Trents Last Case, E. C. Bentley
Trents Last Case, E. C. Bentley
List: $19.95 | Sale: $13.97
Club: $9.97

Trent's Last Case
The Woman in Black

Author: E. C. Bentley

Narrator: John Rayburn

Unabridged: 7 hr 54 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 08/03/2021


Synopsis

This is a whodunit that neatly fits into the history of detective fiction. It features artist Philip Trent as he unexpectedly becomes an amateur detective. Some of his carefully collected information often proved erroneous. It begins when a wealthy American plutocrat, Bigsbee Manderson, uses his finances in an attempt to establish rules controlling society. When Manderson is found murdered on the grounds of his country house in England, Trent is hired as a reporter by a press association to investigate and file reports. The investigating officer from Scotland Yard, Inspector Murch, is an old acquaintance of Trent, and this gives the “new” detective contacts resulting in clues of both significant and spurious nature. The unusual aspect of this story, first published in 1913, is that although Trent winds up with the correct solution, he was so worn down he declared it would be his last case. It was twenty-three years later before author Bentley wrote another Trent story and began it with a recap of what happened in the “last case.” Along the way, Trent becomes romantically interested in the character referred to in this book’s subtitle as “the Lady in Black.” Was she the widow of the murdered man? It’s probably better for us to let you hear the whole story, beginning now.

About E. C. Bentley

Edmund Clerihew Bentley (1875–1956) was a journalist, novelist, and author of light verse. He wrote first for the Daily News and then for the Daily Telegraph, where he was leader writer and then chief literary critic. Bentley earned a minor place in literary history by his invention of the light-verse form known as the clerihew, and is also known for his contribution to detective fiction. Trent’s Last Case was intended as a satire of detective stories, but was quickly hailed as a classic of the genre.

About John Rayburn

John Rayburn is a veteran of 62 years in broadcasting.  He served as a news/sports anchor and show host, and his TV newscast achieved the largest Share of Audience figures of any major-market TV newscast in the nation. John is a member of a Broadcast Pioneers Hall of Fame.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Maria on November 01, 2018

Me ha gustado y recordado en parte a los libros de Agatha Christie, solo que este detective es algo peculiar.......more

This story, about 100 years old, has some interesting facets beyond the plot. - Agatha Christie was a big fan. - It was the first, not the last, Trent story written by Bentley - Other Trent stories followed - It has been considered a new model for detective fiction - Almost everything is presented from......more

Goodreads review by Tim on October 06, 2008

Perhaps the first "cosy" detective story. Has the distinction of being lauded by Dorothy Sayers and derided by Raymond Chandler. The plot is clever, and still works today, even if the setting seems alien to the modern reader. Extra points from me because E.C. Bentley was my great grandfather.......more

Goodreads review by Libros Prestados on January 05, 2018

No hay nada como comenzar el año con un buen libro. Desde el punto de vista actual esta novela no tiene nada que sorprenda mucho, pero fue un punto de inflexión en el género cuando se publicó (al menos en el mundo anglosajón). Acostumbrados a detectives racionales y siempre acertados como el Holmes d......more

Goodreads review by Francesc on June 01, 2022

E.C. Bentley nos relata un asesinato y la investigación que el periodista a tiempo parcial, Philip Trent, lleva a cabo. Trent es listo y perspicaz, pero no es infalible. En la trama de la novela se intercala una historia de amor. La caracterización de la personalidad de cada personaje está bien cread......more