Death of a Tin God

In this British mystery, a Scotland Yard detective follows a deadly trail from the Isle of Man to the South of France to solve a movie star’s murder.

The glamour of Hollywood has descended upon the Isle of Man. But behind this glossy façade, something sinister stirs. Superintendent Littlejohn thought he was in for a few days’ holiday, but when the depraved movie star Hal Vale is found dead in his hotel room, Littlejohn is called to investigate.

As motives and rumors abound, this star-studded pursuit reaches from London and Dublin to the French Riviera. With the help of his old friend, Inspector Dorange of the Sûreete´ at Nice, Littlejohn follows the trail from the sensation headlines to the industry’s shadowy tycoons.

George Bellairs is the pseudonym under which Harold Blundell (1902–1982) wrote police procedural thrillers in rural British settings. He was born in Lancashire, England, and worked as a bank manager in Manchester. After retiring, Bellairs moved to the Isle of Man, where several of his novels are set, to be with friends and family.

In 1941 Bellairs wrote his first mystery, Littlejohn on Leave, during spare moments at his air raid warden’s post. The title introduced Thomas Littlejohn, the detective who appears in fifty-seven of his novels. Bellairs was also a regular contributor to the Manchester Guardian and worked as a freelance writer for newspapers both local and national.