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The Death of Laurence Vining
‘The crime is one of the most ingenious in all the annals of detective fiction’ New York Times‘Enthralling… a most ingenious example of the detective story’ Morning PostThis new 2025 Spitfire Publishers ebook and paperback edition represent the first republication of this classic of the ‘Golden Age’ of detective fiction in almost a centuryIncludes all the original illustrations, critical to the plot
Obnoxious amateur sleuth – and occasional consultant to Scotland Yard – Laurence Vining, is triumphant. Aided by his friend and confident, Dr Benjamin Willing, he has just solved the ‘Shop Murder’ and sent the perpetrator to the gallows. On the scent of his next case, an anonymous letter signed ‘Red Hat’ implores Laurence to meet at Hyde Park Tube Station. The polymath detective descends from the street level station in the tube station lift alone and arrives on the platform below – very dead. A Malay krisembedded deep in the small of his back. Inspector Widgeon of Scotland Yard faces an apparently impossible murder to crack…
About the Author
Alan Ernest Wentworth Thomas was born in London in 1896. Biographical details on Thomas are rather scant. He was educated at Malvern College and Cambridge University and worked as a barrister and literary editor. He wrote throughout his life and right up to his death in 1969. He wrote eight crime novels, of which his first The Death of Laurence Vining (1928), is his most well-known work. In fact, this ultra-rare locked-room mystery has almost mythical status amongst aficionados of Golden Age detective fiction. Inspector Widgeon is one of his literary creations and appeared in Thomas’s first book and Death of the Home Secretary. Thomas’s other series characters, Maurice Arbuthnot and Cyril Fortescue appear in The Stolen Cellini and Summer Adventure.
Praise for Alan Thomas
Daggers Drawn
‘An absorbing story’ The Scotsman
‘Such a break-away from the conventional detective story deserves congratulation’ Daily News
‘A very fine study in psychology’ Evening Standard
‘The trial scene is the best I have read in any detective story; indeed, the whole book stands head and shoulders above its neighbours’ L.P. Hartley, West-End Review
The Tremayne Case
‘An excellent murder mystery’ Daily Sketch
The Lonely Years
‘A sincere and moving book’ Times Literary Supplement
‘Another true human document’ The Spectator
Obnoxious amateur sleuth – and occasional consultant to Scotland Yard – Laurence Vining, is triumphant. Aided by his friend and confident, Dr Benjamin Willing, he has just solved the ‘Shop Murder’ and sent the perpetrator to the gallows. On the scent of his next case, an anonymous letter signed ‘Red Hat’ implores Laurence to meet at Hyde Park Tube Station. The polymath detective descends from the street level station in the tube station lift alone and arrives on the platform below – very dead. A Malay krisembedded deep in the small of his back. Inspector Widgeon of Scotland Yard faces an apparently impossible murder to crack…
About the Author
Alan Ernest Wentworth Thomas was born in London in 1896. Biographical details on Thomas are rather scant. He was educated at Malvern College and Cambridge University and worked as a barrister and literary editor. He wrote throughout his life and right up to his death in 1969. He wrote eight crime novels, of which his first The Death of Laurence Vining (1928), is his most well-known work. In fact, this ultra-rare locked-room mystery has almost mythical status amongst aficionados of Golden Age detective fiction. Inspector Widgeon is one of his literary creations and appeared in Thomas’s first book and Death of the Home Secretary. Thomas’s other series characters, Maurice Arbuthnot and Cyril Fortescue appear in The Stolen Cellini and Summer Adventure.
Praise for Alan Thomas
Daggers Drawn
‘An absorbing story’ The Scotsman
‘Such a break-away from the conventional detective story deserves congratulation’ Daily News
‘A very fine study in psychology’ Evening Standard
‘The trial scene is the best I have read in any detective story; indeed, the whole book stands head and shoulders above its neighbours’ L.P. Hartley, West-End Review
The Tremayne Case
‘An excellent murder mystery’ Daily Sketch
The Lonely Years
‘A sincere and moving book’ Times Literary Supplement
‘Another true human document’ The Spectator
236 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 26, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
October 14, 2025
Not Quite Worth Reading
This is not one of the greatest Golden Age detective mysteries and has very offensive viewpoints toward dark-colored people. My guess from near the beginning as to the identity of the villain was correct but I kept reading to find out the way the murder was carried out. The motive for the killing was a little more involved than seems believable.
This is not one of the greatest Golden Age detective mysteries and has very offensive viewpoints toward dark-colored people. My guess from near the beginning as to the identity of the villain was correct but I kept reading to find out the way the murder was carried out. The motive for the killing was a little more involved than seems believable.
September 28, 2025
One of the best ever
And one of the earliest cozy mysteries. It turns the genre on it's head. The psychology is perfect. Well done!
And one of the earliest cozy mysteries. It turns the genre on it's head. The psychology is perfect. Well done!
May 24, 2025
I found this novel tiresome. None of the characters were interesting enough to draw me in on the basis of personality; there wasn't a fair-play puzzle to engage me in a battle of wits; the action dragged like a bicycle in a molasses spill. The solution, when it came, was unsatisfying. Recommended only if you're shooting for an encyclopedic approach to detective fiction.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews