NO HEARTS, NO ROSES
by Colin Murray
Although postwar England is slowly recovering from destruction and depravation, the propensity for violence never seems to goes away.
Tony Gérard has left behind a heroic past helping the French resistance. Now he does a little bookkeeping and sorts out problems for Les Jackson of Hoxton Films. The latest such problem is Beverly Beaumont, a starlet who claims to have misplaced her brother Jon, a Cambridge student. Before Tony can even begin to look for Jon, he runs into trouble in the form of Ghislaine Rieux, a wartime flame now married to Robert, a charmingly ruthless resistance fighter. Fed up with his faithlessness, Ghislaine has left Robert in Paris. Tony feels obliged to offer her a bed even though he’s certain the accommodation will lead to trouble. His pursuit of Jon is far from easy, especially once he runs into others who also want him and are not nice about asking questions. Events go from bad to worse when Jon’s roommate is garroted and when Jon hands Tony a package containing some valuable diamonds for his sister. The package is the property of a tough character named Jenkins who may be a crook or a government agent. Tony will be very lucky to stay alive as he tries to sort out the good guys from the bad.
Murray’s second thriller (After a Dead Dog, 2007) combines dollops of postwar atmosphere with thrills aplenty.