[Anthony Bathurst 02] • The Case of the Black Twenty-Two

“Mr. Laurence P. Stewart was murdered last night in his library. He was found with his skull battered in!”

Peter Daventry, a young lawyer, receives instructions from a rich client to purchase three valuable artefacts once belonging to Mary, Queen of Scots. It’s a singular request, with no limit on the money to be paid at the auction. But the day after Daventry inspects the items, they are stolen from the auction house and a security guard is found horribly murdered.

The next morning, Daventry and his colleagues are startled to discover that the client, miles away at his country house, has also been slain – in a room locked from the inside. Faced with such a dilemma, there’s only one thing that can be done – call for Anthony Bathurst, detective extraordinaire.

The Case of the Black Twenty-Two was originally published in 1928. This new edition includes an introduction by crime fiction historian Steve Barge.