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James's gesture with the key was cautious because he was not always sure of who or what he would find in the hall when he got in. It might be someone in tears, or someone asleep while they filled up time waiting to catch a train, or someone drunk.James Muir has reason to be cautious about entering his own home. His wife Daisy just can't resist solving everyone else's problems. There's Delia Huxtable, a young unwed mother, and her daughter Evelyn ('my illegit'), Molly Raymond, who falls far too easily in love, Tibbs, an Eastern European refugee, and Daisy's old school friend Don ('The Hulk') and his family, for whom Daisy commandeers her neighbour Mrs Cavendish's top floor. All watched over, reluctantly, by Daisy's father, a retired Army man, her elderly cousins Ella and Marcia (the latter a Dame thanks to her World War I service), and the long-suffering James-not to mention her young son James Too ('That white thing? I thought it was a parcel. She drags that child around too much.')But when Mrs Cavendish decides to enslave Don's wife to replace her lost servants and Molly turns her affections on James, Daisy is forced to re-think her priorities. First published in 1959 and reprinted here for the first time, A Pink Front Door is one of Stella Gibbons' most delightful and perceptive social comedies. This new edition features an introduction by twentieth-century women's historian Elizabeth Crawford.'As usual Stella Gibbons tells a good story, combining a sharp eye for absurdities with pity for poor humans' Birmingham Post

It was indeed very difficult for the Laventie children not to be a little priggish.Ann Laventie, the youngest of three children in a long line of anti-social Sussex gentry, doesn't quite fit the mould of her intellectual, elegant, ultra-modern siblings Dick, an artist, and Elizabeth, a high-brow writer. Their father is scholarly and just wealthy enough to focus all his attention on reading and other highbrow pursuits. Ann, on the other hand, worries about being plump, is what might be called a 'people person,' and appreciates the simpler pleasures. As the young Laventies spend more and more of their time in the glitter of London, their differences grow more pronounced, and when Ann returns home with an unsuitably ordinary fiance, this dazzling, witty battle of the brows reaches its exhilarating climax.Rhododendron Pie, one of Margery Sharp's rarest and most sought-after novels, was her debut, reportedly written in one month while Sharp worked as a typist and shared a flat in Paddington with two other girls. But it already shows all the charm, humour, and sophistication that characterizes Sharp's beloved later work. First published in 1930, it has, inexplicably, never been reprinted. Until now. This new edition features an introduction by twentieth-century women's historian Elizabeth Crawford.'A first novel of quite unusual charm, pointedly and gracefully written, and whimsically human' Yorkshire Post

...for the first time in her life, she was living as she had always unknowingly wanted to live: in freedom and solitude, with an animal for close companion. Her new life had acted upon her like a strong and delicious drug.Ivy Gover, a curmudgeonly middle-aged charwoman with some slightly witchy talents, inherits a rural cottage in Buckinghamshire and takes up residence near the tiny village of Little Warby. Having settled in with a rescued dog and a pet pigeon, she manages, despite her anti-social instincts, to have surprising effects on her new neighbours, including Angela Mordaunt, a spinster still mourning her dead beau, Coral and Pearl Cartaret, ditzy sisters who have just opened a tea shop, the local vicar, and wealthy Lord Gowerville, whose devotion she earns by healing his beloved dog. But her biggest challenge will likely be the 12-year-old runaway who shows up at her door...Blending vivid characters and a deep knowledge of human nature, this is also a funny and poignant tale of the challenges and freedoms of old age and solitude. The Woods in Winter was first published in 1970 and was the last novel Stella Gibbons wrote for publication. This new edition features an introduction by twentieth-century women's historian Elizabeth Crawford.'Stella Gibbons sees people as they really are but she observes them so lovingly as well as acutely that one loves them too' Elizabeth Goudge

