The book The Double Four opens with Peter Ruff who chooses to leave the criminal underworld for the more lucrative career of a private investigator. Peter is the ideal investigator because of his connections to the underworld and his ability to appear as somebody else. Mr. Ruff is incredibly prosperous in his new job, and Violet Brown, his trustworthy and beautiful assistant, helps him out tremendously. He is seen and accepted as a leader by a large group of criminals who have decided to use their skills for good as his reputation for solving crimes increases. However, his fame makes many people hate him, including the new spouse of his ex-fiancee and a prominent German spy. This wonderful collection of short stories by a mystery author, whose brilliance, sadly, has been forgotten by many people.
E. Phillips Oppenheim was born on October 22, 1866, in Tohhenham, London, England, to Henrietta Susannah Temperley Budd and Edward John Oppenheim, a leather retailer. After leaving school at age 17, he helped his father in his leather business and used to write in his extra time. His first novel, Expiration (1886), and subsequent thrillers piqued the interest of a wealthy New York businessman who eventually bought out the leather business and made Oppenheim a high-paid director.He is more focused on dedicating most of his time to writing. The novels, volumes of short stories, and plays that followed, numbering more than 150, were about humans with modern heroes, fearless spies, and stylish noblemen. The Long Arm of Mannister (1910), The Moving Finger (1911), and The Great Impersonation (1920) are three of his most famous essays.
