Unlawful Occasions [Hardcover]

Henry Cecil (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 30, 1979

Mrs Vernay and her husband live in a flat above the Chambers of Brian Culsworth Q. in the Temple. One day Mrs Vernay receives a visit from a Mr Sampson and she gets the impression that he is a blackmailer. She immediately seeks advice from Mr Culsworth in his chambers below. Mr Culsworth's client, a Mr Baker, is bringing an action to recover his share on a win on the pools. The story of these people becomes inextricably linked in a brilliant novel of suspense and humour.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Henry Cecil, known to many as His Honour Judge H.C. Leon, MC, was a High Court judge as well as a famous author. He wrote during the three-week-long family holidays which were usually spent in comfortable hotels in Britain. He would sit in a deck chair in a sunny garden, exercise book on lap and pen in hand, writing from 10 am to 1pm, then again from 2.30 to 4 pm each day. His writing career is attributed to his Second World War experiences. Sailing around the Cape on a 'dry' troop ship on the way to Cairo, the colonel asked his adjutant (Cecil) to tell stories to keep the officers' minds off alcohol. The stories were so popular that they became a regular feature, and formed the basis of his first collection, 'Full Circle', published in 1948. Thereafter, the legal year, his impressions at court, or at other official functions, as well as dinners at the Savoy Grill or at his club, the Garrick, all provided material for his considerable brain power. Many of his stories were made into films or plays - notably 'Brothers-in-Law' and 'Alibi for a Judge'. These and other books have also provided a stimulus for those wishing to take up law as a career. They are a delight for those who look for authenticity in the most aptly described British characters. Cecil died in May 1976, still at the height of his mental powers. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 182 pages
• Publisher: Remploy; New edition edition (November 30, 1979)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0706608372
• ISBN-13: 978-0706608373
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Blackmail pays off, November 24, 2003

By 

Geert Daelemans (Leuven Belgium) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Unlawful Occasions (Paperback)

Is Mr.Sampson a blackmailer? What secrets does he know? What will he do with his knowledge? All these thoughts are haunting the beautiful Mrs. Verney day and night. When she cannot deal with the assaults anymore she decides to talk to her neighbor Mr. Culsworth, who is a successful lawyer. When he hears her story, he is directly and without reservations committed to put an end to this dreadful and felonious practice. Never did he suspect what the impact of his investigations would be. Not only Mrs. Verney seems to be in trouble, also her would-be savior gets in a mess without equal.

Henry Cecil was a County Court Judge for more than 25 years before he started his life as a full-time writer. This experience has made him perceptive to numerous absurd contradictions in the British legal system. In Unlawful Occasions, written in 1962, he paints with quite some pungent sense of humor the life of a professional blackmailer. Unlawful Occasions is in a sense a detective story, but without any dead bodies. This does not mean that there are no skeletons in the closet, on the contrary.

The strongest point in the book is the unpredictable twist of plot in the end. Combined with the comic genius of Cecil, it makes this book a real treat.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars British humor with a twist, September 25, 2009

By 

mojosmom (Chicago, IL USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Unlawful Occasions (Paperback)

I've been reading Henry Cecil for ages. He was a barrister and judge, and his books are delightfully humorous accounts of activities in the law courts and lawyers' and judges' chambers. Every so often, I come across one of his works that I haven't read before. Unlawful Occasions is one of those.

Brian Culsworth, barrister-at-law, is sought out for advice one day by the tenant above his chambers, one Mrs. Venery. She has had a visit from a man who appears to be a blackmailer. I say "appears" because he is quite clever at avoiding a direct threat, but merely insinuates. At the same time, Culsworth is representing a man who is suing for his share of a win in the pools (lottery to us Yanks!). His client's habit of speaking his mind directly gets him in trouble in court, and Culsworth's efforts to get him out of it may expose him to the tender mercies of the blackmailer.

As with all Cecil's work, there's a twist or two, and the story is told with a dry wit that goes well with a gin and tonic.