Paradise Court

Book excerpt: Mr. Rivington is tall, slender and willowy; Mr. Wells is stoutly built and looks as if nothing could break him. Mr. Rivington is a dreamer who loves art and can pursue his cultured interests thanks to the inheritance his uncle has left him; Mr. Wells is philosophic in a dry-humoured fashion and works in Foreign Service. But despite their differences these two young gentlemen are great friends. When they meet on a spring day in 1906, after Mr. Wells's three years absence from the country, they have no reason to suspect that their leisurely evening will soon entangle them in a series of mysterious events. But one enigmatic letter and the sudden disappearance of a young and beautiful lady, Yvette de St. Evreux, for whom Mr Rivington has secret feelings, changes everything. Paradise Court, first published in 1930, is a classic mystery novel full of entertaining characters, humour and adventures that happen between London and Paris.