Joan Hawes

Jamieson's Bunker Joan Hawes

Two murders, a man in his 60s bludgeoned to death on a golf course and a woman in her late 20s knifed in the bedroom of her own home in bizarre circumstances, form frustrating cases for Detective Superintendent Charles Blower and his team. Investigating both murders concurrently reveals a sexual relationship between the assistant professional at the golf club and the woman. Witness evidence suggests that the woman had other lovers. Photographs retrieved from her home indicate that they might be found at local tennis or dance clubs, thus entailing undercover operations. Meanwhile, the search for the man's killer centres on several golf club members, the secretary, and the club steward. As undercurrents of antagonism surface, the gossip starts and it becomes clear that the club is not the bastion of propriety its secretary suggests. The professional shop and the men's locker room are burgled while the club professional is coaching abroad. Sets of clubs and money go missing. Blower thinks the burglary is an inside job, the steward and the assistant professional again coming under suspicion. With his inspector in control of that situation and his sergeant making headway at the tennis club, some six weeks after taking charge Blower is confident that the murders will be resolved speedily. A lack of witness evidence, however, puts his sergeant in a dangerous situation with a schizophrenic, and Blower involves himself in ways of detection he would not have considered likely at the outset.