'A corpse in a blood-soaked room; a locked door and a locked window; a masked man; a beautiful girl trussed inside a wardrobe; and now a pretender to the throne! This is superb!' One July morning in the seaside town of Amnestie, just before eight o'clock, the amateur sleuth Mr Verity is striding down from his villa for an early swim. Bemused by the sight of a man climbing into a window at The Charter Hotel, Verity's curious enquiry at the reception desk pitches him headlong into a murder investigation. But the sleuth relishes a challenge, and with an abundance of suspects and multiple impossible elements to the case, this affair promises to be satisfying sport indeed. This ingenious mystery, bustling with a wit, pace and theatricality that would later blossom in Shaffer's dramatic works, returns to print for the first time since 1951 complete with the original illustrations by Nicolas Bentley.