Mary Roberts Rinehart; Avery Hopwood — The Bat

London, Cassell, 1926. First edition. Cloth. The first UK edition of the novelisation of an entertaining Broadway mystery play, about a hunt for hidden money, and a mask criminal known as 'The Bat&apos. The first UK edition of this work.Originating as a 1908 mystery novel by Mary Roberts Rinehart, titled 'The Circular Staircase', the work was adapted for Broadway with the aid of Avery Hopwood, and was first performed in 1920, retitled 'The Bat&apos. It was a critical and commercial success, and ran for 867 performances in New York and 327 performances in London.This work is the first UK edition of the novelisation of the play, a mystery with comedic elements, in which a wealthy group spend a stormy night at a rented summer home, searching for stolen money they believe is hidden in the house, while they are stalked by a masked criminal.With the former owner's inscription of E. Brown to the front free endpaper. In the publisher's original cloth binding. Bumping to back strip head and tail, with fading to spine. Light handling marks to rear board. Inscription to front free endpaper. Internally, firmly bound. Light spotting to first few leaves, with pages otherwise generally clean and bright, with the odd handling mark. Very Good . Ill.: None. Very Good .