Death Has Deep Roots: A Second World War Mystery by Michael Gilbert (1951)

Death Has Deep Roots: A Second World War Mystery by Michael Gilbert (1951)

April 10, 2024

6 minutes

Book Review, British Library Crime Classics, Death Has Deep Roots, Espionage, fiction, Historical Fiction, Martin Edwards, Michael Gilbert, mystery, thriller, World War Two, WWII

Victoria Lamartine is accused of killing Major Thoseby in this post-World War II thriller, and the book toggles between her trial and Nap Lombard’s investigation, which is hoping to bring before the court a piece of evidence that will prove her innocence. The prosecution contends that Lamartine lured Major Thoseby to the small hotel where she worked and then stabbed him because. Major Thosebywas the father of her child and betrayed her during a Gestapo raid on the resistance holdout during the war. Leaving her to stumble upon a trap in the small French farmhouse and leaving her and their unborn child to their fates.

Victoria Lamartine pleads her innocence before the court, maintaining that the father of her child was not Major Thoseby but an American operative who disappeared during the war. She had no reason to kill Major Thoseby; in fact, he was her last resort in tracking down what happened to her beloved, and he had vital information about what happened to him before he was murdered.

Nap Lombard travels to France to find proof of Lamartine’s tale. Finding what happened to her American lover is paramount to unraveling why Major Thoseby was killed. Still, soon, Nap is embroiled in a web of state secrets, dangerous gold runners, and political intrigue that didn’t die with the war. His investigation digs up old graves and memories that were best forgotten, and he nearly pays with his own life before uncovering the grisly affair.

The Review

I loved Death Has Deep Roots and was deeply invested in both the criminal trial and the private investigation led by Nap Lombard. The investigation initially centers around the hotel staff and seems like a run-of-the-mill locked room with a closed circle of suspects’ stories. Still, it soon broadens when many of the possible killers are proven to not be in the hotel, and the few that are left, no discernable motive can be found. Many staff are fellow refugees closely connected through their shared war effort in the resistance.

Many of the hotel’s guests are faceless American tourists, with only two long-term guests. One is known to consort with criminals, but no criminal activity or charges have ever been brought against her. There are rumors that she has been involved in gold running, but these rumors are unsubstantiated.

The story then branches out to France, and Nap is shadowed by operatives of the French government even though Lamartine’s resistance service was negligible. He also awakens the ire of a criminal gang, although Lamartine has no known criminal associations.

These shadowy entities, sometimes friendly and often hostile to Nap Lombard, really amp up the espionage aspect. While running around France, he is usually one misstep away from death; when he is captured, his escape is thrilling.

As Lombard pieces together the intrigue to which Lamartine’s lover is the center, I was trying to figure out how all of the puzzle pieces fit together, and I’ll admit I never could work it out.

Gilbert makes this far-ranging mystery come home to roost to the small hotel in England and its seemingly innocent patrons. Even when Lombard is armed with the why, which I think is a little bit of a letdown, he still must prove the how. How did a killer get in and out of the room with no one seeing, how was Lamartine lured to the room to discover the body, which of the witnesses is lying, and who is telling the truth?

Given how sprawling geographically the players are in the book, it could have been a languid mystery unraveled over several months—after all, it’s a crime years in the making—but with the ongoing trial, Nap Lombard is up against the clock. He has between 3 and 5 days before the trial is concluded, and the fate of Lamartine is sealed with very little proof to back up her circumstantial case.

Not only is the clock present in Lombard’s mind, but the reader reads the time tick down, and the case grows ever blacker against Lamartine during the trial. Her lawyers, one of whom is Nap Lombard’s father, neatly parry and pick gaping holes in the prosecution theory, but one question still looms over the trial.

If Victoria Lamartine didn’t kill Major Thoseby, who did?

All the clues are expertly laid out in plain sight and are so subtly plotted that I couldn’t solve the puzzle, even with Gilbert practically beating a dead horse in the narration.

Who killed Major Thoseby? Why now, with the war being over for years?

You’ll have to read Death Has Deep Roots to learn the answers.

Michael Gilbert Biography

Michael Gilbert (1912–2006) was a prolific British author primarily known for his crime fiction and mystery novels. Born in Billinghay, Lincolnshire, Gilbert attended St. John’s College, Oxford, where he studied law. He was called to the bar in 1937 but soon turned to writing instead of practicing law full-time.

Gilbert’s writing career spanned several decades, during which he produced over 30 novels, numerous short stories, and essays. His works are characterized by intricate plots, sharp dialogue, and a keen eye for detail. He often explored various subgenres within crime fiction, including traditional whodunits, espionage thrillers, and courtroom dramas.

In addition to his novels, Gilbert also wrote under various pseudonyms and contributed to anthologies and non-fiction works. He was awarded the Crime Writers’ Association’s prestigious Diamond Dagger for Lifetime Achievement in 1994. Gilbert’s legacy continues to influence and inspire crime fiction writers today.