"A 1956 stumper with an intriguing twist."--Booklist

This rare and spirited mystery novel was first published in 1956. This edition includes an introduction by CWA Diamond Dagger and Edgar(R) Award-winning author Martin Edwards.

As he walked away from the phone there was a puzzled expression on Blampignon's massive countenance. He was thinking: Le Touquet again!

With some trepidation Nigel Derry approaches the country house of his enigmatic and unpredictable Aunt Gwenny for an Easter holiday visit. After a tense few days in which her guests' interactions range from awkward dinners to a knife fight, a disgruntled Aunt Gwenny departs for Europe. Receiving a telegram from Le Touquet inviting him to join Gwenny in the south of France, Nigel finds himself on a vacation cut short by murder as a cold shadow of suspicion eclipses the sunny beauty of the Côte d'Azur.

Enter Inspector Blampignon of the Sûreté Nationale, whose problems abound as the case suggests that the crime may have occurred hundreds of miles away from where the victim was discovered. Undeterred, the formidable French detective embarks on a thrilling race to discover the truth.