He also made himself a weekly allowance of five shillings for cigarettes, stationery, amusements, shoe-repairs, razor-blades, laundry, toothpaste, hospitality and 'bus fares; and having thus cut his coat to his cloth, wore it in great content.The only thing he had not allowed for (and this in an author must surely be considered strange) was Love.Upon the death of his distant, unaffectionate father, Alistair French, a young store clerk, takes his small inheritance and escapes from the humdrum to a flat in London in order to Write. He and his friend Henry take cheap lodgings in a Paddington boarding-house whose denizens include the spirited, starstruck Winnie Parker, her full-throated mother, who shares Winnie's passion for films if not her admiration for Garbo ("e;'Olds 'erself like a sack of potatoes"e;), and (generally) an army of Winnie's admirers.But Alistair, faced with the many distractions of Bloomsbury and Bohemia, has considerable trouble getting any writing done. And then there's the biggest distraction of all-a lovely young actress named Cressida who is, to Alistair's chagrin, determined to marry only a man who can further her career. First published in 1932 and out of print for more than 80 years, Fanfare for Tin Trumpets is one of Margery Sharp's most irresistibly cheerful confections. This new edition features an introduction by twentieth-century women's historian Elizabeth Crawford.'We can only hope that this charming piece of impertinence will be widely read for its fine sympathy with youth in all its shapes' Angela Thirkell

To look at Miss Georgina Carter you would never have suspected that a woman of her age and character would have allowed herself to be so wholeheartedly mixed up with an Ifrit.It's the final months of World War II and Georgina Carter, a single woman in her late forties with a drab job in the Censorship office, is convinced that nothing very shattering, nothing very devastating could happen to one after that age. But then she buys some wood blocks from a blitzed roadway, one of which, when burned in her fireplace, releases a long-imprisoned Ifrit (don't call him a genie) eager to do her bidding. Nicknamed Joe, he zaps in exotic foods and luxurious decor, and takes her on a dizzying hurtle through space to visit a beloved nephew in Canada. Then an old flame visits and Joe senses possibilities . . .This delightful 1945 novel, alongside its fantasy elements, depicts the mood of the later war years, with bombed out buildings, dirt, cravings for impossible-to-find foods, and the surliness and fatigue of many Londonersbut all are considerably enlivened by an energetic, well-meaning, but slightly overly-enthusiastic Ifrit.

Miss Clutterbuck would like me to run the bar-no, it can't be that-run the car, which has seen its best days but is still useful for shopping. Grace has told her I am patient and tactful, so (as she herself is neither the one nor the other) she thinks I am the right person to look after the social side.With husband Tim stationed in Egypt and her children at boarding-school, Hester Christie-affectionately known as "Mrs. Tim" and based loosely on D.E. Stevenson herself-finds herself at loose ends, until her friend Grace takes her at her word and finds her a job with the formidable Erica Clutterbuck, who has opened a new hotel in the Scottish Borders.Once there, Hester's initial ambivalence disappears in a swirl of problems and situations with hotel guests and old friends alike, including serving as fortune teller at the local fête and aiding and abetting romantic schemes, not to mention the reappearance of the debonair Tony Morley.This volume, first published in 1947, is a sequel to Mrs. Tim Carries On and brings Hester into the immediate post-war years. Her exploits continue in Mrs. Tim Flies Home. All three titles are back in print for the first time in decades from Furrowed Middlebrow and Dean Street Press. This edition includes a new introduction by Alexander McCall Smith."D.E. Stevenson brings back Mrs. Tim after some years' silence, and here she is the same charming, witty woman, a little older, a little wiser but just as busy as ever." Edinburgh Evening News"It is a delightful book, and long may Mrs Tim flourish!" Sunday Times

