The Notting Hill Mystery

"The Notting Hill Mystery" by Charles Felix is a detective novel serialized from 1862 to 1863 and published in book form in 1865. Considered one of the first detective novels in English, it follows insurance investigator Ralph Henderson as he compiles evidence against Baron R___, suspected of murdering his wife. When the Baron's wife dies drinking acid while sleepwalking, Henderson discovers she was insured under five policies—and uncovers not one but three murders. The baron's guilt seems clear, but proving how he committed the perfect crime becomes the ultimate challenge. (This is an automatically generated summary.)