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The Death of a Millionaire

Page history last edited by PBworks 18 years, 3 months ago

Cole, GDH and M - The Death of a Millionaire (1925)

 

 

Review by Nick Fuller

5/5

The Coles’ masterpiece, and one of the half-dozen best detective novels of the 1920s. Although the plot concerns the disappearance of an American millionaire from one of the most exclusive hotels in London, the wanderings of a sinister Russian with a trunk, and the suspicious behaviour of a former Home Secretary, it is worth reading for reasons other than the detective interest, the pleasure in following an extremely complex and logical plot, and the Chestertonian soltion (a minor crime disguised as a major one, rather than the other way round). The Coles’ satire is at its best, as they show the effects of the murder on the financial market, and, by extension, on all walks of life—one is inescapably reminded of Dickens, particularly Martin Chuzzlewit or Our Mutual Friend. Politics, big business and social mores are all examined with a witty and ironic eye, and the humour is spot-on (unlike, for instance, the more heavy-handed Big Business Murder or Greek Tragedy). The book moves slowly, but of necessity, for there is a great deal going on, a great variety in place and mood (London, Normandy and the steppes of Siberia all feature prominently), yet the whole feels remarkably tight and coherent. There can be no doubt that this is the work of two highly intelligent minds, and that the book is to be savoured, read slowly and carefully, as befits any work of GENIUS.

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