Sometimes it is difficult to see clearly in what direction one's duty lies (and especially difficult for people like myself with a husband in one part of the world and children in another) but Tim and I, talking it over together in cold blood, decided that I ought to go home.Hester Christie, the delightful heroine last met in Mrs. Tim Gets a Job, has spent a blissful 18 months living in Kenya where husband Tim is posted. But now it's back to England to be with her two nearly grown children. She rents a house near the village of Old Quinings in England's North Country, and plans a quiet summer with the children near the inn owned by her beloved former maid Annie and her husband.But things are never quiet for long with Mrs. Tim, and she must navigate curious neighbours, a dishonest landlady, and a troublesome travel companion who makes an unwelcome appearance in Old Quinings, not to mention a bit of intrigue and-as usual for Hester-a bit of matchmaking for young lovers.Mrs. Tim Flies Home, first published in 1952, concludes D.E. Stevenson's much-loved Mrs. Tim series. Furrowed Middlebrow and Dean Street Press have also reprinted Mrs. Tim Carries On and Mrs. Tim Gets a Job. This new edition includes an introduction by Alexander McCall Smith."Another charming romance . . . Strongly recommended for pleasurable reading." Edinburgh Evening News

';The poor devil's mouth was filled with feathers. An unconscious man with his mouth full of feathers wouldn't have had much chance of surviving, and this one didn't.'The press gleefully dubbed it the ';Banquet Murder'. The murdered man, Hugh Newton, had apparently been making a sumptuous feast for two in his flat, before his own goose was cooked.Bobby Owen of the Yard is drawn to the cold case. Starting with the curious fact that the apartment building has experienced two break-ins since the murder, Bobby starts investigating the colourful, or faintly macabre, inhabitants. Elsewhere in London, Doreen Caine, cookery instructor, is excited that the case has been reopened. And further afield, a travel agency specializing in gastronomic tours comes under suspicion. It's a bouillabaise of a mystery, one of Punshon's finest, in which Bobby will discover whether retribution if not revenge is a dish best served cold.Strange Ending is the thirty-first novel in the Bobby Owen Mystery series, originally published in 1953. This new edition features a bonus Bobby Owen short story, and an introduction by crime fiction historian Curtis Evans.';What is distinction? in the works of Mr. E.R. Punshon we salute it every time.'--Dorothy L. Sayers

"e;Who knows if he didn't make away with her here? Those things found in the Home Coppice show that she was made away with plain enough, I say."e; Jim Gregory, under-gardener at Hargreave Manor, finds something unexpected when climbing Lover's Oak but won't say what. Instead he's all ears regarding the legendary 'Luck of the Hargreaves' diamonds, destined for the future bride of Sir Arthur, the new squire.Sir Arthur himself then discovers a beautiful stranger, lost in the woods near the manor. She cannot recall a thing-not even her name. She is given shelter and Mary Marston, a private nurse, recognizes her-and abruptly goes missing. Nurse Marston must still be in the house, it is initially agreed-but if so, where?Who got rid of Nurse Marston? To whom does the tobacco pouch with the floral design belong? And why was a blood-stained cuff found in the woods? These mysteries, and more, Superintendent Stokes is determined to solve. The Blue Diamond (1925) is a classic of early golden age crime fiction. This new edition, the first in over eighty years, features an introduction by crime fiction historian Curtis Evans. "e;Tired men, trotting home at the end of an imperfect day, pop into the library and ask for an Annie Haynes. They have not made a mistake in the street number. It is not a cocktail they are asking for..."e; Sketch

'Take off your coat,' said the doctor. I took it off. 'And your dress,' he said. 'It's too dangerous - the folds may catch in the debris and bring the whole thing down.' I took off the dress. 'Fine,' he said shortly. 'It'll have to be head first. We'll hold your thighs. Go down and see if it's possible to give an injection. Can you grip the torch with your teeth?' Frances Faviell lived in Chelsea before and during the London Blitz, having became a Red Cross volunteer when World War II began. Chelsea was particularly heavily bombed and the author was often in the heart of the action, witnessing or involved in fascinating and horrific events through 1940 and 1941. Her memoir evokes an unforgettable cast, Londoners and refugees alike, caught up together in extraordinarily dangerous times - not forgetting the 'Green Cat', a Chinese statuette, standing on the author's window sill as the home's talismanic protector. Frances Faviell's memoir is powerful in its blend of humour, tenderness and horror, including the most haunting ending of any wartime memoir. A Chelsea Concerto is reprinted now for the first time since 1959, with a new introduction by Virginia Nicholson. 'Irresistible reading. There could be no more graphic account of what one first-aid worker and her small party witnessed and did during the London Blitz … while characters are sketched in with a novelist's art, the impression left is one of stark truth.' Birmingham Post 'I am so happy that A Chelsea Concerto is back in print. It is a gem of a book, one of the best personal memoirs of WW2 on the home front, written with an artist's eye for detail and immediacy.' Kate Atkinson

