
Glory Adair and the Twenty-First Burr
by Victor Lauriston
A retail baron suddenly, mysteriously, dead. Heart failure perhaps? Or is it something more sinister?
“Chalmers, this is Adam Winright. I am dying. Please come at once. I must live till Laura comes. I have a message for her.”
But, had the worthy doctor climbed aboard a winged chariot he would still have been too late; the victim was dead within minutes. With no accident evident, surely that and the call confirm it... Murder!?
With seasoned detective Burnville on the case it seems the investigation is in good hands. But – does the answer actually lie in the palms of the victim? Nurse Glory Adair – bright, capable, independent, uses expertise in the ancient science of chirology to run a parallel investigation. Yet, pretty soon both trails run dry with the detectives, professional and amateur, both seemingly stuck for clues - but not for questions: what was the message? Who is the mysterious man in grey seen about the property? And then, why does the new chauffeur seem to do so little chauffeuring?
It’s palmistry versus the practical detective in this fascinating and entertaining, character-driven mystery first published in 1922 as The Twenty-First Burr.
Canadian Victor Lauriston, journalist, historian, author (1881 -- 1973). He was born William Edward Park but adopted his pen name when he began writing, as he considered his birth name too plain. Lauriston wrote on subjects ranging from the Canadian energy economy to the history of various Ontarian communities, as well as works of fiction. One of Lauriston's most well-known novels, The Twenty-First Burr (1922), shows his skill at combining various genres. Considered by contemporary critics to be a "first-class mystery story," The Twenty-First Burr veers from Lauriston's usual haunts, but the success and acclaim of the novel evidences his skill as a writer.
by Victor Lauriston
A retail baron suddenly, mysteriously, dead. Heart failure perhaps? Or is it something more sinister?
“Chalmers, this is Adam Winright. I am dying. Please come at once. I must live till Laura comes. I have a message for her.”
But, had the worthy doctor climbed aboard a winged chariot he would still have been too late; the victim was dead within minutes. With no accident evident, surely that and the call confirm it... Murder!?
With seasoned detective Burnville on the case it seems the investigation is in good hands. But – does the answer actually lie in the palms of the victim? Nurse Glory Adair – bright, capable, independent, uses expertise in the ancient science of chirology to run a parallel investigation. Yet, pretty soon both trails run dry with the detectives, professional and amateur, both seemingly stuck for clues - but not for questions: what was the message? Who is the mysterious man in grey seen about the property? And then, why does the new chauffeur seem to do so little chauffeuring?
It’s palmistry versus the practical detective in this fascinating and entertaining, character-driven mystery first published in 1922 as The Twenty-First Burr.
Canadian Victor Lauriston, journalist, historian, author (1881 -- 1973). He was born William Edward Park but adopted his pen name when he began writing, as he considered his birth name too plain. Lauriston wrote on subjects ranging from the Canadian energy economy to the history of various Ontarian communities, as well as works of fiction. One of Lauriston's most well-known novels, The Twenty-First Burr (1922), shows his skill at combining various genres. Considered by contemporary critics to be a "first-class mystery story," The Twenty-First Burr veers from Lauriston's usual haunts, but the success and acclaim of the novel evidences his skill as a writer.