Halter, Paul - The Night of the Wolf (2006)

 

Paul Halter is France's most interesting export since Brigitte Bardot; and what La Bardot did for the eyes, Halter does for the mind. THE NIGHT OF THE WOLF (2006) certainly stimulates you--to think, that is--in ten stories with a plot complexity that seems rare in today's publishing environment. John Dickson Carr would approve of Mr. Halter's efforts, I believe.

 

 

Let the back cover blurb speak for itself:

 

"Collected here are ten superb tales by today's master of the seemingly impossible crime, the Frenchman Paul Halter, the natural successor to John Dickson Carr. Coffins dancing in a hermetically sealed crypt, a tunnel that murders people, a werewolf killer who leaves no trace on the snow, a victim killed by an invisible hand at the top of a guarded tower, a homicidal snowman that kills in front of witnesses...There cannot be a rational explanation for these and other hideous crimes; and yet there is. Each story is a glittering example of the brilliant plotting and atmosphere of foreboding that characterized the Golden Age of detective fiction."

 

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THE NIGHT OF THE WOLF (2006)

Paul Halter

Translated by Robert Adey and John Pugmire

Wildside Press

Trade Paperback

Short Story Collection: 10 Stories

159 pages

MSRP: $12.95

 

Contents:

 

-Foreword by Robert Adey (2 pages)

-Introduction by Roland Lacourbe (4 pages)

 

1. "The Abominable Snowman"

 

Sleuth: Irving Farrell

 

Setting: London, Christmas Eve 1929 and ten years before

 

Narrative: Third-person

 

"Nine times out of ten, it's the seemingly unimportant clue which unlocks the mystery." (page 29)

 

Comment: A murder that's made to look like a murder; now there's a Chestertonian paradox. (Unresolved point: Would two men stand around talking for possibly an hour on a freezing winter's night instead of legging it to the nearest warm pub and a pint of cheer?)

 

2. "The Dead Dance at Night"

 

Sleuth: Dr. Alan Twist

 

Setting: "a remote corner of Devonshire," time unspecified

 

Narrative: Third-person

 

"I was thinking of something insignificant, some detail which might have appeared curious without seeming important." (page 44)

 

"As always, the best way to hide evidence is to leave it in plain view." (page 47)

 

Comment: As with "The Abominable Snowman", the revelation of the truth serves as a release for the murderer.

 

3. "The Call of the Lorelei"

 

Sleuth: Dr. Alan Twist

 

Setting: Munchhausen, Alsace, post-World War Two and earlier, "in the mid-twenties"

 

Narrative: Third-person

 

"On the contrary, there can be a perfectly rational explanation; an explanation which solves the whole mystery..." (page 56)

 

Comment: The solution hinges, in part, on a single word; the motive on "historic hatred".

 

4. "The Golden Ghost"

 

Sleuth: The reader

 

Setting: London, Christmas Eve 1899

 

Narrative: Third-person

 

"Sickert is a veritable genius at deduction. I told you, Jenny, your mystery would yield to his faultless logic." (page 67)

 

Comment: Anti-Dickensian, and a bit over the top; the motive is sound enough, though.

 

5. "The Tunnel of Death"

 

Sleuth: A stranger

 

Setting: LeHavre on a "bleak October evening", "several years ago"

 

Narrative: Third person

 

"'But it's not the motive that's the problem, it's how the killer managed to do it. And I get the feeling,' added Roussel, his eyes narrowing, 'that you have an idea.'" (page 80)

 

Comment: Let's hope the LeHavre police have improved lately.

 

6. "The Cleaver"

 

Sleuths: Owen Burns and Achilles Stock

 

Setting: London, the Hades Club, time unspecified, and Colorado "more than thirty years before"

 

Narrative: First-person

 

"I am an aesthete: I only work for the love of my art." (page 90)

 

"It was an opportunistic crime of the highest quality, demanding an exceptional degree of intelligence and nerve." (page 93)

 

Comment: An impossible crime in the Old West solved by a very Sherlockian/Watsonian duo.

 

7. "The Flower Girl"

 

Sleuths: Owen Burns and Achilles Stock

 

Setting: London on a "December evening of 1903" and "just before Christmas a few years ago"

 

Narrative: First-person

 

"But I ONLY involve myself with truly unusual cases, those beyond common understanding; or, if you will, crime in its most enigmatic and therefore most artistic form." (page 97)

 

"'Your account is admirable in many respects,' he said suddenly. 'For the average mortal, it defies logic and is a remarkable challenge to the mind.' He turned to me with a patronizing smile. 'Isn't that so, Achilles?...'" (page 109)

 

Comment: A variation on "The Golden Ghost"; Owen Burns explodes the myth of Father Christmas in order to support it (more Chestertonian paradox). (One character's name is spelled three different ways.)

 

8. "Rippermania"

 

Sleuth: Inspector Alain Parmentier

 

Setting: France in the 20th century

 

Narrative: Third-person

 

"'Rippermania?' echoed Alain Parmentier, his eyes wide. 'What's that?'" (page 118)

 

"I've always found people like that have a complete blind spot when it comes to their own case." (page 120)

 

Comment: A twist ending; you should read it twice to catch all the ironies.

 

9. "Murder in Cognac"

 

Sleuths: Dr. Alan Twist, Inspector Archibald Hurst, and Superintendent Charles

 

Setting: Cognac after World War Two

 

Narrative: Third-person

 

"We even collaborated on a book about the crime novel, specifically about impossible crimes and locked rooms." (page 133)

 

"By the way, I've just seen our prime suspect, and he seems to have a cast-iron alibi!" (page 135)

 

"If that's the case, why the devil do you persist in believing that a human being did it?" (page 136)

 

"You don't realize, Archibald, that your bad moods are often beneficial, one might even say necessary, to stimulate my thoughts." (page 140)

 

Comment: This, the most John Dickson Carr-like story in the collection, could have been written by the great J.D.C. himself; and there's a veritable menagerie of murder methods, even, yes, red herrings.

 

10. "The Night of the Wolf"

 

Sleuths: Irving Farrell and Chief Inspector John Reilly

 

Setting: Eastmorland, a "small village in the north of England," time unspecified

 

Narrative: Third-person

 

"There's always an explanation for everything." (page 147)

 

"And, speaking of explanations, there isn't one for the death of that man. No 'rational' one, at least." (page 147)

 

"We're looking for a monster and you talk to me about motives for murder?" (page 154)

 

Comment: A case of eating one's cake and having it, too; eliminate the italicized framing material, and you'll see what I mean.

 

-Acknowledgements (1 page)

 

-Biographies (1 page)

 

 

--Michael

 

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For a full review of the original French collection, see my blog at http://at-scene-of-crime.blogspot.com/2011/11/improbable-fiction.html

Also, for my reviews of the two stories that did not originally appear in the collection, but were added into the translation, see this page: http://at-scene-of-crime.blogspot.com/2011/11/continuing-improbable-fiction.html

 

Patrick