The Greatest Detective Books of Allan Pinkerton (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. Nineteenth-Century True Crime, Undercover Investigations, and the Origins of American DetectionBy Allan Pinkerton
Length64h 25m
About this audiobook
The Greatest Detective Books of Allan Pinkerton gathers the foundational case narratives of America's most famous nineteenth-century detective, presenting crime as both moral drama and practical problem. Written in a brisk, documentary style, these accounts combine memoir, procedural detail, melodramatic suspense, and Victorian social observation. They belong to the early formation of detective literature, standing between factual police reportage and the later fictional refinements of Poe, Gaboriau, and Conan Doyle. Allan Pinkerton, a Scottish-born cooper, abolitionist, and immigrant, became the founder of the Pinkerton National Detective Agency and a defining figure in American law enforcement. His experiences pursuing counterfeiters, railroad thieves, conspirators, and labor-related violence shaped these books profoundly. Pinkerton wrote not merely to entertain, but to defend professional detection, celebrate discipline and disguise, and present the detective as a guardian of social order in a rapidly expanding nation. This collection is recommended to readers interested in the origins of detective fiction, American criminal history, and the cultural imagination of justice. Though marked by the assumptions of its era, it remains invaluable for understanding how real investigative practice helped create the modern detective hero.
This enriched edition has been carefully crafted to add value to your reading experience.
- A comprehensive Introduction outlines these selected works' unifying features, themes, or stylistic evolutions.
- The Author Biography highlights personal milestones and literary influences that shape the entire body of writing.
- A Historical Context section situates the works in their broader era—social currents, cultural trends, and key events that underpin their creation.
- A concise Synopsis (Selection) offers an accessible overview of the included texts, helping readers navigate plotlines and main ideas without revealing critical twists.
- A unified Analysis examines recurring motifs and stylistic hallmarks across the collection, tying the stories together while spotlighting the different work's strengths.
- Reflection questions inspire deeper contemplation of the author's overarching message, inviting readers to draw connections among different texts and relate them to modern contexts.
- Lastly, our hand‐picked Memorable Quotes distill pivotal lines and turning points, serving as touchstones for the collection's central themes.
Audiobook details
GenreTrue Crime
Length64 hrs 25 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateDec 20, 2023
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1Introduction
26CHAPTER XIX.
2Introduction
27CHAPTER XX.
3Author Biography
28CHAPTER XXI.
4Historical Context
29CHAPTER XXII.
5Synopsis (Selection)
30CHAPTER XXIII.
Show all chaptersShow less
6The Expressman and the Detective
31CHAPTER XXIV.
7PREFACE.
32CHAPTER XXV.
8CHAPTER I.
33CHAPTER XXVI.
9CHAPTER II.
34CHAPTER XXVII.
10CHAPTER III.
35CHAPTER XXVIII.
11CHAPTER IV.
36CHAPTER XXIX.
12CHAPTER V.
37CHAPTER XXX.
13CHAPTER VI.
38The Somnambulist and the Detective
14CHAPTER VII.
39PREFACE
15CHAPTER VIII.
40CHAPTER I.
16CHAPTER IX.
41CHAPTER II.
17CHAPTER X.
42CHAPTER III.
18CHAPTER XI.
43CHAPTER IV.
19CHAPTER XII.
44CHAPTER V.
20CHAPTER XIII.
45CHAPTER VI.
21CHAPTER XIV.
46CHAPTER VII.
22CHAPTER XV.
47CHAPTER VIII.
23CHAPTER XVI.
48CHAPTER IX.
24CHAPTER XVII.
49The Murderer and the Fortune Teller
25CHAPTER XVIII.
50CHAPTER I.
The Expressman and the Detective (Annotated)Allan Pinkerton9h 29m$2 · $0.00
TRUE CRIME COLLECTION: The Greatest Cases of Pinkerton National Detective Agency (Annotated)Allan Pinkerton47h 44m$2 · $0.00
The Burglar's Fate and the Detectives (Annotated)Allan Pinkerton7h 46m3.6 (57)$2 · $0.00
ALLAN PINKERTON Ultimate Collection: True Crime Stories & Detective Stories (Annotated)Allan Pinkerton64h 23m$2 · $0.00
