The Howling Beast

by Noël Vindry

In its starred review, Publisher's Weekly says: ..".couples a clever plot with an understated but powerful atmosphere of terror." Pierre Herry is on the run. Not just from the police, who suspect him of a double murder, but also from the memory of the circumstances in which two impossible crimes were committed in the ruined castle which is the hereditary seat of the Comte de Saint-Luce, an old big-game hunting friend from the past. The castle is virtually inaccessible, situated as it is in a high-walled park on a desolate stretch of moorland not far from Versailles On his first visit, four years ago, one of the other guests had disappeared in inexplicable circumstances just after Herry had heard the distant howling of an unknown beast. Now, following threatening letters and renewed howling, the Comte and the wife of the earlier guest have been killed before his very eyes. Ho w can he defend himself if he cannot explain what happened? M. Allou explains everything in this masterpiece of French locked room literature. Locked Room International translates and publishes the works of international impossible crime authors past and present. For information about signed and lettered editions of all living authors please contact pugmire1@yahoo.com or go to www.mylri.com. Pierre Herry is on the run. Not just from the police, who suspect him of a double murder, but also from the memory of the circumstances in which two impossible crimes were committed in the ruined castle which is the hereditary seat of the Compte de Saint-Luce, an old big-game hunting friend from the past. The castle is virtually inaccessible, situated as it is in a high-walled park on a desolate stretch of moorland not far from Versailles On his first visit, four years ago, one of the other guests had disappeared in inexplicable circumstances just after Herry had heard the distant howlings of an unknown beast. Now, following threatening letters and renewed howlings, the Compte and the wife of the earlier guest have been killed before his very eyes. How can he defend himself if he cannot explain what happened? M. Allou explains everything in this masterpiece of French locked room literature.

Genres: Mystery, France

174 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1934

Reviews

[Carol · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Howling Beast... an extraordinary read!

I was fascinated with the thought that I was reading something that was written long ago & yet captured my imagination!
I highly recommend!

[Rama · Rating 2 out of 5]

Even though Vindry dates to the times of John Dickson Carr starting out and being at the peak of his powers, this seems relatively predictable as a "puzzle novel" - the moniker given to its kind by the author himself. Perhaps it is good for what it is, but the limited number of characters makes the "twists" limited to guns. It tries to have the intrigue of The Moonstone or even The Sign of the Four, but doesn't build on it much.

[Ron Kerrigan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Two and a half stars: An ok golden age mystery that I didn't really enjoy that much. It's better than the other Vindry book I've read -- The House That Kills -- but still below par for the type. One annoying thing was that the man telling the story harps over and over on his hunting prowess to prove his hearing, reflexes, and courage are all acute. The plot isn't that interesting although the setting of a crumbling French castle is ok, despite readers being reminded over and over how inaccessible it it to an outsider. It's great that Locked Room International is reprinting these books, although not every one is a winner.

[Gabriele Crescenzi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Noel Vindry sembra essere uno dei grandi geni del giallo francese caduto ingiustamente nell'oblio. Questo romanzo, "La bete hurlante" è da molti definito il suo capolavoro. Si tratta di un romanzo molto particolare, che è difficile sintetizzare, pena la distruzione della struttura particolare dell'opera stessa. Infatti si tratta di un romanzo, a mio avviso, non suddivisibile: è davvero un blocco unico, un racconto continuo di eventi che inevitabilmente conducono ad una tragedia. Gli omicidi infatti avvengono molto tardi, quasi alla fine dell'opera, ma sin dalle prime pagine si può intuire vagamente cosa sta per arrivare. Un senso continuo di inquietudine pervade il racconto e man mano che la storia scorre, si avverte chiaramente il pericolo arrivare silenziosamente sempre più vicino.
Penso che possa essere definita un'opera molto gotica, di grande raffinatezza stilistica, con poche descrizioni (come è usanza del poliziesco francese) ma allo stesso tempo con un'atmosfera grandiosa e tetra. Se dovessi giudicare l'opera meramente sul lato letterario, la considererei una grande narrazione, un libro ben scritto e con personaggi ed eventi ben calibrati, in uno schema quasi perfetto. Ma dal punto di vista giallistico ci sono un paio di cose che un po' deludono, specialmente chi è avvezzo al genere (e ai delitti impossiili in particolare): infatti ho intuito cosa potesse essere successo e chi fosse il colpevole (è davvero palese), anche se molti dettagli mi erano sfuggiti e altri mi facevano dubitare della mia idea (forse sta qui la genialità di Vindry: aver pensato di sviare il lettore dalla soluzione scontata aggiungendo elementi di disturbo, ma una volta chiarite le cose secondarie, il che avviene quasi subito, tutto diviene lampante). Insomma un bel romanzo, in cui ogni personaggio ha un ruolo essenziale nella vicenda (di qui la perfezione della trama, in quanto davvero tutti quanti sono implicati in qualcosa che perlomeno disturba l'indagine). Quindi 4 stelle.