THE EAMES-ERSKINE CASE.
By A. Fielding.
W. Collins & Son & A. L. Burt.
1924 (US: 1925). 277 pages (US: 244 pages).
Online HERE.
[Review excerpts] . . . Although Fielding doesn't depend on a Crofts specialty–detailed alibis, often involving train timetables—there is much painstaking investigation by her policemen, in the Crofts manner.
The author has constructed in this novel a complex and cleverly plotted problem, with many red herrings and surprising twists and turns. There's even some subsidiary love interest, quite acceptably done, as well as a couple trips to France (Paris and the Riviera). Crofts mysteries often saw sleuths traveling to Continental Europe, especially in the 1920s. — Curt Evans, THE PASSING TRAMP (January 30, 2014)
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By A. Fielding.
Alfred A. Knopf.
1925. 285 pages.
[Full review] Pointer of the Yard is called in when beautiful Rose Charteris is found dead. Her uncle's friend Thornton, who rents a nearby cottage, isn't sure that it's the accident it seems to be. Rose wanted to break her engagement to a volatile Italian count, her former lover is on the scene, she's quarreled with her cousin ... but Pointer is sure that a motive beyond jealousy must be at the root of the crime. It's most peculiar that Rose's father, a noted professor, has not returned from Italy in response to his daughter's death. Pointer must go to Italy to track him down, with surprising results. Unfortunately, some of the political attitudes of the 1920's spoiled my enjoyment of this classic. — Susan, GOODREADS (July 1, 2014)THE FOOTSTEPS THAT STOPPED.
By A. Fielding.
Alfred A. Knopf.
1926. 306 pages. $2.00 (UK: 7s. 6d.)
Online HERE.
[Full review] Here is a detective story in the grand manner, with a Great Detective sprinkling yellow powder about and looking for finger-prints, twelve or thirteen characters who can't explain any of their actions, a beautiful girl who just won't believe her Philip is guilty, and a villain willing to go to any amount of trouble and expense to murder people.
For two hundred pages the intricacies of the plot are very ingenious indeed; and, since two hundred pages are about as long as we should expect any one to be rational, the climax is as unexpected and as silly as these things generally are. Mr. Knopf has devised a bright pink-and-orange wrapper that would look very well against the green of a Pullman seat—probably the best place to read this book. — "Current Books," THE OUTLOOK (November 17, 1926)
[Full review] Those who wish for a sound night's rest should not begin Mr. A. Fielding's 'The Footsteps That Stopped' in the evening, for they assuredly will sit up until day-break to learn the truth concerning Mrs. Tangye's death. Chief Inspector Pointer pieces apparently trifling scraps of evidence together after the fashion of a mosaicist, until he brings into being a truthful picture of what really happened in the morning-room. And the reality is far from what the most suspicious reader will conjecture, although he may—and most certainly will—conjecture a round dozen of times.
The tale is admirably related, the characters strongly and clearly drawn, the incidents convincingly set forth; and the denouement, brought out dramatically—or melodramatically—is an overwhelming surprise. Certainly the "long arm of coincidence" is stretched a little too often, but the end of the story justifies the means. Mr. Fielding has provided a sleepless but thrilling and interesting night's entertainment. — Fergus Hume, "Dreams to Sell," THE BOOKMAN [UK] (November 1926)
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By A. Fielding.
Knopf.
1927. 300 pages.
Online HERE.
[Full review] Having recently read something featuring decapitated bodies, I felt a certain deja vu when Pointer is called to a service flat only to find--you guessed it! The foreign office expert thinks that either the killer or the corpse is a dangerous Spanish anarchist, but (fortunately) the case is more complex than that, and the mystery element will keep you guessing. Heck, even the romantic interest will keep you guessing! — Susan, GOODREADS (July 23, 2014)THE CLUNY PROBLEM.
By A. Fielding.
Knopf.
1928. 321 pages. $2.00
Online HERE.
[Full review] After a ball at a villa on the outskirts of the sleepy town of Cluny, famous for its monastic ruins, two English guests, one of them a famous financier, are found, locked in one room, dead, with pistols beside them.
The swarm of detectives, English and French, official and private, who descend upon the scene, are soon forced to reject the obvious conclusion of a duel; but though they unearth many strange goings-on at the Villa Porte Bonheur, and much of the secret past of the principals in the tragedy, it is not until Inspector Pointer of Scotland Yard sums up in the last chapter that the pieces in the puzzle fall together.
