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Wycliffe #9
Wycliffe in Paul's Court
Paul’s Court is a quiet corner in the heart of the city, an oasis of peace and safety—until the night when there are two violent deaths. Willy Goppel, a German émigré, is found hanging in his home; and fifteen-year-old Yvette Cole, who may or may not have lived up to her wild reputation, is discovered strangled and thrown half naked over the churchyard hedge. Chief Superintendent Wycliffe has the aid of a shrewd Sergeant Kersey, but they still find this a difficult case to crack. As Wycliffe and Kersey dig deeper, they gradually untangle a complex network of secrets in the quiet of Paul’s Court.
192 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1980
13 people are currently reading
73 people want to read
About the author
W.J. Burley
45 books24 followersBurley was born in Falmouth, Cornwall. Before he began writing, he was employed in senior management with various gas companies, before giving it up after the Second World War when he obtained a scholarship to study zoology at Balliol College, Oxford. After obtaining an honours degree he became a teacher. Appointed head of biology, first at Richmond & East Sheen County Grammar School in 1953, then at Newquay Grammar School in 1955, he was well established as a writer by the time he retired at the age of 60 in 1974. He died at his home in Holywell, Cornwall, on 15 August 2002.
John Burley had his first novel published when he was in his early fifties. His second published novel, two years later, saw the appearance of Superintendent Charles Wycliffe.
Over the next 25 years Burley produced another seventeen Wycliffe books and five other books.
Then, late in 1993, one of Burley's Wycliffe stories appeared on television in a pilot starring Jack Shepherd.
The pilot was followed by 37 episodes broadcast over a five year period.
By 1995 the author was, for the first time in his life, financially comfortable. He was over eighty.
But the success of the television series meant that John Burley found himself overshadowed by his creations. To the public, the name Wycliffe brought to mind the unsmiling face of Jack Shepherd, the actor. Even in the bookshops it was Shepherd's face that dominated the covers of Burley's paperbacks.
John Burley, however, continued to write and produced a further four Wycliffe titles. He was working on his 23rd Wycliffe novel, Wycliffe's Last Lap, when he died in 2002.
Recently a wish to restore the balance has emerged from amongst his readers. There is a feeling that we are neglecting a writer of quality, one who deserves to stand beside Simenon, the creator of Inspector Maigret.
Reading through John Burley's books in publication sequence, one notices how the author's voice gets stronger and his views more certain. And how his writing skills grow until, in the later books, a few words are all that it takes to pin down an image. These are the signs of a writer confident in his craft.
John Burley had his first novel published when he was in his early fifties. His second published novel, two years later, saw the appearance of Superintendent Charles Wycliffe.
Over the next 25 years Burley produced another seventeen Wycliffe books and five other books.
Then, late in 1993, one of Burley's Wycliffe stories appeared on television in a pilot starring Jack Shepherd.
The pilot was followed by 37 episodes broadcast over a five year period.
By 1995 the author was, for the first time in his life, financially comfortable. He was over eighty.
But the success of the television series meant that John Burley found himself overshadowed by his creations. To the public, the name Wycliffe brought to mind the unsmiling face of Jack Shepherd, the actor. Even in the bookshops it was Shepherd's face that dominated the covers of Burley's paperbacks.
John Burley, however, continued to write and produced a further four Wycliffe titles. He was working on his 23rd Wycliffe novel, Wycliffe's Last Lap, when he died in 2002.
Recently a wish to restore the balance has emerged from amongst his readers. There is a feeling that we are neglecting a writer of quality, one who deserves to stand beside Simenon, the creator of Inspector Maigret.
Reading through John Burley's books in publication sequence, one notices how the author's voice gets stronger and his views more certain. And how his writing skills grow until, in the later books, a few words are all that it takes to pin down an image. These are the signs of a writer confident in his craft.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
July 27, 2024
Wycliffe in Paul's Court is the 3rd Wycliffe mystery I've read this past month and each one has been excellent. It's the 9th book in the series by W.J. Burley.
In this story, we start with DS Kersley until Wycliffe makes his appearance. Paul's Court is a small little square of 4 apartments. You've got Willy Goppel, who makes miniature doll houses. He lives over his shop. The Wards live in the other half and run the local sub post office. There are the parents and their two kids, teenagers Alison and Henry. You've got the Fiskes, husband and wife and their mentally handicapped boy, Marty. There are the retired couple, the Hedleys. Mrs. Hedley is interested in tarot. Finally there is Natalie Cole who runs a local night club and likes to sun bath naked in the courtyard. She lives with boyfriend, garage owner, Geoff Bishop. Natalie has a teenage daughter as well, Yvette who goes to school with the Ward kids.
