Violent Ends

this rare simenon edition from hamish hamilton is comprised of the two novels, "belle" & "the brothers rico." in "belle," a young girl, the guest of the spencer ashbys, is murdered in their home. ashby, a quiet & sensitive schoolmaster, is innocent, but he is the only one known to be in the house at the time & has no alibi. he is the only suspect. is he a 'likely' suspect? ashby quickly realizes he alone is asking that question. & so begins the obsessive self-analysis of a puritan, who patiently probes his soul, & his secret & equally ruthless examination of the content, secure little local community which he has always accepted w/o question. this is the story of spencer ashby's ordeal--of a man who delves relentlessly into the inner depths of his virility ... & discovers that he, too, could have committed a heinous crime. "the brothers rico" is a story based on the classic tragedy "cain & abel," set in the ordered violence of the underworld. eddie, gino & tony rico grew up among brooklyn thugs & slip easily into the world of crime. eddie, who detests violence, thinks he'll be smart & joins the organization. gino is a killer, while tony is mostly a driver on jobs. when tony suddenly vanishes, the organization orders eddie to find him. this is a story in which the life of one brother is set as the price of the other, in which brother hunts brother, driven from all instinct of blood feeling by the desperation of fear.