In a Vain Shadow

by James Hadley Chase

It read, “Bodyguard required. Ex-Commando preferred. Good prospects and pay for the right man.” Frank Mitchell was out of a job, had all the qualifications, and that’s how he ended up guarding the body of Sarek, a black-market dealer of smuggled diamonds. But what really caught Frank's attention was the body of Rita, Sarek's wife, who had been waiting a long time for the foolproof plan get rid of her husband... and Frank walks in at the right moment...

Genres: Noir, Pulp, Novels, Thriller

144 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1951

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

[Dave · Rating 3 out of 5]

In A Vain Shadow

"In a Vain Shadow" is Chase's spin on Cain's Postman. Frank, despite no experience at all, answers an ad and becomes a bodyguard for an older diamond merchant, bunking with the merchant and his stunningly beautiful wife, Rita. Neither Frank nor Rita seem to like each other at first, but he can't take his eyes off his employer's wife and they both want him dead. What follows is predictable as Frank and Rita desperately plot a murder and a robbery, bumbling every chance they get and barely trusting each other, a distrust which grows even stronger after the deed is committed and they have to live with the consequences.

"In a Vain Shadow" never seems all that compelling and the romance doesn't always seem genuine. Also, the story suffers as some of Chase's novels do from bigotry and AntiSemitic stereotypes, which should have been cut by the editors and was unnecessary to the storyline.

[Paul Lothane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Let us face it, even in this our very modern times (let us discountenance covid 19 for now) a lot of myths still go around here in Africa in respect of the western world, white people specifically. Even now, you hear countless Africans e.g saying that there is no poverty in Europe, America, that "white people are never poor. Govt takes care of everybody". But of course this is not true, and those of us who read books like those written by author Chase are very much aware of this, as the author time and again zeroes in on the lives of ordinary (white) people overseas. Many of them are struggling, poor, hungry, disadvantaged and sometimes very desperate as they strive just to survive . And then of course we are confronted with individuals who are greedy, very greedy, with an "itch for big money" who can "take murder in their stride". Such is Frank Mitchell here, who is obsessed with the good life, and commits a murder in pursuance of this. Frank is not the most likeable of young men, and the disgusting manner in which he treats his girlfriend, Netta, lovely, loving, selfless and sweet, is unlikely to endear him to many readers anyway. As we are used to in Chase's books, Frank falls for another "dangerous" woman, Rita and his greed becomes magnified in the process. Yet the irony is that when Frank does kill, it is unintentional... but in the end he certainly intends to kill the cold Rita...hmmm

[Ionuț Anastasiu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Romanul publicat în anul 1951, an în care scriitorul britanic a scos pe piață nu mai puțin de 4 romane, cu pseudonimul Raymond Marshall, este, așa cum unii cititori au observat, o versiune proprie a celebrului Poștașul sună întotdeauna de două ori de James M. Cain. Fără să fie la fel de bun ca acesta și, de asemenea, fără să devină un roman de referință. Dar nu este nici o carte slabă, ci are și unele puncte destul de tari, dintre care poate cel mai important este modul în care se succedă răsturnările de situație, atât de frecvente la James Hadley Chase.
Frank Mitchell (eroul narator din Poștașul... se numește Frank Chambers, prin urmare chiar și prenumele celor două personaje este identic) este un pachet de mușchi, dar nu are doar forță brută, ci și creier sau cel puțin așa pretinde, fără ca acțiunile sale ulterioare să confirme această convingere a sa. Problema principală a lui Frank este o dublă problemă; mai întâi, îi plac mult prea mult banii și se declară dispus să facă orice pentru a pune mâna pe ei, inclusiv o crimă; pe de altă parte, este incapabil să o aprecieze la adevărata ei valoare pe extrem de devotata sa iubită, Netta, ce îi mărturisește direct: "M-aş putea lipsi şi de bani, şi de voiajul în America. Pe tine te vreau". Numai că, din păcate, Netta nu este suficientă pentru Frank, ce are aspirații mult mai mari, dar și mai riscante, astfel încât, atunci când soția șefului său, femeia fatală Rita, îi propune un plan de ucidere a soțului ei, tâmpitul tâmpiților nu poate să zică nu. Regretele ulterioare vor fi, bineînțeles, inutile. Lectură plăcută!

P.S. Acest roman mi-a trezit dorința de a reciti Poștașul..., după mai bine de 20 de ani de la prima lectură, ceea ce poate fi considerat un alt punct forte al său.

[sathvik · Rating 4 out of 5]

really dissopointed to see that people did not read this book much and those who read did not care to review this jewel.if you are not a general james hadley chase reader then you would reallly love this book because this was my first book written by him. the second book bored me a little though. this was an epic book .the story starts of with charecteres with a lot mystery in them and later the plot proceeds literally hokking the reader. i was just having a glance at this book at night 1 o clock that time i was tired to the bone .started reading it left it 3 hours later . had a nap of 4 hours and reread it . was reall fun reading it . i know its an old book .but really good oe up for a thriller then go for it. it will giv e you more that you asked for

[Paul Cornelius · Rating 2 out of 5]

Frankie Mitchell plans a murder and everything goes awry in this surprisingly tedious JHC story. For the first time since picking up his books, I found myself having trouble getting to the end. The plot is a well worn one. No surprises, most everything easily predictable. Things did improve towards the end, with Frankie's psychological unravelling. But it wasn't enough to save the story, JHC usually produced much better work than this.

[Installshield Wizard · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wonder if James Hadley Chase really hated happy endings that much, as a great deal of his stories usually end on a pessimistic note. This one is no exception. Aside that it's a good thriller with an interesting plot. The characters of Sarek and his secretary are kinda bizarre tho. they gave me E.T.A Hoffmann vibes.
It also reminded me of the story "Just another sucker". the main character is psychologically similar to Barber.

[Lucius Etruscus · Rating 5 out of 5]

Da un maestro del noir non mi aspettavo di meno! Il crimine che avverrà è abbastanza ovvio, ma la forza del romanzo sta proprio nel fatto che gioca con il lettore, e lo stupisce appena si è convinto di aver capito dove stia andando la storia. Un'ottima e tesissima guerra psicologica fra i personaggi, un romanzo da gustarsi in un sol boccone!

[Emmanuel Wallart · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good story located in London after the war. An husband hiding diamonds, her wife who wants to see him dead and between them, Frankie Michtell hired as a body guard. Lust, murder and suspens, a JHC book...

[Prashanth · Rating 4 out of 5]

The storyline is pretty good, but it feels like there is a bit of a drag towards the end and the climax was a bit abrupt. However it’s a good thriller each character has its own importance and portrayed pretty well.

[Sen Savithri · Rating 3 out of 5]

A reasonably good JHC London based

[thai · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hấp dẫn kịch tính

[Mark Vickers · Rating 3 out of 5]

" Bodyguard Required, Ex-Commando preferred.
Good prospects and Good pay for the right man," that's how the advertisement read. An out of work, Frank Mitchell, applied for the job and had all the right qualifications. The body that needed protection, was Sarek, a black market dealer, who smuggled in diamonds and had a very sexless secretary, Emmie. Sarek also had a wife, the beautiful Rita, who came from a shady past. Rita had been waiting for a long time, with a fool-proof plan to rid herself of her husband, when Frank Mitchell walked into her life....