The French Key (Linford Mystery Library (Large Print)) [Large Print] [Paperback]

Frank Gruber (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Linford (August 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0708969011
• ISBN-13: 978-0708969014
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,938,426 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining Book, February 28, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (Georgia, United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The French Key (Linford Mystery Library (Large Print)) (Paperback)

Johnny Fletcher and his sidekick Sam Cragg are locked out of their apartment room for non-payment of rent. If that's not bad enough, when they illegally enter the room to get some belongings, they notice a body that they didn't leave there... These mysteries from the early part of this century (somewhere around the 1930 or 40s) are just plain fun to read.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Is Every Man A Samson, November 17, 2003

By 

Untouchable (Sydney, NSW Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The French Key (Linford Mystery Library (Large Print)) (Paperback)

This is the first of the Johnny Fletcher and Sam Cragg books. Fletcher and Cragg are a couple of drifter con men types who seem to have a knack of attracting trouble. Fletcher is a fast-talking character who fancies himself as a bit of a detective, while Cragg is his muscle-bound partner. Their favourite way of making a fast buck is to peddle books on the street, titled "Every Man A Samson", Fletcher doing the talking and Cragg displaying his power, thanks to the book.

In this book, Fletcher and Cragg are locked out of their apartment for failure to pay their rent. They eventually manage to gain entry, hoping to grab their belongings and go when they find something in their room that they're sure they didn't leave there. A dead body.

Along with the body they also find a rare coin and this leads them to search for some answers to some specific questions. Who's the dead guy? Who killed him? How can they convince the police they didn't kill him? Where did the coin come from? Are there any more? How can they best profit from the situation? This provides ample opportunity for Johnny to run his little scams as he gathers information evades the law and solves the mystery.

This is on the lighter side of hardboiled with Fletcher and Cragg making a very off-beat yet entertaining couple of detectives.