordinary detectives overlook. Max Carrados was a blind detective whose stories by Ernest Bramah appeared from 1914 alongside Sherlock Holmes in the Strand Magazine, in which they often had top billing. Described by George Orwell as among 'the only detective stories since Poe that are worth re-reading', the 25 stories were collected in three hugely popular volumes, culminating in a full-length novel, The Bravo of London (1934), in which Carrados engages in a battle of wits against a fiendish plot that threatens to overthrow civilisation itself. This Detective Club classic is introduced by Tony Medawar, who investigates the impact on the genre of Bramah's blind detective and the relative obscurity of this, the only Max Carrados novel. This edition also includes the sole uncollected short story 'The Bunch of Violets'.

Max Carrados is one of the most unusual detectives in all fiction. He is blind – and yet he has developed his other faculties to such an amazing degree that they more than compensate for his lack of sight. 'Lose one sense and the others, touch, taste, smell, hearing improve…with a little dedicated training.' Carrados can read a newspaper headline with the touch of his fingers, detect a man wearing a false moustache because 'he carries a five yard aura of spirit gum' and shoot a villain by aiming at the sound of his beating heart. Assisted by his sharp-eyed manservant, Parker, Carrados is the mystery-solver par excellence. Here is a collection of the best of Max Carrados, a set of stories featuring a series of baffling puzzles to challenge the greatest of detectives. They are written by Ernest Bramah with great wit, style and panache. This is vintage crime fiction at its best.

Sightless detective Max Carrados solved his first cases in Edwardian London, in the early days of the 20th century when the city was the beating heart of the vast British Empire. This collection contains the very best tales of the blind sleuth, 10 adventures that range from his first challenge, "The Coin of Dionysus," to mysteries set during the World War I era and the early 1920s. Like Sherlock Holmes, Max Carrados debuted in The Strand magazine, and his stories rivaled those of the Baker Street detective in popularity. Since then, compilation volumes of the frequently anthologized tales have long been out of print and hard to find. This collection offers an excellent introduction to the suave private investigator whose deductive skills are surpassed only by his perceptive powers, which enable him to hear a heartbeat from across the room. Carrados' creator, Ernest Bramah, was one of the few authors in the early days of detective fiction who could combine physical and intellectual thrills with imagination and stylistic brilliance. Brimming with charm and humor, these vintage stories are utterly unique in the field of detective literature.

Max Carrados is one of the most unusual detectives in all fiction. He is blind – and yet he has developed his other faculties to such an amazing degree that they more than compensate for his lack of sight. 'Lose one sense and the others, touch, taste, smell, hearing improve…with a little dedicated training. ' Carrados can read a newspaper headline with the touch of his fingers, detect a man wearing a false moustache because 'he carries a five yard aura of spirit gum' and shoot a villain by aiming at the sound of his beating heart. Assisted by his sharp-eyed manservant, Parker, Carrados is the mystery-solver par excellence. Here is a collection of the best of Max Carrados, a set of stories featuring a series of baffling puzzles to challenge the greatest of detectives. They are written by Ernest Bramah with great wit, style and panache. This is vintage crime fiction at its best.

This early work by Ernest Bramah was originally published in 1927 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'The Ingenious Mind of Mr Rigby Lacksome' is a classic case for blind super sleuth Max Carrados. Ernest Bramah Smith was born was near Manchester in 1868. He was a poor student, and dropped out of the Manchester Grammar School when sixteen years old to go into the farming business. Bramah found commercial and critical success with his first novel, The Wallet of Kai Lung, but it was his later stories of detective Max Carrados that assured him lasting fame.

This early work by Ernest Bramah was originally published in 1914 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'The Game Played in the Dark' is one of the classic Max Carrados detective mysteries. Ernest Bramah Smith was born was near Manchester in 1868. He was a poor student, and dropped out of the Manchester Grammar School when sixteen years old to go into the farming business. Bramah found commercial and critical success with his first novel, The Wallet of Kai Lung, but it was his later stories of detective Max Carrados that assured him lasting fame.

