'Art is never sordid,' said Daniel. 'And murder is one of the arts.'

Volume I contains the first collection of stories featuring Police Surgeon turned amateur sleuth Daniel Britling, originally published 1930-32:

The Green Ghost Murder Introducing Daniel Britling and his sister Eunice. When the mythical 'Green Ghost of Heaton Forest' returns to haunt the locals, Britling must find a murderer before he strikes twice.

Too Many Motives Mark Savile celebrates his 54th birthday by inviting four men – who all hate him – to dine at his home, and then goads each one individually. An hour later, Savile is found dead.

Find The Lady When impulsive Lady Frances Dorian disappears from a hotel in Brighton without being seen leaving, Britling agrees to do some private sleuthing.

Six Were to Die A group of financiers put all the blame for their illegal activities on one colleague, who served a long prison sentence. His plans for revenge are signalled to each man in advance.

JAMES JACK RONALD (1905-1972) was a prolific writer of pulp fiction, mystery stories and dramatic novels. Raised in Glasgow, Ronald moved to Chicago aged 17 to 'earn his fortune', later returning to the UK to pursue his writing career. His early works were serializations and short stories syndicated in newspapers and magazines around the world. Ronald wrote under a number of pseudonyms, including Michael Crombie, Kirk Wales, Peter Gale, Mark Ellison and Kenneth Streeter among others. Several books were the adapted into films, including Murder in the Family (1938),The Witness Vanishes (1939), and The Suspect (1944).