This book reveals subversive representations of gender, race and class in detective dime novels (1860-1915), arguing that inherent tensions between subversive and conservative impulses¿theorized as contamination and containment¿explain detective fiction's ongoing popular appeal to readers and to writers such as Twain and Faulkner.

List of Tables Acknowledgements 1. The Case of the Missing Detectives; or, Reassessing the American Contribution to Detective Fiction 2. The Happy-Ending Deception; or, Uncovering the Subversive Potential of Detective Dime Novels 3. The Case of the Contaminated Icon; or, Allan Pinkerton's Dangerous Detective Doubles 4. Playing with the Ace of Hearts; or, Mentorship, Sportsmanship, and Nick Carter's Epistemological Dilemmas 5. Faulkner, Twain and the Legacy of Dime Novel Detectives 6. Conclusions and Directions for Future Research Bibliography Index

Pamela Bedore is Assistant Professor of English at the University of Connecticut, USA, where she is an award-winning teacher of American Literature and Popular Culture. Her articles have appeared in such journals as Studies in Popular Culture, Foundations, Writing Program Administrator, and she is the book review editor of Clues.