Israel Zangwill

The Big Bow Mystery (1892) NOVEL by Israel Zangwill

The Big Bow Mystery was the first locked room mystery novel. It has been almost continuously in print since 1891 and has been used as the basis for three commercial movies. On a foggy day in the Big Bow District of London, Mrs. Drabdump becomes fearful for her lodger. She knocks several times at his door but no answer. She runs to Inspector Grodman and together they break down his door to find the pooor man lying in his bed with his throat cut. The door was locked from the inside. Thus begins Israel Zangwill's classic mystery. Written in 1891, Big Bow Mystery still retains its power to amuse and entertain, both as a clever mystery and a satire of Victorian London.