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The Talleyrand Maxim
Joseph Smith Fletcher (1863-1935) was a British journalist and writer. He wrote about 200 books on a wide variety of subjects, both fiction and non-fiction. He was one of the leading writers of detective fiction in the "Golden Age". An early book was the 1909 collection, The Adventures of Archer Dawe. His other works Andrewlina (1889), The Winding Way (1890), The Wonderful City (1894), In the Days of Drake (1897), At the Blue Bell Inn (1898), The Fear of the Night (1903) and Paradise Court (1908).
210 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1919
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About the author
J.S. Fletcher
526 books56 followersJoseph Smith Fletcher was an English journalist, writer, and fellow of the Royal Historical Society. He studied law before turning to journalism.
His literary career spanned approximately 200 books on a wide variety of subjects including fiction, non-fiction, histories, historical fiction, and mysteries. He was known as one of the leading writers of detective fiction in the Golden Age .
His literary career spanned approximately 200 books on a wide variety of subjects including fiction, non-fiction, histories, historical fiction, and mysteries. He was known as one of the leading writers of detective fiction in the Golden Age .
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
August 23, 2020
He Just Wanted to Seize an Opportunity but Found Himself Embracing Difficulty
This summarizes pretty well what happens to Linford Pratt, a solicitors’ clerk, when he gets possession of an unknown will that is going to deprive the next-of-kin of the large fortune they have been enjoying for two years now. Not only does he make a deadly enemy of Mrs. Mallathorpe, the mother of the two siblings who followed into the Mallathorpe estate, when he tries to blackmail her, but he also has to realize that another clerk, a dissolute man by the name of Parrawhite, has also become an accidental witness of his machinations.
J.S. Fletcher was an immediate precursor of the detective novel writers of the Golden Age of Mystery, and his novel The Talleyrand Maxime is a decent enough example of crime fiction, starting from a premise that could even have made it an outstanding book in that we as readers are often invited to share the perspective of the sneaking villain, who prides himself on his cleverness, only to find that it is not always wise to judge other people as equally mercenary as one may be oneself. The choice of this rather sinister perspective makes the reader an accomplice to Pratt and enjoy the ambivalence of dithering between disgust and an inclination to rout for the schemer and to see how he is going to fare. Unfortunately, Fletcher eventually brings in other perspectives, those of various people who try to fathom the mystery they know is there but cannot really put their fingers on, thus telling the story from a more conventional point of view.
Fletcher has his story develop at a decent pace, providing a few surprises along the way and weaves a yarn that is logical in itself and creates interesting characters with Pratt and the vengeful and greedy Mrs. Mallathorpe, but eventually, he allows his story to wind up too neatly in the last two chapters by using the deus ex machina device. This, and the obligatory romance, detracts from the thrill the unusual perspective created. All in all, however, I enjoyed reading this novel, my second encounter with Fletcher, so much that I will certainly keep this classical mystery writer, who has fallen into oblivion a bit, on my reading list.
This summarizes pretty well what happens to Linford Pratt, a solicitors’ clerk, when he gets possession of an unknown will that is going to deprive the next-of-kin of the large fortune they have been enjoying for two years now. Not only does he make a deadly enemy of Mrs. Mallathorpe, the mother of the two siblings who followed into the Mallathorpe estate, when he tries to blackmail her, but he also has to realize that another clerk, a dissolute man by the name of Parrawhite, has also become an accidental witness of his machinations.
J.S. Fletcher was an immediate precursor of the detective novel writers of the Golden Age of Mystery, and his novel The Talleyrand Maxime is a decent enough example of crime fiction, starting from a premise that could even have made it an outstanding book in that we as readers are often invited to share the perspective of the sneaking villain, who prides himself on his cleverness, only to find that it is not always wise to judge other people as equally mercenary as one may be oneself. The choice of this rather sinister perspective makes the reader an accomplice to Pratt and enjoy the ambivalence of dithering between disgust and an inclination to rout for the schemer and to see how he is going to fare. Unfortunately, Fletcher eventually brings in other perspectives, those of various people who try to fathom the mystery they know is there but cannot really put their fingers on, thus telling the story from a more conventional point of view.
Fletcher has his story develop at a decent pace, providing a few surprises along the way and weaves a yarn that is logical in itself and creates interesting characters with Pratt and the vengeful and greedy Mrs. Mallathorpe, but eventually, he allows his story to wind up too neatly in the last two chapters by using the deus ex machina device. This, and the obligatory romance, detracts from the thrill the unusual perspective created. All in all, however, I enjoyed reading this novel, my second encounter with Fletcher, so much that I will certainly keep this classical mystery writer, who has fallen into oblivion a bit, on my reading list.
August 5, 2022
Fantastic mystery. You already know who the murderer is so the suspense lies in catching him at his crimes. It kept me totally involved so I couldn't put it down. Highly recommended. One of Fletcher's best. Listened to it on Librivox with a very professional reader who used different voices for each character that fit them very well.
