What worries him? Not that he will fail. Not that an international situation may develop if he doesn't intervene. No, it's the heating at the country home he will be visiting. The house is old and he fears drafts, and he worries that the food will not be to his liking. Finally, after much persuasion, he relents. And enjoys himself while performing admirably among all the festivities. He even finds a use for mistletoe!Librarian's note: this entry is for "The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding." Collections of short stories by the author can be found elsewhere on Goodreads.Librarian's note #2: a longer version, "The Theft of the Royal Ruby," was published later; it too can be found elsewhere on Goodreads.

    

    His legendary works have been lauded for almost one hundred years by fans, and his novel "The Maltese Falcon" was adapted into one of the greatest classic films of all time - starring Humphrey Bogart.One of Dashiell Hammett's most memorable characters, the Continental Op, made his debut in "Black Mask" magazine on October 1, 1923. The first of the stories and novels that would change forever the face of detective fiction. The Op is a tough, wry, unglamorous gumshoe who has inspired a following that is both global and enduring. He has been published in periodicals, paperback digests, and short story collections but, until 2017, he has never had the whole of his exploits contained in one book! "The Big Book .." features all the original standalone Continental Op stories, the original serialized versions of "Red Harvest" and "The Dain Curse," and previously unpublished material. This anthology of Continental Op stories is the only complete, one-volume work of its kind.The short stories are: 1. Arson Plus, 2. Crooked Souls, 3. Slippery Fingers, 4. It, 5. Bodies Piled Up, 6. The Tenth Clew, 7. Night Shots, 8. Zigzags of Treachery, 9. One Hour, 10. The House on Turk Street, 11. The Girl with the Silver Eyes, 12. Women, Politics & Murder, 13. The Golden Horseshoe, 14. Who Killed Bob Teal? 15. Mike or Alec or Rufus, 16. The Whosis Kid, 17. The Scorched Face, 18. Corkscrew, 19. Dead Yellow Women, 20. The Gutting of Couffignal, 21. Creeping Siamese, 22. The Big Knock-Over, 23. $106,000 Blood Money, 24. The Main Death, 25. This King Business, 26. Fly Paper, 27. The Farewell Murder, 28. Death and Company, and 29. Three Dimes (unfinished). The two serialized novels are: 1. The Cleansing of Poisonville (the early version of "Red Harvest"), and 2. The Dain Curse.Librarian's note: this entry relates to the collection, "The Big Book of the Continental Op." Each of the individual stories and novels can be found elsewhere on Goodreads. There are a total of 28 short stories plus one incomplete; they can be found by searching Goodreads for: "a Continental Op Short Story."

    Travelling northwards, the pair become firm friends, but their trip is interrupted in the most shocking fashion when Mazaroff is found murdered on Marrasdale Moor. Was this really a case of opportunistic robbery with violence? Or could the answer lie in the dead man's mysterious past? It is up to Holt to discover the truth. Originally published in 1923 this is a vintage British murder mystery from the golden age of detection.