That's the basic situation. Willy Goppel has a son Frederick who has moved out and lives in town with the Hedley's nephew, Tony (aka Pongo). Willy is a German immigrant who married an English girl and has lived in England for many years. His wife died years ago. It turns out that Willy has a secret. He has passed himself off as a German Jew who escaped from Germany but his papers indicate something else. They have been stolen and then somebody sent them to the local police, addressed to Sgt Kersey. After the Sgt.'s visit, where he indicates he has to send the papers to the Home Office, events begin to take off.
Yvette turns up missing. Kersey begins to investigate and gradually Superintendent Wycliffe becomes involved. When a body turns up and then another, things begin to get really interesting. I'll leave the story there as I wouldn't want to ruin your enjoyment. Suffice it to say that W.J. Burley knows how to tell a story. His characters are all interesting, his plot line fascinating and the story flows very nicely. There are a variety of story lines as you get to know the characters, some with secrets, but all will out eventually. The investigation is methodical, but at the same time there is room for Wycliffe's jumps of intuition. His relationship with his team is excellent as he is well - respected and straight forward. A most enjoyable mystery and just a great story. I'm glad I still have more of the series to read. (4.0 stars)
In this story, we start with DS Kersley until Wycliffe makes his appearance. Paul's Court is a small little square of 4 apartments. You've got Willy Goppel, who makes miniature doll houses. He lives over his shop. The Wards live in the other half and run the local sub post office. There are the parents and their two kids, teenagers Alison and Henry. You've got the Fiskes, husband and wife and their mentally handicapped boy, Marty. There are the retired couple, the Hedleys. Mrs. Hedley is interested in tarot. Finally there is Natalie Cole who runs a local night club and likes to sun bath naked in the courtyard. She lives with boyfriend, garage owner, Geoff Bishop. Natalie has a teenage daughter as well, Yvette who goes to school with the Ward kids.
That's the basic situation. Willy Goppel has a son Frederick who has moved out and lives in town with the Hedley's nephew, Tony (aka Pongo). Willy is a German immigrant who married an English girl and has lived in England for many years. His wife died years ago. It turns out that Willy has a secret. He has passed himself off as a German Jew who escaped from Germany but his papers indicate something else. They have been stolen and then somebody sent them to the local police, addressed to Sgt Kersey. After the Sgt.'s visit, where he indicates he has to send the papers to the Home Office, events begin to take off.
Yvette turns up missing. Kersey begins to investigate and gradually Superintendent Wycliffe becomes involved. When a body turns up and then another, things begin to get really interesting. I'll leave the story there as I wouldn't want to ruin your enjoyment. Suffice it to say that W.J. Burley knows how to tell a story. His characters are all interesting, his plot line fascinating and the story flows very nicely. There are a variety of story lines as you get to know the characters, some with secrets, but all will out eventually. The investigation is methodical, but at the same time there is room for Wycliffe's jumps of intuition. His relationship with his team is excellent as he is well - respected and straight forward. A most enjoyable mystery and just a great story. I'm glad I still have more of the series to read. (4.0 stars)
August 18, 2015
Wycliffe is an interesting soul and these mysteries are different in that they set things up for you well in advance of your first encounters with the series regulars. I wish I had a stronger understanding of the city within which the story takes place, although the sense of the little neighborhood is quite strong. The mystery was well done, with lots of possible suspects, dubious clues, and red herrings. I do prefer some of the later books in the series, though, because I feel like you get a better sense of Wycliffe as a person.
February 13, 2023
Dry prose that perfectly encapsulates the tawdriness of every day life in a Britain that existed not so long ago, but which now seems like a different world, a world that perhaps we only see through a rosy haze. The copyright is 1980, so I guess the events happen in the late 70s. I remember that time, how difficult things could be, to scratch a living, to try and improve your lot.
The story centres around a group of families living in a small courtyard development slightly off the main roads. Mundane lives that are rudely interrupted by unexplained deaths. The police move in and everyone feels they are under suspicion.
Although Wycliffe is in charge of the investigation, this feels more like Sergeant Kersey's story. He's involved from the beginning, before Wycliffe arrives and you get more about his character, thoughts and feelings than you do about his superior, who feels rather aloof. In fact there's quite a distant feel about the whole book, as though you are watching from above. Is that deliberate? One of the victims is a maker of dolls' houses and in his home, he has a model of Paul's Court, the stage where this story largely unfolds. Perhaps we are meant to be looking down on it all, aloof but able to take in the detail.
I say that the writing is dry, but I don't mean that it's uninteresting or a hard read. Spare might be the better description, you are given enough to visualise the scenes but absolutely nothing more.
The story centres around a group of families living in a small courtyard development slightly off the main roads. Mundane lives that are rudely interrupted by unexplained deaths. The police move in and everyone feels they are under suspicion.
Although Wycliffe is in charge of the investigation, this feels more like Sergeant Kersey's story. He's involved from the beginning, before Wycliffe arrives and you get more about his character, thoughts and feelings than you do about his superior, who feels rather aloof. In fact there's quite a distant feel about the whole book, as though you are watching from above. Is that deliberate? One of the victims is a maker of dolls' houses and in his home, he has a model of Paul's Court, the stage where this story largely unfolds. Perhaps we are meant to be looking down on it all, aloof but able to take in the detail.
