Nicholas Blake 
Worm of Death 

A VINTAGE MURDER MYSTERYSeveral days after private detective and poet Nigel Strangeways dines with Dr Piers Loudon and his family, the doctor vanishes, only for his legless corpse to be fished out of the river Thames. When his family ask Nigel to protect their interests during the police investigation, it soon becomes apparent that each member of the deceased’s family, from his adopted son to his daughter’s unpleasant fianc e, had a strong motive for killing him. As the winter fog swirls outside, Nigel must find his way through a maze of conflicting stories, missing diaries and red herrings.A Nigel Strangeways murder mystery – the perfect introduction to the most charming and erudite detective in Golden Age crime fiction.