Robert Bruce Montgomery was born in Buckinghamshire in 1921, and was a Golden Age crime writer as well as a successful concert pianist and composer. Under the pseudonym Edmund Crispin, he wrote 9 novels featuring Oxford detective Gervase Fen and 46 short stories. A member of the famous Detection Club and neighbour of Agatha Christie, he was a renowned crime reviewer and contributed to many periodicals and newspapers, and a noted sci-fi anthologist. After the golden years of the 1950s he retired from the limelight to Devonshire until his death in 1978.

‘A terrific book. If you haven't read Crispin before, and in particular if you're a fan of short stories, you're in for a treat.’ MARTIN EDWARDS‘The ideal bedside book: read for ten minutes, go to sleep with a smile and a shiver—thanks to the immense wit and effortless storytelling knack of Edmund Crispin.’ Kirkus Reviews‘The neatest dirty tricks since Poirot packed it in … The least of these fables are expert; the best gleam with an effortless wit and cheeriness.’ Philadelphia Inquirer‘His books are full of high spirits and excellent jokes, with constant literary allusions and an atmosphere of bibulous good humour. But at times the mood turns darker, and Crispin is capable of passages of both genuine suspense and ingenious deduction.’ Daily Telegraph‘Crispin is noted for an ability to embellish clever story lines with Marx Brothers touches.’ New York Times‘Rightly elevated to classic status.’ New York Sun