Novel, 1933

A mystery novel, which sets up a very promising ruse and canters along nicely for the first third or so, before it feels as if things run out of steam, just a little, and get ever so slightly bogged down as the action, characters and plot hit a somewhat spooky Suffolk village. There is, happily, a flurry at the end of the book, although it doesn’t entirely pay back for all the slack in the narrative. Still, some of the characterisations and descriptions are richly drawn and overall feeling of the book is positive. The whole subject of the ownership and dispute over territory feels very light and throwaway, with the book either possibly showing its age, or illuminating and bringing a different time and sensibility to life.