Tragedy at law - BookWyrm

Paperback, 336 pages

Published Jan. 1, 1999 by Pan Books.

ISBN:: 978-0-330-37738-6

(1 review)

Inspector Mallett mystery - 4 Francis Pettigrew mystery - 1

World War II has just begun. Self-important High Court judge Mr. Justice Barber moves from town to town presiding over cases in the Southern England circuit. When an anonymous letter arrives for Barber, warning of imminent revenge, he dismisses it as the work of a harmless lunatic. But then a second letter appears, followed by a poisoned box of the judge's favorite chocolates, and he begins to fear for his life. Enter barrister and amateur detective Francis Pettigrew, a man who was once in love with Barber's wife and has never quite succeeded in his profession. Can he find out who is threatening Barber before it is too late?

7 editions

LemonSky reviewed Tragedy at Law by Cyril Hare

Review of 'Tragedy at Law' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

I ran across this mystery in a pile of Alistair MacLean books, oddly enough. I vaguely remembered the name Cyril Hare, so I thought I would try it out. I'm glad I did.

William Barber (alias "The Shaver" and "Father William") is a circuit judge handling the Southern Circuit for the first time. He travels from town to town judging a large variety of court cases, both civil and criminal. All does not go smoothly - Barber gets threatening letters, someone sends him poisoned chocolates, he almost dies when the gas is left on in his room, and his wife is attacked. Lady Barber insists that all of these events are connected and that someone is trying to kill her husband. To make matters worse, Barber gets a little tipsy and runs over a pedestrian, who happens to be a famous pianist. The pianist hires a lawyer and threatens to …

I ran across this mystery in a pile of Alistair MacLean books, oddly enough. I vaguely remembered the name Cyril Hare, so I thought I would try it out. I'm glad I did.

William Barber (alias "The Shaver" and "Father William") is a circuit judge handling the Southern Circuit for the first time. He travels from town to town judging a large variety of court cases, both civil and criminal. All does not go smoothly - Barber gets threatening letters, someone sends him poisoned chocolates, he almost dies when the gas is left on in his room, and his wife is attacked. Lady Barber insists that all of these events are connected and that someone is trying to kill her husband. To make matters worse, Barber gets a little tipsy and runs over a pedestrian, who happens to be a famous pianist. The pianist hires a lawyer and threatens to sue. Barber and his wife face financial ruin if the problem cannot be solved.

Cyril Hare is the pen name of Alfred Gordon Clark, a real-life English judge. He does an excellent job of portraying the early World War II era of the English circuit court system. There is a great deal of humor, which rings true to life:

"Barber's habit of concealing things from his wife was as instinctive as that of the dog who hides bones under a sofa cushion, and about as effective."

Hare has a light touch and the humor is never overdone. The legal theme is handled well, too, and does not get boring or feel like a lecture. The characters are well drawn and interesting. I even felt sorry for Barber, who is not really a likable character. My personal favorites were Derek Marshall, Lady Barber, and Francis Pettigrew, a lawyer who solves the case.

This is not a fast-moving murder mystery. Like someone else said, the murder (at least in this paperback) doesn't even happen until over 200 pages in. The end is abrupt. You get the feeling that Hare thought he was going on too long and so drew everything to a quick conclusion. However, this is a mystery worth reading, especially if you like Golden Age mysteries.