The Mystery of Death Trap Mine is the 24th book in Robert Arthur’s The Three Investigators series. It was written by Mary Virginia Carey, who penned a number of Investigators titles.
In the book, the titular investigators and their friend Allie look into the strange circumstances surrounding an abandoned silver mine. This is the second appearance of Allie; she is introduced in the book The Mystery of the Singing Serpent.
The Three Investigators series, which was targeted at juvenile readers, was originally called Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators. In the first book, The Secret of Terror Castle, the investigators befriend Alfred Hitchcock after attempting to sneak onto a film set. Hitchcock continues to appear as a character in later books, consulting on their cases and providing feedback on their investigative work.
While the book was originally published in 1976, this revised edition was released by Random House in 1984. This edition removes Alfred Hitchcock’s name from the
Robert Adragna created covers for 43 Three Investigators books in total, and he worked to modernize the series and popularize it with readers in the ’80s. Adragna was also a regular cover artist for science fiction and fantasy magazines, including Fantastic Stories of Imagination, Amazing Stories, and Strange Fantasy.