That Affair Next Door
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4.1 • 9 Ratings
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- $5.99
Publisher Description
This classic whodunit by the nineteenth-century author of The Leavenworth Case introduces the original spinster sleuth: Amelia Butterworth.
Living alone in the moneyed Manhattan neighborhood of Gramercy Park, Amelia Butterworth is happy to keep to herself. But awakened one night by the sound of a horse-drawn cab outside her mansion, she spies a curious couple entering a home she knows to be empty. When only the man emerges, Amelia calls the police—and is suddenly the sole witness to a murder.
But Amelia intends to do more than simply be interrogated, much to the chagrin of Det. Ebenezer Gryce. She has questions of her own, and soon the police detective and amateur sleuth are in a race to see who can solve the crime first.
“First published in 1897, this cleverly plotted mystery . . . featuring the first woman sleuth in a series, is a must for genre buffs.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
First published in 1897, this cleverly plotted mystery from Greene (1846 1935) introduces Amelia Butterworth, an elderly spinster "of Colonial ancestry and no inconsiderable importance in the social world," who lives alone in Manhattan's exclusive Gramercy Park neighborhood. One night, she's awakened by the sound of a horse-drawn cab pulling up outside the mansion next door. A man and a woman alight and enter the house, which Miss Butterworth knows to be empty. Ten minutes later, the man leaves. She subsequently summons the police, who investigate and find the body of a woman lying crushed beneath "a fallen piece of furniture." Det. Ebenezer Gryce arrives, and the competition begins: who will solve the murder first? Much of the book's enjoyment stems from Miss Butterworth's spirited discussions with the 77-year-old Gryce and her seeming lack of self-awareness. She describes herself as "not an inquisitive woman" and having a "dignified deportment," while those around her see her as pushy and nosy. This inaugural volume in the Library of Congress Crime Classics series, featuring the first woman sleuth in a series, is a must for genre buffs. Correction: An earlier version of this review misstated the book's title.
