The Asking Price (Academy Mystery) - Softcover

Cecil, Henry

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0897333551 ISBN 13: 9780897333559

Publisher: Academy Chicago Publishers, 1990

Synopsis

Ronald Holbrook, a 52-year-old bachelor, has lived happily in Islington for the past 20 years, until June Doughty, the youngest daughter of his next-door neighbor, turns 17 and decides she is in love with him. When Jane tells him she intends to marry him, he is amused at first. But when he realizes she is deadly serious, he is forced to take action -- thereby hangs a very black comedy.

About this title

Review:

The secret of Mr Cecil's success lies in continuing to do superbly what everyone now knows he can do well., The Sunday Times

The secret of Mr Cecil's success lies in his continuing to do superbly what everyone knows he can do well.--The Sunday Times

About the Author:

Henry Cecil, known to many as His Honour Judge H.C. Leon, MC, was a High Court judge as well as a famous author. He wrote during the three-week-long family holidays which were usually spent in comfortable hotels in Britain. He would sit in a deck chair in a sunny garden, exercise book on lap and pen in hand, writing from 10 am to 1pm, then again from 2.30 to 4 pm each day. His writing career is attributed to his Second World War experiences. Sailing around the Cape on a 'dry' troop ship on the way to Cairo, the colonel asked his adjutant (Cecil) to tell stories to keep the officers' minds off alcohol. The stories were so popular that they became a regular feature, and formed the basis of his first collection, 'Full Circle', published in 1948. Thereafter, the legal year, his impressions at court, or at other official functions, as well as dinners at the Savoy Grill or at his club, the Garrick, all provided material for his considerable brain power. Many of his stories were made into films or plays - notably 'Brothers-in-Law' and 'Alibi for a Judge'. These and other books have also provided a stimulus for those wishing to take up law as a career. They are a delight for those who look for authenticity in the most aptly described British characters. Cecil died in May 1976, still at the height of his mental powers.

About this edition

• Publisher: Academy Chicago Publishers
• Publication date: 1990
• ISBN 10: 0897333551
• ISBN 13: 9780897333559
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 154