Young
London lawyer Peter Daventry is given instructions from a
wealthy client to bid for three valuable items that once belonged
to Mary, Queen of Scots, in an auction. This is an unusual
request for the firm to undertake, but Peter goes to view
them first, only to discover the next day that not only have
they been stolen, but the security guard on duty has been
murdered. Even stranger, the American millionaire who wanted
the items has also been murdered at his country house. When
Scotland Yard is puzzled, it is a good idea to send for Anthony
Bathurst…
This
is the second Brian Flynn mystery to be released in paperback
and ebook format by Dean Street Press. He was one of the more
obscure authors from the Golden Age of mysteries but one of
the better ones, and a long overdue reprint. This novel was
originally published back in 1928 and has many of the features
that fans of mysteries from this era love, including plenty
of period detail and a locked room mystery to solve. You won’t
guess what the black twenty-two is, and, indeed, it does not
make an appearance until nearly the end of the book. This
is one of several mysteries to unravel, and you can expect
an exciting read as the detectives try and work out who could
have killed two people miles apart and why.
To
say more would spoil the plot, as, like a lot of mysteries
from this era, we start out knowing nothing, and gradually
the plot widens out to include many strands until they all
start to mesh together, and we see what it is all about. If
you think this period begins and ends with Christie, Sayers,
and Marsh, a trip to the Dean Street Press website is a good
idea. I look forward to reading all the works of this author
and the other golden age writers that this publishing house
is making available to modern readers.
The
Mystery of the Peacock’s Eye
#3
The
Billiard-Room Mystery #1
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