The Emperor's Snuff-Box

Q: Do I have to buy the ebook to participate in a book club?

No, you don’t have to buy the ebook to participate, but we do recommend it to get the most out of your club. There are several premium social reading features that are only available when you buy the ebook, like annotations, reactions, comment threads, resources, discussion prompts, and more, all embedded right in the text. It’s a unique and immersive way to read.

Q: Why can’t I buy the ebook on the app?

It’s annoying, we know. App store rules prevent us from selling directly in the app, so for now you can only purchase ebooks on our website. Don’t worry: when you purchase an ebook on the web, it’s automatically added to your bookshelf in the app.

Q: How is Fable’s reader different from Kindle?

Kindle is a straightforward e-reader; Fable is an interactive e-reader that includes social features inside the ebooks. When you read an ebook on Fable, you can see and react to the text with others in real time. Start a discussion, share highlights and quotes, add emoji reactions—all of it lives right inside the book. It’s hard to explain and easy to see, so we recommend reading the free sample in one of our most active clubs to get a feel for it.

Q: Do you sell physical books too?

We do not sell physical books at this time. Wish we did? Let us know why here!

Q: Are book clubs free to join on Fable?

Most of our clubs are completely free to join. The only exceptions are clubs marked as “Premium” or “Career Development,” which do require a fee. You can find out more on each club’s detail page.

Q: How do I start a book club with this book on Fable?

The first step is to download the Fable app. From there, you’ll be able to create your own private or public book club and invite others to read with you. Once your club is created, click on the plus sign under “Currently reading” and search for this book to add it to your club.

By John Dickson Carr

Publisher Description

On the verge of a second marriage, a divorcee discovers her first husband has returned, and murder ensues in this chilling tale, which the New York Times Book Review hailed as “one of the most ingeniously constructed mystery stories John Dickson Carr has ever told”

After divorcing her husband, Ned, Eve Neill falls in love with banker Toby Lawes and quickly agrees to marry him. But news of the engagement brings Ned back, intent on reclaiming his bride, whatever the cost. The price of passion proves too high when a dead body is found—and beside it, the shattered fragments of a snuff-box that once belonged to Napoleon.

These fragments tell two tales, one true and one false. And in order for Eve to know whether her future holds a white bridal gown or a black hangman’s cloak, she will have to trust that an expert in criminology will be able to force the evidence to tell the truth and point out the real murderer.

Download the free Fable app

Stay organized

Keep track of what you’re reading, what you’ve finished, and what’s next.

Build a better TBR

Swipe, skip, and save with our smart list-building tool

Rate and review

Share your take with other readers with half stars, emojis, and tags

Curate your feed

Meet readers like you in the Fable For You feed, designed to build bookish communities

Stay organized

Keep track of what you’re reading, what you’ve finished, and what’s next.

Build a better TBR

Swipe, skip, and save with our smart list-building tool

Rate and review

Share your take with other readers with half stars, emojis, and tags

Curate your feed

Meet readers like you in the Fable For You feed, designed to build bookish communities

5 Reviews

4.0

Kindolino

Created over 1 year ago

Mariamkiriaa

Created over 1 year ago

Hail

Created over 5 years ago

rbabyblue

Created over 6 years ago

Wordsmithonia

Created almost 10 years ago

“Finally, I have read a John Dickson Carr book. This has been one of those authors I've been wanting to read for a very long time, and now that I've finally done it, I can see myself reading a lot more. This was a mystery that was carefully crafted and full of tension, which is amazing given how short of a period of time the story takes place in. Normally, or at least in my experience, when a mystery takes place in a short period of time, the book seems to be frantic in it's pacing, almost schizophrenic, not sure where it's supposed to be going. With The Emperor's Snuff-Box, Carr kept the pace at a steady clip, giving me just enough energy to keep it interesting, without losing the tension that needs to be built up. I think a large part of that had to do with the character of Eve Neil. She may not behave in exactly the same manner I would, given the same set of circumstances, but the force of her personality is what the entire books revolves around. It is impossible for this book to have been written, with a different type of character as the lead, it just wouldn't have worked. For that matter, there wasn't a weak character in the group, though there were one or two that I could have done without. I get why they were there, to divert attention away from the truth, but they still annoyed the hell out of me. There were really three male "leads" in this one: Ned Atwood, Eve's ex-husband, who definitely is more that he appears to be, Toby Lawes, Eve's fiance, quiet and old fashioned, but it's always that kind of man who is hiding something, and then there is Dr. Dermot Kinross, a specialist in the criminal mind. Ned is a rake, a scoundrel, and just a tad bit dangerous, but you can't help but like him. Even at the end, when everything is out in the open, part of me wanted the two of them back together. Toby on the other hand is, on the surface, the kind of man you are supposed to like. Solid, dependable, and just a tad bit stuffy, he is the stereotypical Englishman. Too bad he is an immoral snake who can't keep it in his pants. It's a good thing the story takes place in France, otherwise he may have been as stodgy as he appeared. I never liked him, and I'm glad the book ended the way it did, at least as far as he's concerned. Then we have the hero, Dermot. I really enjoyed his character, and I really wish Carr would have continued with him in further books. Not sure why he didn't, though some of what I read online suggest a bias of Carr's part, but then why did Carr write him to begin with. Either way, he is the detective of the piece and has no problem getting to the heart of the case, discovering the truth in a most logical way, but still using a bit of instinct to guide him. If you couldn't tell by now, I loved the book. The mystery itself was ingenious, and not one I really had a clue about until the big reveal. But it wasn't an ending that comes out of the blue, yeah, I didn't pick up on the clues, but they were there. I guess it's just a good thing I'll never be relied upon to solve a murder or two.”

About John Dickson Carr

John Dickson Carr (1906–1977) was one of the most popular authors of Golden Age British-style detective novels. Born in Pennsylvania and the son of a US congressman, Carr graduated from Haverford College in 1929. Soon thereafter, he moved to England where he married an Englishwoman and began his mystery-writing career. In 1948, he returned to the US as an internationally known author. Carr received the Mystery Writers of America’s highest honor, the Grand Master Award, and was one of the few Americans ever admitted into the prestigious, but almost exclusively British, Detection Club.