In 1864, the British writer James Redding Ware, under the pseudonym Andrew Forrester, published The Female Detective, introducing readers to the first professional female detective character, Mrs. Gladden, and paving the way for the more famous female detectives of the early twentieth century, namely Miss Marple and Nancy Drew.

Mrs. Gladden's deductive methods anticipate those of Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes, who would not appear for another twenty years--and like Holmes, she regards the regular constabulary with disdain. But her energetic and savvy approach to solving crimes is her greatest appeal, and the reappearance of the original lady detective is sure to captivate a new generation of crime fiction fans.

In 2012 The Female Detective was made available to the general public for the first time since its original publication; the British Library is now reissuing this foundational crime novel as part of its Crime Classics series.