What started out as an interesting read quickly went off track and seemed to be far to drawn out, a very gentle but complex read

There are many classes or kinds of detective stories and I am not going to try and classify them all but I will describe which this particular book falls under. We walk the line along with the lead investigators, seeing what they see and are only allowed to (probably) see a little bit further down the line till the culprit is unmasked. Then the tale still continues, in order to wrap the story up as well as the apprehension of the culprit. There is no tricking of the villains into revealing their doings but careful piecing of the puzzle by everyone as a team and sometimes a sleight of hand (on only a few occasions). 
Harry Dodd is knifed and subsequently dies of the injury. He is a man of many faces. Each person, from varied parts of his life, indicate a whole different person and it hard to figure which of those descriptions can be actually added to the entire puzzle. There is subtle humour sprinkled about the tale, nothing extravagant but enough to get a feel for the investigative duo, Inspector Littlejohn and Cromwell. It was a pretty solid tale which could have been shorter but considering the time of its original publication, the length is to be expected. This story is not for anyone in a hurry, especially to pin their accusations correctly on any one person since the extended family, friends, and acquaintances are all under scrutiny to figure out who killed Harry Dodd.

It was a fine reunion with Littlejohn and Cromwell.

The story takes place in rural England in the 1950s. Harry Dodd is stabbed on his way home from the pub. He is an unobtrusive man, who now lives with his mistress and her mother. The family forced a divorce after his digression and  apart from his former wife there is no love lost between them. In the beginning Littlejohn and Cromwell have very little to go by, but gradually Harry's whereabouts unfolds and also who his enemies and friends are. More murders take place before they succeed in solving the crime.

It is a very well told story with a good plot, which was difficult to guess. And as always a lot of fun characters. The teamwork between Littlejohn and Cromwell delightful - so jet another well written mystery by George Bellairs.

If you've read any of the littlejohn series you know you're in for a treat and this one doesn't disappoint, nice laid-back who done it but with enough suspense and twists to keep you going.
This adventure is based near Lowestoft and Cambridge, and includes Cromwell he's able assistant and the usual array of fun characters that may at sometimes be comical but yet are  still very believable. I guess they are believable because they have flaws like the rest of us plus most have some redeeming features. The plot is well worked out and addictive the twist and humour come through it with most humour at the beginning and the twists at the end but not  exclusively but it's how your expect it to be it you have read any of George Bellaire books before. He is no your average bank manager (Mr Bellaire that is).  
If you haven't read any of littlejohn series before then this is a good place to start littlejohn is from Scotland yard and Cromwell is his assistant and they're called into a murder enquiry when he called Harry. Is stabbed in the back and dies of his injury. As the story progresses so there's a death count and what appears to be a murder with no motive, soon turns off in several directions as we learn of his strange and at times perplexing life. Harry Dodd send to have made one mistake that was his much younger secretary and a weekend away. Is offspring couldn't wait to get in divorce from his from their mother and take over his family business and well the rest I will let you read for your self and I hope you do because it's  a great book from a fantastic series. And I haven't yet found any of this these books to warrant  a anything less than five stars, see what you think.

I really enjoyed this book. There were a lot of, what appeared to be red herrings, but they all turned out to be important and fit together in the end.  Often times, if I have read a lot of a mystery writer's works,I can often figure out what is going to happen from the writing tricks they use in their other books.  This was definitely not true here.
The twists and turns were not contrived, but fit right with the story.

Who stabbed Harry Dodd in the back?  Even more interesting, why did he call his womenfolk to come and bring him home rather than go to a hospital or the police?  Was it one of his children,who despised him? Who would want to kill this man with no money and no big prospects?  We find out that Harry was much more than he seemed.  Is he a cad? a bum? a criminal?  Only in the last chapter or two are these questions answered.

Harry Dodd, a man who had a fling with his secretary and ended up divorced (against his and his wife’s wishes) and living with the secretary and her mom but treating them more like housekeepers, is knifed to death outside his local bar. The first, but not the last, murder. I found it a tad annoying how everyone though Dodd was such a great guy and the two women he lived with were so horrible (although they kind of were), but other than that, a very enjoyable read full of the series’ typical quirky characters and entertaining coincidences and a good, solid mystery.

I'm so pleased that I discovered George Bellairs (a bank manager and crime writer!) and his detective Inspector Littlejohn through this upcoming reissue from Agora Books. The twenty-first of Bellairs' Littlejohn novels, A Knife for Harry Dodd is a thoroughly enjoyable, twisty puzzle of a book.

The story kicks off right with the title, as we find out where the knife for Harry Dodd comes from. Late one night, Harry Dodd calls his mistress, Dorothy Nicholls, from the phone box in the village to let her know he's ill and needs a ride home. She and her mother rush out - with some general confusion, as neither Dorothy nor her mother knows how to drive - to find Harry. They discover he's been stabbed, and by the time they get him home, Harry is dead.

There are a large number of suspects - Harry's brother, a prominent politician. His two respectable-seeming sons and one respectable-seeming daughter and her respectable-seeming husband. His estranged ex-wife. The mother of a love child. A disgruntled business partner. His father. As Chief Inspector Littlejohn and his factotum Cromwell dig deeper into what Harry was up to in the last few months before his death, they realize they have to move quickly to find a ruthless killer ... because now other bodies are starting to pile up.

A Knife for Harry Dodd throws in just the right amount of red herrings, with a well-earned resolution that let me very pleased - I did figure this one out, but only after a couple of false starts, which is my favorite kind of mystery. Bellairs's writing is wryly funny and he wrote with a pleasant, if fairly terse, style. This is simply a classic, old school British mystery of the 1950s from an author who deserves to be widely read - or reread - today, particularly for an fan of the Golden Era of detective novels looking for another author to plow through.

In summary: Four Sherlocks. Best enjoyed in your local country pub with a pint of bitter or orange juice, depending on your personal preferences.

Another great Bellairs book!  I read it in one sitting. A seemingly likeable man is murdered on his way home from the Pub and initially it is a mystery why he was murdered.  However, as the story goes on, there are a multitude of interesting and amusing potential suspects, all with alibis.  It is up to Inspector Littlejohn and Sargeant Cromwell to unravel the case, and they are at their best - following the trail from countryside to city to the coast.

The eighth in the,ever polite but ever shrewd, Inspector Littlejohn mysteries from the very talented pen of George Bellairs. Classic, vintage crime at it's best. Ingenious and engaging plotting, perfect prose, superb characterisation and clever flashes of humour combine for a highly satisfying read.  Thoroughly recommended.

This is another highly enjoyable mystery novel from George Bellairs. There is a lot in this book to engage with. From the unexpectedly intricate plot, which turns in some surprising directions, to the wonderfully drawn characters. I love the gentle comedy Bellairs often infuses his minor characters with as well. I would strongly recommend this title for anyone who loves reading vintage/golden age detective fiction.

This book is a classic English murder mystery which unfolds slowly but steadily. There are a lot of depths to each characters and the storyline twisted and turned as Inspector Littlejohn and Cromwell followed the clues with some solid detecting work.

I just can't get enough of books by George Bellair, always good to read, with a wonderful storyline and a really good mystery. 
I love the writing style as it really brings the people and era alive in every book. I am always sad when I come to the end of his books.

Wonderful George Bellairs. Stories with intrigue and mystery, well written and grammatically correct. I had no idea who the villain was until the author told me. A book full of unattractive people and unloving family members. The style is out of the past, although the story is up to date. Read it.