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    At Close Quarters : Gerald Seymour

Used hardcover in good condition. Dust jacket, cover and pages show minimal wear. Pages showing very slight age discolouration. 185 pages. Published by Dodd, Mead & Co, 1987. ISBN 039608950X.

Clusters, a great country house, is troubled by bats, as Lord and Lady Osprey complain to their guests, who include first rate detective, Sir John Appleby. In the matter of bats, Appleby is indifferent, but he is soon faced with a real challenge - the murder of Lord Osprey, stabbed with an ornate dagger in the library.

The conventions are properly observed. There's an omniscient butler, Bagot. The moat gleams darkly, guarding its secrets. Inspector Ringwood sets up his "incident room" in the ballroom, which dazzles with mirrors, chandeliers, and trompe l'oeil. The house guests include another title, a QC, and two or three experts on numismatics.

And that last point takes us to the heart of the mystery: where, in this vast architectural pile, did Lord Osprey conceal his collection of antique coins? There are clues: the key in the library, the skiff on the moat, the intruder glimpsed through the French doors; even, possibly, the local publican's claim that an Osprey has raped his daughter.

Appleby solves the problem with all his usual wit, ingenuity, and aplomb. And the bats have the last word, very startlingly so. 

Appleby and the Ospreys (Sir John Appleby #35) : Michael Innes

  • Product Code: BOO000503
  • Availability: 1
  • Dimension: L 14.50 x W 2.20 x H 21.40
  • Weight: 0.359 Kg
  • R25.00



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Tags: michael innes, books, fiction, crime, mystery, sir john appleby