Partners in Crime

Featuring Agatha Christie’s charming married detective duo, Tommy and Tuppence Beresford, “Partners in Crime” is a collection of twenty-three short stories. First published in 1929, the book is framed through the guise of the couple taking over a struggling detective agency. Asked by British Intelligence to uncover the identity of a mysterious Soviet spy named “Number 16”, the couple assumes the operation of the International Detective Agency. While the Beresfords wait for the mysterious spy, who is suspected to be in association with the detective agency, to reveal himself, they solve a series of unrelated mysteries. Amongst the stories related in this collection are ones of the detectives helping a young woman to find her missing fiancé, investigating a series of poisonings at a country estate, a case of missing jewels, and a story of switched luggage that reveals an international smuggling ring. Through episodes of danger and misdirection, the Beresfords follow the clues to the thrilling conclusion in which they finally uncover the true identity of “Number 16”.