Connington: No Past is Dead

Sir Clinton Driffield investigates when money-lender Ambrose Brenthurst is murdered after a dinner party. There are plenty of both suspects and motives, but a second murder soon follows, suggesting a less-than-simple solution to the mystery. Review From the moment of the first murder when the Creole actress’ pet cheetah is found gnawing on the body of the lecherous money-lender, to the surprise ending which exposes the killer . . . No Past is Dead is an excellent prop for dropping eyelids. Further, it sets you searching for cover-ups for even the most guileless incidents in your own past. Mr. Connington has produced a killer-diller of a thriller, well sprinkled with gore, footprints, fingerprints, disguises, a hint of Voodoo, garden-tool weapons, stolen jewels, and conflicting claims to a family fortune. While the ingredients are timeworn among murder-mystery writers, they here are cleverly combined to make a heady brew for the thriller addict. (Binghamton, NY, Press and Sun-Bulletin , 1942)