The Mystery of Edwin Drood: Charles Dickens' Unfinished Novel & Our Endless Attempts to End It: Charles Dickens' Unfinished Novel and Our Endless Attempts to End It

A tantalizing tour through a true bibliomystery that will "get people talking about one of literature's greatest enigmas" (KentOnline). When Dickens died on June 9, 1870, he was halfway through writing his last book, The Mystery of Edwin Drood. Since that time, hundreds of academics, fans, authors, and playwrights have presented their own conclusion to this literary puzzler. Step into 150 years of Dickensian speculation to see how our attitudes both to Dickens and his mystifying last work have developed. At first, enterprising authors tried to cash in on an opportunity to finish Dickens' book. Dogged attempts of early twentieth-century detectives proved Drood to be the greatest mystery of all time. Earnest academics of the mid-century reinvented Dickens as a modernist writer. Today, the glorious irreverence of modern bibliophiles reveals just how far people will go in their quest to find an ending worthy of Dickens. Whether you are a die-hard Drood fan or new to the controversy, Dickens scholar Pete Orford guides readers through the tangled web of theories and counter-theories surrounding this great literary riddle. From novels to websites; musicals to public trials; and academic tomes to erotic fiction, one thing is certain: there is no end to the inventiveness with which we redefine Dickens' final story, and its enduring mystery. When Dickens died on 9 June 1870, he was halfway through writing his last book, _The Mystery of Edwin Drood_. Since that time, hundreds of academics, fans, authors, and playwrights have stepped forward to present their own ideas of how this unfinished book should end. Step into a century and half of Dickensian speculation, detection and bickering to see how our attitudes both to Dickens and his last work have developed. From early responses by his contemporaries that tried to cash in on an opportunity to finish Dickens book, through to the dogged attempts of the detectives in the early twentieth century to prove _Drood_ to be the greatest mystery of all time, on to the earnest academics of the mid-century who aimed to reinvent Dickens as a modernist writer, and ending in the glorious irreverence of modern continuations, the history of Drood is a tale of just how far people will go in their quest to find an ending worthy of Dickens. Whether you are a life-time _Drood_ fan, or new to the whole controversy, this book will guide you through the tangled web of theories and counter-theories surrounding this enduring literary enigma. From novels to websites, musicals to public trials, academic tomes to erotic fiction, the one thing that can be said with certainty is that there is no end to the endless inventiveness with which we redefine Dickens final story in our quest to solve a 150-year old mystery. About the Author: Pete Orford is a lecturer in English, and Course Director of the MA in Charles Dickens Studies run by the University of Buckingham in partnership with the Charles Dickens Museum in London. He has written several articles on _Drood_ in addition to numerous conference papers, public talks and a special exhibition at the Charles Dickens Museum. On top of all this he runs The Drood Inquiry (www.droodinquiry.com), an interactive exploration of _Drood_ and the numerous possibilities for its end that asks the public to vote for their preferred conclusion. A lively and convivial tour through the madcap world of Drood theories.