The Middle of Things

The Middle of Things by J. S. Fletcher will certainly come up to expectations if you’re in the mood for a cracking good classic murder mystery. Fletcher’s novels were essentially puzzles and were not meant to be realistic portrayals of crime and criminals. This fine example has to do with Richard Viner, basically an average young man on the street who, more or less accidentally, finds a dead body in a dimly lit alley while he’s taking his usual nightly stroll. He calls police and when they arrive they figure it’s likely a robbery gone wrong because the dead man’s valuables are missing. However, a prime suspect is arrested trying to pawn some jewelry belonging to the victim. He happens to be an old schoolmate of Viner. Viner discovers the old chum is down and out and needs the money, so he decides to investigate and try get his pal vindicated. He gets some help from his elderly aunt; a delightful Bethia Penkridge. She has a sort of fluffy exterior but also some brilliant powers of deduction. The combination provides a quick and entertaining tale for young and old alike, and you’re unlikely to realize the book was published a century ago.