''This Undesirable Residence'' is a 1942 detective novel by the British writer

Cecil Street Cecil John Charles Street (3 May 1884 – 8 December 1964), who was known to his colleagues, family and friends as John Street, began his military career as an artillery officer in the British Army. During the course of World War I, he became a ...

, writing under the

pen name A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a literary double, is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen na ...

of Miles Burton. It was part of a lengthy series of books featuring the detective Desmond Merrion and

Inspector Inspector, also police inspector or inspector of police, is a police rank. The rank or position varies in seniority depending on the organization that uses it. Australia In Australian police forces, the rank of inspector is generally the ne ...

Arnold of

Scotland Yard Scotland Yard (officially New Scotland Yard) is the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police, the territorial police force responsible for policing Greater London's 32 boroughs, but not the City of London, the square mile that forms London's ...

. It was published in the United States by

Dodd Mead Dodd, Mead and Company was one of the pioneer publishing houses of the United States, based in New York City. Under several names, the firm operated from 1839 until 1990. History Origins In 1839, Moses Woodruff Dodd (1813–1899) and John S. Ta ...

under the alternative title ''Death at Ash House''.Reilly p.1259 Like much of the series it takes place in rural England. In his'' Times Literary Supplement'' review Maurice Willson Disher drew attention to this "Lanes and fields, house, shed and pond, raspberry canes and gypsy encampment, form a drowsy background of English country life which admirably sets off the ruthless activities of some person unknown with a Nazi — as Mr. Churchill pronounces it — mind." A less positive review came from Isaac Anderson in the '' New York Times'' who wrote "Miles Burton has written some excellent detective tales, but this one does little to enhance his reputation.".

Synopsis

Ash House is situated just off the main road between the town of Wraynesford and the village of Betherston. Despite being very attractive and well-situated it has failed to find a tenant for over a year. When at last a car turns up at the house, the gardener discover a corpse inside.

References

Bibliography

* Evans, Curtis. ''Masters of the "Humdrum" Mystery: Cecil John Charles Street, Freeman Wills Crofts, Alfred Walter Stewart and the British Detective Novel, 1920-1961''. McFarland, 2014. * Herbert, Rosemary. ''Whodunit?: A Who's Who in Crime & Mystery Writing''. Oxford University Press, 2003. * Reilly, John M. ''Twentieth Century Crime & Mystery Writers''. Springer, 2015. 1942 British novels Novels by Cecil Street British mystery novels British detective novels Collins Crime Club books Novels set in England {{1940s-novel-stub