Sightless detective Max Carrados solved his first cases in Edwardian London, in the early days of the twentieth century when the city was the beating heart of the vast British Empire. This collection contains the very best tales of the blind sleuth, ten adventures that range from his first challenge, "The Coin of Dionysus," to mysteries set during the World War era and the early 1920s. Like Sherlock Holmes, Max Carrados debuted in The Strand magazine, and his stories rivaled those of the Baker Street detective in popularity. Since then, compilation volumes of the frequentiy anthologized tales have long been out of print and hard to find. This collection offers an excellent introduction to the suave private investigator whose deductive skills are surpassed only by his perceptive powers, which enable him to hear a heartbeat from across the room. Carrados' creator, Ernest Bramah, was one of the few authors in the early days of detective fiction who could combine physical and intellectual thrills with imagination and stylistic brilliance. Brimming with charm and humor, these vintage stories are utterly unique in the field of detective literature.