Forgotten Book - Such Friends Are Dangerous

Such Friends Are Dangerous, written by Walter Tyrer and originally published in 1954 by the relatively obscure firm of Staples, is a novel to which my attention was drawn by Nigel Moss, who is extremely widely read in the genre, especially in terms of Golden Age detective stories; he's also a shrewd judge of a story. I discovered that the novel had also been highly praised by another good judge, John Norris, and even by the critics Barzun and Taylor (who weren't afraid to heap criticism, and were often sceptical about books I'd regard as very good). So I was curious to read it.

Did it live up to expectations? Yes, I'd say it did. I have a few quibbles, for instance about the title and some oddities of structuring, but overall this is an extremely enjoyable story, written in a light and pleasing style which shifts the spotlight of suspicion around the cast of characters in an effective way.

We begin by seeing Mrs Luton, who is devoted to an unworthy husband who treats her badly. Even worse, it turns out that although he's keeping her short of money, he is showering gifts on a younger married woman, Kitty Pinnock. It soon becomes clear that Kitty has made plenty of enemies in the local community and it comes as no surprise when she is murdered.

Much of the action centres around the local golf club and the detection is undertaken by the amiable DI Frodsham of Scotland Yard, who is aided and abetted by a mischievous local journalist called Charlie Weaver, who specialises in cadging drinks from his forbearing fellow villagers. I don't want to say anything that gives away the final twist. Suffice to say that I had a clear inkling of the truth early on, but there was one critical issue that eluded me completely, and which lifts this book from the ranks of the competent into something rather more interesting. 

Does Tyrer play completely fair? This is debatable, but I enjoyed the story so much that I'm happy to give him the benefit of the doubt. It's a pity that, so far as I know, he published nothing of similar quality. He is mainly associated with Sexton Blake stories and young adult fiction. This one is good enough to make one interested to read more of his work, just in case there are some hidden gems there.