I say that the writing is dry, but I don't mean that it's uninteresting or a hard read. Spare might be the better description, you are given enough to visualise the scenes but absolutely nothing more.
January 27, 2023
A very slow, deliberate build up, creating a picture of a small community of individuals - so very different from, say, the English cosy tradition of placing all the 'suspects' in an isolated stately home, or within a theatre grooup, etc. The people in Paul's Court enjoy - or endure - a complex set of relationships. Wycliffe doesn't appear until a thrid of the way through the book, by which time maybe you've made up your mind who the victim is going to be ... who the killer might be ... or whether you've been following a red herring and one is an outsider ... maybe both. Very economical suspense.
Burley makes reference to Simenon as amongst the favourite reading of one of the characters, and there is that Simenonesque quality again here. The intimacy of the environment, the tolerance of human frailties, the detective calmly getting to know the people involved, the elaboration of means and method ... searching for the why.
Excellent story, a joy to read.
Burley makes reference to Simenon as amongst the favourite reading of one of the characters, and there is that Simenonesque quality again here. The intimacy of the environment, the tolerance of human frailties, the detective calmly getting to know the people involved, the elaboration of means and method ... searching for the why.
Excellent story, a joy to read.
October 8, 2024
Very quick read and very much of its time (1980). The casual misogyny is somewhat disturbing in that all women are described in terms of their physicality and elements of objectification are clear.
Superintendent Charles Wycliffe investigates a double murder which has befallen two residents of Paul's Court, one of those tight knit parochial small communities filled with accountants, night club owners and bizarrely, a dolls' house maker of German extraction who is hiding a deadly secret.
Dated.
Superintendent Charles Wycliffe investigates a double murder which has befallen two residents of Paul's Court, one of those tight knit parochial small communities filled with accountants, night club owners and bizarrely, a dolls' house maker of German extraction who is hiding a deadly secret.
Dated.
January 6, 2026
In this Wycliffe book we stayed with the characters leading up to the murders and got to know them before Wycliffe turned up,and even though Wycliffe was not in this story much it was still enjoyable. I felt so sorry for the victims and a lot of the characters were not likeable. We had some point of view from the killer at the end which was unexpected. I was happy a couple of the characters got a peaceful life at the end. The court felt claustrophobic and over neighbourly which added to the tension.
March 20, 2022
Un onestissimo giallo che strizza l’occhio a Simenon e lo cita pure! Esattamente quello che mi aspetto e cerco in questo autore, autore che certamente avrebbe meritato più considerazione (e infatti nella sua patria ne hanno ricavato una serie di successo negli anni 90). Ma vediamo il bicchiere mezzo pieno: di 22 romanzi ne sono stati tradotti ben 11. Meglio che niente.
October 13, 2020
This was a simple mystery that was in the style of British with a tad of French. I liked it because it was short and sweet. The ending was flat. I would recommend it to those people who need short quick stories.
April 25, 2018
An enjoyable read of an older style who dunnit series.
July 11, 2025
An enjoyable mystery with a nice batch of colourful characters, I actually preferred the first half before Wycliffe arrived!
April 14, 2016
A teenage girl goes missing from her home in Paul’s Court, and soon her half-naked body is found flung over a wall into a graveyard. At almost the same time, a man who also lives in Paul’s Court is found hanging in his home. Detective Chief Superintendent Wycliffe initially thinks it’s likely that the latter killed the former and then hanged himself out of guilt, but something about that solution just doesn’t seem right to him…. "Wycliffe in Paul’s Court" is the ninth novel in this long-running series set in Cornwall, UK, and as usual the characterizations of the various people involved are both complex and intricate. I enjoy these books in large part because of Wycliffe himself, but in general I think the characters are well-drawn and feel like people anybody might be likely to know. This particular entry is quite short, as novels go, and I found the actual solution to the crimes to be, well, kind of mundane, but I would still recommend this series for those who enjoy police procedurals, particularly those set in Britain.
February 15, 2011
Paul's Court is a quiet corner in the heart of the city, an oasis of peace and safety until the night when there are two violent deaths. Willy Goppel an emigre from Germany is found hanging from a beam in his house and 15 year old Yvetter Cole is found half naked and strangled. It looks cut and dried but is it? A quick light read.
March 9, 2015
Burley captures the lives of his characters and the police who have to piece their motives together, another classic Wycliffe story.
June 10, 2012
Quite a reasonable short mystery, well executed and with decent characters. A worthwhile quick read.
May 28, 2015
I enjoyed this fast murder mystery very much.
August 14, 2015
Great, clean, fast-paced mystery. Burley is consistently reliable with his Wycliffes.
February 11, 2009
A pretty mediocre Wycliffe mystery. I like others much better.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews