Cyril Hare

Warbeck Hall is an old-fashioned English country house and the scene of equally English murders.

All the classic ingredients are there: Christmas decorations, tea and cake, a faithful butler, a foreigner, snow falling and an interesting cast of characters thrown together.

The murders and detective work are far from conventional though ...

An English Murder

Tragedy at Law follows a rather self-important High Court judge, Mr Justice Barber, as he moves from town to town presiding over cases in the Southern England circuit. When an anonymous letter arrives for Barber, warning of imminent revenge, he dismisses it as the work of a harmless lunatic. But then a second letter appears, followed by a poisoned box of the judge's favourite chocolates, and he begins to fear for his life. Enter barrister and amateur detective Francis Pettigrew, a man who was once in love with Barber's wife and has never quite succeeded in his profession - can he find out who is threatening Barber before it is too late?

Tragedy at Law

I never forget a face

In With a Bare Bodkin (1946) Cyril Hare (nom de plume of Alfred Gordon Clark) revived the character of Francis Pettigrew, the barrister and amateur sleuth introduced to us in 1942's Tragedy at Law. The Blitz has forced the evacuation of various government offices from London and Pettigrew accompanies his ministry to the distant seaside resort of Marsett Bay. In this strange atmosphere, Pettigrew begins to fall in love with his secretary, who is also being courted by a widowed man much older than her. Bored and restless, the ministers start playing a light-hearted game of 'Plan the perfect murder' to pass the time. Pettigrew is detached from the silliness - until a real murder happens, and he is drawn into solving the mystery. 'One of the best detective stories published for a long time.' Spectator

With a Bare Bodkin

Raymond Chandler

Dashiell Hammett

John Buchan

Josephine Tey

Wilkie Collins

Dorothy L. Sayers

Erskine Childers

Edmund Clerihew Bentley

Josephine Tey. The Daughter of Time Raymond Chandler. The Big Sleep Raymond Chandler. Farewell, My Lovely Dorothy L. Sayers. Gaudy Night Dashiell Hammett. The Maltese Falcon John Buchan. The Thirty-nine Steps Edmund Clerihew Bentley. Trent's Last Case Cyril Hare. Tragedy At Law Wilkie Collins. The Moonstone Erskine Childers. The Riddle of the Sands

The Daughter of Time, The Big Sleep, Gaudy Night, The Maltese Falcon, The Thirty Nine Steps, Trent's Last Case, Tragedy at Law and others

The Top 100 Crime Novels of All Time. Vol.1. Illustrated

"When the Wind Blows" is a crime novel about post-war British society. The book is full of unsolved secrets and mysterious coincidences that do not promise anything good to its protagonist. So, the alternative title of the book is "The Wind Blows Death." The book tells about Francis Pettigrew, who finds himself named the orchestra's treasurer after giving some legal assistance to the local amateur orchestra. This complicates his otherwise idyllic existence. Further, things get worse: a murder occurs, and Peter has to try hard to solve the mystery for the sake of his own life.

When the Wind Blows

During Christmas dinner, Robert Warbeck, the only son and heir of the old Lord, dies in front of the other guests. Because of heavy snowfall Warbeck Hall is cut off the outer world, and the phone line is broken. Detective Rogers takes upon himself the task of investigating the murder. Soon after the old Lord Warbeck, already being on his last legs, dies. A silent panic strikes the guests, who try to keep together. Still, another guest dies, this time it is Mrs. Carstairs. Both Robert Warbeck and Mrs. Carstairs seem to have been poisoned. Doctor Bottwink, who was originally invited to study centuries-old documents in the family library, turns into an amateur detective trying to solve murder cases.

An English Murder (Musaicum Vintage Mysteries)

Death Is No Sportsman

These thirty stories, selected and introduced by fellow crime writer and lawyer Michael Gilbert, are a terrific introduction to Cyril Hare's inventive and clever Golden Age detective fiction, which often turns on an ingenious use of the law. Born in 1900, Hare was a barrister and judge and only began writing at the age of thirty-six. Some of his first short stories were published in Punch and he went on to write nine novels including his most famous, Tragedy at Law. Two of the stories in this collection feature Francis Pettigrew, a barrister and amateur detective who appeared in several of Hare's novels and was perhaps his best-loved creation. 'Dazzlingly ingenious.' Sunday Times 'Of Cyril Hare's detective stories my only complaint is, that they are too infrequent.' Tatler 'A master of the short story.' Spectator 'Neat, taut and sufficiently dipped in irony to give a sharp tang to the quirks of love and life.' Glasgow Herald

Best Detective Stories of Cyril Hare

"That Yew Tree's Shade" by Cyril Hare. Published by Good Press. Good Press publishes a wide range of titles that encompasses every genre. From well-known classics & literary fiction and non-fiction to forgotten−or yet undiscovered gems−of world literature, we issue the books that need to be read. Each Good Press edition has been meticulously edited and formatted to boost readability for all e-readers and devices. Our goal is to produce eBooks that are user-friendly and accessible to everyone in a high-quality digital format.

That Yew Tree's Shade

Famous solo violinist Lucy Carless is making a guest appearance with the provincial Markshire Orchestra, only to be found strangled with a silk stocking part-way through the concert. Everyone in the orchestra had access to the scene of the crime, and the police officer in charge, Inspector Trimble, has no idea where to start. Luckily retired barrister and amateur detective Francis Pettigrew has been acting as an honorary treasurer to the Markshire Orchestral Society, and he is soon on his way to finding the murderer.

Cyril Hare

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