One of the greatest writers of the gothic fantastic, Poe’s dark, masterful stories inspired a generation of writers. With his macabre twists of fate and fascination with science and invention his work led to the detective stories of Sherlock Holmes, the weird horror of H.P. Lovecraft and the grim, tortured tales of Stephen King.

Following the great success of the early Gothic Fantasy, deluxe edition short story compilations, Ghosts, Horror and Science Fiction, this exciting title in the series is packed with hard-boiled detectives, monsters, psychopaths and a high body count. Tales of death and destruction from classic authors are cast with previously unpublished stories by exciting contemporary hardcore crime writers.

Stories from our latest collection feature gritty murders on the streets of Chicago, New York, L.A., London and Paris, horrors in dark alleys, as well as many more scenes from urban crime that elicit a dark curiosity. Classic authors are cast with previously unpublished stories by exciting budding contemporary crime writers to bring you the latest anthology in our successful series. Classic authors include: Stacy Aumonier, Robert Barr, Irvin S. Cobb, Wilkie Collins, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Arthur Conan Doyle, E.W. Hornung, Fergus Hume, Maurice Leblanc, Jack London, Baroness Orczy, Melville Davisson Post, Edgar Wallace, Victor L. Whitechurch, Oscar Wilde.

The pocket-sized FLAME TREE COLLECTABLE CRIME CLASSICS are chosen to create a delightful and timeless gift library of classic crime and mystery thrillers. Each stunning unabridged edition features deluxe cover treatments, ribbon markers, luxury endpapers and gilded edges. The first best-selling title in S.S. Van Dine's series of Philo Vance detective mysteries, The Benson Murder Case (1926), was inspired by the real-life unsolved murder of Joseph Bowne Elwell (1873-1920) in which the victim was shot from within his locked house. Intellectual dandy and amateur sleuth Vance - 'a man of unusual culture and brilliance' - finds the case of murdered playboy stockbroker Alvin Benson fascinating, the missing toupee and false teeth being especially curious... Vance kindly comes to the aid of his friend District Attorney Markham and sets about tracking down the killer using his cerebral powers of deduction in contrast to the short-sighted methods of the police. A specially commissioned biography of the author and a glossary of Victorian and Literary terms make this new edition essential for all classic crime fans!