{"title":"Books by H. R. F. Keating","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"9780141194479","title":"The Perfect Murder: The First Inspector Ghote Mystery","description":"\u003cp\u003eIntroducing Bombay CID's most dogged, dutiful officer, and one of the greatest, most engaging creations in all detective fiction, H.R.F. Keating's \u003ci\u003eThe Perfect Murder: The First Inspector Ghote Mystery\u003c\/i\u003e includes a preface by Alexander McCall Smith, author of \u003ci\u003eThe No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency\u003c\/i\u003e, in Penguin Modern Classics.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOne crime that couldn't have happened, one that probably hasn't. Nothing's ever easy for Inspector Ghote. In the house of Lala Varde, a vast man of even vaster influence, an attack has taken place. Varde's secretary, Mr Perfect, has been struck on his invaluable business head. And try as Inspector Ghote might to remain conscientious and methodical, his investigation is beset on all sides by cunning, disdain and corruption. And then there's another urgent case to be dealt with: the impossible theft of a single rupee . . .\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eH. R. F. Keating (1926-2011) was born at St Leonards-on-Sea, Sussex. He went to Merchant Taylors, leaving early to work in the engineering department of the BBC. After a period of service in the army, which he describes as 'totally undistinguished', he went to Trinity College, Dublin, where he became a scholar in modern languages. He was also the crime books reviewer for \u003ci\u003eThe Times\u003c\/i\u003e for fifteen years. His first novel about Inspector Ghote, \u003ci\u003eThe Perfect Murder\u003c\/i\u003e, won the Gold Dagger of the Crime Writers Association and an Edgar Allen Poe Special Award. His other works in Penguin Modern Classics include \u003ci\u003eInspector Ghote Breaks an Egg\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eInspector Ghote Trusts the Heart\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eUnder a Monsoon Cloud: An Inspector Ghote Mystery\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIf you enjoyed \u003ci\u003eThe Perfect Murder\u003c\/i\u003e, you might like Keating's \u003ci\u003eInspector Ghote Breaks an Egg\u003c\/i\u003e, also available in Penguin Modern Classics.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'May the redoubtable Ghote go on for ever'\u003cbr\u003eLen Deighton\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Beautiful little classics' \u003cbr\u003eAlexander McCall Smith\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56224768754037,"sku":"9780141194479","price":10.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780141194479_42d3d83d-7447-4fa9-9435-7709184833db.jpg?v=1786011793"},{"product_id":"the-soft-detective","title":"The Soft Detective","description":"It's not often a Nobel Prize winner gets murdered...on your patch...very likely by a member of your own family. DCI Phil Benholme has the reputation for being a little soft because he tries to see both sides of every story. And if he hadn't on this occasion, the murder of Professor Unwala - Nobel Prize winner of 1945 - would have been recorded as a tragic accident. Was the elderly man a victim of a violent burglary? Or of a racist assault by Britforce troopers? Or did he know something about the collection of Celtic coins thought to be buried nearby? Clearly Inspector Benholme has a number of leads to follow up. Unfortunately they all point to one person - Conor Benholme. What does a 'soft cop' do when his teenage son is also his prime suspect?","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57504941801845,"sku":"9781448203253","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781448203253.jpg?v=1786953860"},{"product_id":"the-strong-man","title":"The Strong Man","description":"An independent island state in the North Atlantic has fallen under the sway of Rolph Mylchraine, a landowner who has gained ascendancy by stage-managing witchcraft orgies and purveying cheap liquor. Opposing him is Keig, a peasant of extraordinary physical strength who gradually emerges leader on the grand scale. Through their developing struggle, which becomes a guerrilla war in the classic mould, echoes the sombre theme of the fatal tendency of power to corrupt. Mr Keating, already acknowledged as a writer of distinguished crime novels, has produced at perhaps the height of his powers a book that is not only a new departure for himself but also genuinely original.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57504942784885,"sku":"9781448203260","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781448203260.jpg?v=1786953861"}],"url":"https:\/\/backstory.london\/collections\/author-h-r-f-keating.oembed","provider":"Backstory","version":"1.0","type":"link"}