Leblanc, Maurice “The Teeth of the Tiger” [Doubleday, Page & Co, 1914] 1st US Edition

LEBLANC, Maurice. The Teeth of the Tiger. 

Garden City, New York: Doubleday, Page & Company, 1914. First American edition. Publisher's original dark blue cloth with gilt lettering and striking pictorial decoration depicting a snarling tiger's head on the front board, with a smaller tiger illustration on the spine. Illustrated with a frontispiece and three additional plates by Gordon Grant. Light rubbing to extremities, particularly at spine ends and corners, with minor wear to cloth. Gilt lettering remains bright. Pages lightly toned, with a clean interior and secure binding. Two ownership inscriptions. Very Good+.

An early novel featuring Arsène Lupin, the celebrated gentleman thief. Originally published in French as Les Dents du Tigre, the novel follows a mysterious inheritance, a series of murders, and an elaborate conspiracy in which Lupin, operating under the identity of Don Luis Perenna, becomes entangled. Combining detective fiction, adventure, and ingenious reversals, the story is characteristic of Leblanc's inventive approach to the mystery genre.

First introduced in 1905, Arsène Lupin became one of the most popular characters in French crime fiction. A master of disguise, brilliant strategist, and charming outlaw, Lupin is often described as the French counterpart to Sherlock Holmes, although he generally operates on the opposite side of the law. His adventures frequently pit his intelligence against the police and other formidable adversaries, while his personal code of honor and preference for outwitting rather than harming his opponents distinguish him from conventional criminals. The character has remained popular for more than a century, inspiring numerous adaptations, including the successful Netflix series Lupin, which introduced him to a new generation of readers.