The eighth book in the Blackshirt series, Double for Blackshirt is a fast-paced and gripping mystery.
The irrepressible Blackshirt’s past reputation as a cracksman is well-known to the police. When a Judge is murdered at the time Blackshirt is taking too close an interest in his collection of snuff-boxes, the police are reluctant to name Blackshirt as the killer. Blackshirt knew that to fight was to risk disaster; he gave battle; the police closed in; the killer prepared for the last strike—and only Blackshirt’s daring lay between him and death or capture.
Roderic Jeffries was born in London in 1926. In 1943 he went to sea with the New Zealand Shipping Company and returned to England in 1949 where he practiced law before starting to write full time. His books have been adapted for film, television, and radio. His father, Graham Jeffries (pseudonym Bruce Graeme), began the Blackshirt series in 1925.
A murderous jewel thief threatens Blackshirt's reputation as a Gentleman Cracksman who, through his years of Entertaining the police, the press, and the public, NEVER stooped to such an unsporting crime as torture and Murder. The only thing left for the suave and endearing Blackshirt to do is to solve the murders, thus absolving himself from such base and dastardly acts. It is but the Gentlemanly thing to do ~ cracksman or no. The author never disappoints as far as moments of Fun and Wit are concerned. The reader is guaranteed laughter and admiration for Blackshirt's ingenuity in eluding capture (in tight situations) and end up with a brilliant gem in his hand.
I do like these books about Gentleman thief Blackshirt. He's a 1950's version of Raffles I suppose. The plots a improbable and the police incompetent, but they are good fun to read.