The Spy of the Rebellion (Annotated)Allan Pinkerton18h 19m4.0 (186)$3 · $0.00
TRUE CRIME & MYSTERY Boxed Set (Annotated)Allan Pinkerton64h 24m$2 · $0.00
True Crime: Pinkerton National Detective Agency (Annotated)Allan Pinkerton47h 50m$2 · $0.00
Bucholz and the DetectivesAllan Pinkerton7h 2m3.5 (24)$2 · $0.00
The Spy of the Rebellion (Based on True Events)Allan Pinkerton17h 56m3.9 (262)$1 · $0.00
TRUE CRIME COLLECTION: The Greatest Cases of Pinkerton National Detective AgencyAllan Pinkerton47h 39m$1 · $0.00
The Somnambulist and the Detective; The Murderer and the Fortune TellerAllan Pinkerton5h 23m3.6 (26)$2 · $0.00
Pinkerton National Detective Agency: True Crime Stories & P.I. Cases (Annotated)Allan Pinkerton47h 43m$2 · $0.00
Bucholz & the Detectives (Based on True Events)Allan Pinkerton7h 34m3.5 (24)$1.99 · $0.00
ALLAN PINKERTON Ultimate Collection: True Crime Stories & Detective StoriesAllan Pinkerton64h 26m$1 · $0.00
The Spy of the RebellionAllan Pinkerton$1 · $0.00
The Spy of the RebellionAllan Pinkerton16h 39m3.8 (258)$2 · $0.00
True Crime: Pinkerton National Detective AgencyAllan Pinkerton46h 33m4.0 (27)$2 · $0.00
The Spiritualists and the DetectivesAllan Pinkerton7h 21m2.9 (15)$2 · $0.00
Pinkerton National Detective Agency: True Crime Stories & P.I. CasesAllan Pinkerton47h 48m$2 · $0.00
Riding with EvilKen Croke, Dave Wedge9h 42m4.3 (3.4K)$29 · $0.00
The Two FBIsNicole Parker10h 8m4.4 (499)$29 · $0.00
I Catch KillersGary Jubelin15h 32m4.3 (6.6K)$33 · $0.00
The Redemption Of Bobby LoveBobby Love, Cheryl Love9h 13m4.4 (956)$29 · $0.00
The Life We ChoseMatt Birkbeck8h 57m4.4 (1K)$29 · $0.00
The Truth About AaronJonathan Hernandez5h 15m4.3 (2.5K)$24 · $0.00
No Ordinary BirdArtis Henderson6h 23m4.4 (597)$24 · $0.00
I'll Be Gone in the DarkMichelle McNamara10h 7m4.3 (302.5K)$29 · $0.00
Beyond the Body FarmBill Bass, Jon Jefferson6h 17m4.3 (10.2K)$24 · $0.00
The Killer Across the TableJohn E. Douglas, Mark Olshaker11h 7m4.3 (37.5K)$8 · $0.00
Inside the CartelMartin Suarez, Ian Frisch10h 50m4.4 (583)$29 · $0.00
White Hot HateDick Lehr12h 27m4.3 (1.4K)$29 · $0.00
Scarface and the UntouchableMax Allan Collins, A. Brad Schwartz18h 35m4.3 (2.4K)$40 · $0.00
Hack AttackNick Davies18h 7m4.3 (2.4K)$23 · $0.00
Russians Among UsGordon Corera12h 48m4.3 (4.1K)$33 · $0.00
Broken FaithMitch Weiss, Holbrook Mohr12h 19m4.2 (5K)$27 · $0.00
Member of the FamilyDianne Lake, Deborah Herman12h 30m4.2 (11.8K)$33 · $0.00
FallJohn Preston11h 24m4.2 (6.3K)$29 · $0.00
Hell Put to ShameEarl Swift12h 23m4.3 (1.1K)$29 · $0.00
True IdentityPaul Joseph Fronczak, Alex Tresniowski8h 29m4.3 (817)$20 · $0.00
You may also like
British Murder Mysteries - The Agatha Christie CollectionAgatha Christie45h 31m4.4 (4.7K)$2 · $0.00
Christmas With Agatha ChristieAgatha Christie55h 46m4.2 (1.6K)$1 · $0.00
Hunting El ChapoAndrew Hogan, Douglas Century8h 25m4.1 (3.4K)$26 · $0.00
Syndrome EFranck Thilliez13h 19m4.0 (8.5K)$25
The Power-HouseJohn Buchan3h 38m3.6 (1.4K)$1 · $0.00
The Big FourAgatha Christie6h 26m3.9 (88.1K)$2.30 · $0.00
House DividedMike Lawson9h 57m4.1 (2K)$20
The Detective Up LateAdrian McKinty9h 16m4.4 (5.1K)$20
The Collected Works of Agatha Christie (Annotated)Agatha Christie72h 45m4.2 (14)$2 · $0.00
The Complete Railway Mysteries (Annotated)Victor L. Whitechurch12h 14m$2 · $0.00
90 CRIME NOVELS: Complete CollectionEdgar Wallace681h 22m3.9 (175)$2 · $0.00
MYSTERY & CRIME Ultimate Collection: 110+ Thriller Novels & Detective Stories In One Volume (Annotated)E. Phillips Oppenheim85h 28m$2 · $0.00
The Best Louis Tracy Mysteries (Annotated)Louis Tracy114h 22m$2 · $0.00
The Bulldog Drummond Series (10 Novels in One Edition) (Annotated)H. C. McNeile, Sapper87h 35m4.4 (11)$2 · $0.00
Sherlock Holmes in JapanVasudev Murthy9h 2m3.5 (506)$12
The Mysteries of Detective Ashton-Kirk (Complete Series) (Annotated)John T. McIntyre30h 33m4.2 (12)$2 · $0.00
Crime & Mystery Collection: 110+ Thrillers & Detective Tales in One Volume (Illustrated Edition)E. Phillips Oppenheim85h 26m4.2 (28)$1.99 · $0.00
The Thriller Zone Podcast (TheThrillerZone.com): Season 2, Vol. 4David Temple8h 3m$20
The Black BoxE. Phillips Oppenheim9h 56m4.0 (136)$2 · $0.00
Detective Kennedy's CasesArthur B. Reeve115h 46m$2 · $0.00