"e;As for books,"e; Sir Oswald said, "e;I don't care for them. Unless I get hold of a good detective story. The tracing out of crime always has a curious fascination for me."e; Frank Carlyn quarrelled with his gamekeeper Jack Winter, and then appeared agitated. Soon after, Winter was found shot dead with his own gun. Suspicion was primarily aimed at the late man's wife, seen rushing to catch a London train, and then vanishing.One year later, the enigmatic governess Elizabeth Martin arrives to take up her duties at Davenant Priory. Her appearance means nothing to the almost-blind Sir Oswald, though others in the household note her dyed dark hair and the smoked glasses she habitually wears. But what is Miss Martin's secret and how is it connected to the sinister slaying committed twelve months earlier?The Master of the Priory (1927) is a classic of early golden age crime fiction. This new edition, the first in over eighty years, features an introduction by crime fiction historian Curtis Evans."e;The story is written so brightly that it almost reads itself."e; Eve

';How would you like to be a rocket? A stranger for a week, an heiress for a week, then down with the stick and a stranger again.'Imperious, warm-hearted Honoria Maquisten plans to revise her will but before the papers can be drawn up, she is dead from an overdose of pills. All eyes are on Carey Silence, a penniless orphan who was recently made Honoria's ward. Suspicion becomes evidence, Carey is arrested and her trial is prepared. So begins a classic golden age mystery with many suspects and twists. Who was the ';rocket' referred to? Who was it Honoria really intended to cut out of her will? And most importantly who murdered her?This novel, from 1945, tells the story of one of the most dramatic trials in detective fiction the trial of Carey Silence. The new edition features an introduction by crime fiction historian Curtis Evans.';When I pick up a book by Patricia Wentworth I think, now to enjoy myself and I always do.' Mary Dell, Daily Mirror

Description "e;He is dead. It is quite impossible that he should have killed himself. He has been murdered. About half an hour ago. By a long knife passed under the left shoulder-blade into the heart."e;On a fog-bound London night, a soiree is taking place in the studio of artist Laurence Newtree. The guests include an eminent psychiatrist, a wealthy philanthropist and an observant young friend of Newtree's, John Christmas. Before the evening is over, Newtree's neighbour is found stabbed to death in what appears to be an impossible crime. But a mysterious man in a fez has been spotted in the fog asking for highly unlikely directions...The resourceful John Christmas takes on the case, unofficially, leading to an ingenious solution no one could have expected, least of all Inspector Hembrow of Scotland Yard.The Studio Crime is the first of Ianthe Jerrold's classic whodunit novels, originally published in 1929. Its impact led to her membership of the elite Detection Club, and its influence can be felt on later works by John Dickson Carr, Ngaio Marsh and Dorothy L. Sayers among others.This edition, the first in over eighty years, features a new introduction by crime fiction historian Curtis Evans.Praise for The Studio Crime"e;The best out of a new batch of detective stories."e; J.B. Priestley in The Evening News"e;Very carefully constructed, is very well written, and keeps its secret until the end."e; The Morning Post"e;Can be most heartily recommended to those who like a good mystery story written in good English."e; Newcastle Chronicle"e;The book is a pleasantly written record of an admirable piece of detective work."e; Times Literary Supplement