Attending a memorial exhibition for the painter Sebastian Holme, whose pictures now fetch eye-watering prices, Mervyn Cheel discovers that Holme is not actually dead and tries to blackmail him into reproducing works believed to have been destroyed when the Wamba Palace Hotel was burnt down.

Cheel's misogyny and racism were part of his portrayal as an unpleasant character even in the 1960s. Perhaps one of Michael Innes's that is best forgotten. Fortunately, not an Appleby story, though Braunkopf does appear with some very funny malapropisms. ( )

This is not a mystery at all but it is a 'crime' story. Mervyn Cheel, the protagonist, is a frustrated artist and critic with some slimy aspects to his character (not that he sees himself that way!). He discovers what he believes to be a foolproof way to make money from Sebastian Holme, a much better artist than Cheel. But things don't work out as Cheel anticipated.

Very funny in places, especially the ending! Plus I loved running into Braunkopf, the art dealer, again (he is a few of the Inspector Appleby books) - his fractured English is hilarious (for example, saying Holme was deranged meaning divorced). ( )

"Sebastian Holme is dead. Long live Holme! Holme was a painter. A very good painter. But as the exhibition catalogue recorded, he met a tragic death in a foreign revolution. Now the absurd art dealer Braunkopf made a small fortune from that exhibition. And unfortunately, Holme himself turned up at the private view..." - Penguin jacket notes. This story of art fraud and double dealing is told from the point of view of art critic and unsuccessful amateur painter Mervyn Cheel, a foolish, snobbish schemer who gets into all kinds of ridiculous difficulties while hoping to make a fortune from manipulating the master painter Holme. Mannered, full of stereotypes and improbable events, but still an amusing story. I liked this book as a teenager, and enjoyed it again recently as a light bedtime read. ( )