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A northwest London detective tackles a twenty-five-year-old missing persons case in this comic crime novel. Dangerous Davies, you understand, earned his nickname in the same way that fat men nicknamed "Tiny" earn theirs. But while he may not inspire dread in the hearts of London's bad guys, he is nevertheless on the side of right and good, and has a copper's badge to prove it. True, he is known as the "last detective" -not because there are no others like him, but because he is, in nearly show more every instance, the last boy picked for the team (although his dog does like him). With little actual work to do, Dangerous has plenty of time to pick through the cases that everybody else has forgotten. And when he stumbles across a real piece of ancient history, it looks like the perfect way to keep him out of trouble and out of the real coppers' way. Originally published in 1976, this is the first novel in the Dangerous Davies series, which was subsequently adapted for television in the UK; it was also made into a movie in 1981. "Recommended to anyone who enjoys a good detective yarn with plenty of laughs." -Daily Express (UK) "Splendid comic writing." -Daily Mail (UK.) show lessTags
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Member Reviews
Named dangerous because he was said to be harmless and he was known by the London police as the ‘last detective’ because he was never sent unless it was a very risky job or there was no one else. He was a drunk, frequently laughed at, often foolish but he never lost hope and always felt that one day he would redeem himself. Among his many shortcomings was that he was never suspicious or cautious and got beaten up on a regular basis. When interviewing a suspect most often he was the one answering all the questions. When he solved a case it was because he drank not despite it.
film-only, summer-2013, next
Read from August 16 to 17, 2013
TV series...
1. Missing
2. Dangerous By Moonlight
No more of that for me, thank you very much.
2 likes
Read from August 16 to 17, 2013
TV series...
1. Missing
2. Dangerous By Moonlight
No more of that for me, thank you very much.
2 likes
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Books Read in 2018
4,360 works; 110 members
Author Information
42+ Works 1,688 Members
Leslie Thomas was born in Newport, Wales on March 22, 1931. Both of his parents died around 1943 and he was sent to an orphanage. He flunked out of bricklaying school but did better in a journalism course. At the age of 17, he found a newspaper job in north London, first folding newspapers and then reporting. In 1949, he was drafted and sent to show more Singapore as a member of the Royal Army Pay Corps. After serving a year, he found work with a news agency, then with The Evening News as a feature writer. He covered the war-crimes trial of Adolf Eichmann. His first book, This Time Next Week: The Autobiography of a Happy Orphan, was published in 1964. His first novel, The Virgin Soldiers, was published in 1966 and was adapted into a movie in 1969. He wrote more than 30 books during his lifetime including Onward Virgin Soldiers and Stand Up Virgin Soldiers, which was also adapted into a movie in 1977. In 2004, he was named an Officer of the Order of the British Empire for his services to literature. He died on May 6, 2014 at the age of 83. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Awards and Honors
Series
Belongs to Publisher Series
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Dangerous Davies, the Last Detective
- Original publication date
- 1976
- Epigraph
- CELIA: Well, the beginning
that is dead and buried
As You Like It - Dedication
- For Eric Hiscock,
who encouraged me at the start
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 157
- Popularity
- 207,914
- Reviews
- 2
- Rating
- (3.59)
- Languages
- English, German
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 13
- ASINs
- 7
