The Oxford Despoiler. And Other Mysteries from the Case Book of Henry St Liver

Tall, rake-thin and copiously moustachioed with a high, piping voice, Henry St Liver is at first glance not an impressive specimen. But the moment he is confronted with a mystery to solve - one with a risque element - he is turned into a positive genius of detection and decision. In this first collection, he and his spirited assistant Olive Salter tackle eight cases that have baffled Scotland Yard, taking them on a series of dramatic journeys into the most exotic reaches of Victorian society, and of the human heart. With an extraordinary cameo appearance by Oscar Wilde, and informed by a wealth of lightly worn erudition, these stories mark the fiction debut of a brilliant talent. They will be relished by all aficionados of the Victorian detective genre.