This early work by Ernest Bramah was originally published in 1914 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'The Tilling Shaw Mystery' is one of the classic Max Carrados detective mysteries. Ernest Bramah Smith was born was near Manchester in 1868. He was a poor student, and dropped out of the Manchester Grammar School when sixteen years old to go into the farming business. Bramah found commercial and critical success with his first novel, The Wallet of Kai Lung, but it was his later stories of detective Max Carrados that assured him lasting fame.

This early work by Ernest Bramah was originally published in 1914 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'Four Max Carrados Detective Stories' is a collection of Bramah's classic mystery tales. Ernest Bramah Smith was born near Manchester in 1868. He was a poor student, and dropped out of the Manchester Grammar School when sixteen years old to go into the farming business. Bramah found commercial and critical success with his first novel, The Wallet of Kai Lung, but it was his later stories of detective Max Carrados that assured him lasting fame.

This early work by Ernest Bramah was originally published in 1914 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'The Clever Mrs Straithwaite' is one of the classic Max Carrados detective mysteries. Ernest Bramah Smith was born was near Manchester in 1868. He was a poor student, and dropped out of the Manchester Grammar School when sixteen years old to go into the farming business. Bramah found commercial and critical success with his first novel, The Wallet of Kai Lung, but it was his later stories of detective Max Carrados that assured him lasting fame.

This early work by Ernest Bramah was originally published in 1927 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'The Holloway Flat Tragedy' is a classic case for blind super sleuth Max Carrados. Ernest Bramah Smith was born was near Manchester in 1868. He was a poor student, and dropped out of the Manchester Grammar School when sixteen years old to go into the farming business. Bramah found commercial and critical success with his first novel, The Wallet of Kai Lung, but it was his later stories of detective Max Carrados that assured him lasting fame.

This early work by Ernest Bramah was originally published in the early 20th century and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'The Ingenious Mr. Spinola' is the case of a card playing scam for blind super sleuth Max Carrados. Ernest Bramah Smith was born was near Manchester in 1868. He was a poor student, and dropped out of the Manchester Grammar School when sixteen years old to go into the farming business. Bramah found commercial and critical success with his first novel, The Wallet of Kai Lung, but it was his later stories of detective Max Carrados that assured him lasting fame.

This early work by Ernest Bramah was originally published in 1927 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'The Strange Case of Cyril Bycourt' is a classic case for blind super sleuth Max Carrados. Ernest Bramah Smith was born was near Manchester in 1868. He was a poor student, and dropped out of the Manchester Grammar School when sixteen years old to go into the farming business. Bramah found commercial and critical success with his first novel, The Wallet of Kai Lung, but it was his later stories of detective Max Carrados that assured him lasting fame.

This early work by Ernest Bramah was originally published in 1927 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'The Mystery of The Vanished Petition Crown' is a case of an auction scam for super sleuth Max Carrados to solve. Ernest Bramah Smith was born was near Manchester in 1868. He was a poor student, and dropped out of the Manchester Grammar School when sixteen years old to go into the farming business. Bramah found commercial and critical success with his first novel, The Wallet of Kai Lung, but it was his later stories of detective Max Carrados that assured him lasting fame.

This early work by Ernest Bramah was originally published in 1914 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'The Last Exploit of Harry the Actor' is a mystery of an unexplainable bank robbery. Ernest Bramah Smith was born was near Manchester in 1868. He was a poor student, and dropped out of the Manchester Grammar School when sixteen years old to go into the farming business. Bramah found commercial and critical success with his first novel, The Wallet of Kai Lung, but it was his later stories of detective Max Carrados that assured him lasting fame.

This early work by Ernest Bramah was originally published in the early 20th century and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'The Mystery of the Poisoned Dish of Mushrooms' is a classic case of poison and skulduggery for blind super sleuth Max Carrados. Ernest Bramah Smith was born was near Manchester in 1868. He was a poor student, and dropped out of the Manchester Grammar School when sixteen years old to go into the farming business. Bramah found commercial and critical success with his first novel, The Wallet of Kai Lung, but it was his later stories of detective Max Carrados that assured him lasting fame.

