his secretary, who has a long-standing crush) will he reap the dual reward of favours from the refined client, accompanied by a substantial cheque. Cheyney's "Dark" series was widely praised during World War II for bringing more realism to espionage fiction. In their casual brutality and general "grubbiness," the "Dark" novels seem to have foreshadowed much of the Cold War fiction of the mid to late 1960s. Anthony Boucher placed these later works in the context of Graham Greene and Joseph Conrad. The characterisation of Ernest Guelvada in the "Dark" series is one of the high points of Cheyney's career. A cheerfully sadistic war operative whose objective is to deplete the ranks of opposing forces in a leisurely but thorough fashion, the loquacious Guelvada still finds the time to dress immaculately, drink immoderate amounts of alcohol and remain a counter agent. Cheyney published one volume of short stories, advice to critics and a few poems in No Ordinary Cheyney (London: Faber and Faber, 1948). Cheyney makes a cameo appearance in the Dennis Wheatley/J.G. Links "dossier" mystery "Herewith the Clues," published in 1939. He appears as man-of-fortune William Benson, one of the suspects. He died at age 55, after having fallen into a coma. He was buried at Putney Vale Cemetery in London. Personal life From all accounts, Cheyney lived much like his characters, working too hard, living the fast and careless life with a breathtaking abandon that eventually caught up with him. In addition to his literary skills, "he was a fencer of repute, a golfer, a crack pistol-shot, and a jiu-jitsu expert." He joined the New Party (set up by Sir Oswald Mosley and precursor to the later British Union of Fascists or BUF) in 1931, heading its youth detachment, which protected public meetings. He was married three times: in 1919 to the stage actress Dorma Leigh (from whom he was divorced in 1931), in 1934 to Kathleen Nora Walter Taberer, and in 1948 to Lauretta Theresa Singer. He had no children. List of works Lemmy Caution This Man Is Dangerous (1936) – filmed as This Man Is Dangerous (France; Jean Sacha, 1953) Poison Ivy (1937) – filmed as La môme vert-de-gris (France; Bernard Borderie, 1953) Dames Don't Care (1937) – filmed as The Women Couldn't Care Less (France; Bernard Borderie, 1954) Can Ladies Kill? (1938) Don't Get Me Wrong (1939) – filmed as Vous pigez (France; Victor Trivas