Founded in 1975 by mystery legend and “father of crime fiction” Otto Penzler, Mysterious Press is a publishing imprint that has spent decades cultivating a love of mystery, crime, and suspense novels.
The press has published works from beloved authors in the genre like James Ellroy, Isaac Asimov, P.D. James, Ed McBain, and beyond.
In its beginnings, Mysterious Press took great pride in utilizing fine paper and top tier artists for their dust jackets. Now, they've also expanded into the growing business of electronic publishing to suit readers' needs better.
Working with Open Road Integrated Media (our very own parent company), Mysterious Press has taken highly distinguished works and out-of-print books and adapted them to a digital reading format.
Upholding its commitment to quality, the publishing house is making incredible classic mysteries available to brand-new audiences. They've also expanded on these timeless tales with the highly popular Mysterious Profiles series, which delves into the origins and hidden backstories of iconic characters crafted by top mystery authors.
This year marks the 50th anniversary of Mysterious Press, and we at Murder & Mayhem are excited to spend the year celebrating the amazing work they do.
Over the next twelve months, keep an eye out for exciting features on works from Mysterious Press, plus some bonus surprises along the way!
Take a look at just a few of our favorite Mysterious Press titles below:
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd
One of Agatha Christie's most popular works, this book was named the best crime novel ever written by the Crime Writers’ Association.
Detective Hercule Poirot is pulled out of retirement to investigate the stabbing of his friend Roger Ackroyd. As he searches for the culprit, he finds dark secrets relating to Ackroyd's late fiancée.
A Morbid Taste for Bones
Brother Cadfael's normal life of tending to herbs in the abbey garden is interrupted when the Welsh Benedictine monk is chosen to be a translator on a mission of monks into Wales to collect the Saint Winifred's.
The request for the bones divides the Welsh town. When someone is murdered, Brother Cadfael embarks on a dangerous journey for the truth.
The Family Vault
Upon opening their family tomb for the first time in a century, the Kelling family is confronted by the harsh surprise of a very fresh corpse inside.
The corpse belongs to a stripper named Ruby Redd whose murder case has gone cold.
Now, Sarah Kelling and art-fraud investigator Max Bittersohn set out to solve the mystery, and hopefully not end up dead themselves.
Murder in E Minor
Rex Stout's classic detective, Nero Wolfe, goes back to investigative work to examine the murder of the conductor of the New York Symphony Orchestra, a man he fought alongside as a freedom fighter in Montenegro.
Wolfe is determined to solve the case and sift through the myriad of potential culprits.
The Deeds of the Disturber
In this book from New York Times-bestselling author Elizabeth Peters, Egyptologist and sleuth Amelia Peabody investigates the death of a night guard at the British Museum.
While others believe an ancient cure may be at work, Amelia is sure that she's on the hunt for a human killer.
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
This book contains the first twelve stories of the ultimate iconic literary detective, Sherlock Holmes.
Readers will follow along with some of Holmes and Watson's most well-known cases, as this volume shows why Sir Arthur Conan Doyle went on to be regarded as one of the best and most impactful mystery writers of all time.
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