The Detective Stories of Edgar Allan Poe: Three Tales Featuring C. Auguste Dupin

“Most people would agree that it’s the first actual detective story. There are other stories about crime beforehand, there are even one or two locked room mysteries, but this is the first great detective story. The detective is called Auguste Dupin and it’s set in Paris. Dupin is the archetypal great detective, the brilliant reasoning machine with an admiring unnamed friend who’s the narrator of his exploits. There are two women murdered. One of them is found in a room that’s locked and shuttered and there’s no way in and no way out. You can’t get through the ceiling; you can’t get through the floor. How did it happen? That’s the central puzzle. The police are baffled by the murders, but by applying his brand of logic, Dupin solves the mystery to everybody’s amazement. I won’t say what the solution is but it’s a pretty remarkable one, that’s for sure.” Read more...

The Best Golden Age Mysteries

Martin Edwards, Literary Scholar

“It contains three stories, and each of them represents what is possible to do in the genre. The first is ‘The Murders in the Rue Morgue,’ the first detective story ever. It establishes the convention of the reclusive but brilliant detective along with his sidekick who narrates the story. It’s the first locked-room mystery.” Read more...

The Best Edgar Allan Poe Books

Shawn Rosenheim, Literary Scholar