Dusty Death

A lost classic of crime fiction, introducing detective Clay Harrison

When respectable London landlady Mrs Humbleby visits the chambers of barrister and part-time private detective, Clay Harrison, with her account of the apparent suicide of a secretive lodger, she hopes he can help her solve the mystery before her reputation is ruined by a dead body in the spare bedroom; but neither party is prepared for the web of intrigue that lies before them.

With the help of his loyal clerk, Henry, and fuelled by countless cups of tea and fine cigars, Harrison follows the clues the dead man has left behind, and ends up in Geneva at the League of Nations, on the trail of press tycoon Baron Meyerling, the attractive and devious gossip columnist Jeanne de Marplay, and rumours of a drug smuggling ring.

First published in 1931, but largely forgotten and unjustly neglected since then, Dusty Death is a lost gem of classic crime fiction and is the first in a series of mysteries featuring the enigmatic and unflappable Clay Harrison.