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Sir Clinton Driffield #6
The Boathouse Riddle
When Chief Constable Sir Clinton Driffield goes to stay with his friend Wendover, mysterious goings-on in the boathouse he owns soon attract the duo's attention. Lights go on and off, strangers come in and out, and a game warden is found murdered nearby.
And as they work to solve the crime, a second body is dredged up from the lake . . .
'Mr J. J. Connington is a name revered by all specialists on detective fiction' Spectator
And as they work to solve the crime, a second body is dredged up from the lake . . .
'Mr J. J. Connington is a name revered by all specialists on detective fiction' Spectator
- GenresMystery
298 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1931
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
June 17, 2026
Very good, rigorous, and highly intelligent. But the clue finding at the very end makes the whole seem “retrospectively overdetermined”. No reader could have guessed at the solution or sequence of deductions that Sir Clinton derives.
September 3, 2025
The English class system may have been God's Perfect Plan, but it made murder investigations very tricky.
When Raymond Chandler read A.A. Milne's "Mystery of the Red House" he commented that it was hard to swallow that cops would be quite so deferential to the "gentry." Raised and educated in England, but living in the U.S. most of his adult life, Chandler was more familiar with American cops than English ones. And in the U.S. a cop is as good as anyone.
In 1930 when this book appeared, the traditional English class system - Upper, Middle, and Working was under siege, but still a beloved institution. Oddly, it wasn't just the Upper Crusts who upheld the system. The Middle Classes were just as happy with it, perhaps hoping to move up someday. And the Working Classes were accepting, if not enthusiastic. Anyone (such as poacher Bob Cley) who espoused "Bolshie" talk about all men being equal was looked on with suspicion.
Chief Constable Sir Clinton Driffield is back at the old fish stand. Don't know who's running that family estate he inherited, but it's not him. He's on vacation, claiming he's got time built up and needs a rest. So he goes to visit his old friend "Squire" Wendover, a JP in his area and a staunch upholder of law and order. They plan to do some fishing and Squire Wendover wants to show off his recently-rebuilt boathouse.
Then someone is murdered. What else could we expect? The victim is a gamekeeper on Silver Grove, an estate adjoining Wendover's place. Owner Colin Keith-Westerton has just returned with his lovely young bride. She's an exotic creature, hailing from the Caribbean and being Roman Catholic. Like most Englishmen, Squire Wendover doesn't approve of mixed marriages, but Mrs Keith-Westerton is a looker and he's susceptible to a pretty face.
She's even brought her spiritual advisor Abbe Goron, who also serves as priest to her French maid. As Sir Clinton observes, he looks like a stern man who would brook no bad behaviour from his parishioners.
Naturally, Squire Wendover is delighted that the young man has reclaimed his family home. The Keith-Westerton's are a very old, respected family. Colin had a sheltered boyhood, being raised by two maiden aunts. He was a bit wild when he came into his money, but seems ready to settle down and be a traditional estate-owner.
The victim was killed during the night and his body found by notorious poacher Bob Cley. Both Squire Wendover and local CID Inspector Severn are ready to pin the murder on Cley, but Sir Clinton urges them not to jump to conclusions. As he says, he's found bodies, too, but that doesn't make him a murderer.
He wonders what Mr and Mrs Keith-Westover were doing during the time when the man was murdered. Squire Wendover is appalled. Estate owners from old families do NOT commit murders and neither do their wives! Inspector Severn would much prefer to arrest a working stiff, since the Keith-Westertons are indignant at Sir Clinton's suspicions and ready to make trouble for the local police if they are bothered.
However, the more he looks, the more apparent it becomes that both the Keith-Westertons were in or around the boathouse when the murder was committed. It's true that Colin argued with the dead gamekeeper and gave him his notice, but what motive could he have for murder?
Sir Clinton sticks to his guns and insists that everyone be investigated with equal fervor. Inspector Severn knows his duty, but that doesn't make it any less touchy dealing with those who are his social superiors and who can take his job.
It's a good mystery. Another body is turns up and Sir Clinton begins to suspect that sins committed by Colin Keith-Westerton during his wild days are coming back to haunt him. He was a naive young man, with no father, uncles, or older brothers to warn him about designing females who live by relieving rich men of their money. Did young Colin fall prey to one of them? And who scattered all those pearls around?
It's good to see Sir Clinton back in action. I'm still disappointed that he hasn't settled down with one sidekick, but maybe he must work with whatever local CID Inspector is assigned to that section of his county. And he always has Squire Wendover to serve as Dr Watson. I'm looking forward to the rest of this series.
When Raymond Chandler read A.A. Milne's "Mystery of the Red House" he commented that it was hard to swallow that cops would be quite so deferential to the "gentry." Raised and educated in England, but living in the U.S. most of his adult life, Chandler was more familiar with American cops than English ones. And in the U.S. a cop is as good as anyone.
In 1930 when this book appeared, the traditional English class system - Upper, Middle, and Working was under siege, but still a beloved institution. Oddly, it wasn't just the Upper Crusts who upheld the system. The Middle Classes were just as happy with it, perhaps hoping to move up someday. And the Working Classes were accepting, if not enthusiastic. Anyone (such as poacher Bob Cley) who espoused "Bolshie" talk about all men being equal was looked on with suspicion.
Chief Constable Sir Clinton Driffield is back at the old fish stand. Don't know who's running that family estate he inherited, but it's not him. He's on vacation, claiming he's got time built up and needs a rest. So he goes to visit his old friend "Squire" Wendover, a JP in his area and a staunch upholder of law and order. They plan to do some fishing and Squire Wendover wants to show off his recently-rebuilt boathouse.
Then someone is murdered. What else could we expect? The victim is a gamekeeper on Silver Grove, an estate adjoining Wendover's place. Owner Colin Keith-Westerton has just returned with his lovely young bride. She's an exotic creature, hailing from the Caribbean and being Roman Catholic. Like most Englishmen, Squire Wendover doesn't approve of mixed marriages, but Mrs Keith-Westerton is a looker and he's susceptible to a pretty face.
She's even brought her spiritual advisor Abbe Goron, who also serves as priest to her French maid. As Sir Clinton observes, he looks like a stern man who would brook no bad behaviour from his parishioners.
Naturally, Squire Wendover is delighted that the young man has reclaimed his family home. The Keith-Westerton's are a very old, respected family. Colin had a sheltered boyhood, being raised by two maiden aunts. He was a bit wild when he came into his money, but seems ready to settle down and be a traditional estate-owner.
The victim was killed during the night and his body found by notorious poacher Bob Cley. Both Squire Wendover and local CID Inspector Severn are ready to pin the murder on Cley, but Sir Clinton urges them not to jump to conclusions. As he says, he's found bodies, too, but that doesn't make him a murderer.
He wonders what Mr and Mrs Keith-Westover were doing during the time when the man was murdered. Squire Wendover is appalled. Estate owners from old families do NOT commit murders and neither do their wives! Inspector Severn would much prefer to arrest a working stiff, since the Keith-Westertons are indignant at Sir Clinton's suspicions and ready to make trouble for the local police if they are bothered.
However, the more he looks, the more apparent it becomes that both the Keith-Westertons were in or around the boathouse when the murder was committed. It's true that Colin argued with the dead gamekeeper and gave him his notice, but what motive could he have for murder?
Sir Clinton sticks to his guns and insists that everyone be investigated with equal fervor. Inspector Severn knows his duty, but that doesn't make it any less touchy dealing with those who are his social superiors and who can take his job.
It's a good mystery. Another body is turns up and Sir Clinton begins to suspect that sins committed by Colin Keith-Westerton during his wild days are coming back to haunt him. He was a naive young man, with no father, uncles, or older brothers to warn him about designing females who live by relieving rich men of their money. Did young Colin fall prey to one of them? And who scattered all those pearls around?
