The Net Around Joan Ingilby: A Chief Inspector Pointer Mystery

Chief Inspector Pointer #6

by A.E. Fielding

A Chief Inspector Pointer Mystery!

After a chance meeting on a Channel ferry, reporter Martin Blair had no expectation of meeting the “Fairy Princess” ever again. He had no idea that when he wrote an article for his paper after attending an inquest into the supposed accidental death of a woman, that Joan Ingilby, the person that his article implicated as a murderer would prove to be the very same woman. But was she in fact guilty of the crime? When she comes to him professing her innocence, Blair decides to prove her innocence only to find himself surrounded by suspicious characters, each of whom seems to be hiding something. Fortunately, Chief Inspector Pointer is called in to handle the case for Scotland Yard. But can even the chief inspector untangle... The Net Around Joan Ingilby?

304 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1928

About the author

A. Fielding (also known as Archibald Fielding or A.E. Fielding) was a pseudonym of Dorothy Feilding.

Reviews

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novel is fascinating to read as a period piece. It contains 1928 state of the art plotting with all its implicit assumptions about class, race, and gender. When a wealthy woman dies of carbon monoxide poisoning, the inquest return a verdict of accidental death. Reporter Martin Blair creates a sensation by not only proving it was murder but also constructing a fairly tight case that the governess, Joan Ingilby, is guilty of the crime. Most of the story is told from the point of view of Blair, who comes across as naïve to the point of obtuseness. Scotland Yard Chief Inspector Pointer is far more interesting but appears not often enough. The plot swings between suspenseful, clunky, and sometimes unintentionally funny. Only for fans of the genre.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I cheated on this one, reading the ending first, and being punished in the usual way, by not liking the book as well. Really, all I wanted to find out was whether the book ended with a trial, as you might guess by the title. (It doesn't.) Journalist Martin Blair meets and falls in love at first sight with a mysterious woman on the Dover ferry. Months later, he stumbles across an accidental death that he realizes is murder, and writes a scathing article explaining how the missing governess clearly is guilty. You can guess who the governess is, and how he sets out to clear her, making up for the trouble he's causing her. But what can the motive be?

[Anne · Rating 2 out of 5]

A second mystery by A. Fielding. It starts slowly and the plot is preposterous but the tale has its moments. Several themes stand out. The evil character turns out once again to be a woman. Descriptions of foreigners, i.e. those who grew up or live outside Britain, would be considered insulting today.

[Rebecca Norton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too confusing for me.not enough Inspector Pointer

I was disappointed in this book.It had too much going on.Not enough of the Inspector. I was as confused as Blair was