"[Belloc Lowndes] brings to the making of a mystery a literary sense and an imagination that puts life into the tale and into the readers." - The Observer An enigmatic young woman named Laura Dousland stands on trial for murder, accused of poisoning her elderly husband Fordish. It seems clear that the poison was delivered in a flask of Chianti with supper, but according to the couple's servant in the witness-box, the flask disappeared the night Fordish died and all attempts to trace it have come to nothing. The jury delivers its verdict, but this is just the end of the beginning of Marie Belloc Lowndes' gripping story. First published in 1934, this exquisitely crafted novel blends the tenets of a traditional mystery with an exploration of the psychological impact of death, accusation, guilt and justice in the aftermath of murder.

The Lodger was the basis for Alfred Hitchcock's first thriller, and a remarkable film it is. But the story Hitchcock tells -- of young love and mistaken identity (and is that a mistake, or malicious accusation by a rival. . . ?) -- is very different from Lowndes's tale, a story of an elderly couple with a strange and unsettling tenant -- a man with peculiar habits who may be the Ripper himself. . . .

The Lodger (1913) is a novel by Marie Belloc Lowndes. Inspired by the infamous murders committed by Jack the Ripper and Dr. Neill Cream-also known as the Lambeth Poisoner-The Lodger is a thriller that employs aspects of the popular penny dreadful novel while maintaining its literary status as a bone-chilling and highly original tale. "The room, especially when it be known that it was part of a house standing in a grimy, if not exactly sordid, London thoroughfare, was exceptionally clean and well-cared-for. A casual stranger, more particularly one of a Superior class to their own, on suddenly opening the door of that sitting-room; would have thought that Mr. and Mrs. Bunting presented a very pleasant cosy picture of comfortable married life." Behind their polished exterior, the Buntings hide a common struggle. After countless failures, their business is threatened with total failure, forcing them to go cold and hungry in order to keep up appearances. As their savings plummet, a strange man named Mr. Sleuth arrives offering to pay for the next month in advance. The Buntings are in no position to turn him down. At the same time, a series of brutal murders shocks the city of London, raising their suspicions and fears to a fever pitch. The Lodger is a story of desperation and terror inspired by some of the twentieth century's most notorious serial killers. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Marie Belloc Lowndes' The Lodger is a classic work of British literature reimagined for modern readers.

The beautiful light-haired, blue-eyed Sylvia Bailey -- married at 19, and already a widow at 25 -- is enjoying life on her own in Paris. She even carries with her a symbol of the freedom she feels: a string of pearls -- a superb necklace she wears nearly everywhere she goes . . .

Yet those pearls will take her to the brink of disaster -- and propel her new, dear friend well beyond!

Lowndes (1868-1947), sister to Hilaire Belloc, wrote both historical novels and murder mysteries, with "The Chink in the Armor" ranking among her finest.

Her pen name was Belloc Lowndes. Lowndes was an early 20th century British novelist. A Jack the Ripper type murderer was killing young blonde women in the London fog. When a lodger comes to the Bunting house their daughter is taken with this mysterious man. Her boyfriend is a detective assigned to the murder cases. He is jealous and suspicious of the stranger. In the conclusion the stranger is forced to flee and is almost killed by a mob when a policeman arrives with the truth about the killings. This novel became a movie directed by Alfred Hitchcock.