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Death on Account
A mild-mannered man secretly dreams of robbing the bank where he works and having revenge on his bossy wife
160 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1980
17 people are currently reading
25 people want to read
About the author
Margaret Yorke
85 books53 followersMargaret Yorke was an English crime fiction writer, real name Margaret Beda Nicholson (née Larminie).
Margaret Yorke was awarded the 1999 CWA Cartier Diamond Dagger.
Born in Surrey, England, to John and Alison Larminie in 1924, Margaret Yorke (Margaret Beda Nicholson) grew up in Dublin before moving back to England in 1937, where the family settled in Hampshire, although she later lived in a small village in Buckinghamshire.
During World War II she saw service in the Women’s Royal Naval Service as a driver. In 1945, she married, but it was only to last some ten years, although there were two children; a son and daughter. Her childhood interest in literature was re-enforced by five years living close to Stratford-upon-Avon and she also worked variously as a bookseller and as a librarian in two Oxford Colleges, being the first woman ever to work in that of Christ Church.
She was widely travelled and has a particular interest in both Greece and Russia.
Her first novel was published in 1957, but it was not until 1970 that she turned her hand to crime writing. There followed a series of five novels featuring Dr. Patrick Grant, an Oxford Don and amateur sleuth, who shares her own love of Shakespeare. More crime and mystery was to follow, and she wrote some forty three books in all, but the Grant novels were limited to five as, in her own words, ‘authors using a series detective are trapped by their series. It stops some of them from expanding as writers’.
She was proud of the fact that many of her novels were essentially about ordinary people who find themselves in extraordinary situations which may threatening, or simply horrific. It is this facet of her writing that ensures a loyal following amongst readers, who inevitably identify with some of the characters and recognise conflicts that may occur in everyday life. Indeed, Yorke stated that characters were far more important to her than intricate plots and that when writing ‘I don’t manipulate the characters, they manipulate me’.
Critics have noted that she has a ‘marvellous use of language’ and she has frequently been cited as an equal to P.D. James and Ruth Rendell. She was a past chairman of the Crime Writers' Association and in 1999 was awarded the Cartier Diamond Dagger, having already been honoured with the Martin Beck Award from the Swedish Academy of Detection.
Margaret Yorke died in 2012.
Margaret Yorke was awarded the 1999 CWA Cartier Diamond Dagger.
Born in Surrey, England, to John and Alison Larminie in 1924, Margaret Yorke (Margaret Beda Nicholson) grew up in Dublin before moving back to England in 1937, where the family settled in Hampshire, although she later lived in a small village in Buckinghamshire.
During World War II she saw service in the Women’s Royal Naval Service as a driver. In 1945, she married, but it was only to last some ten years, although there were two children; a son and daughter. Her childhood interest in literature was re-enforced by five years living close to Stratford-upon-Avon and she also worked variously as a bookseller and as a librarian in two Oxford Colleges, being the first woman ever to work in that of Christ Church.
She was widely travelled and has a particular interest in both Greece and Russia.
Her first novel was published in 1957, but it was not until 1970 that she turned her hand to crime writing. There followed a series of five novels featuring Dr. Patrick Grant, an Oxford Don and amateur sleuth, who shares her own love of Shakespeare. More crime and mystery was to follow, and she wrote some forty three books in all, but the Grant novels were limited to five as, in her own words, ‘authors using a series detective are trapped by their series. It stops some of them from expanding as writers’.
She was proud of the fact that many of her novels were essentially about ordinary people who find themselves in extraordinary situations which may threatening, or simply horrific. It is this facet of her writing that ensures a loyal following amongst readers, who inevitably identify with some of the characters and recognise conflicts that may occur in everyday life. Indeed, Yorke stated that characters were far more important to her than intricate plots and that when writing ‘I don’t manipulate the characters, they manipulate me’.
Critics have noted that she has a ‘marvellous use of language’ and she has frequently been cited as an equal to P.D. James and Ruth Rendell. She was a past chairman of the Crime Writers' Association and in 1999 was awarded the Cartier Diamond Dagger, having already been honoured with the Martin Beck Award from the Swedish Academy of Detection.
Margaret Yorke died in 2012.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
January 5, 2020
Henpecked middle-aged cashier Robbie allows his fantasy to spiral out of control and, in disguise, in his lunch hour, he robs his own bank. Energised by his derring-do, he forms a relationship with Wendy, the cashier whom he held up at the point of a toy pistol.
Suddenly Robbie’s existence has a purpose, but his mediocrity is reflected in his incompetent efforts to conceal his crime, and it is apparent that the police are closing in. For Wendy, the penny gradually drops, but such is Robbie’s air of pathos that she holds her tongue.
