John Dickson Carr (1906-1977) was one of the greatest writers of the American Golden Age mystery, and one of the only American authors to be included in England's legendary Detection Club. Though he was born and died in the United States, Carr began his writing career while living in England, where he remained for nearly twenty years. Under his own name and various pseudonyms, he wrote more than seventy novels and numerous short stories, and is best known today for his locked-room mysteries. His beloved series character, Dr. Gideon Fell, was based on author G. K. Chesterton and appeared in twenty-four novels. Dan Napolitano , a reader of John Dickson Carr for three decades, is also a noted collector of Carr first printings and other collectible books.

He published his first crime-fiction article, concerning Conan Doyle, as a student in the 1990s, but only began writing professionally about Carr as the editor of Crippen & Landru's 2022's collection, The Kindling Spark: Early Tales of Mystery, Horror, and Adventure by John Dickson Carr . Napolitano is the editor of a Crippen & Landru follow-up collection that will include more previously unknown and unpublished fiction by Carr.