Skull Still Bone (A Dr Quarshie mystery)

Author: John Wyllie

Publisher: Barker Suspense

Date: 1975

Pages: 158

Cover illustration: William Rankin
Not currently available in Paperback or eBook format

One of the most pleasurable aspects of reading fiction is to be transported to another world from the one you live in. In the case of Science Fiction this can literally mean being whisked off to an alien world or a far distant universe unlike anything the human race has experienced. But for me, when it comes to other genres, being taken out of my own environment can be as simple as a different part of my own homeland, an alternative period in time, a foreign country, or even another continent. The most enjoyable of these 'trips' I favour, is when I am reading about the exploits of people who come from a decidedly different culture from my own. So although reading about Philip Marlowe in 1940s or 1950 Los Angeles might be a joy I will never tire of, reading about a Doctor and amateur detective set in a West African state in the 1970s really captures my imagination and pleases the soul so much more.

I guess if you were to ask me before I wrote this article to name a literary detective based in Africa, I'd never have been able to come up with a response. To be even more honest if you were to ask, name a novel set in Africa, I'd probably have said "Tarzan of the Apes", and not be able to add many more to ERB's legacy. So it was a very refreshing change to be able to find out that there is a series of detective (sort of) books set in that continent.

The Dr Quarshie books were written by Canadian author John Wyllie during the 1970s and 1980s. As far as I can make out there are eight of them, beginning with the novel I read, Skull Still Bone from 1975. Some of them were eventually published in paperback from Keyhole Crime although I haven't actually found a copy of Skull Still Bone in that format so far.

Wyllie had a few paperbacks to his name by the time he turned his attention to Dr Quarshie. He was a second world war RAF veteran, and so it was natural for him pen a novel about that conflict; there followed Japanese prisoner of war camp novel Survival (1957) and aerial action adventure Johnny Purple, as well as The Goodly Man and his first African set book, Riot which was actually released in 1954. There really isn't a lot I could find on the internet about Wyllie other than his author bio on various novels; it seems he was born in 1914 and at some point spent a number of years in West Africa, which is clearly where his inspiration for the Dr Quarshie books came from. Below are the Quarshie novels (paperbacks marked with an asterix).

• Skull Still Bone (1975)
• The Butterfly Flood (1975)
• To Catch a Viper (1977)
• Death is a Drum... Beating Forever (1977)*
• A Pocket Full of Dead (1978)*
• The Killer Breath (1979)*
• A Tiger in Red Weather (1980)
• The Long Dark Night of Baron Samedi (1981)

Doctor Quarshie is an African medical practitioner, based in the fictitious country of Akhanna, in the town of Port St. Mary, where he runs a clinic with his wife, Mrs. Quarshie who acts as the local midwife. In the first book of the series, "Quarshie" and "Mrs Quarshie" as they are referred to in the books are approached by their relative, a high-ranking Permanent Secretary in the ruling political party of Akhanna, to investigate the assassination of the Akhannan President.

The murderous action takes place very close to the Quarshie's residence, and it is the Dr himself who is the last person to witness the dying words of the President after he and a young girl from the local village are torn to pieces by a grenade in a box that the unfortunate child was presenting to the head of state as a welcome gift. Suffering from the sight of the mayhem inflicted by the weapon, Quarshie agrees to help his uncle and carry out an attempt to discover who the murderer or murderers are.

Accompanied by his beautiful wife, Mrs Quarshie the pair embark on a systematic round of interviews with relatives, friends, political enemies and supporters to the dead man. Slowly but surely, the pair begin to unearth the secrets and lies that abound in the tense arena of a burgeoning West African country struggling to survive without the need for foreign aid from other richer countries hell bent upon regaining a foothold in their continent.

Wyllie writes with a great deal of panache and wit. This is a serious plot, that highlights the internal battles black citizens of a country such as Akhanna would be faced with in the 70s - but he also weaves in to the narrative plenty of light-hearted and whimsical dialogue. The Quarshie's relationship is a wonderful balance to the serious events they are thrown into - it is a real delight to read about a married detective partnership for a change. They bounce ideas and strategies off of each other wonderfully - Mrs Quarshie is a perfect foil for both Dr Quarshie and all of the suspects, she holds her own impeccably. And Dr Quarshie, with his penchant for drinking a bottle of beer at any opportunity is physically imposing as well as incredibly intelligent.

Each chapter of the book is titled with an African saying - I've no idea if these are genuine or created by Wyllie for his stories, but its great fun to read each chapter wondering which person is going to quote them back at you. The book isn't all 'cosy' crime by the way. There are some nasty surprises, and the finale had me squirming in my chair when Quarshie describes the local torture technique to a potential suspect when they are captured in the village of the President.

If you are looking for something a bit different to the norm to feed your crime habit, I would recommend trying one of the Quarshie novels by John Wyllie. I'm not really sure what happened to them, or why they suddenly became popular during the late 1970s to effect a run of paperbacks, only to slip out of favour - but with at least eight of them available that's a pretty decent run for a niche crime setting, and they are very well written. I'll certainly be reading more as they do introduce a familiar theme in an unfamiliar setting which is very much something that is missing in popular fiction at the moment.