Appleby Talks About Crime

The 30th in Crippen & Landru's Lost Classics series showcases Innes's talents at writing tight fair-play puzzles. While perhaps none of the 18 previously uncollected short stories qualifies as a masterpiece, all are sure to please readers who enjoy matching wits with the author, especially fans of Isaac Asimov's Black Widowers collections. Some of the stories even have a similar format to Asimov's, as Innes' Scotland Yard sleuth, John Appleby, is a member of the Mystery Club, whose members challenge each other with crimes to solve. "Pelly and Cullis," the longest entry, also has the most intriguing premise; right in the middle of the delivery of a jury verdict, a juror whom the judge assumed had dozed off, turns out to have died, from poison as is later discovered. Innes has few peers at hiding crucial information in plain sight, and classic whodunit fans will hope that this volume leads to reprinting of his longer work. (Mar.)