Ghosts & Gamblers

Edward Phillips Oppenheim was born in London on October 22, 1866. He soon exchanged his studies for work in the fur trade, a family business to which he dedicated himself for more than twenty years. He began to write in his spare time and in 1887 published his first novel, Expiation. When, at the turn of the century, he sold the company to devote himself exclusively to writing, he was already a renowned author of mystery stories, with about thirty published works. Between novels, volumes of short stories and plays, Oppenheim wrote more than 150 books throughout his career, populated by sophisticated characters, adventurous spies and impetuous nobles. The intricacies of diplomacy and international politics were at the center of some of his most important works, with The Impostor standing out as his most famous title, first published in 1920 and widely adapted to the cinema. Prince of Storytellers", as he came to be nicknamed, Oppenheim died at his home on the island of Guernsey, on February 3, 1946.