The 1230 from Croydon British Library Crime Classics Freeman Wills Crofts 9780712356497 Books
Download As PDF : The 1230 from Croydon British Library Crime Classics Freeman Wills Crofts 9780712356497 Books
12 30 from Croydon
The 1230 from Croydon British Library Crime Classics Freeman Wills Crofts 9780712356497 Books
This is one of the top writers of the Golden Age for me. Well crafted plots and real suspense in every book. This one's a little different, but just as enjoyable as the others.Product details
|
Tags : The 12.30 from Croydon (British Library Crime Classics) [Freeman Wills Crofts] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. 12 30 from Croydon,Freeman Wills Crofts,The 12.30 from Croydon (British Library Crime Classics),The British Library Publishing Division,0712356495
People also read other books :
- African Rifles and Cartridges John Taylor 9781940001012 Books
- Google Plus Quick Start eBook Nick Kizirnis
- Insider Thought Trading Life Transformation Through Mind Renewal The Journey to God James Bars CCLC 9780981753478 Books
- Bluelights Banshees and Dominic Hens James E Rosier Jr 9781534936577 Books
- DC Universe Online Legends #2 Tony Bedard Books
The 1230 from Croydon British Library Crime Classics Freeman Wills Crofts 9780712356497 Books Reviews
It's 10-year-old Rose Morley's first trip on an aeroplane so she's excited, despite the fact that the reason for the trip is to go to Paris where her mother has had an accident and is in hospital. With her are her father, Peter, and her elderly and rather ill grandfather, Andrew Crowther, whose manservant and general carer Weatherup is with him too. Before they take off, they get a telegram to say Rose's mother will be fine after all, so they can enjoy the journey with no fear. But when they arrive in Paris, it turns out that grandfather Andrew is not sleeping as they had all thought – he's dead. And it's soon discovered that he's been murdered.
This is an interesting take on the crime novel, and innovative for its time. We may have seen crimes from the perspective of the murderer fairly often now, but apparently this was one of the first when it was published in 1934. Following the rather brilliantly described flight to Paris, at a time when planes were still held together by little more than chewing-gum and prayer, the book flashes back a few weeks in time and we meet Charles Swinburn, nephew of the murdered man. It's from Charles' perspective that the story unfolds from there on.
Charles had inherited his uncle's successful manufacturing business but the depression of the 1930s has brought him near bankruptcy. Unfortunately, he's also fallen hopelessly in love with the beautiful but mercenary Una, who makes no secret of the fact that she will only marry a rich man. So when his attempts to raise a loan meet with failure, Charles begins to imagine how convenient it would be if his rich uncle would die so that Charles can get his hands on the inheritance he's been promised. The reader then follows along as Charles decides to turn this dream into reality.
I found the first section of the book fairly slow. Crofts describes Charles' business difficulties in great and convincing detail, with much talk of profit margins and wage bills and so on. It's actually quite fascinating, giving a very real picture of a struggling business in a harsh economic climate, but after a bit it began to feel a little like I was reading financial reports.
However, once Charles decides to do the deed, I became totally hooked. It carries that same level of detail over into the planning of the crime, and I should warn you all that I now know lots of incredibly useful stuff should I ever decide someone needs to be murdered – just sayin'. In the planning stage, it's almost an intellectual exercise for Charles and he goes about it quite coldly. But in the aftermath of the crime, we see the effect it has on him – not guilt, exactly, but a kind of creeping horror at the thought of what he's done. And when Inspector French arrives on the scene to investigate, we see Charles swaying between confidence that he's pulled off the perfect crime, and terror that he may have missed some detail that will give him away. I won't give any more away, but there are a couple of complications along the way that ratchet up the tension and the horror.
There's a final short section, an afterword almost, when we see the investigation from Inspector French's perspective. To be honest, this bit felt redundant to me – I felt it would have been more effective had it finished before that part. I suspect it may only have been added because French was Crofts' recurring detective, and perhaps Crofts felt existing fans would have felt short-changed if his part in the story didn't get told.
