Since this month we’ve been delving into the origins of the genre, I thought it might be fun to look at the books that launched legendary series of murder mysteries.

In retrospect, the earliest days of mystery fiction feel much like the Wild West — anything is fair game. Victorian-era authors relied on unbelievable coincidences, absurd jumps in logic, and

Looking for a summer read that won’t break the bank? Try one of these public domain mysteries below. Each exists outside of copyright and can be downloaded and read for