The way she tackles this task leads to her being thrown into the grim prison of Chengfu, where she meets Nicholas Sabine - a man about to die.He asks her a cryptic riddle, the mystery of which echoes through all that befalls her in the months that follow...She is brought to England and tries to make a new life with the Gresham family, but she is constantly in disgrace and is soon involved in the bitter feud between the Greshams and a neighbouring family.There is danger, romance and heartache for Lucy as strange events build to a point where she begins to doubt her own senses.How could she see a man, long dead, walking in the misty darkness of the valley? And who carried her, unconscious, into the labyrinth of Chiselhurst Caves and left her to die?It is not until she returns to China that Lucy finds, amid high adventure, the answer to all that has baffled her.

    Always the perceptive observer, Allingham fills these stories with astute characterisations, brilliant humour, and her classic wit.With a tribute by Agatha Christie, this Golden Age collection is sure to dazzle and delight fans of this master of detective fiction.The Allingham Minibus was first published in 1973 and has also been published as Mr Campion’s Lucky Day and Other Stories.

    Act One: find a wealthy old woman in need of companionship. Act Two: have lovely, sympathetic Gretchen insinuate herself into the lonely dowager's personal life and financial affairs. Then call in Jay to bring down the final curtain with a cold-blooded smile and a bullet through the unfortunate senior citizen's brain. It looked as if the two killers were in for a long and successful run. But then Jay decided to improvise a little. And suddenly the murderous duo was about to find themselves cast in roles they had never rehearsed--as the victims...

    A collection of stories