From the outset, the author convinces us that he has seen Cluny, and knows something of the French police at work (and incidentally that he can write very much better than one had come to expect), but it is only upon reflection, after the last page has been turned, that one perceives how cleverly he has woven his plot. The device is neat, intricate, finished; there are no major improbabilities or irritating loose ends; even what looked like auctorial clumsiness turns out to be one of the most skilful and subtly offered clues. Perhaps this very smoothness in the management of complicated situations and multiplied false scents may baffle the more easily bored and puzzled attention: for the full enjoyment of that intellectual pleasure of problem solving which is the chief reward of reading a good detective story, The Cluny Problem demands an unusual alertness. It is easily worth the effort. — "The New Books," THE SATURDAY REVIEW (April 20, 1929; Jump To page 936, middle column at bottom)
By A. Fielding.
Knopf.
1928. 306 pages. $2.00
[Review excerpts] . . . There may be a “first” involved here. Can you think of any other story in which an accused murderer comes back into the story disguised as her older sister in order to help in the investigation? . . . Not so great, though, were the many lapses in story-telling continuity. . . . There are parts of this tale, however, which concern matters mysterical and are equally amazing, and once explained, may very well take your breath away. It did mine, and for more reasons than one – one being pure audacity, and another – well, you’ll have to read this one for yourself. — Steve Lewis, MYSTERY*FILE (3 February 2014)
[Full review] Inspector Pointer of the C.I.D. once more solves a mystery, with the assistance of the suspected murderess, and baffles his colleagues. Again the author has endowed his Inspector with an astonishing power of deduction. — "Notes on New Books," THE BOOKMAN (December 1928; Jump To page 364, bottom left)THE MYSTERIOUS PARTNER.
By A. Fielding.
Knopf.
1929. 286 pages. $2.00
[Full review] Farthing was one of the oldest houses in England. And under its roof were Edgard Danford, the owner; his wife, his brother and his stepdaughter; his estate agent, Rivers; his business partner and a number of other less important people—when there rang through the drawing-room the ghastly, ghostly laugh the third repetition of which always shortly preceded the death of a member of the family.
Knowing this, it will not startle you to find the unfortunate Danford dead, strangled in his bed, a few mornings later. Whereupon our old friend Inspector Pointer, gets busy and untangles a very complicated mystery.
A little long, but otherwise excellent, and credible everywhere but on page 246 where the heroine strokes the scorched cheek of a gentleman who has just been rescued from a burning house. True, he loved her, but we believe he'd have yelled just the same.
And we do object to the excessive use of the apostrophe, as in "her's" and "your's." This is a liberty with the rules of grammar which even in these modern days we have not hitherto noted. — Walter R. Brooks, "The Week's Reading," THE OUTLOOK (September 11, 1929; Jump To page 74, third column middle)
[Full review] WHEREIN Inspector Pointer explains the ghostly laugh of Dame Anne, and rounds up the murderer of Edgar Danforth of Farthing Hall. — "Notes on New Books," THE BOOKMAN (October 1929; Jump To page 234, middle right)THE UPFOLD FARM MYSTERY.
By A. Fielding.
W. Collins & Son.
1931. 252 pages.
[Excerpts] Other reviewers have reflected on Fielding's love of complicated plots, replete with red herrings and misdirection and this, the twelfth book to feature her detective Chief Inspector Pointer, certainly goes some way to fitting the bill. . . . The sleuths go about their task methodically, without any real flashes of brilliance, and despite the clues afforded by another murder they find themselves unable to find any provable solution to the crimes. Therefore, as a last resort – and very late in the book – they appeal to Pointer for guidance. He is able to immediately deduce a possible solution and sets about attempting to uncover the evidence required to prove it. . . . — R. E. Faust, GAD Wiki
[Excerpts] . . . This is by far the best Fielding I have read. . . . I wish I could say other Fieldings measured up to this one, but I haven't found any that have. The early ones, praised by Van Dine, seem very subpar Crofts, while the middle and later ones seem mostly very subpar Christie. . . . — Curt Evans, GAD Wiki
[Full review] The new A. Fielding story is much better than his recent Death of John Tait [see next], although the clever Inspector Pointer doesn't appear until the last eighth of the book and then solves the mystery of two baffling murders with a few magic passes. The characters are artists, musicians, writers—so you know what wicked work to expect. — William C. Weber, "Murder Will Out," THE SATURDAY REVIEW (September 24, 1932; Jump To page 133, left middle)DEATH OF JOHN TAIT.
By A. Fielding.
Kinsey.
1932. 336 pages.
[Excerpts] The Queen of Red Herrings is back, elaborating what seems at first like a simple domestic dispute into an elaborate story of betrayal, toxicology, blackmail, impersonation, abduction and sinister foreigners. . . . There is even a twist at the end, as if there were anything left to twist. . . . — Jon Jermey, GAD WikiTHE WESTWOOD MYSTERY.
By A. Fielding.
Crime Club.
