The House of Murder, first published in 1930, set in the Riviera, concerns a female jewel thief and her accomplice, a brutal murderer. From the dustjacket: The Swan Murders were terrorizing Europe. The Police were unable to detect this mysterious lady of Death who committed the most daring jewel thefts, openly, brazenlywhile her strangler accomplice murdered brutally, horribly, fearlessly. She goaded and infuriated the Police by leaving little crystal swans as a grim token on the body of each victim. Then, the Great Giroff was called to solve the riddle of the Swan, and his search brought him to the House of Murder, and thrust him into the most amazing sequence of events and the most perilous and exciting chase of his career. This is a thrilling story that will give you many breathless, eerie moments of chill and terror.
Author Henry Leyford Gates (1878-1937) wrote a number of mysteries and other novels, including The Laughing Peril and Ravished Armenia.