Dead Man Twice: A Ludovic Travers Mystery

Ludovic Travers #3

by Christopher Bush

“And that’s not all. Somers is dead too … He poisoned himself … in the lounge!”

The great English boxer Michael France looks set to become the new Heavyweight Champion of the world. Everyone is waiting with bated breath for the forthcoming and decisive match. Ex-CID officer John Franklin is no exception – but once the boxer is apparently murdered (twice), Franklin must join forces with Ludovic Travers once more in a layered and ingenious mystery where Michael France’s closest friends are the primary suspects – yet have cast-iron alibis.

The final solution involves an ingenious and plausible murder technique, a fine demonstration of Christopher Bush’s imaginative and suspenseful plotting at its best.

Genres: Mystery, British Literature, Crime

260 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1930

About the author

Christopher Bush was educated in the local school. He then won a scholarship to Thetford Grammar, and went on to study modern languages at King's College London, after which he worked as a school teacher.

He participated in both world wars.

He was a prolific writer of detective novels, wrote three autobiographical novels and nine books about Breckland life using the nom-de-plume Michael Home.

He lived in Great Hockham.

Reviews

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was disappointed in this.

The idea of someone being murdered twice is interesting but involves rather too big an imaginative leap into coincidence for me. The actual murder method was ingenious if you like the sort of thing which involves diagrams to help explain.

I found it rather tedious. It seemed to go on for ever and round in circles to no great gain.

Travers is fairly incidental with Wharton and Franklin doing most of the investigation. Three detectives here - too many for me. I kept losing interest and concentration.

[John · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although this is supposed to be The Ludovic Travers series, it is more about Franklin and Wharton than him. Travers just hovers in the background and pops in occasionally to give a pearl of wisdom and put the others on the track.

This story is so complicated it is VERY difficult to follow. In fact I found it almost impossible to follow.
This is a real disappointment after the last one which was excellent. I will try another in the series but if it's like this then I might not bother with the rest.

[Jeff Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

European Heavyweight Champion Michael French, who is managed by racing driver Peter Claire, is set to go to America to fight for the World Title. Another friend of his is author Kenneth "Kinky" Hayles who has already written his biography. The only dark cloud on the horizon is a series blackmail letters, written by "Lucy", and asked Ludovic Travers for help. The following day, French is found shot dead while his old retainer Summer has died from poisoning. Superintendent Wharton and Travers friend ex-CID officer John Franklin try to get to the bottom of the mystery. My third Christopher Bush and I found this the most readable and thankfully avoid a lot the over complex plots that appeared in his first two novels.

[ShanDizzy · Rating 4 out of 5]

“It’s all too complicated… at the moment. The doped whisky, the cut window, the probable murder by shooting the fake suicide, the man in the house, Somers and his tot, the second camouflage… and the suicide confession.” He wagged his head with ponderous deliberation.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

When private detective Franklin is asked to visit famed gentleman boxer France, soon to fight for the world championship in New York, he finds the man's butler dead, an apparent suicide. But when the police arrive, they also find France, also dead, also an apparent suicide. Appearances can be deceptive, however, as Franklin and the police soon find out. Ludovic Travers comes up with the real culprit in this puzzle of competing alibis, but he really does not appear as a major character in the book--and his solution is ultimately unsatisfying, to me at least.