Dead on the Track

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Dead on the Track
Dead on the Track.jpg
American first edition
Author John Rhode
Country United Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Series Lancelot Priestley
GenreDetective
Publisher Collins (UK)
Dodd Mead (US)
Publication date
1943
Media typePrint
Preceded by The Fourth Bomb  
Followed by Men Die at Cyprus Lodge  

Dead on the Track is a 1943 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. [1] [2] It is the thirty seventh in his long-running series of novels featuring Lancelot Priestley, a Golden Age armchair detective. [3] Like a number of mystery novels of the era, it has a railway setting. In theme and plot it is very similar to the author's earlier 1931 work Tragedy on the Line . [4] It is the first entry in the series since Hendon's First Case (1935) in which Priestley's old associate Hanslet is the lead investigator. The other recurring police officer in the series Inspector Jimmy Waghorn is now working with military intelligence. [5]

Contents

Synopsis

Near the small settlement of Filmerham, the stationmaster discovers a body lying close to the tracks not far from the station. Due to a wartime shortage of police personnel, the retired Superintendent Hanslet is called back into action. By recalling an earlier deduction made by Priestley in a similar case, he is able to work towards a solution.

Related Research Articles

<i>Hendons First Case</i> 1935 novel

Hendon's First Case is a 1935 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. It is the twenty first in his long-running series of novels featuring Lancelot Priestley, a Golden Age armchair detective. The novel introduced the character Inspector Jimmie Waghorn, a graduate of the newly established Hendon Police College. Over time Waghorn would increasingly become the dominant figure of the series, taking over the role from Priestley who took up a smaller, advisory role.

<i>Shot at Dawn</i> 1934 novel

Shot at Dawn is a 1934 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. It is the nineteenth in his long-running series of novels featuring Lancelot Priestley, a Golden Age armchair detective. It was one of the best received novels in the series. In a review in the Sunday Times Dorothy L. Sayers wrote "Mr. John Rhode is one of those kind, thoughtful writers who patiently explain all the technical points of the narrative in words that a child could understand." Ralph Partridge in the New Statesman observed "Shot At Dawn is developed in that incalculable way which keeps one’s attention at the stretch, until the very last page—I actually got a thrill out of the verdict of the jury! The Crime Club has selected the book, and I certainly could not better their selection from the detective novels that have come my way in the last few months."

<i>Death on the Board</i> 1937 novel

Death on the Board is a 1937 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. It is the twenty sixth in his long-running series of novels featuring Lancelot Priestley, a Golden Age armchair detective. It was published in the United States by Dodd Mead under the slightly altered title Death Sits on the Board.

<i>Nothing But the Truth</i> (Rhode novel) 1947 novel

Nothing But the Truth is a 1947 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. It is the forty forth in his long-running series of novels featuring Lancelot Priestley, a Golden Age armchair detective.

<i>Death in Harley Street</i> 1946 novel

Death in Harley Street is a 1946 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. It is the forty third in his long-running series of novels featuring Lancelot Priestley, a Golden Age armchair detective. Several sources consider it to be the author's masterpiece.

<i>Up the Garden Path</i> (novel) 1949 novel

Up the Garden Path is a 1949 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. It is the forty ninth in his long-running series of novels featuring Lancelot Priestley, a Golden Age armchair detective. It was published in America by Dodd Mead under the alternative title The Fatal Garden. Reviewing the novel in The Observer, Maurice Richardson concluded "Mr. Rhode has lost very little of his grip."

<i>The Paper Bag</i> 1948 novel

The Paper Bag is a 1948 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. It is the forty sixth in his long-running series of novels featuring Lancelot Priestley, a Golden Age armchair detective. It was published in America by Dodd Mead under the alternative title The Links in the Chain.

<i>The Two Graphs</i> 1950 novel

The Two Graphs is a 1950 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. It is the fiftieth in his long-running series of novels featuring Lancelot Priestley, a Golden Age armchair detective. It was published in America by Dodd Mead under the alternative title Double Identities. Writing in The Observer Maurice Richardson noted a "slight slackening of tension towards the finish but an excellent specimen of Rhode’s later period."

