This is a list of mysteries which have been published under different titles or attributed to different authors. In compiling this list we have not slavishly worked our way through the major reference works such as Al Hubin's indispensable bibliography, but rather have started with title traps that seem to crop up over and over again, or any recent changes we've caught. Thanks to David Walker for starting the list, and to Jo Cardale, Sandra, and Christine Gorian for additions. Readers are cordially invited to submit titles that have caught them by surprise. All contributors will be acknowledged

The reverse title page (the one with the copyright information) of a reprint or a reissue SHOULD contain information about the first publication of the book (Publisher, Date, Title), which can be used to check for title changes. Unfortunately, this information does not always appear.

Nobody can really understand what goes on in an editor's mind, but there seem to be some common motivations for retitling:

1. Differences in language (usually British vs American English), e.g. Marian Babson's Queue Here for Murder (UK) becomes Line Up For Murder in the US.

2. Fears that a term will not be understood, e.g. Amanda Cross' Death in a Tenured Position (US) becomes A Death in the Faculty (UK).

3. Failure to understand a joke, e.g. Robert Barnard's The Disposal of the Living (UK) becomes Fete Fatale (US). In general, those making these changes would justify them under category (2) above.

4. Cultural sensitivities, e.g. Anthea Fraser's The Lily-White Boys (UK) becomes I'll Sing You Two O! in the US. Both phrases come from the same verse of Green Grow The Rushes O!

5. The desire to get death in some form into the title, e.g. Robert Barnard's Unruly Son (UK) becomes Death of a Mystery Writer (US), while Sheer Torture (UK) becomes Death by Sheer Torture (US).

6. The desire to get the main character's name into the title, e.g. W.J. Burley's earlier books (Three-toed Pussy, To Kill a Cat, Guilt Edged) were reissued in conjunction with the Wycliffe TV series with modified names (Wycliffe and the Three-toed Pussy, Wycliffe and How to Kill a Cat, Wycliffe and the Guilt Edged Alibi).

7. We can make up a better title than you. This covers far too many of the changes. A good recent example is Jo Bannister's Sins of the Heart (UK) which appeared in paperback (US) as Charisma with no reference to the original title.

Acknowledgements: Thanks to our contributors: David Walker, Jo Cardale, Scott McKenzie

So, on to authors that have changed their name, or to the title changes