H. R. F. Keating – författare

Introducing Bombay CID's most dogged, dutiful officer, and one of the greatest, most engaging creations in all detective fiction, H.R.F. Keating's The Perfect Murder: The First Inspector Ghote Mystery includes a preface by Alexander McCall Smith, author of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, in Penguin Modern Classics.One crime that couldn't have happened, one that probably hasn't. Nothing's ever easy for Inspector Ghote. In the house of Lala Varde, a vast man of even vaster influence, an attack has taken place. Varde's secretary, Mr Perfect, has been struck on his invaluable business head. And try as Inspector Ghote might to remain conscientious and methodical, his investigation is beset on all sides by cunning, disdain and corruption. And then there's another urgent case to be dealt with: the impossible theft of a single rupee . . .H. R. F. Keating (1926-2011) was born at St Leonards-on-Sea, Sussex. He went to Merchant Taylors, leaving early to work in the engineering department of the BBC. After a period of service in the army, which he describes as 'totally undistinguished', he went to Trinity College, Dublin, where he became a scholar in modern languages. He was also the crime books reviewer for The Times for fifteen years. His first novel about Inspector Ghote, The Perfect Murder, won the Gold Dagger of the Crime Writers Association and an Edgar Allen Poe Special Award. His other works in Penguin Modern Classics include Inspector Ghote Breaks an Egg, Inspector Ghote Trusts the Heart, and Under a Monsoon Cloud: An Inspector Ghote Mystery.If you enjoyed The Perfect Murder, you might like Keating's Inspector Ghote Breaks an Egg, also available in Penguin Modern Classics.'May the redoubtable Ghote go on for ever'Len Deighton'Beautiful little classics' Alexander McCall Smith

Some crooks have tried to snatch the plump son of a business tycoon, and have accidentally made off with his playmate instead. But they're not changing their plan: a payment is to be delivered to them or a small corpse is to be delivered to Inspector Ghote.But what kind of ransom can a mere tailor's boy demand? And, as something more unpleasant than just a ransom note arrives from the kidnappers, are the police helping keep the boy in one piece?

What had until recently been a police sergeant is now lying at Ghote's feet bleeding its last. An accident it may have been, but Ghote saw exactly what happened, and it's his duty to arrest the killer. Isn't it? Or can the inspector better serve his beloved police force by disposing of the body, by concealing a crime? And if he does, will he manage to keep his terrible secret?As an Inquiry begins beneath the first torrents of monsoon rain - will he even want to?

In the house of Lala Varde, a vast man of even greater influence, an attack has taken place. Varde's secretary, Mr Perfect, has been struck on his invaluable business head. And try as Inspector Ghote might to remain conscientious and methodical, his investigation is beset on all sides by cunning, disdain and corruption. And then there's the impossible theft of a single rupee to be dealt with . . .The Perfect Murder introduced Inspector Ghote: Bombay CID's most dutiful officer, and one of the greatest, most engaging creations in all detective fiction.

In a small, provincial town in the heart of India, a politician's wife has done her husband's career a great service, by dying under suspicious circumstances. That the corpse and the trail have been cold for fifteen years hasn't saved Inspector Ghote of the Bombay CID from being sent to investigate. But what chance does he have when his chief suspect is so powerful, when the whole district is against him, and when a holy man is fasting to the death to protest his prying?But still the good inspector dutifully goes, carrying just the honour of his police force and a box of double-sized eggs . . .

This guide to writing crime fiction is based on the author's analysis of the craft from the classic detective story of the 1920s and 30s up to the female private eye novels of the 1990s. It features tips on fictional structure, the plot and its characters, and on submitting a script to publishers.

Jack Stallworthy is a bad detective just on the right side of corrupt. But now he's turning criminal...Detective Sergeant Jack Stallworthy has been accepting backhanders for most of his career. And why not? He's spent thirty years putting villains behind bars, surely he's entitled to a little nest-egg?Lily, the pretty wife he dearly loves, dreams of retirement on the tropical island Ko Samui, but Jack will happily settle for a bungalow in Devon. Until, that is, influential businessman Emslie Warnaby offers him paradise on a plate. All he has to do is steal one slim file from the Fraud Investigation office at police HQ. But soon Jack Stallworthy is dangerously out of his depth...

First published in 1975, A Remarkable Case of Burglary tells of Val Leary, who is handsome, charming and broke. On the morning of April Fools' Day 1871, while walking through one of London's wealthiest districts, he notices a young maidservant scrubbing the steps of 53 Northbourne Park Villas. In that instant he conceives the idea for a remarkable case of burglary. The set-up seems perfect, but chance intervenes in a succession of coincidences that place the jewels further and further beyond the reach of Val and his cronies - until... Set in the Upstairs, Downstairs world of Victorian England, this is an ingenious and gripping tale by the acknowledged master of the English crime novel.

