Lot #37: Vintage 1907 Book - "The Malefactor" by E. Phillips Oppenheim

Black Cloth. Gold Gilt Lettering: New York: P.F. Collier, 1907. 304 pp. "The Malefactor" is a psychological thriller and mystery novel by the prolific British author E. Phillips Oppenheim. The story follows Sir Wingrave Seton, a man who spent ten years in prison for a crime he did not commit to protect the honor of a woman named Lady Ruth. Upon his release, the once-noble Seton has been transformed by bitterness into a "malefactor" who intends to use his immense wealth to exact a cold, calculated revenge on the society that failed him and the woman who allowed him to suffer. The narrative, which was published in England under the title "Mr. Wingrave, Millionaire", explores themes of moral decay and redemption as Seton navigates a series of social intrigues, eventually finding his path to vengeance complicated by his role as a guardian to a young girl named Juliet Lundy. Characteristic of Oppenheim’s work, the 1907 Collier edition is a slim, cloth-bound volume noted for its early 20th-century "society noir" atmosphere, blending the opulence of the wealthy elite with a darker, vengeful undercurrent. Pickup category timeslot {A}