 First edition | |
| Author | John Rhode |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Series | Lancelot Priestley |
| Genre | Detective |
| Publisher | Collins Crime Club (UK) Dodd Mead (US) |
Publication date | 1935 |
| Publication place | United Kingdom |
| Media type | |
| Preceded by | The Corpse in the Car |
| Followed by | Mystery at Olympia |
Hendon's First Case is a 1935 detective novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street.[1] It is the twenty first in his long-running series of novels featuring Lancelot Priestley, a Golden Age armchair detective.[2] The novel introduced the character Inspector Jimmy Waghorn, a graduate of the newly established Hendon Police College. Over time Waghorn would increasingly become a central figure in the series.
In his review in the New Statesman Ralph Partridge noted the similarities between Superintendent Hanslet and Inspector French in Crime at Guildford by Freeman Wills Crofts, and concluded "Mr. Rhode has added another satisfactory but undistinguished volume to his shelf.". The Times Literary Supplement described it as a "pleasantly written, well-constructed book".