Theo von Blankensee 
The Great Beginning 

This is the first English-language translation of the book that launched the long-running Lord Lister, Alias Raffles mystery series. This popular Dutch creation first appeared in 1910 and ran hundreds of volumes over the next decade.

In the first volume, Lord Lister (Raffles) is well into his life of crime, and he acquires a sidekick, tries to outwit the police, and must escape the unscrupulous men he has been targetting — who now want him dead!

Inspired by the A.J. Raffles tales of E.W. Hornung, this series was clearly a near complete copy, but has a unique charm of its own. The first book includes an introduction by mystery author John Gregory Betancourt, who also translated it.