Dr. Gideon Fell

Meet Dr. Fell, the corpulent former schoolmaster, lexicographer, and chronicler of the history of drinking in England. The first thing one notices about Dr. Fell is his size; in his first appearance he is described as having a face that is large, round and ruddy with a twitching smile "somewhere above several chins". The second thing one notices is his get-up; he is often seen lumbering about with a cape billowing behind him, a shovel hat planted firmly on his head and using the aid of a walking cane (or two).

Fell's large size and good nature fool some into thinking he is only as intelligent as he is nimble. However, in truth, Fell's detective abilities are as great as his girth. Part of the deception lies in his methodology. While detectives of the Sherlock Holmes school of detection can be found crawling around on their hands and knees looking for cigar ash and poodle hairs, if Fell were to assume such a position he might have some trouble getting up. Instead of relying on physical evidence he does his detection by "wool gathering", picking out the important clues from the red herrings after a bit of reflection.

Fell's career spanned thirty-four years and twenty-three novels.

All of the Fell hardbacks were published in the U.S. by Harper & Brothers (or Harper & Row). If the title is in Red then the US edition is NOT the true first edition.