Written in Allingham's usual impeccable prose, but not as good as some of her earlier work, in my opinion.

This is one of the best of Allingham's Campion books, although Campion himself is not the central character. The man at the centre of the story is the murderer, and it is not a classical "whodunnit", because we know from the very first page who he is. The interest lies in the relationships between him and those around him, most of whom he uses in a very calculated way for his own ends, although one at least means more to him, and in his coolly thought out machinations and constructions of alibis. Around his story are those of the others whose lives touch his, all believable characters with complex and varied motivations and actions. Charlie Luke is at his very best here, and I particularly love Richard, the young man with a love interest, who seems to be a standard character in many of Allingham's stories.

I don't remember reading this book before and it was nice to read a "new" Allingham and to see the story from the point of view of someone other than the inimitable Mr Campion - someone who isn't entirely sure if Campion is trustworthy or a crook. The characters are nicely drawn, though two of the three women seemed to be mere ciphers who cried and panicked a lot. I spotted "whodunnit" before the end, though I wasn't entirely convinced by the motive once it was revealed. A good read, and recommended.