I gave it the high rating from the impression it made on its first reading with wild scenes -Merrivale with two young woman hanging on him and someone saying "two poules deluxe" (not true) or the cabdriver pasting HM's necktie to him after HM gave him a list of Arabic insults and sad "that's you." At the time, I said it was better than James Bond. But the solution of the mystery I found disappointing the on second reading, though I liked it the first time. ( )

I am done reading Carter Dickson. His characters are too jolly-ho-ho-Lord-love-a-duck for me. I suppose this book might have some interesting tidbits about Tangier in it. The mystery was fine as mysteries go to solve. What completely turned me off was the philosophy that we don't mind someone who only steals things which are insured, because the insurance companies pay for it so nobody gets hurt. Like the companies won't raise the rates on all of us to pay for their losses! Grrrr. ( )

I love John Dickson Carr. I absolutely adore the man and all the books I've read by him. Even if the puzzle sometimes is a bit lacking, the books are always entertaining and until this book he had never let me down. Not once. I'd never felt anything but warmth for the man. But oh my. Oh crikey. I'd never understood the people who found HM a little tiresome and annoying until the ridiculous nonsense in this book. Not only are all the comic scenes incredibly tiresome, there's a long and arduous fight scene which seems to last a lifetime and then of course there's the crime itself. From any other writer the solution would be a bit of a clunker, but from the man who created the masterpieces of "The Hollow Man" and "The Ten Teacups" we get... this? Absolutely the most ludicrous solution of a crime novel I have ever read. And I've read a fair few in my time, including some terrible ones. And this is absolutely the worst. However bad an ending you have in your mind... brace yourself, that's all I'm saying. ( )