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Counterfeit Corpse
A reformed ex-con uncovers murder in his small-town New England garden in this 1956 hard-boiled mystery by the author of Waterfront.
After spending time in Europe and Africa—and inside a British prison—Don Ivy is back in his New England hometown, the village of Newbury. He recently inherited the family estate, and now that winter is over and spring has sprung, it’s time for him to tidy up the yard. Unfortunately, someone’s left a corpse in one of the flower beds.
When the police arrive, they’re quickly suspicious of Ivy due to his troubling reputation. It also doesn’t help Don’s case when more bodies begin to appear. So, with the authorities in an uproar, he begins searching for answers to clear his name. And if Ivy doesn’t uncover the truth soon, the cops will certainly lock him up—or someone will ensure he takes a long dirt nap.
After spending time in Europe and Africa—and inside a British prison—Don Ivy is back in his New England hometown, the village of Newbury. He recently inherited the family estate, and now that winter is over and spring has sprung, it’s time for him to tidy up the yard. Unfortunately, someone’s left a corpse in one of the flower beds.
When the police arrive, they’re quickly suspicious of Ivy due to his troubling reputation. It also doesn’t help Don’s case when more bodies begin to appear. So, with the authorities in an uproar, he begins searching for answers to clear his name. And if Ivy doesn’t uncover the truth soon, the cops will certainly lock him up—or someone will ensure he takes a long dirt nap.
181 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 18, 2022
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August 7, 2025
Charles Weiser Frey put out six crime novels in the 1950’s writing under the odd pen name of Ferguson Findley: (1) My Old Man’s Badge (1950); (2) Hire this Killer (1951); (3) Waterfront (1951); (4) the Man in the Middle (1952); (5) Counterfeit Corpse (1956); and (6) Murder Makes Me Mad (1956).
“Counterfeit Corpse” is a kind of tongue in cheek crime novel farce. The lead character, Donald Ivy, was the world’s greatest counterfeiter in London. After the war started, he was so famed he forged documents for British spies and made ten pound note plates to make money to pay the spies. He was given a medal and a full pardon and thrown the hell out of Britain and asked not to return.
The events of this novel take place a few years later as Ivy returns to his family home in New England where quickly as in that day bodies start popping up all over the place and Ivy’s the clearest suspect. There’s the Frenchman bludgeoned in the backyard. The Brit pushed into traffic. And there’s dear sweet niece Judy who shows up with a suitcase and ends up in the pond with a bullet in her spine. Only she’s not the real Judy. She’s an imposter.
All these people from Ivy’s past out to get the ten pound plates and each in succession getting knocked off. The question for the reader is whether Ivy, despite his protests of innocence, is taking them out one by one or if someone deadlier is at work.
“Counterfeit Corpse” is a kind of tongue in cheek crime novel farce. The lead character, Donald Ivy, was the world’s greatest counterfeiter in London. After the war started, he was so famed he forged documents for British spies and made ten pound note plates to make money to pay the spies. He was given a medal and a full pardon and thrown the hell out of Britain and asked not to return.
The events of this novel take place a few years later as Ivy returns to his family home in New England where quickly as in that day bodies start popping up all over the place and Ivy’s the clearest suspect. There’s the Frenchman bludgeoned in the backyard. The Brit pushed into traffic. And there’s dear sweet niece Judy who shows up with a suitcase and ends up in the pond with a bullet in her spine. Only she’s not the real Judy. She’s an imposter.
All these people from Ivy’s past out to get the ten pound plates and each in succession getting knocked off. The question for the reader is whether Ivy, despite his protests of innocence, is taking them out one by one or if someone deadlier is at work.
Displaying 1 of 1 review