Slickensides is the name of a farm in the High Peak district of Derbyshire, of a cheese prepared at the farm, and of the old lead mine that lies beneath it. It is also the geological term for a particular rock formation which results in the trapping of energy behind it. Such energy can be dangerously explosive when released. All this Inspector Brunt has occasion to expound on a visit there in 1911 to investigate a reported break-in at the farm. At the same time a private detective with distinctly Holmesean characteristics (they even include a Watson!) arrives at the local inn. He is there to investigate the alleged disappearance of Barnard Brittlebank, the squires dissolute son. Before long he informs Squire Brittlebank that his son has left for Canada. So it is disconcerting when young Brittlebanks body is found in the Slickensides mine. A dense fog descends, cutting off all communication with the outside world, and Brunt is left to answer some tricky questions with no assistance beyond the evidence and that of his own sharp wits. Although nearing retirement, Brunt is as shrewd as ever. In this beautifully realized story of a closed society three-quarters of a century ago, he demonstrates once again that he is one of the mst memorable of fictional detectives, and triggers a denouement as explosive as only Slickensides can produce.
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Si certaines sont impressionnantes et effrayantes, d'autres sont drôles et rassurantes !
A gagner : la BD jeunesse adaptée du classique de Mary Shelley !
Caraïbes, 1492. "Ce sont ceux qui ont posé le pied sur ces terres qui ont amené la barbarie, la torture, la cruauté, la destruction des lieux, la mort..."
Chacune des deux demeures dont il sera question est représentée dans le sablier et le lecteur sait d'entrée de jeu qu'il faudra retourner le livre pour découvrir la vérité. Pour comprendre l'enquête menée en 1939, on a besoin de se référer aux indices présents dans la première histoire... un véritable puzzle, d'un incroyable tour de force
