Charles Williams — The Sailcloth Shroud

London, Cassell, 1960 . First edition. Cloth. An exceptionally lovely copy of the first UK edition of Charles Williams blue-water noir, in the brightly illustrated original dust wrapper. The first UK edition, first impression of this thrilling suspense novel set at sea, in the publisher's original price unclipped dust wrapper.The work of American author of crime fiction Charles K. Williams, regarded by some critics as one of the finest suspense novelists of the 1950s and 1960s. His work is identified with the noir fiction subgenre of 'hardboiled' crime writing, with a subset of his novels, including this one, sometimes termed 'blue-water noir&apos.In this owner of a charter ketch Stuart Rogers must solve the mystery of two murdered crew members before the FBI assign blame at his feet. He must extract the truth from 'smooth and slender Patricia Reagan', one of Williams's typical femme fatales. In the publisher's original cloth binding, with price unclipped dust wrapper. Externally, fine. Dust wrapper exceptionally bright, with minor light marks to rear wrap. Internally, firmly bound. Pages clean and bright. Fine . Ill.: None. Fine/Near Fine.