Somebody at the Door

When Henry Grayling, the victim in this worthy British Library Crime Classics entry, takes his usual train home from his London firm one frigid January evening in 1942, five of his nine carriage-mates have more than the usual reasons for wishing him ill. But which of them held a mustard-gas–soaked handkerchief up to his nose, causing his slow and agonizing death? Home Guard Cpl. George Ransom, harassed by Grayling, his lieutenant; Professor Mannheim, a German refugee, falsely accused by Grayling of being a spy; Hugh Rolandson, whom Grayling had just discovered was his wife Renata’s lover; or Renata herself, who wished to end a repulsive marriage? In this 1943 mystery, Postgate (1896–1971) reveals the backstories of his well-drawn characters with the same thoroughness as in his classic Verdict of Twelve (1940), and his opinion of his fellow humans is not overly kind. The portrait of Britain at war and a trip through Germany right before the start of WWII have an immediacy that’s fascinating for today’s reader with an interest in the history of the time. (Dec.)