17 AUGUST 1929, Page 23

LIFE—AND A FORTNIGHT. By Margaret Peterson. (Benn. 7s. 6d.)—He-men and

she-women in a lonely outpost of Empire ! The type of story is conventional enough, but Miss Peterson is an efficient chef and serves up a familiar dish with a relish of her own. A rich American tourist is murdered at the hotel of an isolated African holiday resort. The body is discovered by Dick Stanley,a young, blue-eyed coffee planter. Suspicion falls upon five different people, including Dick and two women, aunt and niece, who alternately attract him. The mystery is worked out fairly ingeniously, and the love interest is dovetailed with more than average skill. Miss Peterson writes well, and her verve succeeds in imparting some degree of freshness and vitality to stock characters and situations.