BOOK REVIEW: Hopjoy Was Here by Colin Watson

I received this book for free from Netgalley. This did not influence my review.

For those who like police procedurals set in the relatively near past, laced with dry British humor, the re-release of Colin Watson’s Flaxborough Mystery series is a reason to celebrate. I’m on book 3, Hopjoy Was Here. This book was thoroughly entertaining and could stand alone, though I still recommend reading Book 1 first.

The novel opens with the removal of a bathtub from the home of mild-mannered tobacconist, Gordon Periam. It’s being carted away by policemen, evidence of a heinous crime committed in the house. The unflappable Investigator Purbright is in charge, so we settle in confident that the crime will be sorted out.

Periam is missing, as is his boarder, Brian Hopjoy. Hopjoy is known as a flashy spendthrift and somewhat of a playboy. He is also known, by pretty much everyone, to be an undercover agent for the secret service. His status as a spy is something he plays on to woo women and get out of paying his bills. It seems pretty safe to say that one of the men is a murderer and the other, the victim, but as there is no body it’s hard to say which is which.

Adding to Purbright’s difficulty is the arrival of two men from Hopjoy’s agency who have been sent to look into the disappearance of their man. To Purbright’s surprise, they are not discomfited by the fact that their associate may be dead and are equally comfortable with the idea that he is a murderer–though they assume that if Hopjoy killed Periam it was in the interest of national security. And, of course, it will all have to be hushed up.

Purbright sets to solving the crime while the secret agents set about discovering the larger problem, which they are certain exists.

The contrast between the methodical, intelligent, practical Investigator and the over-the-top, James Bond-like government agents is very cleverly amusing. The plot twists and turns keep a reader guessing right along with Purbright. His exacting attention to the smallest details will surely lead to the correct conclusion, but along the way, it’s a toss-up as to who is cleverer, Purbright or the criminal. (It’s certainly not the intelligence agents.)

Unlike many of the historical mysteries I’ve read recently, there is no love interest for Purbright to serve as a parallel plotline. In fact, we know very little at all about the investigator except what we learn by seeing him at work. Even so, he’s an increasingly endearing character, and I’ll continue reading this fun series.