Prelude to a Certain Midnight

''Prelude to a Certain Midnight'' is a bleak, razor-sharp psychological noir novel written in the immediate aftermath of the Second World War. Set against the backdrop of late 1930s London as war looms, the book functions as a scathing critique of human callousness and a symbolic response to Nazi atrocities, distilled into a grim local crime.

The narrative centers on the horrific, unsolved rape and murder of Sonia Sabbatani, a 10-year-old Jewish girl whose body is found in an abandoned London cellar. Because the local police detective, Inspector "Dick" Turpin, is better at catching common thieves than sex murderers, the case quickly goes cold.

Enter Miss Asta Thundersley, a wealthy, eccentric, and formidable bohemian do-gooder. Convinced that the killer is one of the colorful, depraved regulars at her local pub—the fading Bar Bacchus—she takes the investigation into her own hands. In a desperate bid to catch the monster, she hosts a lavish dinner party, filling the suspects with alcohol to loosen their tongues.