Richard Grindal was born in New Delhi in 1920, where his father was working for the Indian Civil Service. He was educated at King's, Canterbury and won a scholarship to read modern history at Corpus Christi, Cambridge. During the war he joined the RAF. During the 1960s Richard worked for the Iron & Steel Federation. He was based in London, where he married and where his three children were born. His spiritual home, however, was Scotland; for over 20 years he travelled the world representing the Scotch Whisky industry and wrote a number of books about whisky. Writing and golf were his two great passions. He had 25 crime fiction titles published, some of which under his pen name of Richard Grayson.

With the Entente Cordiale still in its infancy, the Sûreté had assigned Inspector Gautier to keep a protective eye on English visitors to Paris for the racing at Longchamps. But it was not the English who engaged Gautier's attention, but an Irish surgeon - Michael Breen.
Breen, fêted by the ladies of Paris, is accused of a trivial assault - and almost at once Princess Hélène's daughter goes missing and a shop assistant at Au Bon Marché is found dead just as Breen flees the country. Inspector Gautier is hot on his heels to Dublin, whilst a third murder back in Paris complicates the affair for all involved.