Murder, Masks, and Motives

Behind respectable faces and polite manners, darker intentions wait.

This gripping anthology gathers classic American short fiction where deception is an art, truth is perilous, and crime often wears a human smile. From a real-life axe murder on a lonely New England island to calculated impostures, whispered rumors, political terror, and crimes born of obsession, these stories explore the dangerous motives that surface when masks begin to slip.

Edgar Allan Poe dissects illusion with cold logic, Nathaniel Hawthorne reveals the havoc of rumor, Anna Katharine Green exposes crimes hidden within love and marriage, and O. Henry complicates deception with conscience and compassion. Atmospheric tales of storm-lashed lighthouses, midnight betrayals, false identities, and uncanny revelations build toward moments of shocking clarity—and irreversible consequence.

By turns suspenseful, unsettling, and psychologically sharp, Murder, Masks, and Motives invites listeners into a past where justice is uncertain, appearances deceive, and every crime leaves a human cost. Once begun, these stories refuse to let go.

Featuring the work of renowned authors and hidden gems of classic American fiction, including:

Mr. Higginbotham’s Catastrophe, by Nathaniel Hawthorne

Maelzel’s Chess-Player, by Edgar Allan Poe

Shall He Wed Her? by Anna Katharine Green

A Double-dyed Deceiver, by O. Henry

The Only Girl at Overlook, by Franklin Fyles

Midnight in Beauchamp Row, by Anna Katharine Green

A Memorable Night, by Anna Katharine Green

The Picture Puzzle, by Edward Lucas White

The Woman at Seven Brothers, by Wilbur Daniel Steele

A Memorable Murder, by Celia Thaxter