Knox, Ronald - Double Cross Purposes (1937)

Knox's last novel, Double Cross Purposes (1937), is at its best in the lyrical description of a Highland Scotland setting in its opening (Chapters 1-5). These early chapters show Knox's prose style at its witty best, as well. Like The Footsteps at the Lock, this too involves a river with an island. Both novels contain a map, with which the reader can follow all the action. After this, Knox propounds a very long drawn out story. There are some mild moments of ingenuity in the puzzle plot, which is set forth in Chapters 7-8, and solved at the end (Chapters 19-20). Both of the best ideas in the puzzle, those concerning the map and the body, are somewhat in the tradition of R. Austin Freeman; so is the novel's theme of a search for antiquarian treasure. A personal note: I found reading this book stimulating to my imagination, a very good thing. It is far from perfect, but it seems to suggest vistas and encourage one's flight of fantasy. This is especially true of the opening chapters.

Mike Grost