The three coffins

by

306 pages

English language

Published Feb. 16, 1935 by Harper & Brothers.

OCLC Number:
6018293

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5 stars (1 review)

Professor Charles Grimaud - wealthy, respectable, distinguished - is found dying in his study of a gunshot wound to the chest. His brother Pierre - an ex-con and struggling music-hall magician - had publicly threatened Grimaud's life.

When the police go to pick up Pierre he is lying dead in the street, killed by an unseen assassin. There are a dozen witnesses to both murders, but it takes Dr Fell and the church bells of London to solve the puzzle.

5 editions

reviewed Three Coffins by Carr John Dickson

Review of 'Three Coffins' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

There's a reason this is considered the best locked room mystery to be written. As Carr explains in chapter 17, one cannot help being disappointed when the trick is revealed - we expect too much. I have a similar feeling now, because I know how it transpired - magic tricks lose their appeal when revealed. Having said that, the trick here is pure genius! Dr. Fell outdoes himself, as he does so often.

This one's a must read.

Subjects

  • Fell, Gideon (Fictitious character) -- Fiction.
  • Private investigators -- England -- Fiction.