Inspector French’s Greatest Case
Freeman Wills Crofts introduced his most famous detective in this 1924 mystery, the first of more than thirty cases for the patient, unglamorous Inspector Joseph French of Scotland Yard. It opens in the diamond district of Hatton Garden, where a merchant’s safe has been emptied and a clerk lies dead. There is no flash of genius here, only French’s steady legwork, which carries him from London to the Continent as he checks timetables, tests alibis, and follows the money. Crofts helped define the police procedural, and readers who enjoy watching a case built fact by patient fact will find the method absorbing. A free PDF and EPUB edition is available here.
About the Author
Freeman Wills Crofts (1879-1957) was an Irish-born railway engineer who began writing detective fiction while recovering from a long illness. A founding member of the Detection Club, he became a mainstay of the Golden Age and is best remembered for the methodical Inspector French.
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Listen to Inspector French’s Greatest Case Audiobook Free
Listen to Inspector French’s Greatest Case by Freeman Wills Crofts free online. The full audiobook (7 hr 38 min, 20 chapters, read by Yoganandh T) streams free on this page.
Inspector French’s Greatest Case (1925) is a public domain work.
| # | Chapter | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | MURDER! | 23:58 | |
| 2 | THE FIRM OF DUKE AND PEABODY | 18:57 | |
| 3 | GATHERING THE THREADS | 25:04 | |
| 4 | MISSING | 24:41 | |
| 5 | FRENCH TAKES A JOURNEY | 22:04 | |
| 6 | THE HOTEL IN BARCELONA | 27:59 | |
| 7 | CONCERNING A WEDDING | 20:20 | |
| 8 | SYLVIA AND HARRINGTON | 18:56 | |
| 9 | MRS. ROOT OF PITTSBURG | 24:40 | |
| 10 | SOME PAIRS OF BLANKETS | 22:32 | |
| 11 | A DEAL IN JEWELLERY | 22:15 | |
| 12 | THE ELUSIVE MRS. X. | 25:54 | |
| 13 | MRS. FRENCH TAKES A NOTION | 21:43 | |
| 14 | TRAGEDY | 18:07 | |
| 15 | THE HOUSE IN ST. JOHN’S WOOD | 25:34 | |
| 16 | A HOT SCENT | 23:46 | |
| 17 | A DEAL IN STOCKS | 25:59 | |
| 18 | THE S.S. “ENOCH” | 24:10 | |
| 19 | FRENCH PROPOUNDS A RIDDLE | 25:57 | |
| 20 | CONCLUSION | 15:53 |
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