The French Letter
Viewing comments for Chapter 109 "A Thief in the Night"A Novel
27 total reviews
Comment from Sandra du Plessis
A very well-written chapter about the thief stealing the ransome money. It seems Charles can be a suspect when the blood is proven to be his when he fell in the Rosebush the previous nght
reply by the author on 23-Jan-2020
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A very well-written chapter about the thief stealing the ransome money. It seems Charles can be a suspect when the blood is proven to be his when he fell in the Rosebush the previous nght
Comment Written 23-Jan-2020
reply by the author on 23-Jan-2020
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Thanks, Sandra. I appreciate your positive comments. Most affirming. All good wishes, Tony
Comment from Carl DeVere
I enjoyed this tale of intrigue very much. There is a very identifiable British tone to it. You can almost hear the accent as you read along. This is a well-constructed story, carefully thought out and including a very believable cast of characters. It strikes me that the British have far more experience in the Middle East having been there much longer. Also, they have been both enemies and allies for many centuries with the French. All of this plays in this depiction. Kudos.
reply by the author on 23-Jan-2020
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I enjoyed this tale of intrigue very much. There is a very identifiable British tone to it. You can almost hear the accent as you read along. This is a well-constructed story, carefully thought out and including a very believable cast of characters. It strikes me that the British have far more experience in the Middle East having been there much longer. Also, they have been both enemies and allies for many centuries with the French. All of this plays in this depiction. Kudos.
Comment Written 22-Jan-2020
reply by the author on 23-Jan-2020
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Thanks very much for reviewing this, Carl, and for your positive comments. I think you're right about the somewhat ambivalent relationship between the French and the English.
There are still remnants of the British Raj in India and Pakistan, both in buildings and in attitudes. The British influence on the North-West frontier has been long-standing. Many friends and many enemies made along the way.
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I thought of the British Raj when I was reading the story. There was a TV program in the 50s called The Tales of The Bengal Lancers--my favorite. Your story had that flavor.
Comment from lyenochka
Oh-oh. Since it was Charles's blood on the rose bush, will he be implicated in the theft? Hopefully, the real thief will be caught and somehow they can save Helen. Boy, the twists and turns you designed in this book!
reply by the author on 23-Jan-2020
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Oh-oh. Since it was Charles's blood on the rose bush, will he be implicated in the theft? Hopefully, the real thief will be caught and somehow they can save Helen. Boy, the twists and turns you designed in this book!
Comment Written 22-Jan-2020
reply by the author on 23-Jan-2020
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Charles does seem to have made himself a prime suspect. Nonetheless, I have high hopes he'll be able to extricate himself from this situation.
Comment from Cindy Warren
I'm trying to figure out Ash. I don't trust him. I don't know if Chaprasi robbed him or not. Ash could easily have decided to keep the money for himself and staged the robbery. One thing for sure, Charles, Kayla, and Helen are in for more trouble.
reply by the author on 23-Jan-2020
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I'm trying to figure out Ash. I don't trust him. I don't know if Chaprasi robbed him or not. Ash could easily have decided to keep the money for himself and staged the robbery. One thing for sure, Charles, Kayla, and Helen are in for more trouble.
Comment Written 22-Jan-2020
reply by the author on 23-Jan-2020
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Some interesting observations here, Cindy. I wonder how it will all pan out in the end.
Comment from Jannypan (Jan)
This is an interesting chapter, Tony. There is some good action, dialogue, and interesting twists. I am a bit discouraged as it seems to be making light of those with dwarfism. Respectfully Jan
reply by the author on 23-Jan-2020
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This is an interesting chapter, Tony. There is some good action, dialogue, and interesting twists. I am a bit discouraged as it seems to be making light of those with dwarfism. Respectfully Jan
Comment Written 22-Jan-2020
reply by the author on 23-Jan-2020
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Thanks for your review, Jan. That certainly wasn't Bisto's intention. He would be mortified to think that he might have caused offence. I suspect he was thinking of dwarves in the fairytale sense. Chaprasi isn't actually suffering from dwarfism. He is just small in stature.
Anyway, I've now changed it to 'gnome', though I'm not sure that's much better.
Comment from Iza Deleanu
And here you go again, chasing the onionsð???no money, no deal. One of those moments too good to be true, if somebody offers you a reasonable accommodation does that means is coming with the price of a certain ransom?
reply by the author on 23-Jan-2020
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And here you go again, chasing the onionsð???no money, no deal. One of those moments too good to be true, if somebody offers you a reasonable accommodation does that means is coming with the price of a certain ransom?
Comment Written 22-Jan-2020
reply by the author on 23-Jan-2020
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Thanks for your review, Iza. I appreciate your comments about this chapter. All good wishes, Tony
Comment from w.j.debi
Excellent descriptions and dialogue bring your characters to life. Charles certainly has some bizarre nightmares. It does seem like these guys should have take more precautions with their large sum of money. Hopefully, the delay will not be deadly for Helen.
reply by the author on 22-Jan-2020
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Excellent descriptions and dialogue bring your characters to life. Charles certainly has some bizarre nightmares. It does seem like these guys should have take more precautions with their large sum of money. Hopefully, the delay will not be deadly for Helen.
Comment Written 22-Jan-2020
reply by the author on 22-Jan-2020
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Thanks, W.J. I appreciate your comments. Ash was unduly careless. I may have to revisit that. Perhaps he was working on the basis that no-one knew the briefcase contained anything of value and didn't want to draw attention to it with security chains, etc.
Comment from Ulla
Hi Tony. This is a great continuation to the story and the plot is thickening. You seem to be a master to put obstacles all which way. I regret, I have no six left . I would have liked to award one. All best. Ulla:))
reply by the author on 22-Jan-2020
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Hi Tony. This is a great continuation to the story and the plot is thickening. You seem to be a master to put obstacles all which way. I regret, I have no six left . I would have liked to award one. All best. Ulla:))
Comment Written 22-Jan-2020
reply by the author on 22-Jan-2020
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Thanks, Ulla, for your review and virtual six. Appreciated! Life is never easy for a hero! LOL
Comment from Sankey
Another great chapter. Unfortunately, you have missed the SIXES this time around. Vivid descriptions including the suare in the rose bush and the emotion of Ash. No spags. Roy Owens (fellow South Aussie - do you know him?) reckons trams are coming back to Adelaide -(apart from the Glenelg and Victor Harbour horse tram.). Interesting.
reply by the author on 22-Jan-2020
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Another great chapter. Unfortunately, you have missed the SIXES this time around. Vivid descriptions including the suare in the rose bush and the emotion of Ash. No spags. Roy Owens (fellow South Aussie - do you know him?) reckons trams are coming back to Adelaide -(apart from the Glenelg and Victor Harbour horse tram.). Interesting.
Comment Written 22-Jan-2020
reply by the author on 22-Jan-2020
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Thanks for your review, Geoffrey, and virtual six. I appreciate your positive comments.
I don't know Roy personally but often review his work. The tram network has been slightly extended around the city centre. I'm not sure what future plans there are.
Comment from juliaSjames
I do admire your diligence and creativity, Tony. I daresay you've completed the novel by now and you're posting segments onsite. But for us readers each post is a revelation of your skill. Now there I was thinking of Ash as a professional among amateurs only for him to fall for two of the oldest tricks in the book. Taking a room on the ground floor and taking a sleeping draught from an unknown source. Tsk tsk tsk!
At least the robbery has broken the ice although Ash obviously suspects Charles of being the perpetrator.
Excellent writing.
Blessings Julia
reply by the author on 22-Jan-2020
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I do admire your diligence and creativity, Tony. I daresay you've completed the novel by now and you're posting segments onsite. But for us readers each post is a revelation of your skill. Now there I was thinking of Ash as a professional among amateurs only for him to fall for two of the oldest tricks in the book. Taking a room on the ground floor and taking a sleeping draught from an unknown source. Tsk tsk tsk!
At least the robbery has broken the ice although Ash obviously suspects Charles of being the perpetrator.
Excellent writing.
Blessings Julia
Comment Written 22-Jan-2020
reply by the author on 22-Jan-2020
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I wish! Each new posting is hot off the press. However, I do now have a reasonably clear idea of how this is going to end. It's just a matter of hammering away at the computer keys.
The hard part is yet to come, and that is deciding what ends up on the cutting room floor!
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Oh it will be fun to edit, Tony. Time consuming but rewarding.