1932. 281 pages.
[Full review] A rather turgid, slow-moving thriller in which a prominent member of the bar is murdered and Pointer of Scotland Yard investigates.
Little excitement and very little action make it somewhat a dull read. — Gerry, GOODREADS (August 21, 2011)THE TALL HOUSE MYSTERY.
By A. Fielding.
Kinsey.
1933. 252 pages. $2.00
Online HERE.
[Full review] Killing of "Ghost" at house-party brings in Inspector Pointer who follows clues to Monte Carlo and back to amazing climax. - Extra good characterizations, ingenious mixture of cryptograms and "systems," and above-average detective work. - Verdict: Class-A. — "The Criminal Record," THE SATURDAY REVIEW (September 16, 1933)
[Excerpt] . . . Things will get even more complex in the best tradition of the puzzle mystery, but in the end, Inspector Pointer solves the crime and finds the murderer even though he spends a lot of time on a big red herring. — Linda Bertland, PHILLY READER (July 13, 2014)
[Excerpts] . . . The clues take the clever Inspector Pointer to various London locations and eventually to a casino on the continent, but it is a small out-of-the-way cottage that reveals another corpse and an exciting finish, where Pointer must knock out a disguised murderer before a third life is lost. . . .
. . . as I progressed through the pages, I found myself quite charmed by the writing. I like to read mysteries of this vintage as much for their explication of the social background of their period as for the puzzle, and I found myself interested in both. The puzzle aspects are frequent and enigmatic. . . .
. . . Other commentators have remarked that Fielding is a sloppy writer who will sacrifice a lot of believability for the sake of a tricky and surprising ending. I have to say that although I have noticed sloppy writing in a couple of other Fielding novels that I’ve read recently, courtesy of Hathi Trust, this one didn’t especially annoy me at any particular point. . . .
. . . I was certainly surprised by the ending, and that is not an experience I have often with detective fiction … the identity of the murderer was actually a surprise to me, and I felt instinctively a rather fair one. . . .
. . . I think you might enjoy this novel if you’re an experienced reader of detective fiction; paradoxically, I think you won’t manage to enjoy it as much if you are a newbie, although you’ll definitely be fooled by the ending. . . . — Noah Stewart, NOAH'S ARCHIVES (August 4, 2014)THE CAUTLEY MYSTERY.
By A. Fielding.
Kinsey.
1934. 274 pages.
[a.k.a. THE CAUTLEY CONUNDRUM]
[Full review] Inspector Pointer of the Yard aids local cops when shotgun and poison do dirty work near London. - Not-so-good solution caps tale of assorted Cautley cousins, complicated by vanishing pearls and tricky will. - Verdict: Fairish. — "The Criminal Record," THE SATURDAY REVIEW (April 7, 1934)
[Full review] The four Cautley cousins are very dissimilar. The only thing they have in common, really, is a streak of ruthlessness that shows even in easy-going Jack. When the oldest and richest dies in a shooting accident, neither his family or the local police believe that such a skilled hunter could die like that. Naturally, his heir Lionel was the main suspect. Then there are the two Upjohn half-sisters. They don't have much in common, either, except for the fact that they've both been engaged to the youngest Cautley. But beautiful Daphne threw Jack over and is now engaged to Lionel. There are the famous Cautley family pearls in play, too. — Susan, GOODREADS (August 10, 2014)THE PAPER CHASE.
By A. Fielding.
Kinsey.
1934. 252 pages.
[a.k.a. THE PAPER-CHASE MYSTERY]
[Full review] Counterfeiters, stopping at nothing, murder 3 in Switzerland and London, and Inspector Pointer just saves No. 4 - Actions runs quickly enough with required measure of thrills, but casual nature of whole thing is disappointing. - Verdict: Only fair. — "The Criminal Record," THE SATURDAY REVIEW (March 9, 1935)TRAGEDY AT BEECHCROFT.
By A. Fielding.
Crime Club.
1935. 252 pages.
Online HERE.
[Excerpts] . . . Tragedy at Beechcroft is a monument to misdirection. Red herrings pile up in crateloads until the reader is no longer sure whether murder was actually done at all. Luckily Inspector Pointer—a dogged investigator—is there to sort things out. . . . Despite it all, Tragedy at Beechcroft is surprisingly readable. The characters fill out their impossible roles with vigour and charm, and Inspector Pointer joins in like a holiday-camp supervisor running a jolly game of charades. The book stands as a monument to one style of detective fiction, taken to its wildest extreme, but more or less carried off. . . . — Jon Jermey, GAD WikiTHE CASE OF THE MISSING DIARY.
By A. Fielding.
Kinsey.
1935. 252 pages.