In a hilarious twist, Robbie’s persecutor, bullying wife Isabel discovers his bank robber’s outfit and suspects him of a clandestine cross-dressing relationship! Even when she links it to the crime, her only concern is for her personal loss of face, and she takes matters into her own hands.
The finale is somewhat explosive – actually out of keeping with the general tenor of the book, which is delightfully understated – cozy without actually being corny.
Murder on Account was my first Margaret Yorke novel (published 1979), but it certainly won’t be my last. Many thanks to fellow Goodreader Rebecca for the recommendation.
Suddenly Robbie’s existence has a purpose, but his mediocrity is reflected in his incompetent efforts to conceal his crime, and it is apparent that the police are closing in. For Wendy, the penny gradually drops, but such is Robbie’s air of pathos that she holds her tongue.
In a hilarious twist, Robbie’s persecutor, bullying wife Isabel discovers his bank robber’s outfit and suspects him of a clandestine cross-dressing relationship! Even when she links it to the crime, her only concern is for her personal loss of face, and she takes matters into her own hands.
The finale is somewhat explosive – actually out of keeping with the general tenor of the book, which is delightfully understated – cozy without actually being corny.
Murder on Account was my first Margaret Yorke novel (published 1979), but it certainly won’t be my last. Many thanks to fellow Goodreader Rebecca for the recommendation.
September 2, 2020
Very enjoyable! Surprising ending, if a little rushed. I like the simple style.
May 1, 2018
This book tells us the story of Robbie, a forty-five year old man with a dull life and an unhappy marriage who robs the bank he has been working for for over twenty-five years.
After fantasizing about the robbery for so long he finally does it and his whole life does a 360 on him.
It's told by a narrator but in the perspective of many different characters, which I find is an interesting way of telling the story.
I quite liked this book, read it in a day and a half and would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a short crime story which is still enticing despite the size.
After fantasizing about the robbery for so long he finally does it and his whole life does a 360 on him.
It's told by a narrator but in the perspective of many different characters, which I find is an interesting way of telling the story.
I quite liked this book, read it in a day and a half and would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a short crime story which is still enticing despite the size.
September 10, 2020
“Robbie wondered who else she entertained with spare ribs and fried rice” - i love that line! Very enjoyable read and some other great one liners to make you smile
November 5, 2013
This is the type of crime novel where you know right from the start who did what. There is no guessing game as to who the "bad guy" is and there is no chase to the finish line where you will test your own detective abilities by trying to figure out the story before last chapter.
Robbie Robinson is a simple man. He is no longer young, completely
dominated by his wife, Isabel, works in a local bank with no chance of advancing, never does anything out of "character". Loves his garden, wild birds and really really hates his wife. For some time now Robbie fantasizes about robbing his bank (the same bank he's worked at for almost a quater of a century) He never thinks that he will go through with it....until one day, he surprises himself by actually doing it. of course, being Robbie, he manages to create a little bit of a mess in the process.
To be honest, I couldn't stand Robbie at first. I wanted to scream" "Grow some damn balls, man". He was simply a pathetic creature and I didn't care for him a tiny bit. However, later on, after bank raid, he started to change. First of all, the way he robbed the bank was very amaturish and that by itself made me look at Robbie in a little softer way. Almost like when you see a child do something really stupid and you can't really get angry at him/her because they are just a kid and what do they know? Ahh, Robbie, Robbie, what are we going to do with you? I couldn't help myself, I sort of started rooting for him.
The ending surprised me a little at first, but I couldn't think of a better way to finish Robbie's story. In some weird sense, it was very fitting.
Robbie Robinson is a simple man. He is no longer young, completely
dominated by his wife, Isabel, works in a local bank with no chance of advancing, never does anything out of "character". Loves his garden, wild birds and really really hates his wife. For some time now Robbie fantasizes about robbing his bank (the same bank he's worked at for almost a quater of a century) He never thinks that he will go through with it....until one day, he surprises himself by actually doing it. of course, being Robbie, he manages to create a little bit of a mess in the process.
To be honest, I couldn't stand Robbie at first. I wanted to scream" "Grow some damn balls, man". He was simply a pathetic creature and I didn't care for him a tiny bit. However, later on, after bank raid, he started to change. First of all, the way he robbed the bank was very amaturish and that by itself made me look at Robbie in a little softer way. Almost like when you see a child do something really stupid and you can't really get angry at him/her because they are just a kid and what do they know? Ahh, Robbie, Robbie, what are we going to do with you? I couldn't help myself, I sort of started rooting for him.
The ending surprised me a little at first, but I couldn't think of a better way to finish Robbie's story. In some weird sense, it was very fitting.
February 3, 2018
A very well done, 35 year old book, a mystery told mainly through the minds of the characters. Very psychological.
December 17, 2023
A very quick, read, a reasonable storyline, and quite well-written.
April 1, 2024
a man robs the bank he works at just to feel something
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews