Detective Chief Inspector Wilfred Dover is the most idle and avaricious hero in all of crime fiction. Why should he even be bothered to solve the case? When word gets out that Pomeroy Chemicals is seeking to fill the lucrative position of Chief Security Officer, Dover is keenly interested. All he needs, he feels, is one smashing success and the prestigious title is his. When a young pregnant girl known to no one in the town of Frenchy Botham turns up murdered, Dover eagerly comes up with more totally plausible suspects, persuasive motives, and airtight solutions than the sharp mind of his assistant Sergeant MacGregor, can process. In fact, if you've ever wondered when or how MacGregor would reach his breaking point, this is the book to read. Editorial reviews: “Something quite out of the ordinary.” Daily Telegraph “Joyce Porter is a joy... Dover is unquestionably the most entertaining detective in fiction.” Guardian “Plotted with the technique of a virtuoso.” New York Times “Wonderfully funny.” Spectator “Dover is wildly, joyously unbelievable; and may he remain so for our comic delight.” Sun “You will be fascinated by his sheer dazzling incompetence. Porter has a keen eye, a wicked sense of comedy, and a delightfully low mind.” Harper’s

Lift your "spirits" with this colorful celebration of the Mexican holiday that honors lost loved ones. Created by David and Chris Edgerly, 31 elaborately detailed designs include iconic sugar skulls as well as dozens of whimsical skeletons.

A bibliography of various mystery novels published between November 1976 and Fall 1992.

Bruce Murphy's Encyclopedia of Murder and Mystery is a comprehensive guide to the genre of the murder mystery that catalogues thousands of items in a broad range of categories: authors, titles, plots, characters, weapons, methods of killing, movie and theatrical adaptations. What distinguishes this encyclopedia from the others in the field is its critical stance.

Presents critical studies of more than 270 authors of detective and mystery fiction from around the world dating from the mid-eighteenth century to the present day.

Provides indexes to American and British mystery novels by author, title, subject, setting, and characters.

In an America broken by a "limited" nuclear war, no one has use for would-be private eye Wally Sands. No one except for Dr. Charles Winfield, an eccentric scientist who believes he was cloned from a prominent biochemist as part of a top-secret project undertaken before the war. Sands sets out to find Winfield's mysterious progenitor, but finds himself on the trail of a killer instead. Now, in far-away, fabled England, Sands must uncover the facts about the case that has brought him to his promised land, and at the same time confront the unsettling truth about his world, his life, and his loyalties. A story of love and betrayal, life and death, the future and the past. A story that will make you laugh, make you cry—and make you think. AWARDS: Philip K. Dick Award, Finalist REVIEWS: "A wry, ingratiating story." ~Publisher's Weekly "A hard science fiction, medium-boiled detective story that succeeds in both fields... kept me guessing right up to the end." ~Aboriginal Science Fiction "Humanist science fiction of a high order." ~Locus THE LAST P.I., in series order Dover Beach The Distance Beacons Where All The Ladders Start OTHER TITLES by Richard Bowker Senator Summit Replica Pontiff

This work is the only comprehensive guide to sequels in English, with over 84,000 works by 12,500 authors in 17,000 sequences.

Presents a collection of historical engravings depicting costumed skeletons representing the Mexican celebration of of Dia de los Muertos.

This work is a composite index of the complete runs of all mystery and detective fan magazines that have been published, through 1981. Added to it are indexes of many magazines of related nature. This includes magazines that are primarily oriented to boys' book collecting, the paperbacks, and the pulp magazine hero characters, since these all have a place in the mystery and detective genre.