Forgotten Book - A Press of Suspects aka By-Line for Murder

Paul Winterton, himself the son of a journalist who had briefly been a Labour MP, had a successful career in Fleet Street (though he was rather less successful in politics, standing for election, but never making it all the way to Westminster) before becoming a full-time crime writer at around the same time that he was elected to membership of the Detection Club, in 1952. So when he set A Press of Suspects (1951) in Fleet Street, he was writing about what he knew. And this shows, because the setting around the fictional newspaper the Morning Call seems highly authentic, as well as interestingly and wittily described.

The story itself is equally interesting, a blend of inverted mystery novel and detective story. We begin by seeing things from the rather skewed perspective of a journo in the foreign department, Edgar Jessop. Edgar is hoping for promotion, but his dreams are dashed by the editor, who appoints a younger reporter, Cardew, to the plum job of Foreign Editor. This setback (perhaps, although this is not spelled out in any way, along with the recent death of his mother) causes Edgar to suffer a sort of mental breakdown.

Jealousy and rage bubble up and he decides to take revenge on his colleagues, including at least one individual who has always treated him well. Edgar's chosen method is poison, although some details of the plan are - quite skilfully - withheld from the reader. When his first victim dies, and Inspector Haines comes on to the scene to investigate, there are suspects more obvious than Edgar, and Garve juggles things skilfully so as to maintain suspense, even though we know whodunit. The idea of combining a workplace setting with an inverted mystery is a good one.

That said, there are some flaws in the book. In particular, attention shifts from Edgar, and his psychology becomes increasingly difficult to fathom. A bit more depth here might have been welcome. But you can't have everything, and although this is by no means my favourite Garve, I enjoyed the way he built up the tension.