A first-class, highly acclaimed thriller that was first published in 1914. It is based on the grisly Jack the Ripper murders that occurred in Whitechapel, London twenty years before. "One of the best suspense novels ever written." — The New York Times "This is a beautifully wrought novel of psychological suspense that should have a place on any mystery buff's shelf of classics." — Chicago Sun-Times This first class, highly-acclaimed thriller was published in 1914, more than two decades after the so-called Jack the Ripper murders, on which it is based, had occurred in Whitechapel, London. The murders—five in all—appeared to be the work of a woman-hating fanatic, someone who also must have had knowledge of anatomy, since the bodies were mutilated with surgical skill. Twenty years later, memories of these serial killings were still fresh in Londoners’ minds and the author brilliantly captures the sense of fear and horror which the murders evoked. Praise for this novel has withstood the test of time in England, America, and around the world. The Lodger has been adapted for the screen several times, most notably by Alfred Hitchcock in 1926, his first film. Marie Adelaide Elizabeth Rayner Lowndes, nee Belloc (5 August 1868 - 14 November 1947), was a prolific English novelist. Active from 1898 until her death, she had a literary reputation for combining exciting incident with psychological interest. Her most famous novel, The Lodger (1913), based on the Jack the Ripper murders of 1888, has been adapted for the screen five different times; the first movie version was Alfred Hitchcock's silent film The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog (1927), followed by Maurice Elvey's in 1932, John Brahm's in 1944, Man in the Attic in 1953, and David Ondaatje's in 2009. Another novel of hers, Letty Lynton (1931), was the basis for the 1932 motion picture of the same name starring Joan Crawford. Born in Marylebone, London and raised in La Celle-Saint-Cloud, France, and was interred in France, in La Celle-Saint-Cloud near Versailles, where she spent her youth.