RECENT FICTION

Otago Daily Times, Issue 21390, 18 July 1931, Page 4

RECENT FICTION

" All Passion Spent." By V. Sackvillc-West (the Hogarth Press). " Steamboat Gold.” By George W. Ogden (Hodder and Stoughton). “ The Partner." By Jenaro Prieto. English Version by Blanca de Roig and Guy Bowler (Thornton Butterworth). " Circus Show.” By Joseph Belmont (Hutchinson). “ The Flaming Crescent." By Ottwell Binns (Ward, Lock). “ Beyond the Hill." By, A. C. G. Hastings (Jenkins). “ Murder at Monk's Barn." By Cecil Waye (Hodder and Stoughton). “ Wolf Net." By Winifred Graham (Hutchinson). (Each Gs net). Portrait of a Dowager Mrs Sackville-West has taught us to expect from her pen portrait-drawing that is done in a precise, graceful manner, and invested with the all but indefinable quality that is style. Sometimes cynicism has been close to the surface, but it is rarely in evidence in “ All Passion Spent ” —yet on second thoughts the reader may decide this is all cynicism or irony delicately concealed. “ All Passion Spent ” is the autobiography in thought of an old lady of eighty-eight, whose life has been one long triumph of reflected glory, but also of frustration. She had married Henry Holland when he was a rising young politician, and'spent some seventy years with him as lie rose—ambassador, governor. Viceroy of India, Prime Minister, the Earl of Slane, a statesman honoured by nations and by monarchs. His wife was capable of taking her allotted place at his side with dignity always, and she was as devoted to him as he to her. Yet when, rather sadly, slightly whimsically, she looks back she wonders if perhaps the fulfilment of her own ambitions would not have meant life to her on a fuller plan. In her modest home at Hampstead she ponders as she entertains her three old men friends —a delightful eccentric, a decorator of' quality, and a millionaire collector who alone has read her secret. There is nothing dull in this quiet, finished study. It is all very stimulating, with Miss SackvilleWest’s sure touches of humour and pathos tinting the portrait. “ All Passion Spent ” is very good, both as to the old lady herself and the drawing of her friends and that great grand-daughter who promises to live her own life as Lady Slane had failed to do.

Searching For Treasure Morning Star was the name of a Missouri River steamboat which was wrecked in 1864. Besides a huge load of whisky, the old steamer had a vast amount of gold in her holds, Jonathan Randolph, son of the skipper of the Morning Star, comes to Harris to try to recover the treasure. He learns that four men have preceded him at various times, on the same quest, and all except the last disappeared without a trace. The last was found dead and horribly mutilated. Not to be deterred by this mystery, however, Randolph locates the wreck and commences work. Consternation arises among friends when he, too, disappears, but his disappearance marks the commencing solution of the mystery of the other three seekers, and also the lifting of the terror which has pervaded the countryside for years. Randolph finds a treasure, though not the one he originally sought, and peace returns to Harris. A delightful love story marches with the main theme, and assists in making this a fascinating adventure tale. The Silent Partner Julian Pardo was a Chilean man of business. Being impressed by the frequency with which his fellow business men held up important transactions with the excuse that they must consult their partners before making a decision, he invented a “partner” for himself.. At first all went well; his business affairs prospered, and he became a man of public note. After some time, however, he realised how completely he was dependent upon this suppositious “ partner,” and tried to get rid of him —even going so far as to stage a faked duel. It is at this point that the story, which so far has-been a fantastic comedy, assumes a tragic hue, and poor Pardo is finally overwhelmed by the child of his imagination. Upon so simple a theme Jenaro Prieto has built up a story which is realism itself, and which will grip the reader to the last page. “ Circus Show ”

Joseph Belmont’s “Circus Show” is a sensational —almost too sensationalstory written by one who has himself had rich experience as an acrobat and trainer of animals and who writes vividly, sometimes crudely, upon a subject that permits of dashing narrative. The tale is of the unfortunate Rudolf Parry, strong man in a Continental circus, who becomes involved with the police and is hunted for a murder committed by another. We follow Rudolf and the murderer breathlessly in their endeavours to avoid the authorities, and are inspired to pity both of them. Even more do we pity the animals in the circus and menagerie, which apparently in Europe are treated with the utmost cruelty. A happy ending to Rudolf’s troubles does not allow us to forget that the luckless beasts will continue to be bullied and beaten. “ Circus Show ’’ is very exciting entertainment of its kind, and the animal portraiture is excellent. It is a translation from the German. Egypt and Morocco

The hero of Mr Binns’s “ The Flaming Crescent” is Michel Chevrell, an English big game hunter, but the most important person is a dark, beautiful woman who wears on her brow a crescent and star of emeralds, the sign of a mysterious Egyptian society, which is planning to precipitate a Moslem Holy War. Chevrell first encounters the lady and the sign in Cairo, "and takes away grim recollections of the meeting. Again in Paris he comes in touch with the conspirators, and eventually fights it out with them in a lonely house on Dartmoor. There is plenty of adventure in this bo'ok. Mr Binns holds the reader’s interest to the climax as only an accomplished story-teller can do. In “ Beyond the Hill ” the strangely mystical atmosphere of Eastern places is maintained, though the scene has shifted from Egypt to Morocco. Clement Lock had deserted from the Foreign Legion and assisted the Berbers in the war against the French. Just when he .is preparing to move on he becomes involved in the case of four Europeans who are kidnapped by Berbers in the mountains, and is instrumental in saving them at the risk of his life. He has rejected the advances of a wilful young lady of the party, Sylvia Fane, and out of pique she reveals his Identity to the French authorities at Fez, with the result that the gallant adventure,, is engaged in fresh deeds of daring before he wins to safety and the love of a good ■woman

The Female of the Species “ Murder at Monk’s Barn ” is a well-told and very interesting mystery story which commences with the shooting of a man who is shaving in preparation for a dance. The murdered man, Gilbert Wyntuer, lived in an old English house in Fordingham, and had good friends who determined to solve the problem of his death. For this purpose they bring in Christopher Perrin and his sister Vivienne, to investigate the matter. Vivienne, who conducts inquiries on the scene, proves herself an accomplished criminologist, and her shrewd deductions eventually lead to the exposure of a sinister, cleverly-conceived plot “ Murder at Monk’s Barn ” as a “ thriller ” that will appeal to the reader who likes to have things intelligently explained. From a female detective we pass on to a female criminal, Miss Winifred Graham’s “laughing, reckless, looting Lou,” who has now burgled her way through three novels. In “Wolf-Het” Lou continues her exploits assisted by an eminent and unscrupulous art critic, and steals a famous Rubens from Hampton Court Palace. There is a suggestion that Lou is going to reform, which seems to be all to the good. V. V.L. Except In (he case of Action the prices of books and other publications Issued outside Australia and New Zealand reviewed on this page are the prices at tho place of origin, and generally are subject to alteration in New Zealand.