 In a poll of 17 detective story writers and reviewers, this novel was voted as the eighth best locked room mystery of all time.A wealthy publisher and collector of precious stones and Chinese postage stamps has a luxurious suite in a hotel that serves to handle his non-publishing business and the comings and goings of his staff, his relatives, and his female friends.When an odd and anonymous little man arrives and refuses to state his business, no one is surprised; he is locked (from outside "only") in an anteroom with a bowl of fruit (including tangerines, also known as Chinese oranges) and left to await the publisher's arrival.