The Three Taps

The business of death has given insurance investigator Miles Bredon a unique outlook on life in this witty Golden Age mystery.

The Three Taps introduces us to Jephthah Mottram, a very wealthy man who has received dire news from his doctor—he has just two years left to live. However, he doesn't even manage to make it that far. While enjoying a fishing holiday in the Midlands of England, Mottram is discovered dead, an apparent suicide by gas.

For Indescribable Insurance, this would be an ideal situation, as they would avoid paying out insurance benefits. Consequently, the company dispatches its own private detective to investigate the matter further.

Upon his arrival at the Load of Mischief Inn, Miles Bredon encounters a policeman with whom he served during the war. The policeman has his own suspicious theory regarding Mottram's death, suggesting it is anything but a suicide—it is murder. The two men engage in a friendly wager over who will successfully prove their case, never anticipating just how much greed and vanity can complicate a life—and a death...