Richard Patton, an ex-Detective Inspector, has been around the block when it comes to seemingly unsolvable crimes.
So when a well-known crook, Ronnie Cope, asks him to help prove he is innocent of a burglary Richard sets aside his knowledge of Ronnie's dubious reputation and agrees to look into it.
He wants the facts, and he isn't afraid to dig them out. But the facts come almost too fast for Richard to keep up.
Ronnie's alibi turns out to involve another burglary.
Meanwhile, Milo Dettinger, the surly proprietor of the local gaming club, also seeks out Richard's expertise, believing his son's alleged suicide was something more sinister.
Richard complies, but soon discovers that the only possible murder suspect is Milo himself.
And then there's the recent rape and murder of a young woman, Ruby Carter.
Coincidences? Or are the three cases linked?
Richard thinks he is digging out facts, but that's difficult to do when somebody's lying...
'The Key to the Case' is an expertly-plotted thriller that will keep readers guessing and second-guessing to the last page.
"Eclectic, underrated Ormerod can be relied upon to come up with the startling goods" Sunday Times
"I am glad to announce that the detective novel is still alive and well in Mr Ormerod's skillful hands" The Spectator
"Fast-moving, with well-orchestrated jiggery-pokery; not unlike an early Dick Francis in tone and method" - Times Literary Supplement
Roger Ormerod (1920-2005) was a prolific writer of ingenious and densely plotted crime novels - some 35 in all - which were published in the UK and the USA. He lived in Wolverhampton and amongst other things worked as a civil servant and as a Social Security inspector - backgrounds which he made full use of in his fiction, as he did with his hobbies of painting and photography.
Genre: Mystery
So when a well-known crook, Ronnie Cope, asks him to help prove he is innocent of a burglary Richard sets aside his knowledge of Ronnie's dubious reputation and agrees to look into it.
He wants the facts, and he isn't afraid to dig them out. But the facts come almost too fast for Richard to keep up.
Ronnie's alibi turns out to involve another burglary.
Meanwhile, Milo Dettinger, the surly proprietor of the local gaming club, also seeks out Richard's expertise, believing his son's alleged suicide was something more sinister.
Richard complies, but soon discovers that the only possible murder suspect is Milo himself.
And then there's the recent rape and murder of a young woman, Ruby Carter.
Coincidences? Or are the three cases linked?
Richard thinks he is digging out facts, but that's difficult to do when somebody's lying...
'The Key to the Case' is an expertly-plotted thriller that will keep readers guessing and second-guessing to the last page.
Praise for Roger Ormerod:
"Eclectic, underrated Ormerod can be relied upon to come up with the startling goods" Sunday Times
"I am glad to announce that the detective novel is still alive and well in Mr Ormerod's skillful hands" The Spectator
"Fast-moving, with well-orchestrated jiggery-pokery; not unlike an early Dick Francis in tone and method" - Times Literary Supplement
Roger Ormerod (1920-2005) was a prolific writer of ingenious and densely plotted crime novels - some 35 in all - which were published in the UK and the USA. He lived in Wolverhampton and amongst other things worked as a civil servant and as a Social Security inspector - backgrounds which he made full use of in his fiction, as he did with his hobbies of painting and photography.
Genre: Mystery
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