I have just finished  this book for the second time.  The first time was in September/October 1944 !!!  I know this because I wrote on the flyleaf Lincoln 28/9/44.  That is where and when I bought it. So I must have come into Lincoln that day from nearby Dunholme where I was stationed with the RAF as a Bomb Aimer flying in Lancasters of 44 (Rhodesia) Squadron. No doubt I was delighted to find it as there was a scarcity of books at that time. Now, here I was reading it again after all those years. Why? Had I enjoyed it so much? Curiosity because I couldn’t remember a great deal about it?  Maybe neither of those; maybe it happened to be the book I plucked from one of my bookshelves when looking for something to read. Well, whatever. Did I enjoy it again? Yes I did. I suppose we regard it as a detective novel but Trent is not a detective; he is a journalist adept at sussing out crime stories and seemingly solving them  He leads us along that path in this story and maybe it is because his conclusions are wrong that the story is titled Trent’s Last Case. E.C. Bentley, the author, chooses an unusual way to tell his story. Trent’s deductions appear perfectly reasonable but there is always a little trigger of doubt in your mind. Then the author reveals the truth, by the unexpected route of the criminal in a conversation with Trent revealing how he commited the crime. Intriguing even after all these years – how many? 67!!  Oh, my goodness. Iwonder how many books I have read in that time?

 

The cover for my new novel published by Piatkus in hardback on 2nd February. The story is set in 19th century Whitby, Shetland and Nova Scotia.