x-book ®

The Case of the Gilded Fly

Get in the xigxag app
Already purchased

Click to open directly in the xigxag app.

This book is not purchasable in your country. Please select another book. Pre-order Buy Now £{{ price }} Send as a gift
How does xigxag pricing work?

Listen to a sample

What to expect

The very first case for Oxford-based sleuth Gervase Fen, one of the last of the great Golden Age detectives. As inventive as Agatha Christie, as hilarious as P.G. Wodehouse, this is the perfect entry point to discover the delightful detective stories of Edmund Crispin – crime fiction at its quirkiest and best.

A pretty but spiteful young actress with a talent for destroying men’s lives is found dead in a college room just yards from the office of the unconventional Oxford don Gervase Fen. Anyone who knew the girl would gladly have shot her, but can Fen discover who did shoot her, and why?

Published during the Second World War, The Case of the Gilded Fly introduced English professor and would-be detective Gervase Fen, one of crime fiction’s most irrepressible and popular sleuths. A classic locked-room mystery filled with witty literary allusions, it was the debut of ‘a new writer who calls himself Edmund Crispin’ (in reality the choral and film composer Bruce Montgomery), later described by The Times as ‘One of the last exponents of the classical English detective story . . . elegant, literate, and funny.’

This Detective Story Club classic is introduced by Douglas G. Greene, who reveals how Montgomery’s ambition to emulate John Dickson Carr resulted in a string of successful and distinctive Golden Age detective novels and an invitation from Carr himself to join the exclusive Detection Club.

Critics Review

‘The Case of the Gilded Fly couldn’t be more British if it came packaged with fish and chips’ New York Sun

‘One of the last exponents of the classical English detective story … elegant, literate, and funny’ The Times

‘A classic detective story and a ludicrous literary farce’ Guardian

‘Beneath a formidable exterior he had unsuspected depths of frivolity’ Philip Larkin

More from the same

Author

Narrator

About xigxag and the x-book®

Enjoy the best audiobooks on xigxag, an innovative, user-friendly audiobook platform that makes it easy to find, purchase, and enjoy your favorite books in audio format. xigxag’s flexible pricing model offers bestselling audiobooks for less – affordable prices and the best audiobook deals with no subscription required.  Give the perfect gift with our audiobook gift cards and in-app audiobook gifting options

 

xigxag’s groundbreaking listen-and-read x-book® technology offers a truly immersive digital book experience.  Our technology combines the audiobook, text, and images into a brilliant integrated format, with exclusive audiobook features and a next-gen digital reading experience built in.  The x-book selection can be easily discovered by looking for the purple x-book ribbon, or filtering by x-book when searching for a book.

 

xigxag’s commitment to sustainability and ethical practices ensures a guilt-free listening experience from an exceptional digital book platform – an exciting alternative to big tech.  Enjoy audiobooks from the only B Corp certified UK audiobook service, a leader in audiobook innovation. Experience extraordinary customer service from their friendly UK support team.

 

Search effortlessly, read honest audiobook reviews evaluating both the book and the narration, and discover hidden gems.  Download or stream top audiobook titles anytime, anywhere and get the best possible listening experience on the UK’s best independent audiobook app.  Experience the future of audiobooks today.

Subscribe to our newsletter

Sign up to get tailored content recommendations, product updates and info on new releases. Your data is your own: we commit to protect your data and respect your privacy.