THE ASKING PRICE by Henry Cecil...

THE ASKING PRICE by Henry Cecil (Academy Chicago Publishers: $4.95). This curiously beguiling novel begins as a comedy of manners in the H. H. Munro/P. G. Wodehouse tradition. “Colonel” Ronald Holbrook, the blithely useless central character, must sell his comfortable London home because the 17-year-old girl next door persists in trying to consummate her one-sided passion for him. But as the story unfolds, Cecil’s comic tale of misplaced affection subtly darkens into a romantic tragedy tinged with blackmail. This eccentric little black comedy boasts a surprise ending that will take even hard-core mystery fans unaware.