Red aces Being three cases of Mr. Reeder

About the book

The collection opens with a young bank employee, Kenneth McKay, troubled by the secrecy surrounding the woman he loves. His confidences enter a world where vanished fortunes, gambling calculations, and uncertain sources of income give emotional suspicion a potentially criminal setting. Mr. Reeder's distinctive understanding of wrongdoing supplies a different way to interpret those appearances. The title story is followed by Kennedy the Con. Man and The Case of Joe Attymar, allowing the investigator to confront further arrangements of deception. Wallace's interest lies partly in the mismatch between Reeder's outward modesty and the possibilities his mind is prepared to recognize. These are three separate cases, so the volume offers repeated encounters with the detective's methods rather than one uninterrupted novel-length investigation.

• Deception and confidence
• Money and temptation
• Unassuming intelligence

Why read it

The case collection highlights Reeder's ability to perceive criminal possibilities beneath ordinary social exchanges.

English collection containing three Mr. Reeder cases