Не я дразни

Helga Rolfe #3

by James Hadley Chase, Джеймс Хадли Чейс

Хелга Ролф е русокоса, красива и достатъчно умна, за да управлява своето многомилионно богатство. Но тя не е в състояние да се справи с тайната си слабост - неутолимата жажда за секс. Това добре знае бившият и любовник Джефри Арчър. Той има стари сметки с нея, освен това изпитва остра нужда от пари. Съдбата го среща с красивия жиголо Кристофър Гренвил и Арчър вижда начин да задоволи своите нужди.

Genres: Crime, Thriller, Novels, Fiction

287 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 1977

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

[Razvan Banciu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Smooth and easy like a spring breeze, written in the line of O. Henry and Jeffrey Archer, as you have sympathy even for some of the bad guys. I grew up reading some of Mr. Chase's novels and now I find he's heavily underrated and I wonder why.

Perhaps a a few vampires, ghosts or other little horror creatures in his books would have made him a more respected author...

[Kavita · Rating 3 out of 5]

The final book in the Helga Rolfe series, this one is not as exciting as the others. But it is still a good book. Helga falls in love with a man called Christopher Grenville, who is a professional gigolo. Jack Archer and Grenville then cook up a plot to extort money from Helga, but the plan goes awry when Archer makes a mistake and involves the Mafia. From then on, it's anybody's guess how the cards will fall.

This was the first book in the series where I actually was rooting for someone. I enjoyed the character of Grenville, and was a little disappointed that he ended up the way he did. I also started disliking Helga a little in this book, mostly because she showed herself up as a hypocrite. She despises Grenville when she is informed that he marries rich old women for money, but how exactly did Helga gain her own millions? By marrying a rich old man for his money! I also got a bit bored of the phrase 'the steel in her'. It was used on almost every page.

After reading the three books, I have come to the conclusion that Helga Rolfe is no nymphomaniac. She is merely a normal, healthy woman with a normal, healthy urge for sex. Poor woman has been travelling from Bonn to Zurich to Miami to Haiti to Paris, before she finally gets laid. What nymphomaniac would wait this long?

Three stars.

[Paul Cornelius · Rating 4 out of 5]

This third and final volume in the Helga Rolfe series is the best of the bunch. Multiple perspectives from nympho Helga, former boyfriend and blackmailer Jack Archer, gigolo Christopher Grenville, and mafioso Bernie move the pace as quickly along as in any James Hadley Chase novel to date (1977). Add in one of Chase's favorite plots--a kidnapping--and you have one of his better, classic works. Only the overly contrived ending tends to blemish the effort. Otherwise, this makes for good reading on a rainy night. It does help, however, to have read the prior two Helga Rolfe novels, although this one is easily enough understood without them. It's just that the other two will give a little depth to this one.

[Crime Addict Sifat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Helga Rolfe was blonde, wonderful, and sufficiently splendid to control her own multi-million domain. Be that as it may, not to control her mystery shortcoming - she was sex insane. Furthermore, previous sweetheart, Archer, knew it. He had an old score to settle with her and he required money. At the point when nice looking playboy Christopher Greenville crossed his way, he'd found the best approach to both. With Archer's instructing, Chris conned Helga into needing him severely enough to propose marriage, and when Archer faked Chris' grabbing, she was prepared to pay the gigantic payment. In any case, occasions took a startling turn when the nearby Mafia joined the activity.

[Gu Kun · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5. Good plot - well-paced.

[Mark Vickers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just another ripsnorter from the master of suspense SIR JHC, jeffrey archer an old foe of Helga Rolfe and her millions teams up with gigolo and conman, Christopher Grenville to plot a scheme to get a few million of her fortune but find that her and her loyal butler have a very loyal relationship...... another must read for his die-hard fanatics....

[Nancy's readings · Rating 4 out of 5]

Helga Rolfe es una hermosa y atractiva mujer de 44 años, viuda y dueña de una fortuna incalculable. Extremadamente hábil para los negocios, maneja muy bien el imperio heredado de su difunto esposo. Sin embargo, como cualquier otra persona, ésta atractiva y poderosa dama, tiene su talón de alquiles: el sexo.
Por otro lado, conocemos la historia de Jack Archer, un abogado internacional en quiebra, quien había sido socio del Sr. Rolfe y además, amante de Helga. Cabe destacar que Helga colaboró de primera mano para dejar a Archer en bancarrota. Éste se encuentra completamente en la ruina, situado en París, tratando de ganar algo de dinero fácil.
Cuando Archer se topa con un cautivador gigoló, no duda en incluirlo en una de sus jugarretas para vengarse de Helga y estafarla, para poder volver a su antigua vida de comodidades y demostrarle que él puede ser igual o más astuto que ella. La pregunta que nos mantiene en vilo durante toda la lectura es: podrá Archer junto con este conquistador hombre engañar a Helga?
Este libro de suspenso sin dudas cumple con todos los requisitos para que la lectura sea rápida, dinámica y además tenernos atrapados con sensación de intriga hasta la última página.

[Kakha · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I finished this book many years ago, I was sad because this epic, wildly interesting stories about Helga Rolf were over. By the way, a lot of things I have already been forgotten from these books and maybe it is worth re-read them to refresh my memory.

[Macfar]

Q

[Mukesh Kumar · Rating 2 out of 5]

There is good, fun, silly pulp and there is bad, dour ones. This is the latter sadly :/

[Hristo Dimitrov · Rating 5 out of 5]

Witty and entertaining! It's wonderful way to travel back to 70s.

.

[Joydeep · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good thriller but no murder

[som · Rating 3 out of 5]

Archer never learns! He's such a loser! I'm so happy Helga beats him everytime! I enjoyed this book. Finally Helga gets together with someone of her class! She was starting to annoy me.

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Helga Rolfe, the rich sex-obsessed woman from An Ace Up My Sleeve and The Joker in the Pack, returns to Europe from the Caribbean, and once more is the victim of some blackmail, this time at the hands of the blackmail from the first of the books, along with a professional gigolo who seduces rich old woman and makes off with their money. Helga isn't old, but she's susceptible nonetheless to this kind of thing. Here, not only is blackmail involved, but kidnapping.

I read these books back to back. Chase wrote a lot of books, and at a time when paperback racks were full of shorter novels, rather than the big things we have today. I suspect that many who would have once written these short, pulpy, punchy novels are today writing TV episodes and movies. In these three novels, Chase made the story longer by dividing them up, and they were published over a period of 6 years, during which time he wrote many others. The characters in these books are vivid and interesting, physically though not morally attractive. Helga doesn't seem to learn much from her mistakes, but that, and the lack of a moral center in these characters is what makes the books fun reading.

[Al-amin Zanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

"What a sexy middle age woman is this Jack Archer the lawyer have already now her all life that way he order this hansome conned man Christoper Grenville and thanks to Hinkle the way he reveal to Helger physical with out any ashame told her every think without missing any words"

[Chamath Fonseka · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full of activity. Nice..

[Κώστας · Rating 4 out of 5]

ΒΙΠΕΡ Νο.934
4 ΑΣΟΙ

[Amitabh Akhouri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Intersting storylines

Good story. Surprisingly no murder in this book. Real Chase novel. I never read this kind of novel earlier. Wow

[Terence]

was so long ago, need to get a copy