In the rough, tough world where predatory young beauty queens compete fiercely for money, a murder is committed. Police Constable Peter Lassington is soon enmeshed in a complicated mystery - a mystery made more than usually exotic by the acreage of young feminine flesh that is continuously on show at the Star Bowl ballroom, rehearsing for the contest at which the St. Valentine prizes will be awarded. Lassington's superior, the officer in charge of the case, is Superintendent Ironside. Ironside - polite, sophisticated, devious - is somewhat sceptical about the charms of the young ladies: his thoughts roam forward to his imminent retirement. This detective novel is carefully plotted and firmly set in a world of bizarre values - values that do not appeal to Ironside, the most striking police detective to appear in fiction for some time. The naked competition of the adolescent beauty queens provides the background to a strange and exciting murder novel, with a surprise ending.

First published in 1978, this is a London where the worst has happened. There have been riots, huge uncontrolled fires, outbreaks of savage looting, artillery battles, mass flights. The great city lies three parts deserted, open to marauding gangs and beast-wild individuals, its highways and landmarks tumbled like ruined temples. To Mark, comparatively safe up in less troubled Highgate, there comes a message that his estranged wife is dying over in Wimbledon, right across on the far side of the dangerous bowl of the devastated city. Reluctant almost to sticking-point, he sets out to go to her. His journey is a story of adventure through the ruins. His immediate business is the simple one of pressing on through all the debris, always driven because he knows that Jasmine will die soon. He may never get there: he may be killed by idiotic accident, torn to pieces by the packs of wild dogs, trapped in one of the communes that within their stockades have established their own ruthlessly puritanical disciplines. But the difficulties and the dangers teach him lessons as he struggles onwards. He learns from the past. If it was drink, drugs and the dolce vita that had done for his wife, had not something similar destroyed the city too? He learns about the present amid its hazards. And he learns, as he comes at last to the bleak end of his Iong walk, lessons for a just possible future.

A delegation of visiting firemen arrives at Southampton, greeted by a stagecoach which carries a reception committee in early 19th century costume. This Old English greeting has been arranged between their president, Foster P. Schelemberger, and George Hamyadis, the flamboyant travel agent who is handling all the details of their visit to Britain. During an overnight stop in Winchester, Hamyadis reveals his plan for a little surprise to entertain the delegates during the journey to London the next day. But the surprise, when it comes, turns out to be a very grim one indeed - especially for Hamyadis...

Jack Stallworthy is a bad detective just on the right side of corrupt. But now he''s turning criminal...Detective Sergeant Jack Stallworthy has been accepting backhanders for most of his career. And why not? He''s spent thirty years putting villains behind bars, surely he''s entitled to a little nest-egg?Lily, the pretty wife he dearly loves, dreams of retirement on the tropical island Ko Samui, but Jack will happily settle for a bungalow in Devon. Until, that is, influential businessman Emslie Warnaby offers him paradise on a plate. All he has to do is steal one slim file from the Fraud Investigation office at police HQ. But soon Jack Stallworthy is dangerously out of his depth...

First published in 1975, A Remarkable Case of Burglary tells the tale of Val Leary, handsome, charming and broke. On the morning of April Fools'' Day, while walking through one of London''s wealthiest districts, he notices a young maidservant scrubbing the steps of 53 Northbourne Park Villas. In that instant he conceives the idea for a remarkable case of burglary. The set-up seems perfect, but chance intervenes in a succession of coincidences that continue to fox the team of would-be thieves. Set in the Upstairs, Downstairs world of Victorian England, this is an ingenious and gripping tale by the acknowledged master of the English crime novel.

In the dark world where predatory young beauty queens compete fiercely for money, a murder is committed. Police Constable Peter Lassington is soon enmeshed in a complicated mystery made more than usually exotic by the flesh that is continuously on show at the Star Bowl ballroom. Lassington''s superior, Superintendent Ironside, is polite, sophisticated, devious but also distracted by his imminent retirement. This detective novel is carefully plotted and firmly set in a world of bizarre values. A strange and exciting murder novel, with a surprise ending.

