A slim volume that discusses some of the works of "the Golden Age" of mystery writing. Includes short synopsis of (and reveals the killer in some) such detective stories as Sayers' "Murder Must Advertise," "A Question of Proof" by Nicholas Blake, "Greek Tragedy" by G.D.H and Margaret Cole, "Laurels are Poison" by Gladys Mitchell, and others. It analyzes the ways in which the (English) lifestyle between the wars influenced the genre, and includes a guide to many of the authors writing in the period, such as John Dickson Carr, Michael Innes, John Rhode, Joesphine Tey, and others. It's a light look at the subject even though it does mention who the killer is in Christie's "The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (Keating says he "doesn't care" if he's giving it away), as an example of how some of the rules of writing mysteries were broken.

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