Richard Hull was the penname for Richard Henry Sampson, a detail which is pertinent to bring up when the protagonist for today’s read goes by the same name. Moreover, the author worked as an accountant, whilst his character was a solicitor. Moreover, this character near the end of the book decides he wants a penname for turning his record of events into a novel. Any guesses what the penname might be? This playful use of fiction and reality is in keeping with Hull’s metafictional and darkly humorous take on mystery fiction. It has been a few years since I had read a new-to-me book by Richard Hull, so it has been pleasing that 2025 has seen me enjoy two such reads.
N. B. To avoid confusion when I refer to Sampson, I mean the protagonist and when I refer to Hull I mean the author.
Synopsis
‘One does not expect one’s friends to drop in in the middle of the night and mention casually that they have committed murder that very evening. And yet that is what happens to Richard Sampson, solicitor and close friend of Alan Renwick, who sought shelter in his flat. Sampson agrees to help him to escape the law’s clutches. The extraordinary consequences make a convincing and ingenious story of intense human appeal, seasoned, however, with plenty of humour and irony.’
Overall Thoughts
Like many of Richard Hull’s novels, My Own Murderer is an inverted mystery, in that we know Alan Renwick is guilty of killing his valet, who wanted to blackmail him over some romantic indiscretions. However, the interest lies not in what has happened, but in what will happen next, where will this initial situation take Renwick and Sampson. It is a narrative structure which is highly dependent on the psychology of the central characters.
The tale is written in the first person, from Sampson’s point of view and he opens by describing his toxic and dysfunctional friendship with his client, Alan. Sampson has many a reason to be annoyed with his selfish, arrogant, happy-go-lucky, controlling and irresponsible friend, yet there is something which compels him to still help him out. That something might not be the noblest of intentions: ‘Even before he murdered Baynes I never was really much attracted by Alan Renwick, which in a way makes it strange that I did so much for him. But then I never pretended that my motive was solely that of kindness.’
The true colours of Sampson’s motive soon become apparent, as revenge and a chance to turn the tables on Renwick more strongly dictate Sampson’s actions. For years he had been treated like dirt by Renwick:
‘His every word and gesture implied that I was a small and insignificant man physically and, as a lawyer, merely somebody whom he hired to so some unimportant work which required a little technical knowledge. Just like a plumber, in fact.’
… and Alan’s current vulnerability gives him an opportunity to give Alan a taste of his own medicine. By the close of chapter two, Sampson is determined that Renwick ‘wanted learning a lesson; he wanted his pride humbled, and it would give’ him ‘the greatest satisfaction to do it.’
Sampson will have his work cut out though, as Alan is hardly the penitent murderer, and continues to act high-handedly towards Sampson. When he first arrives at Sampson’s home, he commandeers his only food, tomorrow’s breakfast, and then complains that Sampson does not keep food in for guests. This type of social arena plays into Hull’s writing strengths as he is a deft hand at depicting the thornier aspects of Renwick and Sampson’s friendship:
‘“[…] now I suppose I had better explain and let me start by saying ‘Thank you’ for the egg. I really am grateful. Not everybody would have let me have it, I know.”
It was preposterous. I hadn’t let him have it. He’d taken it as if it was Czech-Slovakia, and nothing short of violence, which anyhow was impractical, could have saved it. Nevertheless, it was just like Alan not only to thank me but to do it with such apparent sincerity that I was flattered […] It was clever of him, too, not to mention the whisky. That was a much more expensive commodity […]’
After that first night, Sampson is confident that ‘it was pretty clear who was the master’, yet one of the engaging aspects of this story is seeing how this confidence is sometimes misplaced. There is a cat and mouse element to this duo, and you are interested to see who comes out on top.
Since Alan Renwick is a fugitive from the law, a central aspect of the remaining plot is him and Sampson planning how he will evade the police on a permanent basis. These plans are somewhat hindered by the difficulties of starting a new life and Renwick being used to the good life and not wanting to work. Eventually they hit upon a course of action. But it is not without its pitfalls and in true Hull fashion you know each element added to the plan is contributing to the inevitable final domino effect. Yet this tragedy component is crucial to Hull’s writing style, as his characters are not given to you to feel buckets of sympathy for them. Whatever befalls them is invariably of their own doing, an outpouring from their less pleasant character traits. Alan, for instance, makes out that killing his valet was a single punch in the heat of the moment, yet this does not square with the coroner’s report, which mentions broken ribs. Sampson also is not one you feel sorry for, as whilst he has had much to put up with Alan, he had other choices he could have made instead.
I don’t always agree with The Saturday Review of Literature, but in this particular case I do. The reviewer for that publication opined that Hull’s novel was ‘completely unprincipled, sardonically amusing, swift, and smoothly written. Denouement not great surprise but told well.’ I concur in all points unusually. This is a nicely told tale, but the ending is not shocking, as there was a limit to what conclusions there could be, given the setup. The two central characters and the narrative voice was what make this story work so well.
Rating: 4.25/5
See also: Martin Edwards and Jason have also reviewed this title on their respective blogs.
Other Richard Hull Books I Have Reviewed
The Murder of my Aunt (1934)
Keep It Quiet (1935)
Murder Isn’t Easy (1936)
The Ghost It Was (1936)
Excellent Intentions (1938)
And Death Came Too (1939)
Left-Handed Death (1946)