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Overview
“Tolkien’s writing has a timeless quality [and] the haunting undertones of other great masters of mystery.” –USA Today
"Compulsively readable... Crafted with cunning and imbued with menace, The King of Diamonds adds luster to Tolkien's growing reputation as a brilliant star in the thriller firmament." --Richmond Times Dispatch
"A thick web of family tensions and psychological dysfunction with a whodunit chaser… [The King of Diamonds] is elegantly written, with Masterpiece Theatre pacing and embellishments." --Kirkus, starred review
A sophisticated mystery layered with dark secrets from the past and slow-burning suspense
It's 1960, and David Swain is two years into his life sentence for murdering the lover of his ex-girlfriend, Katya. In the dead of night, David escapes, and Katya is found murdered. Inspector Trave of the Oxford Police heads the manhunt for David. Trave's suspicions lead him to Katya's uncle Titus Osman, a rich diamond dealer, and his sinister brother-in-law, Franz Claes who will go to any lengths to conceal his past connections to the Nazis. But Trave's motives are suspect - Osman is having an affair with Trave's estranged wife. Once David is captured, Trave is willing to risk everything-professionally and personally-to pursue his obsessive belief in Osman's guilt.
In this expertly crafted novel, Simon Tolkien has once again written a gripping and nuanced thriller laced with historical detail, treachery, and his signature writing style—a uniquely suspenseful blend that the Los Angeles Times called “half Christie and half Grisham.”
The King of Diamonds is a Kirkus Reviews Best of 2011 Mysteries title.
Editorials
From the Publisher
Praise for The King of Diamonds
**Named one of Kirkus Reviews’ Best Fiction Mysteries of 2011**
"Compulsively readable. As Tolkien lays out a story that's grounded in diamond-dealing and the Holocaust, the tension builds with inexorable strength. And Tolkien's nuanced portrait of the Traves is a compassionate study in the travails of marriage. Crafted with cunning and imbued with menace, The King of Diamonds adds luster to Tolkien's growing reputation as a brilliant star in the thriller firmament." --Richmond Times Dispatch
"A thick web of family tensions and psychological dysfunction with a whodunit chaser, Tolkien's third novel (The Inheritance, 2010, etc.) is elegantly written, with Masterpiece Theatre pacing and embellishments." --Kirkus, starred review
“Another literary success for [Simon Tolkien]…The claim comparing Simon Tolkien to Agatha Christie and John Grisham is not to be taken lightly. The ironic part is just how true this statement is. The King of Diamonds combines a deeply layered mystery with several interesting characters along with the intrigue of criminal trails and police chases. Set against very real historical context like the Holocaust and the hunt for Adolf Eichmann… gives much credibility to a great read and a thoroughly engaging thriller.” –Bookreporter.com
Critical Acclaim for Simon Tolkien and The Inheritance
“Tolkien’s writing has a timeless quality [and] the haunting undertones of other great masters of mystery.” –USA Today
“A fine novel. A thinking person’s Da Vinci Code.” --Chicago Tribune
“Simon Tolkien’s grandfather is J. R. R., but his new novel owes more to Agatha Christie—and Dan Brown.” --New York Times
"A deft combination of Agatha Christie manor-house whodunit, Erle Stanley Gardner courtroom drama and Dan Brown thriller, The Inheritance is nonetheless unique to its creator. And Tolkien, with this compelling read, proves himself worthy—and then some—of his literary pedigree." --Richmond Times Dispatch
“Display[s] a narrative skill that the author of The Lord of the Rings would surely have recognized and admired.” --Philadelphia Inquirer
“A first-rate writer…Written with great surety and absolutely compelling.” --Booklist (starred review)
“This second novel (after The Final Witness) by J.R.R. Tolkien's grandson is a legal thriller, World War II historical novel, and Da Vinci Code treasure hunt all rolled into one… an absorbing 1950s-era mystery.” --Library Journal
Publishers Weekly
J.R.R. Tolkien's grandson continues to burnish his credentials as a solid writer in his own right with his second suspense novel featuring Oxford Det. Insp. William Trave (after The Inheritance). In 1958 at London's Old Bailey, David Swain is on trial for the murder of Ethan Mendel, the man who he believed horned in on his relationship with Katya Osman. Thanks to Trave's testimony, Swain is convicted and sentenced to a life term, but Trave is unable to rid himself of nagging doubts about the case. Two years later, Trave's marriage has fallen apart. His wife, Vanessa, finds support in the unlikely person of Titus Osman, Katya's uncle, unaware that Titus is keeping Katya a virtual prisoner in her own home. Meanwhile, an embittered Swain plots an escape from prison to get his revenge on his former girlfriend, a plan that results in yet another murder. While some of the twists strain credulity, everything comes together at the end. (Mar.)Library Journal
Inspector Bill Trave (The Inheritance) is back in the latest courtroom thriller by the grandson of J.R.R. Tolkien. The year is 1960; the place is Oxford, England. Trave's wife has left him because he failed to comfort her following their son's death, and she is now dating Titus Osman. Trave knows Osman, a wealthy Belgian who relocated to Oxford after World War II, from two years earlier when Trave investigated a murder at Osman's estate. Ethan, the boyfriend of Osman's niece, Katya, was knifed in the back near the estate boathouse. Trave was satisfied with the circumstantial evidence that convicted David Swain, Katya's jealous former boyfriend. When another murder occurs at Osman's, Trave is driven to find out the truth of both cases, regardless of the cost to himself. VERDICT This atmospheric and intricately plotted novel telegraphs its moves at times but should prove satisfying to readers of British mysteries set in the early to mid-20th century, such as books by Charles Todd, and to those who like stories with ties to World War II. [Library marketing.]—Nancy Fontaine, Dartmouth Coll., Hanover, NHKirkus Reviews
A prisoner escapes on the very night that his ex-girlfriend is murdered. Could it possibly be a coincidence?
In 1958, David Swain, protesting his innocence right up until the verdict, receives a life sentence for murdering Ethan Mendel, the new lover of his ex, Katya Osman, at Blackwater Hall, her family home. Two years later, Katya, an emotional mess, accuses her companion Jana Claes of trying to kill her with a tranquilizing injection. Jana and her husband Franz are indispensable to Katya's wealthy father Titus, the only person who seems able to calm her. He's poised to marry the elegant Vanessa, another contributor to Katya's fragile mental state, who's equally unpopular with the territorial Franz and Jana. Meanwhile, David has fallen under the spell of his prison cellmate Eddie Earle, a career criminal with a soft spot for the young man and a daring escape plan. David can barely believe his good fortune. After the duo gains freedom with barely a hitch, Tolkien takes David all the way to Katya's bedroom door, which he opens slowly as he remembers an ominous couplet of children's verse. Then the perspective shifts to Detective Inspector Trave, called unexpectedly to the mansion to investigate a murder, just as he was a scant few years ago. David, still at large, is clearly the likeliest suspect, but the veteran Trave sees other possibilities.
A thick web of family tensions and psychological dysfunction with a whodunit chaser, Tolkien's third novel (The Inheritance, 2010, etc.) is elegantly written, with Masterpiece Theatre pacing and embellishments.