"Proud Sorrows"

James R. Benn is the author of the Billy Boyle World War II series, historical mysteries set within the Allied High Command during the Second World War. The series began with
Billy Boyle, which takes place in England and Norway in 1942.

Benn applied the Page 69 Test to Proud Sorrows, the eighteenth installment of the series, and reported the following:

Page 69 lands the reader smack dab in the heart of the mystery. We’re in a makeshift morgue in the basement of a POW facility for high-value German officers in Great Britain. The local doctor is examining a corpse in the presence of Billy Boyle, Chief Inspector Gwynne, and Colonel Cheatwood, second-in-command.

“Yes,” Bodkin said, turning the dead man’s head. “You can see where the blow landed.”

“A killing strike,” Gwynne said, squinting as he got closer. So far, the guy seemed to know his way around a corpse. He certainly wasn’t squeamish, which made me wonder how many putrefying bodies he’d run across.

“We checked for identity discs or a wallet, but found nothing,” Cheatwood said.

“Wish you hadn’t,” Gwynne said. “The less interference the better. How many people have touched this man?”

The Page 69 Test works well here on several levels. It gives the reader a clear indication that this is a classic criminal investigation, but also hints at the tension between the parties involved. My protagonist, Bill Boyle, is mainly an observer on this page, but the dialog previews the conflicts to come as the local police attempt to conduct a murder investigation involving a top-secret prisoner interrogation center. Chief Inspector Gwynne is clearly not happy with the supposedly helpful colonel’s interference.

The page concludes with a description of the various characters who were close at hand when the body was discovered, which further angers Gwynne, and he closes with this acidic comment:

“I’m surprised you didn’t sell tickets,” Gwynne said. “Dr. Bodkin, please remain here until the morgue comes for the body.”

The unidentified corpse had appeared in mysterious circumstances, and once his identity is uncovered, the investigation widens into areas none of the original witnesses to its discovery could have imagined.

Except for the killer, of course.

Learn more about the Billy Boyle WWII Mystery Series at James R. Benn's website.

The Page 99 Test: The First Wave.

The Page 69 Test: Evil for Evil.

The Page 69 Test: Rag and Bone.

The Page 69 Test: The White Ghost.

The Page 69 Test: Blue Madonna.

Q&A with James R. Benn.

--Marshal Zeringue