"In the heart of the Australian Bush stands the House of Cain, owned by an American millionaire. Himself a threefold murderer, he has opened this strange institution as a haven for murderers whom, with his vast resources, he rescues from the hands of the law!
It is with this man that Austiline Thorpe, the beautiful fiancee of Martin Sherwood, becomes inolved. How this happens, and the final dissolution of the murder settlement, is recounted in a vivid and breathless story. In the culminating scene, Monty, famous explorer and brother to Martin, appears as a great character. A man of action and utterly fearless, he sweeps all before him, thus permitting a happy conclusion to an intensely dramatic mystery novel of love and crime in a vivid Australian setting." - from the 1929 Dorance edition

"Austilene Thorpe is in prison accused of the murder in Melbourne of a notorious blackmailer. Her future husband, Martin Sherwood, goes blind with shock. A dying man confesses to the murder, but Austilene has been 'rescued' from jail and has disappeared. Surprisingly she does not return when her innocence is proved. Monty, Martin's brother, learns that she is in a luxurious sanctuary for murderers, "The House of Cain," financed and controlled by Anchor, a millionaire who has poisoned three wives. Anchor has fallen in love with Austilene, but Monty's powerful physique and great determination win her release." - from "The Armchair Detective"

Printed by Hutchinson of London in 1928 and by Dorance of Philadelphia in 1929.

Front and back jacket illustrations from the 1983 Dennis McMillan edtion, showing Martin and Monty Sherwood approaching the House of Cain by camel.