Four Max Carrados Detective Stories

Ernest Bramah (1868-1942) was the pen name of Ernest Bramah Smith, an English writer who protected his privacy with unusual care. He is mainly known for the Kai Lung books, fantasy stories set in an imagined China, whose elaborate courtesy and irony impressed other writers. Dorothy L. Sayers, for example, often used quotations from them as chapter headings in her novels.

In his own lifetime, however, Bramah was equally well known for his detective fiction, and above all for the stories of Max Carrados. The first collection of them appeared in 1914. Carrados is a blind detective, a figure that was unusual in a field already crowded with brilliant sleuths. A blind one was fresh, and Bramah treats the character's condition with imagination rather than pity.

This recording selects four of the stories: The Coin of Dionysius, The Knight's Cross Signal Problem, The Tragedy at Brookbend Cottage and The Last Exploit of Harry the Actor. It lasts about three and a half hours and is read by a single LibriVox volunteer, Andy Minter. The stories are self-contained, which makes them ideal for listening one at a time. Lovers of classic detective fiction will enjoy the clever solutions and the old-fashioned charm, and Bramah's fans will be glad to hear his less familiar side. Each story has its own puzzle and its own twist, and Carrados's skill makes them enjoyable even after more than a century.