So, a slow start and an unnecessary section at the end, but the bulk of the book – the planning, the crime itself, and the investigation as seen through Charles' eyes – is excellent. I like Crofts' writing style – it's quite plain and straightforward, but the quality of the plotting still enables him to make this a tense read. The question obviously is not who did the crime, but will he be caught. And, like Charles, I found myself desperately trying to see if he'd left any loopholes. In fact, it was a bit worrying how well Crofts managed to put me inside Charles' head – I wouldn't say I was on his side, exactly, but I was undoubtedly more ambivalent than I should have been. The format leads to some duplication as we see the same events from different angles and perspectives, but this was a small weakness in what I otherwise thought was a very well crafted and original novel. Highly recommended – another winner from the British Library Crime Classics series. Keep 'em coming! 4½ stars for me, so rounded up.
NB This book was provided for review by the publisher, Poisoned Pen Press.
"The 12.30 from Croydon" is a suspense novel that was originally published in 1934 and is set in England. While Inspector French is on the case, we don't hear the case from his perspective until the very end. Most of the novel was from the murderer's point of view.
We know exactly how the murder was committed because we see it happen from the first thoughts to how he carefully planned and committed every step. Like the criminal, we don't know where any mistakes were made or what clues the Inspector has found. Will Inspector French settle on the right suspect?
I liked the other characters and hoped they didn't get accused. I didn't like or dislike the murderer. His reasons were understandable and not entirely selfish, but they didn't justify murder. Still, I found myself unaccountably sighing with relief along with him! The story certainly made me tense with suspense.
There was no sex. There was a minor amount of bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this interesting, suspenseful "reverse mystery."
I received an ebook review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.
Ten-year-old Rose, along with her father Peter (a farmer), her grandfather Andrew (a retired manufacturer), and her grandfather's manservant, are flying from London to Paris to see Rose's mother, who was knocked down by a taxi, though fortunately not, they have just learned, seriously injured. This opening scene is another example of Freeman Wills Crofts' infatuation with transportation we learn what it was like to be an airline passenger in the early thirties, from the point of view of a little girl who notices everything. Fortunately Rose has a window seat, and she enjoys every minute, even when she can see only clouds, and even more so when she can pick out tiny farms and villages below. It is all so exciting that she doesn't understand how her grandfather, also a first-time flyer, can possibly have fallen asleep, but only after they have landed in France does anyone realize that he has in fact died sometime during the flight.
Rose's grandfather had only one child, his beloved daughter Elsie, Rose's mother, but he did also have a nephew, and this inverted mystery is the nephew's story. Charles Swinburn has inherited his father's small business manufacturing small motors, but due to the recent slump (now known as The Depression), it is no longer thriving. Nephew and uncle have disagreed about the business Charles thinks all that is needed is an infusion of cash, while Uncle Andrew has insisted that Charles just needs to work harder. The Crowther Electromotor Works was successful while Andrew and Charles's father ran it, so any problems now must be Charles's fault.
The business means everything to Charles, and he has devoted his life to it. It has eaten up nearly all he money he inherited from his father, and now he owes so much to the bank that his pleas for more are denied. Plus, he's met a girl he's determined to marry, and she has made it clear that she will never marry a poor man. If something doesn't happen soon, he will be forced into bankruptcy. When we first meet Charles, a few weeks before the fatal flight, he has already made up his mind what the something is that must happen his rich uncle must die.
At the time of Andrew's death over France, Charles is enjoying a cruise ship vacation in the vicinity of Naples. It will not be giving away too much, I think, to say that the unexplained death in the air, considered suspicious from the beginning, eventually comes to the attention of the indefatigable, unflappable, infallible Inspector French. I enjoy Crofts' clear, straightforward, no-frills writing style and think this very suspenseful novel is one of his best. It also has one of the most effective trial scenes I've come across.
I bought the book for the cover as well; as the story...Very pleased...
Another great story. Many thanks.
This is an interesting story, but somewhat overplayed for what happens and what needs to be explained.
Almost all the Crofts mysteries are first-rate, and this is no exception.
This is one of the top writers of the Golden Age for me. Well crafted plots and real suspense in every book. This one's a little different, but just as enjoyable as the others.
0 Response to "⋙ Libro Free The 1230 from Croydon British Library Crime Classics Freeman Wills Crofts 9780712356497 Books"
Post a Comment