The Inspector has been framed for murder! He is found by the police in
an empty house with the body of a dead girl near him, battered with an
axe bearing West's fingerprints, and the identification in his wallet is
not his own! He risks his career, life and the safety of everyone close
to him as he untangles this set-up.
John Creasey (September 17, 1908--June 9, 1973) was born in Southfields,
Surrey, England and died in New Hall, Bodenham, Salisbury Wiltshire,
England. He was the seventh of nine children in a working class home. He
became an English author of crime thrillers, published in excess of 600
books under 20+ different pseudonyms. He invented many famous characters
who would appear in a whole series of novels. Probably the most famous
of these is Gideon of Scotland Yard, the basis for the television
program Gideon's Way but others include Department Z, Dr. Palfrey, The
Toff, Inspector Roger West, and The Baron (which was also made into a
television series). In 1962, Creasey won an Edgar Award for Best Novel,
from the Mystery Writers of America, for Gideon's Fire, written under
the pen name J. J. Marric. And in 1969 he was given the MWA's highest
honor, the Grand Master Award.
