Lord Peter: A Collection of All the Lord Peter Wimsey Stories [Hardcover]

Dorothy L. Sayers (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1991

One of the founding mothers of mystery, Dorothy Sayers first introduced the popular character Lord Peter Wimsey in 1923 with the publication of Whose Body? Over the next twenty years, more novels and short stories about the aristocratic amateur sleuth appeared, each one as cunningly written as the next.Now in single volume, here are all the Lord Peter Wimsey stories, a treasure for any mystery lover. From "The Fantastic Horror of the Cat in the Bag" to "The Image in the Mirror" and "Talboys," this collection is Lord Peter at his best -- and a true testament to the art of detective fiction.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A clasic collection from 'one of the greatest mystery-story writers of the [twentieth] century'" -- -- Los Angeles Times --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

Dorothy L. Sayers is the author of novels, short stories, poetry collections, essays, reviews and translations. Although she was a noted Christian scholar, she is most known for her detective fiction. Born in 1893, she was one of the first women to be awarded a degree from Oxford University. Her first book featuring Lord Peter Wimsey, Whose Body?, was published in 1923 and over the next 20 years more novels and short stories about the aristocratic amateur sleuth appeared. Dorothy L. Sayers is recognized as one of the greatest mystery writers of the 20th century.

Letter from the Editor:

Dorothy L. Sayers is recognized as one of the greatest mystery writers of the 20th century. In 1923, Whose Body?, her first book, featuring the aristocratic amateur sleuth, Lord Peter Wimsey, was published, and over the next 20 years more novels and short stories appeared. All 15 of Sayers' mysteries are available from HarperPaperbacks.

Now there is a new Dorothy L. Sayers novel. A long-lost partial manuscript titled Thrones, Dominions was discovered last year, and acclaimed mystery writer Jill Paton Walsh has completed it. St. Martin's Press will publish this book in February. This is a signal publishing event, and HarperCollins congratulates St. Martin's Press.

We are sure that Thrones, Dominions will delight Sayers' fans and find new ones for her, and in the process whet appetites for Sayers' other mysteries. A list of these books is attached. In the words of Dorothy L. Sayers herself, "Murder must advertise." So, in addition to an announcement about Thrones, Dominions in a recent issue of Publisher's Weekly, the next edition of the HarperCollins mystery newsletter, Deadline, will include a piece on the Sayers books, as will St. Martin's Press' newsletter, Murder at the Flatiron Building. HarperCollins will also feature information about the Sayers' backlist on its web page.

Dorothy L. Sayers died in 1957, but her books continue to enthrall readers today. Please help us celebrate the doyenne of the Golden Age of the Mystery, Dorothy L. Sayers.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Borgo Pr (June 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0809591294
• ISBN-13: 978-0809591299
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,720,725 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

80 of 80 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars quite fun, February 1, 2001

By 

Julie Clawson (Austin, TX United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Lord Peter (Mass Market Paperback)

After recently going on a Lord Peter binge, I was a bit apprehensive about reading a collection of short stories. How, I wondered, could short stories hold a candle to the witty and intricate writing of the novels? But, I was in withdrawl. Lord Peter had been my companion for the last month and I wanted to get as much of him as I could.

I was pleasantly surprised. While the stories of course did not have the wealth of familiar characters all on stage at the same time, they each gave glimpses into those lives alongside the steady Lord Peter. From the disturbing to the merely amusing, Lord Peter managed to mix himself up in murder and mystery, and smoothly work out the muddle. One is also blessed to have two stories with Harriet Vane and the Wimsey children in them. The collection is fun and quite a vital part of the Lord Peter collection.

60 of 66 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lord Peter throughout his career, July 6, 2002

By 

Michele L. Worley (Kingdom of the Mouse, United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lord Peter: A Collection of All the Lord Peter Wimsey Stories (Hardcover)

This omnibus edition of all the Lord Peter Wimsey short stories consists of the stories from _Hangman's Holiday_, _In the Teeth of the Evidence_, _Lord Peter Views the Body_, and _Striding Folly_ (the final 3 stories of _Lord Peter_), those of _Striding Folly_ being the most difficult to get outside the omnibus edition. See reviews of the individual collections if you want a more detailed discussion of the contents. If you get the omnibus _Lord Peter_, be aware that it contains the complete text of _Lord Peter Views the Body_, while HH and Teeth contain non-Wimsey stories that are worth having. If you're interested in an unabridged audio version, check out those for the individual volumes that have been cannibalized for the omnibus edition; Ian Carmichael has narrated unabridged recordings of most of the short stories, with the exception (so far) of a few that turn on visual clues given in the text.

I find the 2 stories from Teeth uninteresting, but those from HH are enjoyable. The stories from _Lord Peter Views the Body_ all predate the events of _Strong Poison_ - that is, they occur years before Lord Peter met Harriet Vane. In fact, some occur within two years of the end of WWI, such as "The Vindictive Story of the Footsteps That Ran", set in June 1921. For the most part, most of my favorite Lord Peter short stories fall into this group, with the exception of "The Undignified Melodrama of the Bone of Contention", an enormous (and to me, tedious) novella wherein the will of a recently deceased old reprobate was deliberately designed to create bad blood between his sons. Apart from that, we have such gems as the Attenbury diamond case, mentioned in later years as having started Lord Peter on his hobby of detection, a case featuring Lord St. George as a child staying in the Piccadilly flat (and featuring the first appearance of Bill Rumm, who later appeared in _Strong Poison_). We even have "The Fascinating Problem of Uncle Meleager's Will", wherein Lady Mary persuades her brother to help a friend with Red politics find her uncle's missing will. (It's much more entertaining than Hercule Poirot's only foray into a case of this kind, and more sophisticated than Jane Marple's only such case - Uncle Meleager had a wicked sense of humor.)

Harriet Vane appears only in the last two stories, both from _Striding Folly_: "The Haunted Policeman" and "Talboys", neither involving murder and both set after the events of _Thrones, Dominations_.

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lord Peter and friends come out to play, March 9, 2006

By 

Jeanne Tassotto (Trapped in the Midwest) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Lord Peter : The Complete Lord Peter Wimsey Stories (Paperback)

For fans of LORD PETER novels the greatest problem has been that Sayers wrote so few novels. Fortunately she did write quite a few short stories which are all in this volume. We are treated to 21 more adventures with Peter, Bunter and many of his friends including Inspector Parker, the Dowager Duchess. Most of the stories are gems, particular personal favorites are: 'The Learned Adventure of the Dragon's Head' - featuring Peter's nephew; 'The Haunted Policeman' and 'Talboys' - both focusing on Peter's married life.

In addition to the mysteries themselves, challenging little puzzles complete with the wry humor found in the novels, fans of the series are given little glimpses into the other stories. Various situations and names that will appear in other works pop up giving devotees of the series a treasure hunt for repeated reads.