[Excerpts] A. Fielding's The Case of the Missing Diary is a Golden Age mystery that is comprised of the routine, the coincidental and the downright silly. . . . I don't admire Fielding's plotting. Her technique is apparently to dispose of as much plot as quickly as possible without really developing any individual scenes or atmosphere and the resulting effect is one of casualness (or carelessness). . . . Overall, mystery lovers won't find much to celebrate . . . . — Harry Vincent, GAD WikiTHE CASE OF THE TWO PEARL NECKLACES.
By A. E. Fielding.
Kinsey.
1936. 252 pages. $2.00
[Full review] Bride of wealthy British weakling is slain and her poils vanish. Insp. Pointer gravely follows tiny clues. - Notable mainly for its amazing picture of how nasty the British upper clawsses can be. Solution surprising. - Verdict: Run-of-mill. — "The Criminal Record," THE SATURDAY REVIEW (October 24, 1936)
[Full review] A wealthy young man, against his father's wishes, marries a woman who is not of the right class. As a wedding gift he gives her two pearl necklaces said to have been owned by Queen Charlotte and thought to be unlucky. Shortly after they return from their honeymoon she is murdered.
The Scotland Yard detective in charge of the case allows both the young woman's husband and the private agent he hired to be quite involved in the case.
A quite interesting puzzle—all clues are given to the reader but they are not easy to spot! — Tamara, GOODREADS (May 2, 2014)
Too many situations and red herrings. Instead of trying to solve the mystery, it was spent on covering up. This would have been a better short story. Still worth a read. — Judy Harper, GOODREADS (July 4, 2014)MYSTERY AT THE RECTORY.
By A. E. Fielding.
Kinsey.
1937. 282 pages. $2.00
[Full review] Rural English philanderer's "accidental" death is followed by rector's poisoning and other sinister happenings which keep Insp. Pointer stepping. - Toadstool poisoning, jewel robberies, feminine jealousy, and scandalous family secrets dished up in customarily competent English fashion. - Verdict: Average. — "The Criminal Record," THE SATURDAY REVIEW (April 3, 1937)
[Full review] I really enjoyed this one—and a new to me author, too. The upright, much-loved rector of a country parish is murdered not long after delivering perhaps the finest sermon of his life. By chance a Scotland Yard detective is staying with the Chief Constable and finds himself called upon to investigate the murder. The detective is something of a cipher and rather too good to be true—he is intelligent, well-read, enjoys active pursuits such as rock climbing, knows about art, in short a fairly typical detective of the time (which is definitely sometime in the 30's).
The characters are fairly standard for the time—a wealthy young man (or two), a scheming woman (or three), the vicar's spinster sister, various well-trained servants, a local police superintendent (not too bright but not too stupid), and a Chief Constable who is rather involved in the investigation.
It's enjoyable for what it is—a mystery of the golden age. If you like a dark mystery this isn't for you. Well-drawn characters are your thing? Then this isn't for you. But if you like a puzzle then this one is for you. — Tamara, GOODREADS (April 25, 2014)SCARECROW.
By A. E. Fielding.
Kinsey.
1937. 284 pages. $2.00
[Full review] Over-trustful bachelor returns to England from Provence and is slain. Insp. Pointer goes to Mentone for final clutch. - Intricate plot well handled, although pace is slightly pedestrian. Colorful background and passel of slippery customers. - Verdict: Average. — "The Criminal Record," THE SATURDAY REVIEW (August 28, 1937)BLACK CATS ARE LUCKY.
By A. E. Fielding.
Kinsey.
1938. $2.00
[Full review] Wealthy British bachelor poisoned and pet cat bludgeoned at family gathering. Insp. Pointer collects loose ends and spots clever killer. - Typical English house-party affair with avaricious relatives and missing will to complicate matters. Plot well developed but at leisurely pace. - Verdict: Bit wearisome. — "The Criminal Record," THE SATURDAY REVIEW (March 26, 1938)MURDER IN SUFFOLK.
By A. E. Fielding.
Kinsey.
1938. 252 pages. $2.00
[Full review] Violent deaths of Scotland Yard operative and Arab in sandy wastes of Suffolk solved by Hugh Duncan, private investigator. - Slightly muddled but richly adventurous yarn of fabulous treasure and final discomfiture of desprit adventurer in search of it. - Verdict: So-so. — "The Criminal Record," THE SATURDAY REVIEW (August 13, 1938)Other books by A. Fielding:
~ Deep Currents (1924)
~ Murder at the Nook (1929)
- The GAD Wiki page about Fielding is HERE, while a comprehensively researched page about this author is HERE.
- Curt Evans's overview of Fielding's works is HERE.
- Jon Jermey has still more HERE.
Category: Detective fiction
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