Hazard Chase

by Jeremy Potter

Alfred Pratt, the shady cockney millionaire, is all smiles when he ceremonially re-opens the real tennis court on the High Cheney estate recently bought from the young Lord Cheney. But his good humour vanishes when the theft of a valuable manuscript is quickly followed by a sudden and gruesome death in the ancient tennis court. Talbot B. Talbot, the American tennis champion, now turned amateur sleuth, becomes violently involved when he tries to unravel the mystery.

Genres: Fiction

222 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1964

About the author

Jeremy Potter served the Richard III Society as Chairman from 1971-1989. During his chairmanship, the Society launched several important initiatives, including the commissioning of a heroic statue of Richard III (on display in Castle Gardens, Leicester), the securing of royal patronage from H.R.H. Richard Duke of Gloucester, and the broadcast of a trial of Richard III, with Lord Elwyn-Jones, former Lord Chancellor, presiding. During his tenure, the Society also became active in sponsoring the publication of fifteenth-century source documents and works of current scholarship on the period. It also created the Richard III and Yorkist History Trust, which provides financial support for graduate study and publishing. Potter was elected President of the Society at its Annual General Meeting in London, October 4, 1997.

Reviews

[Sebastian Swallow · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good romp, but probably only if your a real tennis obsessive…

[Jordan · Rating 3 out of 5]

so this was a pleasant, oddball read, but what i'll remember most was this irrelevant to the story, racist and offensive moment early on in the book. it stood out especially because the book i just read before, footsteps in the dark, had an equally irrelevant, racist, mean comment that left me feeling gross for the rest of the read. this book was published in 1964 and footsteps in 1932, but it's bullshit of me to use those dates as justifications for my continuing to read them. as i finished both of these books, i'm clearly not at the point where a glimpse of an otherwise concealed racism from an author would lead me to stop a book i'm enjoying. but i hope the next time this happens i remember that my enjoyment will be short-lived and outlasted by the hatred i've condoned through reading.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

A mystery novel that revolves around real tennis. Since I don't know much about the sport, I thought the match scenes were a little bit over my head. But the dialogue and the lackadaisical way in which the murder was solved made up for any shortcomings. So many novels and movies from the 60s seem like romps through the countryside!

[Jacques Bromberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pleasant mystery, blessed with a Real Tennis setting.