The Spoke

Friedrich Glauser (1896 – 1938), often compared to Simenon, is hailed as a legendary figure in European crime writing. Germany’s most prestigious crime writers’ award is named after him but sadly he lived a short and troubled life. Diagnosed a schizophrenic, he spent much of it in and out of psychiatric hospitals and was addicted to opium.

A murder puts an end to the wedding celebration of Studer’s daughter. A man is found with a sharpened bicycle spoke embedded in his back, and a suspect is quickly arrested, perhaps a little too quickly, thinks Studer…

The Spoke is the fifth and final outing for Sergeant Studer, published in the year before Glauser’s death.