This early work by Ernest Bramah was originally published in 1914 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'The Tragedy at Brookbend Cottage' is a Max Carrados mystery of a man's plot to murder his wife. Ernest Bramah Smith was born was near Manchester in 1868. He was a poor student, and dropped out of the Manchester Grammar School when sixteen years old to go into the farming business. Bramah found commercial and critical success with his first novel, The Wallet of Kai Lung, but it was his later stories of detective Max Carrados that assured him lasting fame.

This early work by Ernest Bramah was originally published in 1927 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'The Curious Circumstances of the Two Left Shoes' is a classic case for blind super sleuth Max Carrados. Ernest Bramah Smith was born was near Manchester in 1868. He was a poor student, and dropped out of the Manchester Grammar School when sixteen years old to go into the farming business. Bramah found commercial and critical success with his first novel, The Wallet of Kai Lung, but it was his later stories of detective Max Carrados that assured him lasting fame.

This early work by Ernest Bramah was originally published in the early 20th century and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'The Ghost at Massingham Mansions' is a classic mystery for blind super sleuth Max Carrados. Ernest Bramah Smith was born was near Manchester in 1868. He was a poor student, and dropped out of the Manchester Grammar School when sixteen years old to go into the farming business. Bramah found commercial and critical success with his first novel, The Wallet of Kai Lung, but it was his later stories of detective Max Carrados that assured him lasting fame.

This early work by Ernest Bramah was originally published in 1927 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'The Missing Witness Sensation' is an intriguing mystery tale of kidnap. Ernest Bramah Smith was born was near Manchester in 1868. He was a poor student, and dropped out of the Manchester Grammar School when sixteen years old to go into the farming business. Bramah found commercial and critical success with his first novel, The Wallet of Kai Lung, but it was his later stories of detective Max Carrados that assured him lasting fame.

This early work by Ernest Bramah was originally published in 1927 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'The Crime at the House in Culver Street' is a classic case for blind super sleuth Max Carrados. Ernest Bramah Smith was born was near Manchester in 1868. He was a poor student, and dropped out of the Manchester Grammar School when sixteen years old to go into the farming business. Bramah found commercial and critical success with his first novel, The Wallet of Kai Lung, but it was his later stories of detective Max Carrados that assured him lasting fame.

This early work by Ernest Bramah was originally published in 1914 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'The Coin of Dionysius' is a mystery short story of a coin and a blind man. Ernest Bramah Smith was born was near Manchester in 1868. He was a poor student, and dropped out of the Manchester Grammar School when sixteen years old to go into the farming business. Bramah found commercial and critical success with his first novel, The Wallet of Kai Lung, but it was his later stories of detective Max Carrados that assured him lasting fame.

This early work by Ernest Bramah was originally published in 1927 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'The Secret of Headlam Height' is a classic case of espionage for super sleuth Max Carrados. Ernest Bramah Smith was born was near Manchester in 1868. He was a poor student, and dropped out of the Manchester Grammar School when sixteen years old to go into the farming business. Bramah found commercial and critical success with his first novel, The Wallet of Kai Lung, but it was his later stories of detective Max Carrados that assured him lasting fame.

This early work by Ernest Bramah was originally published in the early 20th century and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'The Disappearance of Marie Severe' is a classic missing person mystery for blind super sleuth Max Carrados. Ernest Bramah Smith was born was near Manchester in 1868. He was a poor student, and dropped out of the Manchester Grammar School when sixteen years old to go into the farming business. Bramah found commercial and critical success with his first novel, The Wallet of Kai Lung, but it was his later stories of detective Max Carrados that assured him lasting fame.

This early work by Ernest Bramah was originally published in 1914 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'The Comedy at Fountain Cottage' is a classic Max Carrados mysteries of buried treasure. Ernest Bramah Smith was born was near Manchester in 1868. He was a poor student, and dropped out of the Manchester Grammar School when sixteen years old to go into the farming business. Bramah found commercial and critical success with his first novel, The Wallet of Kai Lung, but it was his later stories of detective Max Carrados that assured him lasting fame.