Да повярваш на лисица

by James Hadley Chase

Двама убийци имаха нужда от нея: единият за защита, другият - за плячка.

Той бе убил един безпомощен мъж, за да скрие своята самоличност - и беше готов да убие и нея, ако се опиташе да го измами. Но в сметките му не влизаше ужасната злополука и лудия убиец.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Novels, Noir, Classics

227 pages, Paperback

First published January 18, 1972

About the author

René Lodge Brabazon Raymond was born on 24th December 1906 in London, England, the son of Colonel Francis Raymond of the colonial Indian Army, a veterinary surgeon. His father intended his son to have a scientific career, was initially educated at King's School, Rochester, Kent. He left home at the age of 18 and became at different times a children's encyclopedia salesman, a salesman in a bookshop, and executive for a book wholesaler before turning to a writing career that produced more than 90 mystery books. His interests included photography (he was up to professional standard), reading and listening to classical music, being a particularly enthusiastic opera lover. Also as a form of relaxation between novels, he put together highly complicated and sophisticated Meccano models.

In 1932, Raymond married Sylvia Ray, who gave him a son. They were together until his death fifty three years later. Prohibition and the ensuing US Great Depression (1929–1939), had given rise to the Chicago gangster culture just prior to World War II. This, combined with her book trade experience, made him realise that there was a big demand for gangster stories. He wrote as R. Raymond, James Hadley Chase, James L. Docherty, Ambrose Grant and Raymond Marshall.

During World War II he served in the Royal Air Force, achieving the rank of Squadron Leader. Chase edited the RAF Journal with David Langdon and had several stories from it published after the war in the book Slipstream: A Royal Air Force Anthology.

Raymond moved to France in 1956 and then to Switzerland in 1969, living a secluded life in Corseaux-sur-Vevey, on Lake Geneva, from 1974. He eventually died there peacefully on 6 February 1985.

Reviews

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Particularly Sly Thriller

"Trusted Like The Fox" is a 1948 crime thriller by James Hadley Chase, a British writer who published 95 very popular thrillers. The main character, Cushman, is not morally ambiguous. He's just a plain old bad guy, a traitor to the British who went to Nazi Germany during the war and operated a radio show in English for the German cause. He's such a bad guy that, when the camps were liberated, he murdered someone and stole their identity. Returning to a London, he couldn't live a quiet life forever and on a lark gets involved with a pickpocket and they end up fleeing to the countryside. He's rough, course, nasty, and selfish. The threesome who duel are not complete until they reach a golf club in an estate area. It's an unusual thriller, particularly since the main characters turn out to be traitors, murderers, and all are slightly nuts.

[Paul Cornelius · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lord Haw-Haw meets Jack the Ripper. This is an amazing novel, an all-English affair, radically different from Chase's American focused crime thrillers. There is little actual violence but the psychological exposes are disturbing and frightening. In form, the book has a modernist twist to it. Its elliptical storytelling, multiple perspectives, and fractured timeline sets it apart from ordinary thriller fiction. This is a serious work. And Chase's work at this time shows he was experimenting with a number of literary forms, genres, and styles.

For Trusted Like the Fox, JHC explored the nature of abusive relationships. Not only those among individuals, although those feature at the core of the story, but those between social classes and among social outcasts, such as Ellis in this novel. More than that, it explore the psychopathological. Even a violent, murderous traitor pales in comparison with real evil. Simply an extraordinary effort on Chase's part. It leaves you suspicious of the characters throughout, but you never have an idea of where things are leading. Not even at the very end. Remarkable.

[Paul Lothane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ellis and Crane. Two incredibly sinister men. Both not only dangerous, but vicious killers. Both apparently besotted with a rather simple naïve young woman - for their own individual reasons. This is author Chase of course, so the twists and turns go on and on. This is a very good story (novel), which for me reaches a sort of intellectual peak, when Crane suddenly smiles, and quotes Shakespeare (to Ellis):

"Treason is but trusted like the fox/
Who ne'er so tame, so cherished and locked
up/
Will have a wild trick of his ancestors".

It is no surprise that upon hearing this, Ellis somewhat flinches, as Crane adds: "Shakespeare can rise to every occasion with a fitting phrase..." Illuminating!

[Βρόσγος Άντυ]

Πολύ διαφορετικός Τσαιηζ. Το σκηνικό δεν στήνεται όπως συνήθως σε κάποια Αμερικανική πόλη (την οποία δεν είχε επισκεφθεί ποτέ) αλλά στην Αγγλία και οι πρωταγωνιστές είναι τρεις καταραμένοι ήρωες σε ένα ιδιόμορφο τρίγωνο.
Ένας προδότης, μια κακοποιημένη κλέφτρα και ένας δανδης της υψηλής κοινωνίας.
Ίσως το πιο ψυχολογικό - κοινωνικό βιβλίο του σπουδαίου συγγραφέα. Η απλοϊκή μάχη καλού και κακού δεν ήταν ποτέ η αγαπημένη του θεματολογία όμως σε αυτό το βιβλίο διεισδυει πολύ βαθιά στην ανθρώπινη ψυχή και ξύνει με λύσσα το ψεύτικο περίβλημα της Αγγλικής κοινωνίας του τέλους του Β' Παγκόσμιου Πολέμου.
Ένα εξαιρετικό ψυχολογικό θρίλερ.

