For "amateur" sleuths, detection is not a profession, it's a passion. They have a knack for stumbling upon the scene of the crime - and for stealing our admiration in some of today's top mystery series. Now in a collection that is a dazzling display of detective ingenuity, fifteen classic snoops appear in their very first short stories, and for some, their debuts as well-meaning nosy meddlers.

Discover how Joan Hess's bookseller sleuth Claire Malloy reacts to a corpse in her living room. Meet Bernie Rhodenbarr, Lawrence Block's conundrum-cracking burglar, jimmying his first lock. Witness the literary births of Edward D. Hoch's Nick Velvet, Margaret Maron's Deborah Knott, and Carolyn G. Hart's Henrie O. And in fifteen entertaining stories, watch favorite amateur sleuths from all walks of life take their initial steps into the territory of crime...

Complete list of stories: (stories copyrighted between 1966 and 1995)
book edited by Robert J. Randisi First appearances of classic amateur detectives

• Introduction by Robert J. Randisi
• Once upon a Time (Kate Fansler) by Amanda Cross
• The Theft of the Clouded Tiger (Nick Velvet) by Edward D. Hoch
• After the Twelfth Chapter (Loren Mensing) by Frances M Nevins, Jr.
• The Haunted Actress (Charles Paris) by Simon Brett
• Like a Thief in the Night (Bernie Rhodenbarr) by Lawrence Block
• Hit-and-Run (Jill Smith) by Susan Dunlap
• See No Evil (Cat Marsala) by Barb D'Amato
• Deborah's Judgment (Deborah Knott) by Margaret Maron
• None of My Business, But . . . (Henrie O.) by Carlyn G. Hart
• Dead on Arrival (Claire Malloy) by Joan Hess
• Old Rattler (Spencer Arrowood) by Sharyn McCrumb
• Parris Green (Irene Adler) by Carole Nelson Douglas
• Seascape (Iris and Jack) by K. K. Beck
• The January Sale Stowaway (Ellie Haskell) by Dorothy Cannell
• Anna Said . . . (Inspector Alan Banks) by Peter Robinson