Jack O' Judgment
Public-domain ebook
Jack O' Judgment
Language: en5,370 downloads on Project Gutenberg
Subjects
In: Crime, Thrillers and Mystery·Novels·British Literature
Public-domain ebook sourced from Project Gutenberg #24767.
About this book
Jack O’ Judgment is a detective‑mystery that opens with a tangled web of intrigue surrounding “Snow” Gregory, a drug‑addicted gambler whose death is linked to a cryptic playing‑card message. The narrative launches in the opulent flat of Colonel Dan Boundary, who receives a stained knave of clubs bearing the ominous words “Jack o’ Judgment.” The card triggers a series of unsettling encounters between the colonel and the astute police chief Stafford King, hinting at a larger conspiracy involving the Boundary gang, dubious business deals, and a shadowy figure who seems to be manipulating events from behind a deck of cards. The opening scenes blend courtroom‑type dialogue with vivid descriptions of London’s underworld, setting the stage for a chase that promises both cerebral puzzles and gritty confrontation.
The prose reflects Edgar Wallace’s early twentieth‑century style: brisk, dialogue‑heavy, and peppered with idiosyncratic details that convey a smoky, urban atmosphere. The voice is sardonic yet earnest, capturing the clash between the colonel’s brutish swagger and the detective’s methodical cool. Readers who enjoy intricate, dialogue‑driven mysteries with a touch of noir, and who appreciate period‑specific slang and elaborate character sketches, will find this novel’s tangled plot and atmospheric setting compelling.
Characters in Jack O' Judgment
- Snow GregoryGaunt young man, sharp cheekbones, thin hair, rumpled tweed suit, tired eyes
- Colonel Dan BoundaryMiddle‑aged colonel, broad shoulders, trimmed moustache, military coat, confident posture
- Stafford KingDetective‑type police chief, crisp dark suit, fedora, steely gaze, neatly trimmed hair
Opening lines
His associates had called him "Snow" Gregory because he was a doper, and cocaine is invariably referred to as "snow" by all its votaries. He was a gambler too, and he had been associated with Colonel Dan Boundary in certain of his business enterprises. That was all. The colonel knew nothing of the young man's antecedents except that he had been an Oxford man who had come down in the world. The colonel added a few particulars designed, as it might seem to the impartial observer, to prove that he, the colonel, had ever been an uplifting quantity. (This colonelcy was an honorary title which he held by custom rather than by law.) …
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