ALL THE CONSPIRATORS, by Christopher ISHERWOOD.

LONDON: Jonathan Cape, 1928. First Edition (first printing), of the author's First Book.

Hardcovers, cloth covered boards, 5.5x7.5 inches (13x19 cm), 255 pages.

Reportedly signed by and from the library of LADY VIOLET POWEL, wife of ANTHONY POWELL. ALL OF WHICH IS PROBABLY UNTRUE. The book was acquired from a well-known Northern California based book auction house. The lot title was "From the library of Lady Violet Powell" and the lot description was; "From the library of Lady Violet Powell, with her signature on the front free endpaper. Lady Powell was the wife of writer Anthony Powell, author of A Dance to the Music of Time. She was a friend of Isherwood's and generally taken to be the model for the character of Isobel Tolland in her husband's novel sequence." Handwritten in the book in pencil beside "her" signature is the auction house cataloguer's pencil note: "Lady Powell / wife of Anthony Powell"

HOWEVER, THIS IS LIKELY NOT HER SIGNATURE OR HER BOOK. The book is signed "VIOLA POWELL / 1930". Note the following: Violet Powell married Anthony Powell in 1934 (i.e. 4 years after the book was signed Viola Powell.) All indications are that Lady Violet Powell only used the name Violet during her life. Comparisons of Lady Violet Powell's signature with this signature show distinct differences. So, speaking personally, buyer beware, and don't wait years to fully research your purchases! Again, THIS IS LIKELY NOT THE SIGNATURE OF VIOLET POWELL. But I share this with you so that you might do your own research, could be the auctioneer and cataloguer were right.

Condition: The cover's cloth is soiled, splitting at the spine folds and spine ends, and the spine lettering has almost completely disappeared; nonetheless the covers are still doing their job. Internally nice, small initials are written in a corner of the front and rear pastedown, a signature and associated note on the front free-endpaper as discussed above, and a small circular ink stamp is also on the front flyleaf, there is a bit of spotting to a few pages, otherwise the inner pages are tight, bright, clean, clear and unmarked.

This FIRST EDITION is SCARCE, made more or less so with the signature of a Viola Powell.