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Last edited by bitnapper
September 10, 2023 | History
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H. C. Bailey

1878 - 1961

H. C. Bailey (full name Henry Christopher Bailey) was an English author of mysteries. He took to writing early, publishing My Lady of Orange (1901) during his senior year at Oxford, and spent many years as a journalist and author of romantic fiction before he began writing detective novels. Call Mr. Fortune (1920) introduced the world to Reggie Fortune, a brilliant investigator with a knack for solving chilling murder mysteries, who would become one of the most popular sleuths of the English golden age of detective fiction. Fortune's mannerisms and speech put him into the same class as Lord Peter Wimsey but the stories are much darker, and often involve murderous obsession, police corruption, financial skulduggery, child abuse and miscarriages of justice.
Fortune appeared in nine novels, yet it was in a series of 84 short stories that were published from 1920 to 1940 where he truly shone, combining elements of several popular archetypes—the eccentric logician, the forensic investigator, the hard-boiled interrogator, the psychological profiler, the defender of justice. Bailey’s classics are distinguished by well-clued puzzles, brilliant sleuthing, vivid description and social critique, with Fortune evoking images of Don Quixote and the Arthurian Knights in his pursuit of truth and justice in an uncaring world. (McFarland Books)

A second series character, Josiah Clunk, is a sanctimonious lawyer who exposes corruption and blackmail in local politics, and who manages to profit from the crimes. He appears in eleven novels published between 1930 and 1950, including The Sullen Sky Mystery (1935), widely regarded as Bailey's magnum opus.

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  • Cover of: The Highwayman

    First published in 2004 18 editions in 1 language
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  • Cover of: Call Mr. Fortune

    First published in 1921 13 editions in 1 language — 1 previewable
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  • Cover of: Mr Fortune Speaking.

    First published in 1929 7 editions in 1 language — 1 previewable
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  • Cover of: Colonel Greatheart

    First published in 1908 6 editions in 1 language — 1 previewable
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  • Cover of: My lady of Orange

    First published in 1901 6 editions in 1 language — 3 previewable Cover of edition myladyoforange00bailiala Cover of edition myladyorange00bailgoog
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  • Cover of: Mr. Fortune wonders: by H. C. Bailey

    First published in 1933 5 editions in 1 language — 1 previewable
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  • Cover of: The god of clay

    First published in 1908 5 editions in 1 language — 1 previewable
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  • Cover of: The twittering bird mystery.

    First published in 1937 4 editions in 1 language
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  • Cover of: Dead man's shoes

    First published in 1942 4 editions in 1 language — 1 previewable
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  • Cover of: Mr. Fortune objects.

    First published in 1935 4 editions in 1 language
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  • Cover of: Mr. Fortune here

    First published in 1940 4 editions in 1 language
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  • Cover of: Beaujeu

    First published in 1905 4 editions in 1 language — 1 previewable
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  • Cover of: Shadow on the wall.

    First published in 1934 4 editions in 1 language — 1 previewable
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  • Cover of: Mr. Fortune's practice

    First published in 1923 4 editions in 1 language — 2 previewable Cover of edition mrfortunespracti00bail
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  • Cover of: Mr Fortune explains.

    First published in 1930 4 editions in 1 language — 1 previewable
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  • Cover of: Case for Mr Fortune

    First published in 1932 3 editions in 1 language — 1 previewable
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  • Cover of: The life sentence: a Reggie Fortune novel

    First published in 1946 3 editions in 1 language
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  • Cover of: The Garston Murder Case

    First published in 1930 3 editions in 1 language
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  • Cover of: Karl of Erbach: A Tale of Lichtenstein and Solgau

    First published in 1902 3 editions in 1 language — 2 previewable Cover of edition karlerbachatale01bailgoog
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  • Cover of: Clue for Mr.Fortune.

    First published in 1936 3 editions in 1 language — 2 previewable Cover of edition clueformrfortune0000bail
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Photo of H. C. Bailey
Subjects
Fiction, Forensic scientists, English Detective and mystery stories, Fiction, historical, general, History, Anthology, Reggie Fortune (fictitious character), Short stories, Court and courtiers, Courts and courtiers, Detective and mystery stories, England, fiction, Fairy tales, Fantasy fiction, Fiction, science fiction, general, Folklore, Franco-Prussian War, 1870-1871, Histoire, Joshua Clunk (fictitious character), Mystery and detective stories, Queens, Reggie Fortune (Fictitious character), Romans, nouvelles
Places
Great Britain, Netherlands
Time
1920s, Wars of Independence, 1556-1648, Wars of the Roses, 1455-1485

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Alternative names

  • Henry Christopher Bailey

History

Download catalog record: RDF / JSON
September 10, 2023 Edited by bitnapper Edited without comment.
September 10, 2023 Edited by bitnapper merge authors
October 14, 2022 Edited by mheiman merge authors
September 11, 2022 Edited by Martha Carson Wade Edited without comment.
April 1, 2008 Created by an anonymous user initial import