The Case of the Three Lost Letters: A Ludovic Travers Mystery

I liked him. When I heard of his death I was quite upset.

Henry Baldlow is a nervous man. An apparent invalid, he plans to emigrate for his health, yet claims to require a detective to guard his life in the interim. Ludovic Travers isn’t initially convinced, but when one of his operatives turns up dead, and then Baldlow himself, he takes charge. A series of visitors were asked to call at specific times on the afternoon of Baldlow’s death—was one of these the culprit? Investigating the case entails Travers reluctantly romancing a femme fatale, peeking in at the jewellery business, and exploring the murky world of show-business, before he brings the crime home to the murderer.

The Case of the Three Lost Letters was originally published in 1954. This new edition features an introduction by crime fiction historian Curtis Evans.

“A model detective story on classical lines: an original central idea, with a complicated plot to clothe it, plenty of sound, straightforward detection by a mellowed Ludovic Travers and never a word that is not strictly relevant to the story.” Anthony Berkeley

“A beautifully quiet, close-knit problem in deduction very fairly presented and impeccably solved.” Sunday Times

Christopher Bush was born Charlie Christmas Bush in Norfolk in 1885. His father was a farm labourer and his mother a milliner. In the early years of his childhood he lived with his aunt and uncle in London before returning to Norfolk aged seven, later winning a scholarship to Thetford Grammar School. As an adult, Bush worked as a schoolmaster for 27 years, pausing only to fight in World War One, until retiring aged 46 in 1931 to be a full-time novelist. His first novel featuring the eccentric Ludovic Travers was published in 1926, and was followed by 62 additional Travers mysteries. These are all to be republished by Dean Street Press. Christopher Bush fought again in World War Two, and was elected a member of the prestigious Detection Club. He died in 1973.