"ONE OF THE LONGEST AND MOST DISTINCTIVE LITERARY CAREERS OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY"

COLLINS, Wilkie. No Name. London: Sampson Low, Son & Co., 1862. Three volumes. Octavo, late 19th century full tan calf, elaborately gilt-decorated spines, red and blue morocco spine labels, marbled endpapers, top edges gilt. $950.

First edition in book form of the work Collins published immediately after The Woman In White, handsomely bound by Riviere and Son.

Collins had "one of the longest and most distinctive literary careers of the nineteenth century… In the course of nearly half a century's writing [he] tried many new ways of reaching and expanding his audience. Dickensian Christmas books, short stories, three-decker novels, magazine and newspaper serializations flowed from his pen with a productivity unchecked" (Bowen 4-5). No Name features Magdalen Vanstone, one of the earliest examples of the female detective character. "Wilkie Collins—who was curiously fascinated by the 'strong-minded' woman—made two attempts at the woman detective in No Name and The Law and the Lady. The spirit of the times was, however, too powerful to allow these attempts to be altogether successful" (Dorothy L. Sayers, "The Omnibus of Crime," in The Art of the Mystery Story, 79). First serialized in Dickens' All The Year Round that same year. Bookplate.

Interior generally clean, bindings fine. A beautiful copy.