Classic fiction

The Documents in the Case

by Dorothy L. Sayers

272 pages · First published 1930

A wealthy man dies after a bizarre series of events involving fungi, poisons, scientific experiments, and a household full of conflicting personalities. The evidence is assembled through letters, statements, and documents, requiring readers to evaluate competing explanations rather than follow a conventional detective’s viewpoint. Lord Peter Wimsey is absent; instead, the investigation turns on forensic reasoning and the interpretation of written testimony. Dorothy L. Sayers and Robert Eustace create an unusual Golden Age mystery whose documentary structure and scientific puzzle make the case feel like a dossier gradually revealing how murder can hide inside apparently objective facts.