Showing results by author "Freeman Wills Crofts" in All Categories

Dr James Earle and his wife live in comfortable seclusion near the Hog's Back, a ridge in the North Downs in the beautiful Surrey countryside. When Dr Earle disappears from his cottage, Inspector French is called in to investigate. At first he suspects a simple domestic intrigue - and begins to uncover a web of romantic entanglements beneath the couple's peaceful rural life. The case soon takes a more complex turn.

A late-night murder of a diamond merchant’s veteran employee in London’s Hatton Gardens has Scotland Yard calling on Inspector French to investigate. When French gets there he finds not only the victim but missing diamonds and money from an open safe. There are meager clues as the Inspector follows a trail to mainland Europe and back. There are many false clues and several suspects with much of the searching leading to nothing but dead ends. We can listen as French sorts it all out, finding the missing diamonds and nabbing the murderer.

George Surridge, director of the Birmington Zoo, is a man with many worries: his marriage is collapsing; his finances are insecure; and an outbreak of disease threatens the animals in his care. As Surridge's debts mount and the pressure on him increases, he begins to dream of miracle solutions. But is he cunning enough to turn his dreams into reality - and could he commit the most devious murder in pursuit of his goals?

From the Collins Crime Club archive, the fifth Inspector French novel by Freeman Wills Crofts, once dubbed ‘The King of Detective Story Writers’. THE PUZZLE OF THE PURPLE SICKLE The suicide of a sales clerk at the box office of a London cinema leaves another girl in fear for her life...

Experience the golden age of detective fiction with Freeman Wills Crofts, a distinguished figure akin to Agatha Christie and Raymond Chandler. Listen as the meticulous Inspector French, a diligent Scotland Yard detective, takes on the intriguing case of Maxwell Cheyne. After a strange incident at a country inn where hes drugged and his home burgled with nothing stolen, Cheyne finds himself at the mercy of a relentless criminal gang. Its up to the workman-like Inspector French to decipher this puzzling conspiracy. Crafted by a former railway engineer, this riveting tale is sure to captivate you...

Journey alongside Inspector French of Scotland Yard as he tirelessly pursues leads in a gripping murder-heist case. From the gritty streets of Hatton Garden to the corners of the British Isles and beyond, Frenchs relentless pursuit of justice will take listeners on a thrilling adventure across the continent. Will he finally catch the culprit? Dive into this enthralling narrative and find out.

Crofts’ inaugural masterpiece, Cask, is a 1920 detective mystery that still captivates readers even after he wrote countless other novels throughout his nearly four-decade-long career. The plot thickens when a cask, presumed to be full of statuary, is inadvertently damaged during its unloading in London, revealing a shocking surprise. The ensuing mystery stirs the curiosity-- will Inspector Burnley crack the case? Tune in to this thrilling narrative by Verla Viera to find out.

From the Collins Crime Club archive, the fourth Inspector French novel by Freeman Wills Crofts, once dubbed ‘The King of Detective Story Writers’. THE BODY THAT CAME FROM NOWHERE Off the coast of Burry Port in south Wales, two fishermen discover a shipping crate and manage to haul it ashore...

Journey with an orphan girl as she escapes the gloom of her uncles home in Starvel Hollow for a brief excursion to York. A chance to meet an old friend of her fathers soon becomes a nightmare when she gets news of a devastating fire back home. But was it a mere accident or a calculated act of malice? The puzzle falls into the hands of the meticulous Inspector French from Scotland Yard. What shocking secret will be unearthed from the ashes of Starvel Hollow? Tune in to find out. (Summary by Yoganandh T)

A simple fishing trip takes a turn for the gruesome as a submerged crate concealing an unidentified body is inadvertently unearthed. Its up to the methodical and deductive Inspector French to untangle the complex web of deceit surrounding this chilling and cunningly executed crime. Summary by Steven Warner.

When Sir William Ponson is discovered deceased, his son and nephew raise the suspicions of Inspector Tanner from Scotland Yard. Believing they may have had a hand in Sir Ponsons demise, Tanner embarks on a relentless pursuit of truth. But the path is anything but straightforward, leading him on a chase thats as unpredictable as it is perplexing.

The unloading of a consignment of French wine from the steamship Bullfinch is interrupted by a gruesome discovery in a broken cask leaking sawdust and gold sovereigns. But when the shipping clerk returns with the police, the cask and its macabre contents have gone. Following the clues to Paris, Inspector Burnley of Scotland Yard enlists the help of the genial French detective M. Lefarge to check motives and alibis in their hunt for evidence of a particularly fiendish murder.

When a signalman discovers a mutilated body inside a railway tunnel near Groote Park, it seems to be a straightforward case of a man struck by a passing train. But Inspector Vandam of the Middeldorp police isn’t satisfied that Albert Smith’s death was accidental, and he sets out to prove foul play in a baffling mystery which crosses continents from deepest South Africa to the wilds of northern Scotland, where an almost identical crime appears to have been perpetrated.