August 30, 2021
I listened to Kevin Green's very good narration from LibriVox. It is rather like watching an episode of Columbo where we know who did the crime. The interest is in seeing where the evil doer goes wrong and how the detective (in this case a group of three people) can uncover the carefully hidden truth. I enjoyed it a lot.
February 8, 2011
JS Fletcher was one of the leading writers of detective fiction in the "Golden Age". I enjoyed this form of detective novel which is so different to modern mysteries.
The Golden Age:
Certain conventions and clichés were established that limited any surprises on the part of the reader to the details of the plot and, primarily, to the identity of the murderer. The majority of novels of that era were "whodunits", and several authors excelled, after misleading their readers successfully, in revealing the least likely suspect convincingly as the villain. There was also a predilection for certain casts of characters and certain settings, with the secluded English country house and its upper-class inhabitants being very common.
The rules of the game – and Golden Age mysteries were considered games – were codified in 1929 by Ronald Knox.[4] According to Knox, a detective story
"must have as its main interest the unravelling of a mystery; a mystery whose elements are clearly presented to the reader at an early stage in the proceedings, and whose nature is such as to arouse curiosity, a curiosity which is gratified at the end."
Knox's "Ten Commandments" (or "Decalogue") are as follows:
1.The criminal must be mentioned in the early part of the story, but must not be anyone whose thoughts the reader has been allowed to know.
2.All supernatural or preternatural agencies are ruled out as a matter of course.
3.Not more than one secret room or passage is allowable.
4.No hitherto undiscovered poisons may be used, nor any appliance which will need a long scientific explanation at the end.
5.No Chinaman must figure in the story.
6.No accident must ever help the detective, nor must he ever have an unaccountable intuition which proves to be right.
7.The detective himself must not commit the crime.
8.The detective is bound to declare any clues which he may discover.
9.The stupid friend of the detective, the Watson, must not conceal from the reader any thoughts which pass through his mind: his intelligence must be slightly, but very slightly, below that of the average reader.
10.Twin brothers, and doubles generally, must not appear unless we have been duly prepared for them.
The Golden Age:
Certain conventions and clichés were established that limited any surprises on the part of the reader to the details of the plot and, primarily, to the identity of the murderer. The majority of novels of that era were "whodunits", and several authors excelled, after misleading their readers successfully, in revealing the least likely suspect convincingly as the villain. There was also a predilection for certain casts of characters and certain settings, with the secluded English country house and its upper-class inhabitants being very common.
The rules of the game – and Golden Age mysteries were considered games – were codified in 1929 by Ronald Knox.[4] According to Knox, a detective story
"must have as its main interest the unravelling of a mystery; a mystery whose elements are clearly presented to the reader at an early stage in the proceedings, and whose nature is such as to arouse curiosity, a curiosity which is gratified at the end."
Knox's "Ten Commandments" (or "Decalogue") are as follows:
1.The criminal must be mentioned in the early part of the story, but must not be anyone whose thoughts the reader has been allowed to know.
2.All supernatural or preternatural agencies are ruled out as a matter of course.
3.Not more than one secret room or passage is allowable.
4.No hitherto undiscovered poisons may be used, nor any appliance which will need a long scientific explanation at the end.
5.No Chinaman must figure in the story.
6.No accident must ever help the detective, nor must he ever have an unaccountable intuition which proves to be right.
7.The detective himself must not commit the crime.
8.The detective is bound to declare any clues which he may discover.
9.The stupid friend of the detective, the Watson, must not conceal from the reader any thoughts which pass through his mind: his intelligence must be slightly, but very slightly, below that of the average reader.
10.Twin brothers, and doubles generally, must not appear unless we have been duly prepared for them.
September 6, 2022
Rattling good murder mystery of the classical Golden Age variety. I read it years ago and recently listened to it again. Usually I avoid Librivox versions like the plague, but I’ll recommend this one by Kevin Green. The secret is that (at least as far as I can hear from his accent) he’s a real Yorkshireman and so acts the Yorkshire characters in a completely authentic accent. I am deeply grateful for that: I detest readers who mess up dialects.
September 16, 2020
This was the fourth novel in the seventeen novel, twenty-eight short story monster-sized J.S. Fletcher anthology. It is my favorite of the first four. Well-written, fast paced, excellent plot and an interesting collection of characters, especially the villain. As has been noted in other reviews, Fletcher seems to be under-rated among the Golden Age murder/crime/detective writers.
January 13, 2022
Loved it!
March 25, 2024
This is a very good, solid mystery. There is not much surprising in the tale, but the plot, characters and atmosphere are all very well constructed.
September 12, 2012
The mysteries by J.S. Fletcher are a little uneven--some I have really enjoyed and others not so much. This book was quite good until the resolution, where everything got very tidy very quickly, which led to a disappointing finish. What Fletcher had happen pretty much had to be what happened, but it was as if he had a deadline with his publisher and only an hour to write the whole ending, so he did it as briefly as possible.