<i>The Telephone Call</i> (novel) 1948 novel

The Telephone Call is a 1948 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. It is the forty seventh in his long-running series of novels featuring Lancelot Priestley, a Golden Age armchair detective. It was published in America by Dodd Mead under the alternative title Shadow of an Alibi. It is based on the real-life Wallace Case of 1931 in which William Herbert Wallace was convicted of murdering his wife Julia, a conviction which was later overturned on appeal.

<i>Blackthorn House</i> 1949 novel

Blackthorn House is a 1949 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. It is the forty eighth in his long-running series of novels featuring Lancelot Priestley, a Golden Age armchair detective.

<i>Night Exercise</i> 1942 novel

Night Exercise is a 1942 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. It is a stand-alone wartime novel from Rhode, best known for his long-running series featuring Lancelot Priestley. It was published in America by Dodd Mead under the alternative title Dead of the Night.

<i>Family Affairs</i> (novel) 1950 novel

Family Affairs is a 1950 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. It is the fifty first in his long-running series of novels featuring Lancelot Priestley, a Golden Age armchair detective. It was published in America by Dodd Mead under the alternative title The Last Suspect. It has been described as "probably the best post-war Rhode novel".

The Secret Meeting is a 1951 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. It is the fifty second in his long-running series of novels featuring Lancelot Priestley, a Golden Age armchair detective. It was published in America the same year by Dodd Mead. Unusually for the series it has an early Cold War element.

Dr. Priestley's Quest is a 1926 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. It was the second appearance of the armchair detective Lancelot Priestley, who featured in a long-running series of novels during the Golden Age of Detective Fiction. It has been described as the first major detective novel by the author. In its relationship between Priestley and his secretary and future son-in-law Harold Merefield is shown the influence of Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes and Watson. Similarly, Inspector Hanslet of Scotland Yard fulfils a similar role to that of Lestrade.

<i>The Motor Rally Mystery</i> 1933 novel

The Motor Rally Mystery is a 1933 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. It is the fourteenth in his long-running series of novels featuring Lancelot Priestley, a Golden Age armchair detective. It was published in the United States by Dodd Mead under the alternative title Dr. Priestley Lays a Trap. It takes place against the backdrop of the real life RAC Motor Rally, which concluded at Torquay.

<i>The Robthorne Mystery</i> 1934 novel

The Robthorne Mystery is a 1934 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. It is the seventeenth in his long-running series of novels featuring Lancelot Priestley, a Golden Age armchair detective. It was published in the United States the same year by Dodd Mead.

<i>Proceed with Caution</i> 1937 novel

Proceed with Caution is a 1937 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. It is the twenty seventh in his long-running series of novels featuring Lancelot Priestley, a Golden Age armchair detective. It was published in the United States the same year by Dodd Mead under the alternative title Body Unidentified.

<i>Men Die at Cyprus Lodge</i> 1943 novel

Men Die at Cyprus Lodge is a 1943 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. It is the thirty eighth in his long-running series of novels featuring Lancelot Priestley, a Golden Age armchair detective. Reviewing it for the San Francisco Chronicle, Anthony Boucher wrote "at his best, nobody can touch Rhode for ingenious murder gadgets and very few can top him for meticulous unravelling; he's very close his best in this one".

<i>The Bloody Tower</i> 1938 novel

The Bloody Tower is a 1938 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. It is the twenty ninth in his long-running series of novels featuring Lancelot Priestley, a Golden Age armchair detective. It was published in the United States the same year by Dodd Mead under the alternative title Tower of Evil. It is notable amongst Rhode's more realistic style during the series, for its Gothic elements. For The Gaurdian E.R. Punshon wrote "in The Bloody Tower Mr. John Rhode gives another excellent example of his eminently satisfactory and solid talent.".

<i>The Fourth Bomb</i> 1942 novel

The Fourth Bomb is a 1942 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. It is the thirty sixth in his long-running series of novels featuring Lancelot Priestley, a Golden Age armchair detective. In The Observer Maurice Richardson wrote "Inspector Waghorn does the investigating, but the evidence is so contradictory and suspicion so widely distributed that the solution calls for Dr. Priestley, whom, you will be sorry to hear, I thought was looking alarmingly shaky. Sound recommendation, of course" while Isaac Anderson in the New York Times wrote "It is merely the familiar Dr. Priestley formula set against the background of wartime England."

References

  1. Evans p.91
  2. Magill p.1417
  3. Reilly p.1257
  4. Evans p.134
  5. Evans p166

Bibliography