It's good to see Sir Clinton back in action. I'm still disappointed that he hasn't settled down with one sidekick, but maybe he must work with whatever local CID Inspector is assigned to that section of his county. And he always has Squire Wendover to serve as Dr Watson. I'm looking forward to the rest of this series.
May 15, 2017
A pretty average "puzzler" from the late 1920s or early 1930s. Sir Driffield of Scotland Yard, is spending some time at his friend Wendower's estate, fishing and relaxing. There is some mild socializing with the neighbours, a newly married couple consisting of an ex-playboy and a Catholic beauty. But then a gamekeeper is found on the shore of the local lake, a murder clumsily disguised as suicide or accident. There are clues galores : footprints ! bent leaves of grass! spent matches! And even some expensive pearls scattered around the body! This last find inevitably points to the young neighbor... who, it turns out, picked up and left her husband that same night. It turns out many people were out and about that night, and most of them seem to have been near or inside Wendower's brand new boat house. Then a second corpse is discovered and Sir Driffield needs to pull several strands of information together to make sense of it all.
This book is good for armchair detectives because it' s all about clues, the hunt for information. It's not too hard to figure out some of the elements of the story, but the way all these clues came together was interesting. But don't read this book expecting psychological suspense or deep character development.
This book is good for armchair detectives because it' s all about clues, the hunt for information. It's not too hard to figure out some of the elements of the story, but the way all these clues came together was interesting. But don't read this book expecting psychological suspense or deep character development.
June 12, 2017
Sir Clinton Driffield is on holiday staying with his old friend 'Squire' Wendover. He is hoping for a quiet relaxing break with plenty of fishing and walking in the countryside. First he must admire Wendover's new luxurious boathouse but this magnificent structure is soon at the centre of a criminal investigation and Driffield finds himself on a busman's holiday.
Strange lights in the middle of the night, the body of a dead gamekeeper, a Salvation Army member who keeps cropping up in very mysterious circumstances and a missing woman provide an entertaining and well written crime story.
I must admit this sixth book in the series didn't hold my attention as much as the first five books in the series. I felt the plot flagged a little in the middle - or maybe I missed some of the clues because I read it in several short sessions. It hasn't put me off reading the rest of the series as I always find that some books in any series are not as good as others - even with my favourite authors.
Strange lights in the middle of the night, the body of a dead gamekeeper, a Salvation Army member who keeps cropping up in very mysterious circumstances and a missing woman provide an entertaining and well written crime story.
I must admit this sixth book in the series didn't hold my attention as much as the first five books in the series. I felt the plot flagged a little in the middle - or maybe I missed some of the clues because I read it in several short sessions. It hasn't put me off reading the rest of the series as I always find that some books in any series are not as good as others - even with my favourite authors.
February 5, 2019
This belongs neither to the "humdrum" or "dull" school of detective fiction, more to the "ho-hum".
In other words it was pretty average. The basic ideas would have made a good, longish, short-story or a novella.
Most experienced readers of GA novels would have got the major points of the solution well in advance of the concluding chapter which rather numbingly reiterates much which has already been explained.
This is not one of Sir Clinton Driffield's more spectacular investigations- only two deaths and a few secrets- but Inspector Severn provides solid background work to complement his deductions.
It may be that this work suffers in comparison with the brilliance of its immediate followers "The Sweepstake Murders" and 'The Castleford Conundrum" which rank amongst the author's best.
In other words it was pretty average. The basic ideas would have made a good, longish, short-story or a novella.
Most experienced readers of GA novels would have got the major points of the solution well in advance of the concluding chapter which rather numbingly reiterates much which has already been explained.
This is not one of Sir Clinton Driffield's more spectacular investigations- only two deaths and a few secrets- but Inspector Severn provides solid background work to complement his deductions.
It may be that this work suffers in comparison with the brilliance of its immediate followers "The Sweepstake Murders" and 'The Castleford Conundrum" which rank amongst the author's best.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews