[Julian Rivers 08] • Crossed Skis

In Bloomsbury, London, Inspector Brook of Scotland Yard looks down at a dismal scene. The victim of a ruthless murder lies burnt beyond recognition, his possessions and papers destroyed by fire. But there is one strange, yet promising, lead – a lead which suggests the involvement of a skier.

Meanwhile, piercing sunshine beams down on the sparkling snow of the Austrian Alps, where a merry group of holidaymakers are heading towards Lech am Arlberg. Eight men and eight women take to the slopes, but, as the C.I.D. scrambles to crack the perplexing case in Britain, the ski party are soon to become sixteen suspects.

This exciting, and now extremely rare, mystery novel was first published in 1952, one year after the author’s own excursion to the Austrian Alps.

Carol Carnac is a pen name of Edith Caroline Rivett (1894-1958), who also wrote as E C R Lorac. Sound craftsmanship and compassion for the underdog characterise her writing. Her books include Murder in the Mill-Race, Fire in the Thatch and Murder by Matchlight, all available as British Library Crime Classics. --This text refers to the paperback edition.