When a man ignores his last warning to pay pund100,000, it is his son who finds him dead on the next morning. Revolving around a mysterious circle, specializing in blackmail, called The Crimson Circle, Wallace’s novel is filled with all the prerequisites for a perfect detective story: a brilliant, almost all-knowing detective, superbly crafted criminal mastermind, strong women characters, and a dramatic twist in the end. The cliched, old-fashioned "suspect everyone" plot is perfect for a summer read and for those who like solving crimes on paper.
Edgar Wallace (1875-1932) was an English writer so prolific, that one of his publishers claimed that he was behind a quarter of all books sold in England. An author, journalist and poet, he wrote countless novels, short stories, screen plays, stage plays, historical non-fiction, etc. Today, more than 160 films have been made from his work. He died suddenly in Hollywood in 1932, during the initial drafting of his most famous work, "King Kong".