Dead Or Alive
Dead or Alive – Patricia Wentworth
This is more of a thriller than detective fiction, reminiscent of Buchan’s Thirty Nine Steps, which is no bad thing, and is the first of two books in the Frank Garrett series that Camberley-based Patricia Wentworth wrote. Although labelled a Frank Garrett mystery, in truth Garrett plays a rather low-key part in this 1936 novel, more an eminence grise in Whitehall than someone who leads the resolution of a mystery. It is probably no surprise that Wentworth abandoned him after his second outing.
The character who does all the donkey work is Bill Coverdale who, after being ditched by his childhood sweetheart, Meg O’Hara, has been working abroad. On returning he finds that Meg has split from her husband, Robin, who worked for a shadowy covert government agency, and is in desperate straits. Robin has disappeared and a body that is unquestionably his has been discovered. Meg, though, does not believe he is dead, because she has experienced a number of disturbing occurrences and messages which indicate he is still alive. Bill, making enquiries on her behalf, is told categorically by Garrett that O’Hara is dead.
Meg cuts a rather pitiful figure at the start of the book. Scared by these odd occurrences and certain that her estranged husband is dead, she is financially on her uppers. Her obvious path to accessing money she desperately needs is her (conveniently) wealthy uncle. He, however, is too immersed in his all-important research work to worry about the welfare of his relative (conveniently) and access to him is blocked by an over-fussy and slightly sinister secretary. O’Hara has left a package of papers with his solicitors which can only be accessed by Meg upon his death. As she thinks he is still alive, she won’t get them, but Coverdale begins to wonder what they contain and whether their contents hold the key to explaining why sinister forces (identity unknown, of course) are trying to convince her that O’Hara is alive.
Naturally, as with many books of this ilk, there are mysterious and sinister international forces at work, the identity of whose main players and their aims O’Hara has rumbled and documented. Having bumped him off, the agents are desperate to make Meg believe he is still alive so the package, its contents and, by extension, their identities remain a secret.
As the book progresses, Meg becomes a little braver, plucking up courage to stay with her uncle. His place is rather sinister with a walled island, locked gates and his old staff have been dismissed to be replaced with thuggish retainers. Meg finds that her mail is tampered with, and a telegram, purportedly from her to Bill, tells him to back off.
Bill, though, is made of sterner stuff and after a variety of escapades, including Meg narrowly escaping death after being pushed in front of a tram (I have only read two Wentworth books and this form off assassination attempt appears in both) and a thrilling night-time chase, matters are resolved, although the gang members disappear into the night.
Much of the plotting does not bear too close a scrutiny, but Wentworth’s style is light, clear and engaging. It is a page-turner and if you are looking for a bit of excitement without taxing most of your brain cells, this could be a book for you. Personally, I prefer a little more meat in mine.
