艾伦·托马斯（1896-1969），出生于英国伦敦，就读于马莱温学院和剑桥，是一名律师兼文学编辑。他早年曾经游历欧洲大陆，1922年到1923年间还曾经环游世界。《电梯谜案》是他的处女作，于1928年在英国出版，1929年在美国出版。这部小说以电梯作为密室的载体，在不可能犯罪题材中颇具特色。

Twenty years ago, Anthony Galton vanished, along with his streetwise bride and several thousand dollars of the Galton fortune. Now his dying mother wants him found, and Lew Archer is on the case: is Anthony hiding somewhere, happy and eager not to be discovered? But what Archer finds - a headless skeleton, a clever con and a terrified blonde - reveals a game whose stakes are so...(展开全部)

罗斯•麦唐诺（Ross Macdonald，1915—1983） 罗斯•麦唐纳（Ross Macdonald,1915-1983），本名肯尼斯•米勒，美国推理作家协会终身大师奖、英国推理作家协会金匕首奖，曾任美国推理作家协会主席，公认的冷硬派推理小说名家。 众多研究犯罪、推理小说名家持续不断地探讨其作品的魅力，《纽约时报》书评称他突破了推理小说的类型限制，成功跻身为“一位主流的美国小说家”。知名作家村上春树、劳伦斯•布洛克（著有《八百万种死法》）、斯蒂格•拉森（著有《龙纹身的女孩》）、约翰•康纳利（著有《失物之书》等作家皆在不同的场合向这位前辈致敬，称自己从他的作品中受益良多。

罗斯•麦唐诺（Ross Macdonald，1915—1983） 罗斯•麦唐纳（Ross Macdonald,1915-1983），本名肯尼斯•米勒，美国推理作家协会终身大师奖、英国推理作家协会金匕首奖，曾任美国推理作家协会主席，公认的冷硬派推理小说名家。 众多研究犯罪、推理小说名家持续不断地探讨其作品的魅力，《纽约时报》书评称他突破了推理小说的类型限制，成功跻身为“一位主流的美国小说家”。知名作家村上春树、劳伦斯•布洛克（著有《八百万种死法》）、斯蒂格•拉森（著有《龙纹身的女孩》）、约翰•康纳利（著有《失物之书》等作家皆在不同的场合向这位前辈致敬，称自己从他的作品中受益良多。

Anthony Galton disappeared almost 20 years ago. Now his aging--and very rich--mother has hired Lew Archer to bring him back. What turns up is a headless skeleton, a suspicious heir, and a con man whose stakes are so high that someone is still willing to kill for them.

Twenty years ago, Anthony Galton vanished, along with his streetwise bride and several thousand dollars of the Galton fortune. Now his dying mother wants him found, and Lew Archer is on the case: is Anthony hiding somewhere, happy and eager not to be discovered? But what Archer finds - a headless skeleton, a clever con and a terrified blonde - reveals a game whose stakes are so...(展开全部)

Short excerpt: The expression of the secretary's eye stopped me. Without seeming to wander from my face its pupil had suddenly dilated till it appeared to embrace my whole person with its scope.

Anthony Galton disappeared almost 20 years ago. Now his aging--and very rich--mother has hired Lew Archer to bring him back. What turns up is a headless skeleton, a suspicious heir, and a con man whose stakes are so high that someone is still willing to kill for them.

Professor Agostino Glioma murders all six members of editorial board of his journal Shakespeare Studies, but not before each has offered a different interpretation of Hamlet.

毒巧克力命案The Poisoned Chocolates Case(1929) Anthony Berkeley(1893-1971)从数学到心理也真是无巧不成书，我曾写过的《礼诺谋杀案》（The Rynox Murder Mystery，1930）的介绍文字里头，文墨有感于推理小说的历史更迭，注重机关装置的本格派如何逐步向注重心理互动的社会派犯罪小说“倾斜”。我顺着文势引出一位推理小说“先知式”的人物，也就是恰巧引述到今天要介绍的小说作者安东尼?柏克莱（Anthony Berkaley，1983-1971）；他在一九三〇年，也就是《礼诺谋杀案》出版的同一年，就曾经在一篇文章中说：“我个人相信，简单纯粹的犯罪解谜，完全仰赖情节设计而不擅角色塑造、行文风格、甚至是幽默感的小说时日，已经落在审判者的手中。侦探小说已经来到一个阶段，未来侦探或犯罪的小说，...(展开全部)