The premise was interesting though. We follow the "bad guy" who is looking for his chance to make it big. He works as a law clerk in a solicitor's office, so his prospects aren't all that high. He turns to blackmail and extortion to get ahead. He believes he is being quite reasonable, but of course he isn't. Not a bad story, but don't expect the ending to be as well done as the rest.
The premise was interesting though. We follow the "bad guy" who is looking for his chance to make it big. He works as a law clerk in a solicitor's office, so his prospects aren't all that high. He turns to blackmail and extortion to get ahead. He believes he is being quite reasonable, but of course he isn't. Not a bad story, but don't expect the ending to be as well done as the rest.
July 12, 2016
This is a crime story, not a crime mystery: At every stage, the reader is told what happens. And what happens is that the plans of the scheming crook who is the lead character of the story, slowly unravel, until he literally sees no way out. The feeling of inevitability that Fletcher seems to convey in this, is not very realistic, but it is convincing.
The pace of this book is slow at first, but rich, with a lot of detail. It then accelerates as if the writer lost patience, and finally wraps up with a deus (dea?) ex machina and some quick unexpected plot twists. That feels a bit sloppy. And some of the characters are very superficially sketched. It remains an entertaining story, perhaps a bit moralistic and simplistic.
The pace of this book is slow at first, but rich, with a lot of detail. It then accelerates as if the writer lost patience, and finally wraps up with a deus (dea?) ex machina and some quick unexpected plot twists. That feels a bit sloppy. And some of the characters are very superficially sketched. It remains an entertaining story, perhaps a bit moralistic and simplistic.
December 4, 2015
I just saw my review of "Middle Temple Murder" by the same author, which read exactly the same as the one I feel like writing about this one... This is a very good mystery that moves quite fast. Only, the end seems rushed, with things being tied up a bit too neatly.
Nevertheless, I enjoyed it a lot.
Nevertheless, I enjoyed it a lot.
March 20, 2021
This isn't so much a mystery as it is an adventure novel. We know, from the start, who did it (most of it) and why, but the fun lies in watching the amateur sleuth unravel the plot. The ending felt a bit rushed, but not nearly as badly as some of his other novels.
November 28, 2021
This is the best of the J. S. Fletcher mysteries I have read so far. We know from the start who is the guilty party, but the fun is in watching amateur detectives unravel the clues and track him down.
April 11, 2019
Linford Pratt a clerk in Barford comes across a document which he believes will make his life a lot easier. But what of the consequences.
An enjoyable mystery
An enjoyable mystery
January 20, 2021
Great book and a great listen to when narrated by mr green on LibriVox
April 20, 2025
Solid ,gripping stuff..nearly unputdownable even when you know who the culprit is .So many twists in the tale .While its still not at par with Middle temple murder ,its still a very good book with a plot that would make freeman wills crofts feel insecure . The book is not written as a detective story and multiple people unearth clues to solve the mystery but the story is very suspenseful to the end because there are more crooked/crafty people in the mix than expected . Also there are certain interesting incidents which are left unresolved but those does not really affect the story as such but one would expect a sequel of sorts for those events set 2 years before the present stoyline .For such an old mystery this was very very enjoyable.4.5 is the correct rating for this one .
January 17, 2024
Top marks and well worth a read if you like a good crime story.
Fantastic crime stories from an author of times gone by.
JS Fletcher knew how to create his characters, set the scenery well, and weave an intriguing plot. We might know who the murderer is from the start, but that doesn't spoil the unravelling of the tale.
Fantastic crime stories from an author of times gone by.
JS Fletcher knew how to create his characters, set the scenery well, and weave an intriguing plot. We might know who the murderer is from the start, but that doesn't spoil the unravelling of the tale.
June 23, 2018
Really enjoyable page-turner of a murder mystery.
September 19, 2023
Loved the twists and turns of this book. My kind of book where you know who the good guys are the the bad ones meet their match.
Read
November 2, 2023Plot twists and a character's trust in their own intuition kept me surprised through this one.
April 9, 2023
Young Linford Pratt, a senior law clerk in the town of Barfoot, seeks to advance in life by whatever means necessary. His chance comes when an elderly client comes in after hours because he has the will of a wealthy businessman who had died a couple of years ago without a known will. The client dies in the office and Pratt sees his big chance as he takes the will and plans to use it to his advantage in a blackmail scheme. However, complications quickly arise.
December 31, 2016
In TM Fletcher kills off the only interesting, if morally ambiguous, character. The one I was hoping would not die. BTW Fletcher does the same in The Paradise Mystery, with its brutal ending. It's more striking in TM because the rest of the cast is bland, except for the morally corrupt mother, who's really more of a caricature of mindless greed. A decent read.
May 25, 2008
The first of Fletcher's mysteries I read. Not the best of the early mystery writers, it's still fun. The mystery is a bit thin, but the characters are interesting with both a police detective and a gentleman forced by the circumstances in the plot to act as an amateur detective. (Scotland)
November 5, 2011
1920s mystery about a missing will
June 29, 2015
Give this one a pass. It does not age well.
August 9, 2016
Excellent murder mystery from 1920. The action moved right along.
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews