War Damage

by Elizabeth Wilson

Book Overview

London in the aftermath of World War II is a beaten down, hungry place, so it's no wonder that Regine Milner's Sunday house parties are so popular. But when one of Regine's party guests turns up dead, there is no shortage of suspects. War Damage is full of secrets, sexual experimentation, and surprises. Elizabeth Wilson is an independent researcher and writer best known for her commentaries on feminism and popular culture. She is currently a visiting...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1846686504
• ISBN13: 9781846686504
• Release Date: September 2009
• Publisher: Serpent's Tail
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.88 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 5.3" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

exhilarating post WWII police procedural

In 1949, ballet critic Freddie Buckingham leaves a party hosted by socialite Regine Milner and begins walking across Hampstead Heath when he is shot to death. The police investigate the homicide. Detective Chief Inspector Plumer and Detective Sergeant Murray quickly find a horde of people with motives to kill overtly homosexual Freddie. People from his personal life and his professional life with grudges against him seem everywhere. Even the hostess with the mostest is considered a suspect. However, none from the performing arts, the homosexuals, the bohemians, politicians or starving socialites stand out from anyone else. All seem to have in common a refrain of rejoicong that Freddie's dead. This is an exhilarating post WWII police procedural that has a Noir feel to it, but no detective is hard boiled; the Noir comes from the atmosphere of the "Heath" and London in 1949 as unexploded bombs remain from the war, buildings are derelict and damaged but people reside in them, and the gritty dark fog enhances every step of the plot. Aptly titled WAR DAMAGE is everywhere. Although the introduction to just about all the party goers seems overwhelming at first, fans will enjoy this fine historical whodunit as Freddie's death enables Elizabeth Wilson to provide a tour of the war torn city. Harriet Klausner