The Mammoth Book of Perfect Crimes and Impossible Mysteries

The Mammoth Book of Perfect Crimes and Impossible Mysteries is a collection of 33 locked-room mysteries and seemingly unsolvable crimes. Editor Mike Ashley has assembled both classic and contemporary stories from renowned mystery authors like Dashiell Hammett, Edward D. Hoch, and Clayton Rawson. The anthology focuses on cases that appear impossible to solve at first glance - murders in sealed rooms, disappearances from secure locations, and crimes with seemingly supernatural elements. Each story presents the reader with all necessary clues to reach a logical solution, though the path to discovery requires careful attention to detail. The collection spans multiple decades of mystery writing and includes both well-known tales and rare gems that have been out of print. Stories range from quick puzzles to longer, more complex mysteries that unfold through careful investigation. These selections explore themes of human ingenuity in both committing and solving crimes, demonstrating how the impossible becomes possible through logic, observation, and creative thinking. The anthology serves as both entertainment and a study in the art of crafting seemingly perfect crimes and their inevitable unraveling.

Readers describe this anthology as containing many lesser-known mysteries alongside familiar classics. Multiple reviews note that the collection focuses on "howdunit" rather than "whodunit" stories, with an emphasis on clever methods and solutions. Readers appreciated: - Mix of both vintage and contemporary stories - Strong selection of locked-room mysteries - Inclusion of rare stories hard to find elsewhere - Clear explanations of how each crime was committed Common criticisms: - Some solutions felt contrived or implausible - Uneven quality across the 40+ stories - Several stories described as predictable - Print size reported as too small by multiple readers Ratings: Goodreads: 3.7/5 (237 ratings) Amazon: 4.1/5 (98 ratings) One frequent reader comment notes that while not every story hits the mark, the variety makes it worth reading: "Even if you don't love every selection, there are enough gems to justify the collection" - Goodreads reviewer.

The Big Book of Locked Room Mysteries by Otto Penzler This anthology contains 68 impossible crime stories from detective fiction's golden age through modern times.

The Black Lizard Big Book of Locked-Room Mysteries by Otto Penzler The collection presents locked room mysteries and impossible crimes from Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie, Edgar Allan Poe and other masters of the genre.

The Decagon House Murders by Yukito Ayatsuji Ten students visit an isolated island where murders occur in seemingly impossible circumstances, drawing on classic locked room mystery traditions.

Murder in the Crooked House by Soji Shimada A complex architectural mystery unfolds in a remote house where victims are found in rooms that no killer could have entered or escaped.

Death in the House of Rain by Szu-Yen Lin Multiple murders take place in a house shaped like the Chinese character for rain, presenting seemingly impossible scenarios that challenge logic.

🔍 Mike Ashley has edited over 100 anthologies of fiction and non-fiction, making him one of the most prolific anthology editors in the mystery genre 📚 The book includes a story by Edward D. Hoch, who holds the record for writing the most published mystery short stories by a single author (over 950 stories) 🗝️ The collection features "locked room mysteries" - a subgenre where crimes appear to have been committed in seemingly impossible circumstances, popularized by authors like John Dickson Carr 🏆 Several stories in the anthology were previously published in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, considered the world's leading mystery fiction magazine since 1941 📖 The book contains 40 stories spanning from the early 1900s to modern day, showcasing how impossible crime stories have evolved while maintaining their core puzzle-solving appeal