Publication
Hodder & Stoughton (1999), 352 p.
Original publication date
1944
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Fiction. Mystery. HTML:A scientist flees Germany�??but meets death in a little English village: From "a first-rate storyteller" (The Daily Telegraph). Michael Harsch's life has never been easy. A German Jew, he fled his country when Hitler came to power, escaping the concentration camps by the skin of his teeth. His wife and daughter were not so lucky, and he vowed revenge on the Fuhrer through science. He set to work on a marvelous new explosive that, in the hands of the British army, could silence the German guns forever. But on the eve of his great triumph, the scientist is struck down. The government asks Miss Silver, the dowdy detective, to help solve the murder and recover the valuable explosive. Was Harsch killed by a half-mad opponent to the war effort, or was it one of Hitler's undercover agents who pulled the trigg… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member riverwillow
A wartime tale in which a death ruled a suicide at a local inquest, possibly isn't and Scotland Yard, in the shape of Chief Inspector Lamb and Sergeant Abbot are called in to investigate. When they make an arrest, fearful that the wrong person has been charged Miss Silver is called in and uncovers
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a complex wartime plot and a German spy. A good, fast and interesting read. Show Less
LibraryThing member rosalita
Wentworth has a knack for taking her time introducing Miss Silver, the unassuming elderly English woman who solves the mysteries in this series that bears her name, and this entry was a spectacular example of that. The first mention of our sleuth comes on Page 102 of a 221-page edition, and the
That late entry doesn't give her much time to work, but Miss Silver doesn't take long to inspire confidences from otherwise close-mouthed villagers and is soon well on her way to solving the crime, which ends up being multiple murders and a busted spy ring by the time all's done and dusted. Of course, it goes without saying that the man who has been arrested by the police (Miss Silver's old acquaintances Lamb and Abbott) isn't guilty of anything except being a rather large jackwagon. Fortunately for him and me, being universally unlikable is not a hanging offense, even in wartime England.
And of course there's a star-crossed couple who find their forever happiness forged in the crucible of double murder. Sigh. Ain't it romantic?
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woman herself does not make actual contact with one of the other characters until Page 118. This would be annoying except that the espionage-ish mystery as it's presented in the Silver-free opening chapters is pretty interesting.That late entry doesn't give her much time to work, but Miss Silver doesn't take long to inspire confidences from otherwise close-mouthed villagers and is soon well on her way to solving the crime, which ends up being multiple murders and a busted spy ring by the time all's done and dusted. Of course, it goes without saying that the man who has been arrested by the police (Miss Silver's old acquaintances Lamb and Abbott) isn't guilty of anything except being a rather large jackwagon. Fortunately for him and me, being universally unlikable is not a hanging offense, even in wartime England.
And of course there's a star-crossed couple who find their forever happiness forged in the crucible of double murder. Sigh. Ain't it romantic?
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LibraryThing member leslie.98
I figured out the culprit early on, which brought down my rating a bit. However the setting of this entry in the Miss Silver series involving the death of a refugee Austrian Jew scientist during WW2 was very good.
LibraryThing member ChazziFrazz
Michael Harsch has been working on a secret project for the last five years. He has finally finished it and will be handing it over to the government in the morning.
On his way home he crosses paths with a man who looks like someone from his past, but he isn’t too sure. Harsch feels it is the man
Harsch enjoys evening walks in the village he lives in and also has a key to the church where he plays the organ at some point in his evening walks. The next morning he is found dead at the organ. A gun is nearby and the door is locked. Because Harsch lost his wife and daughter by the Nazis, and still misses them greatly, the verdict is suicide due to his sadness over the loss of family.
Sir George Pendel of the War Office feels different, since the results of Harsch’s work was to be turned over to the War Office that morning. An investigation is ordered. Major Garth Albany is sent to investigate. Albany has an aunt in the village, so it gives him a cover in hopes of getting information from the locals.
Albany finds a number of possible suspects among the village residents. Chief Detective Inspector Lamb and Detective Sergeant Frank Abbott of Scotland Yard are sent down for extra power. The two officers arrest one of the suspects and charge them with murder.
Village residents feel there is a mistake and call in Miss Silver to find the real killer. Being an unassuming, dowdy, older lady, people find her non-threatening and are not afraid to talk with her. What they don’t realize is there are years of experience of acute observation of different personalities. She is able to sort the red herrings out and get to the real truth of the case and the real murderer. She also has a close friendship with DS Frank Abbott.
The Miss Silver mystery series runs along the lines of Christie’s Miss Marple. An enjoyable read.
On his way home he crosses paths with a man who looks like someone from his past, but he isn’t too sure. Harsch feels it is the man
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but doesn’t stop to speak to him.Harsch enjoys evening walks in the village he lives in and also has a key to the church where he plays the organ at some point in his evening walks. The next morning he is found dead at the organ. A gun is nearby and the door is locked. Because Harsch lost his wife and daughter by the Nazis, and still misses them greatly, the verdict is suicide due to his sadness over the loss of family.
Sir George Pendel of the War Office feels different, since the results of Harsch’s work was to be turned over to the War Office that morning. An investigation is ordered. Major Garth Albany is sent to investigate. Albany has an aunt in the village, so it gives him a cover in hopes of getting information from the locals.
Albany finds a number of possible suspects among the village residents. Chief Detective Inspector Lamb and Detective Sergeant Frank Abbott of Scotland Yard are sent down for extra power. The two officers arrest one of the suspects and charge them with murder.
Village residents feel there is a mistake and call in Miss Silver to find the real killer. Being an unassuming, dowdy, older lady, people find her non-threatening and are not afraid to talk with her. What they don’t realize is there are years of experience of acute observation of different personalities. She is able to sort the red herrings out and get to the real truth of the case and the real murderer. She also has a close friendship with DS Frank Abbott.
The Miss Silver mystery series runs along the lines of Christie’s Miss Marple. An enjoyable read.
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Language
Original language
English
ISBN
9780340689721
Physical description
352 p.; 4.37 inches
Other editions
The Key by Patricia Wentworth (Digital audiobook)
Pages
352