First published in 1978, this is a London where the worst has happened. There have been riots, huge uncontrolled fires, outbreaks of savage looting, artillery battles, mass flights. The great city lies three parts deserted, open to marauding gangs and beast-wild individuals, its highways and landmarks tumbled like ruined temples. To Mark, comparatively safe up in less troubled Highgate, there comes a message that his estranged wife is dying over in Wimbledon, right across on the far side of the dangerous bowl of the devastated city. Reluctant almost to sticking-point, he sets out to go to her. His journey is a story of adventure through the ruins. His immediate business is the simple one of pressing on through all the debris, always driven because he knows that Jasmine will die soon. He may never get there: he may be killed by idiotic accident, torn to pieces by the packs of wild dogs, trapped in one of the communes that within their stockades have established their own ruthlessly puritanical disciplines. But the difficulties and the dangers teach him lessons as he struggles onwards. He learns from the past. If it was drink, drugs and the dolce vita that had done for his wife, had not something similar destroyed the city too? He learns about the present amid its hazards. And he learns, as he comes at last to the bleak end of his Iong walk, lessons for a just possible future.

A monograph of Golden Age detective fiction from H.R.F. Keating, doyen of classic detective writers.Murder Must Appetize is an affectionate return to the halcyon days of the detective story when Hercule Poirot and Lord Peter Wimsey were young and a touch of arsenic was still the ultimate deterrent. Apart from old friends like Dorothy L. Sayers and Agatha Christie, we meet the less well remembered pioneers of detective fiction, including E.C.R. Lorac (alias for Edith Caroline Rivett) and her bookworm hero Inspector Macdonald; E.R. Punshon and his water swilling Chief Constable: not to mention Beatrice Lestrange Bradley, Gladys Mitchell's 'cacklingly reptilian psychiatric adviser to the Home Office' and many others.H.R.F. Keating's unashamed nostalgia is blended with the critical eye of a master of the detective fiction craft. He is uniquely equipped to act as guide and philosopher on this enthralling tour of Britain's rich heritage of fictional murder. No self-respecting escapist reader should fail to climb aboard.

In a country mansion converted to adult educational courses, Mr Utamaro is lecturing on Zen Buddhism to a small and not entirely appreciative audience. But Zen questions and their seemingly quirkish answers predominate, until they are superseded by two of greater urgency: ''Who stole the wakizashi?'' and ''Who killed Flaveen Mills?'' H. R. F. Keating provides the solution in the same brilliantly humorous vein which won him so many admirers with his first novel, Death and the Visiting Firemen.

A delegation of visiting firemen arrives at Southampton, greeted by a stagecoach which carries a reception committee in early 19th century costume. This Old English greeting has been arranged between their president, Foster P. Schelemberger, and George Hamyadis, the flamboyant travel agent who is handling all the details of their visit to Britain. During an overnight stop in Winchester, Hamyadis reveals his plan for a little surprise to entertain the delegates during the journey to London the next day. But the surprise, when it comes, turns out to be a very grim one indeed - especially for Hamyadis...

DCI Phil Benholme has the reputation for being soft because he tries to see both sides of every story. When Professor Unwala, Nobel Prize winner of 1945, is found dead, Benholme must find the right questions to ask. Was it a tragic accident? Was he a victim of a violent burglary? Or of a racist assault by Britforce troopers? Or did he know something about the collection of Celtic coins thought to be buried nearby? When all leads point to a member of his own family, what will the ''soft cop'' do to enforce the concept of innocent until proven guilty?

An independent island state in the North Atlantic has fallen under the sway of Rolph Mylchraine, a landowner who has gained ascendancy by stage-managing witchcraft orgies and purveying cheap liquor. Opposing him is Keig, a peasant of extraordinary physical strength, resulting in a guerrilla war.In The Strong Man, Keating has produced a unique and original cast of characters to illustrate the fatal tendency of power to corrupt.

This dazzling off-beat thriller is H.R.F Keating's fourth novel, published in 1962. Why is Roger Farrar, if that indeed was his name, on the run in Dublin? Is he a traitor and deserted? The innocent target of a kidnap plot? Or a lonely persecuted paranoiac? A classic tale edged with doubt and menace.

This novel, set in Victorian London in its heyday, presents a picture, both horrific and authentic, of the ''underside'' of life in the first city of the world. It tells of Godfrey Mann, a young painter, who has access to the golden world of privilege and yet is possessed by a compelling sexual drive towards the hidden squalor and darkness below, a nostalgie de la boue that wars tumultuously both with his ideals as an artist and his love for the lion-couraged social reformer, Elizabeth. It is between Godfrey''s reckless urges and Elizabeth''s purity that truth must ultimately lie. And in working out this conflict of opposites, the story, though placed in an age whose fixed moral structure contrasts so forcibly with our permissiveness, has a meaning for today. Here are ''scenes from Victorian life'' that will not be quickly forgotten. There are vignettes of the elegance of the upper side, as ornately formal in its social routines as in the sheer magnificence of its horses and carriages and opulent settings. There is the underside with its appealing sexuality, violence and open putrescence. There is, above all, the mingling of the two in a brilliantly brought to life picture or the whole rich, riotous, bawdy assembly of a Victorian Derby Day. It is compulsive story-telling, handled with the cool detachment and lucidity which in other fields have brought H.R.F. Keating a wide readership.

