The Magic Casket - A Positronic Book

Dr. John Thorndyke returns in nine ingenious mysteries where the smallest physical clue can expose the most carefully concealed crime. Assisted by his friend and narrator, Dr. Christopher Jervis, the brilliant medical jurist applies forensic science, legal knowledge, and disciplined observation to cases involving murder, theft, deception, disputed identities, and seemingly impossible circumstances.

From an abandoned handbag discovered in an old London church to the secrets hidden within the mysterious casket of the title, each investigation challenges Thorndyke to reconstruct events from overlooked fragments of evidence. Rather than relying on intuition or coincidence, he examines objects, traces, documents, and human behavior with the patience of a scientist and the precision of an expert witness.

First published in 1927, The Magic Casket is the final original collection of Freeman's Dr. Thorndyke short stories. Cleverly constructed, richly atmospheric, and grounded in authentic forensic method, these nine cases demonstrate why Thorndyke remains one of the most important scientific detectives in the history of mystery fiction.