[Κώστας · Rating 5 out of 5]

ΒΙΠΕΡ ΝΟ.217
Η ΗΔΟΝΗ ΤΟΥ ΕΓΚΛΗΜΑΤΟΣ

" Στην προδοσια μπορεις ναχεις τοση εμπιστοσυνη οσο και σε μια αλεπου. Εκεινος που ειναι τοσο ημερος, τοσο αγαπητος και κλεισμενος θα κανει τα αγρια κολπα των προγονων του".

Έχοντας, προς το παρόν, 73 από τα 91 του βιβλία, τα περισσότερα εκ των οποίων διαβασμένα 2 φορές μπορώ να προσπαθήσω για έναν γενικό μπούσουλα:

Είναι οι συγκυρίες από τη μία μεριά και οι πρωταγωνιστές από την άλλη.
Τα γεγονότα γίνονται θηλειά στο λαιμό, Οι άνθρωποι είναι ανήμποροι, αβοήθητοι και μόνο αν είναι υπερβολικά προσεκτικοί και τυχεροί μπορεί και να σωθούν. Πράγμα εξαιρετικά σπάνιο στις ιστορίες του James Chase.
Αν μείνει στο τέλος έστω και ένας ζωντανός με ευοίωνες προοπτικές αυτό θα είναι μεγάλη έκπληξη.
Δεν χαρίζεται σε κανέναν.
Ούτε στην αστυνομία.

[Al-amin Zanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Edwin Cushman the traitor said "no body is kind this days unless they have iron in the fire" So dont forget to follow strangers."

[starrgaze. · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Treason is but trusted like the fox, who, never so tame, so cherished and locked up, will have a wild trick of his ancestors."

This ended up being a short but intriguing, fast paced thriller that I absolutely enjoyed. The two morally awful yet completely different killers and the naive girl who prefers to die from the hands of one of them rather to go back into her old life of poverty - make for quite the raw and compelling read. Even if some of the aspects of the story - like, it happening right after a war - is something from the distant past we love to read in history lessons, apart from it nothing has changed that much. Definitely not the way the world treats those with no money and connections, not the greed, the twisted minds of people, the lies and manipulations. Nothing ever does change in our world. In fact, it only gets worse.

[Х. И. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Една от любимите ми книги на Чейс, която препрочитам отново. В книгата двамата основни герои са отрицателни персонажи. Историята претърпява интересен психологически обрат в края, този който през цялото време мислиш за лош просто бледнее пред същинското неподправено зло.
Главният герой Едуйн Кушман е дезертьор и военнопрестъпник. Макар и британец по рождение, Кушман не харесва своите съграждани и дезертира в нацистка Германия, където да води пропагандно радио предаване. След края на войната той е заклеймен като предател и му се налага да убие и открадне самоличността на друг британски войник, за да се спаси от гнева на своите съотечественици. Кушман е истински антигерой - зъл, подъл, груб, егоистичен и съвсем безскрупулен. Съдбата му се преплита с тази на глухонямата крадла Грейс, като Кушман и помага да се спаси от полицията. Грейс е трагичен женски образ в романа, безлична като жена, наивна по своему, нямаща късмет в живота. Макар да и помага в началото(по скоро от скука), Кушман се държи ужасно гадно с нея.
Неволен инцидент ги поставя в голяма опасност, полицията е отново по петите им, а Кушман е сериозно пострадал. Тогава на помощ им се притича заможният и добронамерен джентълмен Ричард Крейн, който скрива и двамата бежанци в своето имение от дългата ръка на закона.
Ричард Крейн е богат и красив мъж, образован и умен, физически висок и силен . Хората му вярват и го харесват, всичко в него вдъхва доверие на пръв поглед. Грейс е възхитена и не може да поверва, че проявява интерес към нея. Кушман обаче надушва нещо странно в мотивите на Крейн..
Двамата мъже са пълни противоположности! Всеки от тях иска Грейс само за себе си..
Книгата има и психологическа страна – Чейс ни показва две напълно различни лица на злото.. Едното създадено от обстоятелствата и озлобено към хората, а другото измамно и нечовешко жестоко!
Четох книгата преди 20 години и тогава може би е ми хареса една идея повече. Въпреки това за мен тази творба на Чейс си остава истински шедьовър в жанра.

[Kakha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This work, as in almost all cases with the books of this unforgettable author, simply has a great, epic name! Coming up with titles for a literary work is one big topic. It's even a phenomenon. The book was written more than 70 years ago. This is incomprehensible to the mind, because, after all, this cool book is read in one breath, you absolutely do not feel its old age, the old age of that atmosphere of bygone days, which is conveyed in this book. And how does the book begin! Her first paragraph is just magnificent. Just read it for yourself and see.
One renegade who worked on German radio during the Second World War, with the help of forged documents and a change in appearance, returns to his homeland. And then a woman steps in and the coolest, incredible plot is twisted in the most interesting way.

[Saumil · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well written plot that kept me glued to the book and made me turn page after page. The characters weren't ones you could attach yourself to, maybe that's the only negative I felt about the book. But it was very well written and the author used the limited number of characters amazingly well.

[Sourabh Kuipally · Rating 5 out of 5]

very good thriller.had no expectations but loved it

[Ivo Stoykov · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great psycho crime novel!

[Athul Raj · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another Chase thriller. Similar to his other works, but still different. A quick, thrilling read.

[AndrewP · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read the UK edition that is missing from Goodreads. Will try and fix that when I come across the original books.

[Rakesh Kapoor]

Trust like a fox review.

James Hadley chase books are the best on its class. Lots of twists. Very interesting read. Every page is a surprise.

[Carla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Es muy buena.