This short crime novel, first published by the Woolfs at the Hogarth Press in 1929, has as its protagonist the anxious, overthinking, uncertain young stockbroker Malcolm Warren. C.H.B Kitchin (1895-1967) was a barrister, sometime greyhound breeder and chess and bridge player who enjoyed considerable success as a fiction writer.
Part of the charm of this tightly structured crime novel – my 1949 edition is only 167 pages – is the personality of Malcolm Warren. Summoned unexpectedly down to visit his aunt for the weekend to advise her on her investments, his first interview with her ends with her sudden death caused by a tonic he has administered. As he moves from observer to suspect a tight web of movement within the household is gradually unpicked.
Malcolm’s sense of his own inadequacies informs his detection style…
Endless lists notes and internal questioning finally brings the case to a successful conclusion. Malcolm Warren was to appear in three more crime novels – Crime at Christmas (1934), Death of his Uncle (1939), The Cornish Fox (1949).
The four crime titles were only a small part of Kitchin’s overall literary output. He wrote a number of well-regarded novels including Streamers Waving and The Auction Sale.
Death of my Aunt is well worth a read…
The Solitary Reader 