RUMPOLE ON TRIAL

by John Mortimer ‧ RELEASE DATE: Dec. 1, 1992

Seven more cases for the inimitably waggish defender Rumpole. As usual, each adventure mingles Rumpole's attempts to procure justice for his guilty-looking clients with disturbances in his domestic or professional circle--his invitation to visit the titled relatives of his wife (She Who Must Be Obeyed); his amatory pursuit by a cellist too pure-hearted to appreciate the virtues of Pommeroy's Plonk; the scheming of his colleague Phillida Erskine-Brown to elevate her nitwit husband Claude to Queen's Council; Mrs. Rumpole's purchase of a burglar alarm--that wily veteran Mortimer (Rumpole à la Carte, etc.) ties into the cases in variously ingenious ways. The first three stories are routine, but the last four (including a rare and expert short-short and the title story, wherein Rumpole faces dismissal from the bar) are delightful. Since the death of Rex Stout, no one's drawn so endearingly unchanging a portrait of any fictional detective's world. Vive Rumpole!

Pub Date: Dec. 1, 1992

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: 256

Publisher: Viking

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 1992

Categories: FICTION