This novel, set in Victorian London in its heyday, presents a picture, both horrific and authentic, of the 'underside' of life in the first city of the world. It tells of Godfrey Mann, a young painter, who has access to the golden world of privilege and yet is possessed by a compelling sexual drive towards the hidden squalor and darkness below, a nostalgie de la boue that wars tumultuously both with his ideals as an artist and his love for the lion-couraged social reformer, Elizabeth. It is between Godfrey's reckless urges and Elizabeth's purity that truth must ultimately lie. And in working out this conflict of opposites, the story, though placed in an age whose fixed moral structure contrasts so forcibly with our permissiveness, has a meaning for today. Here are 'scenes from Victorian life' that will not be quickly forgotten. There are vignettes of the elegance of the upper side, as ornately formal in its social routines as in the sheer magnificence of its horses and carriages and opulent settings. There is the underside with its appealing sexuality, violence and open putrescence. There is, above all, the mingling of the two in a brilliantly brought to life picture or the whole rich, riotous, bawdy assembly of a Victorian Derby Day. It is compulsive story-telling, handled with the cool detachment and lucidity which in other fields have brought H.R.F. Keating a wide readership.

Ein filmreif in Szene gesetzter Mord erschüttert die berühmten Bollywood-Filmstudios von Bombay. Für einmal ist der Mord nämlich echt und endet äußerst tödlich. Das prominente Opfer: Indiens gefeierter Leinwandschurke Dhartiraj, ein Superstar. Detective Inspector Ghote sieht endlich seine Chance gekommen, sich als genialer Starermittler in der High-Society einzuführen. Doch hinter den Kulissen dieser eitlen Welt voll Glanz und Glamour lauern tausend Fallstricke auf den arglosen Aspiranten. Nur die Klatschspaltenkönigin, die ihre Schnabelnase gerne in die Ränke und Intrigen der Filmindustrie steckt, kann ihm weiterhelfen. Und auf einmal scheinen ziemlich viele Leute mit Dhartiraj, dem beliebten »Star ohne Feinde«, nicht gut Freund gewesen zu sein.

Kindesentführung in Bombay. »Keine Polizei!«, fordern die Erpresser. Aber weil Detective Inspector Ghote so unauffällig und gar nicht wie ein Polizeibeamter aussieht, wird er in die elegante Penthousewohnung des reichen Fabrikanten Manibhai Desai geschickt, um dabeizusein, wenn die Kidnapper anrufen. Da stellt sich heraus, dass die Entführer das falsche Kind erwischt haben: Desais Sohn hatte mit Pidku, dem Sohn des Schneiders, im Spiel die Kleider getauscht. Wird Desai trotzdem bezahlen? Und was werden die Verbrecher tun, wenn sie ihren Irrtum entdecken? Ein fünfjähriger Junge, Sohn eines armen Schneiders, bringt keine Rupie ein, sondern ist nur hinderlich, ja gefährlich …

Detective Inspector Ghote vom CID Bombay wird aufs Land geschickt. Als Hühnerfuttermittelvertreter getarnt soll er für einen Politiker die Todesursache der Gattin eines Konkurrenten ermitteln. Dummerweise ist besagte Gattin schon fünfzehn Jahre tot und niemand in der Kleinstadt hat die geringste Lust, sich mit dem örtlichen Machthaber anzulegen, der vor keinem Mittel zurückschreckt, um Ghote zu stoppen. Und dann tritt auch noch ein heiliger Mann in den Hungerstreik und wiegelt die Bewohner auf, damit Ghote endlich abreist. Die Situation wird mehr als brenzlig. Inspector Ghote muss sich etwas einfallen lassen, denn er ist zwischen alle Fronten geraten.

Es sieht zunächst ganz harmlos aus: Inspector Ghote soll nach Kalkutta reisen, dort einen Meisterverbrecher in Empfang nehmen und ihn nach Bombay eskortieren. Aber weil Ghote die Gelegenheit nutzen und aus der Reise einen Kurzurlaub machen will, nimmt er den Zug. Das hätte er besser nicht getan, denn seine Mitreisenden stellen sich schon bald als äußerst seltsam heraus. Die Reise quer durch Indien wird sehr, sehr aufregend.