Golden Age of Detective Fiction

Sergeant Beef recollects his first case, “Clue in the Mustard,” to an untold audience.

Miss Crackliss, comfortably installed in her large house, is looked after by a loving housemaid and visited frequently by her ne’re do well nephew, who snubs the common folks in her small, well-appointed village.

It’s a fascinating case where old Mrs. Crackliss, who is in relatively good health, enjoys a nap in her garden. She is observed by Sergeant Beef, whom she has hired to help tend her garden and greenhouse on weekends so he can make a bit of extra cash before his marriage.

Miss Crackliss, well bundled, is found dead in her chair by her loving housemaid when she tries to rouse her for tea. The body is found with a tiny smear above her lip and some bruising on her arms where her nephew attempted to pull her from her chair after rigor had set in.

Sergeant Beef knows who the killer is but must prove it. He searches the grounds and puts together some innocuous clues that tell him how Miss Crackliss met her brutal end.

The Review

“The Clue in the Mustard “is my first foray into Sergeant Beef mysteries, and this intriguing story immediately swept me away.

Sergeant Beef is a likable, salt-of-the-earth kind of man who fits nicely into the cozy village life that Bruce created to color the story. I especially loved the small touches of him gardening for an elderly neighbor and his mention of how small niceties grease the wheel in a small town. These all ring so true and explain why the nephew is instantly an outsider.

The story makes no bones about it- the nephew is the murderer- so it’s more of a howdunnit than a whodunnit, but I had no clue how the murder was committed. If you’re a gardener, you’ll probably tumble to the machinations of the crime quicker. However, I’m blessed with a black thumb and kill all greenery in my wake so that I wouldn’t have ever figured it out.

I found the method of murder ingenious and very cruel. I was simultaneously impressed and viscerally sick when Sergeant Beef walked us through Miss Crackliss’ last moments.

“The Clue in the Mustard” was a fantastic short story that interested me in reading more Sergeant Beef mysteries in the future.

Leo Bruce Biography

Leo Bruce was the pen name of Rupert Croft-Cooke, an English author born on June 20, 1903, and who passed away on June 10, 1979. Croft-Cooke was a prolific writer, producing a wide range of works including detective fiction, novels, autobiographies, and non-fiction.

As Leo Bruce, Croft-Cooke wrote thirty-one detective novels between 1936 and 1974. His two most notable series featured the detectives Sergeant William Beef and Carolus Deene. Sergeant Beef, a cockney police detective, was the protagonist of eight novels, starting with “Case for Three Detectives” in 1936. Carolus Deene, a schoolteacher and amateur sleuth, appeared in twenty-three novels beginning with “At Death’s Door” in 1955​ (Wikipedia)​​ (The American Culture)​.

Beyond his work as Leo Bruce, Croft-Cooke led an interesting life marked by both literary success and personal adversity. He served in the British Army during World War II and later faced legal troubles in the 1950s when he was convicted and imprisoned for homosexual offenses, a charge that reflected the oppressive attitudes of the time​ (The American Culture)​. This experience was detailed in his autobiography “The Verdict of You All” (1955).

Croft-Cooke also wrote extensively under his own name, including the “Sensual World” series of autobiographies, numerous novels, plays, and works of non-fiction on varied subjects such as travel and food​ (Wikipedia)​​ (The American Culture)​. His literary work under both names showcased his versatility and keen observational skills, particularly in depicting social hierarchies and the idiosyncrasies of British life.

Overall, Croft-Cooke’s legacy endures through his engaging and diverse body of work, both as himself and as Leo Bruce, making significant contributions to 20th-century literature and detective fiction​ (Wikipedia)​​ (The American Culture)​.