Today we’re crossing off two challenges with one book. Tour De Force is the first book I am reading for British Crime Classics BINGO, the brainchild of Rekha over at The Book Decoder. Since this is my first year participating, and I am also trying to read for the #20booksofsummer23 challenge by Cathy at 742, I am only doing a 3×3. For my first square, I selected a British Crime Classic with a setting outside the UK. This Mediterranean jaunt in Tour De Force that I wanted to read for #20booksofsummer23 would fit the bill.
Tour De Force, written by Christianna Brand, is a 1955 British crime mystery featuring her Inspector Cockrill of Scotland Yard on holiday on a small Mediterranean island between Spain and Italy. His relaxing all-inclusive vacation is cut short when fellow tourist Vanda Lane is found stabbed in her room. Bloodstains, a notebook with blackmail materials, and a red cape are all in her room. However, sorting the clues from the red herrings will challenge Inspector Cockrill as he races against time before the corrupt justice system throws an innocent woman in jail.
Tour De Force’s best aspect is its vivid characters. There’s famous novelist Louviane Barker whose larger-than-life personality dominates the whole tour. She leaps off the page positively with her fantastic fashion sense, melodramatic fear of heights, and incredible depth of love for Leo Rodd. Leo Rodd, a well-known pianist, recently fell off his bicycle and got a cut on his arm. The cut became infected, and his whole arm had to be amputated. He is incredibly depressed that he will never play piano again and feels smothered by his wife’s constant mothering; he quickly and irrevocably falls in love with the vivacious Louvaine. Their affair is not a secret, especially to Helen Rodd, who is aware of her husband’s many dalliances but takes them in stride because she is utterly devoted.
Leo Rodd’s good looks also catch the eye of the rather colorless Vanda Lane, who uses her unobtrusive nature to spy on others and collect their secrets. Vanda’s an adept blackmailer and loves watching her victims squirm.
Besides the love affairs surrounding Leo Rodd, their tour guide, magnanimous and suave Fernando Gomez, is putting out all his charms to attract the loveless Miss Trappe, who has noticed her Park Lane address and gold hardware suitcase and hopes he can live a life of ease off her wealth if she falls in love with him.
To round out the group is catty Mr. Cecil, a fashion designer, and the irascible Inspector Cockrill, who would prefer never to go to Italy and just wants to read his mystery in peace. However, Inspector Cockrill finds himself embroiled in investigating alibis and fending off accusations when the first victim dies while all potential suspects are in Inspector Cockrill’s line of sight.
The chief pleasures of Tour De Force are the devilishly tricky mystery. One of the most exciting aspects of Inspector Cockrill’s investigative methods was his desire to talk over clues and possible methods of murder with his fellow tourists and suspect pool. He uses their statements to continue rearranging the puzzle, repeatedly exonerating and casting suspicion on each suspect. It was a brilliant way to organically show Brand’s ability to write and discard many solutions to fit her clues. (You can see an even more extreme version in Anthony Berkley’s The Poisoned Chocolates Case, in which Brand pens a proposed solution).
What is most fascinating about Brand’s writing style, which is used almost to the point of excess, is her ability to call out a red herring as an essential clue while obscuring the actual clues. Trying to pick out what’s truly important to solving the case is further muddled by the fact that every character is duplicitous, hiding their true nature, history, or profession.
The island of San Juan el Pirata’s corrupt police force is not interested in finding the true culprit of the murder. Happily, it throws people in jail if it means the case is “solved” and the lucrative tourist trade is uninterrupted. Rampant corruption means that a case can be made against anyone, and Brand is one of the only authors of this era who discusses that not all police are good- which is a rare portrayal of police for the period.
There’s a lot to digest in Tour De Force. Brand’s over-the-top style can stretch the bounds of credulity and grow wearisome. Most characters are not great people, and Inspector Cockrill is infected with cranky annoyance. Still, Brand seems to know her characters are a bit much and often ruthlessly cuts them to the quick through her narration or dialogue.
Tour De Force is a maximalist mystery novel, with every character, twist, and clue thrown at the reader, which is great fun but a little exhausting. I had a blast reading Tour De Force, but I also felt like I needed a nap after I closed the book. Tour De Force was a lot of fun, but I was glad to be done with it- much like how I feel after a vacation.
Tour De Force Reviews
#20booksofsummer23 is a reading challenge started by 746 Books where participants attempt to read 10, 15, or 20 books off of their TBR and review them between June 1 – September 1, 2023. I am trying to read and review 6-7 books that I picked per month. You can see my complete reading list here
My #20booksofsummer23 Reviews
Golden Age of Detective Fiction 
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