Miles Burton (1884–1964)

This writer published various crime novels in the 1930s when he was in vogue to the 1960s when his work was regarded as increasingly old fashioned. Unlike Agatha Christie's work - he was apparently a friend of hers - there's no real characterisation or psychology which I think explains her longevity whereas he has become a forgotten writer, revived in this series of reprints. However, that wasn't the real problem I had with this.

It starts off as a classic locked room mystery with a man found shot dead in a railway carriage. The door leading to the tracks was unlocked though and the train slowed in a tunnel due to lights indicating a workman signalling red then green. So in theory someone could have stepped aboard - except that signalmen in boxes at both ends had a good view and swear that no one could have got past them. It looks like suicide but there are a few unanswered questions, and Inspector Arnold is called upon. He involves his amateur sleuth friend, Desmond Merrion, and they embark on a series of cross-country investigations following up various leads and considering the theories which Merrion comes up with. The policeman is a plodder and becomes fixated on one individual being the culprit although Merrion tries to steer him away from that multiple times.

It's never a good thing for me when I spot things before the protagonist(s) and that was certainly the case with the mystery of the tunnel, which I instantly picked up on when another character mentioned a way someone could have got in or out - but the two detectives failed to pick up on it for quite a while until the penny dropped with Merrion. However, the real issue is that the crime was pre-planned with various elements put in place or things checked regarding the timing of the shooting, and yet the eventual denouement showed that the murder wasn't even necessary. I won't go into spoilers but given that a particular person could have got their hands on the loot and then absconded, with or without first sharing it with one of the others, I couldn't see why anyone needed to commit murder in the first place. I can't therefore give the book any more than a 2 star rating.
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Very generic, dull story. Single point of interest are the supernatural trappings, but they're used and written very badly. The main characters are terminally thick, making the story drag on longer than it should and causing me to throw up my hands in annoyance when they almost die but get saved by absurd good fortune. Solution to the "mystery" obvious from like halfway through. Ridiculous pointless unconvincing love plot. The whole supernatural thing makes *no sense* and only served to draw more attention to the criminal activities. Quotes heavily from Margaret Murray on the supposed existence of a witch cult. Ends with not all the criminals getting their comeuppance and the main characters being glad because it means less annoyance for them. The country squire whose daughter the main character falls in love with and marries was totally in on the evil criminal plot so he doesn't want the plot exposed b/c it might tarnish her reputation! It's all ok cause he apparently dies very soon after the main action finishes so no worries. All the characters talk the same, there's 0 characterisation, the dialogue is dull as anything, it's all dull, even the action is dull. Just. Blurgh… (mehr)