Suicide Excepted (1939)
Blurb:
My review:
Hare’s third novel surpasses expectations—more complex than When the Wind Blows, and as skilful (in a different way) as An English Murder. An elderly pessimist apparently commits suicide at the third-rate hotel that was his ancestral home, and the insurance company refuses to cough up the cash. The deceased’s son, daughter and her fiancé set out to bring about a verdict of murder, and so inherit the money. Characterisation is spot-on: the son is remarkably unpleasant, a self-centred and greedy prig; and the fiancé, whom he despises, is a likeable and agreeable type. The story is very well-plotted; and, despite a surfeit of hotel guests with motives for murder, a very clever and shocking triple solution.