Perfect for anyone who harbours a love of the sea or simply of mystery stories, this is an intriguing new selection of tales in which crimes and their solutions occur in shipboard or shoreline environments. Luminaries past and present are represented, with selections spanning a wide range of moods: from the humorous work of Catherine Aird to a psychologically chilling piece by Susan Moody. Stories feature well-loved characters in a variety of waterside settings: John Mortimer's Rumpole and She Who Must be Obeyed, Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot, and Edward D. Hoch's Nick Velvet all find their vacation cruises interrupted by crimes requiring their services. The book also features translations of works by such famed international authors as Gabriel García Márquez, Saho Sasazawa, and, for the first time ever in English, Chris Rippen of the Netherlands. Each story is introduced by a brief essay noting the hallmarks of the author's work, and providing the reader with an enticing comment about each highly original use of the waterside setting.

"This collection plumbs seaside resorts and oceanbound ships for the ultimate mystery experience."--Library Journal Murder On Deck confirms Rosemary Herbert's title as our eminent authority on mystery fiction. More important, it gives us a delightful collection of overlooked gems."--Tony Hillerman "A pleasing collection of 'shipboard and shoreline mystery stories'.... With a crew of contributors ranging from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle to John Mortimer,this compendium of aquatic crime is perhaps the most satisfactory anthology of the year."--The Wall Street Journalr "Splendid stories. Oceans of delight."--Colin Dexter

Rosemary Herbert is mystery book review columnist for the Boston Herald, coeditor with Tony Hillerman of The Oxford Book of American Detective Stories, editor of Twelve American Crime Stories, and editor in chief of the forthcoming Oxford Companion to Crime and Mystery Writing. She lives in Newtonville, Massachusetts.