The Dust and the Heat is one of Michael Gilbert’s stand-alone novels published by Hodder & Stoughton in 1967 and published by Harper in 1968 as Overdrive in the U.S. It was shortlisted for the Gold Dagger Award in 1968, which I am delighted to learn because I loved the story. As usual when I really like a book, I am reduced to wordless burbles of delight, which, while amusing to onlookers, does not explain convincingly why I enjoyed it and why I think everyone should find a copy without delay.
The story is hard to categorize. It is not a mystery, perhaps a thriller, maybe suspense, or possibly not crime fiction at all. There are plenty of underhanded maneuvers and stealthy tricks, most of them in the gray area of legality, only one murder near the end and plenty of corporate spycraft. In some ways the book reminds me of Gilbert’s Behrens and Calder stories, as they both involve espionage, although of different sorts.
It’s a story of post-war life and how one man unexpectedly discovered a swashbuckling corporate career during the unsettled aftermath. Oliver Nugent was a respected officer in the UK Armored Corp, but at the end of World War II he was like every other veteran, unemployed and unsure of his future. One of his buddies from the military inherited a struggling pharmaceutical firm and convinced Oliver to join him. Oliver took to business as if it were his life’s mission. Under his hard-charging leadership which often used questionable tactics, the small company stabilized and then expanded, outpacing its competitors.
One of Oliver’s early tricks involved a property right of way where the original factory was built behind a larger separately owned firm. When the buildings were first constructed, long ago in the mists of time, the owner of the larger company facing the street acknowledged the smaller firm needed access to the street and granted a right of way through the property, which nearly everyone forgot about. As time passed and the buildings expanded, Oliver noticed that shipments from his factory had to be hauled by hand from the loading dock up a side path to the street where they could be packed onto a truck and driven away. The labor costs and time lost were considerable, and Oliver decided to do something about it. Fireworks ensued.
Then there is a sequence involving new product launches and advertising schemes calculated to undercut the competition. Corporate espionage factors heavily into this part of the book. Readers who enjoyed the advertising bits in Murder Must Advertise will appreciate this updated spin on marketing tactics.
In retrospect Oliver Nugent is not a kind or pleasant person; he inspired respect from those around him but not necessarily affection. He is one of those driven hard-nosed men, always spoiling for a fight of some sort. Despite not being especially likable, Gilbert makes him a sympathetic character. An incident near the end of Oliver’s war service simmers in the background, forming an ongoing low-key threat.
The story is told in the first-person by another officer in Oliver’s unit, who stayed in sporadic touch with Oliver and his circle but worked elsewhere, which lends some perspective and distance to the events. A really interesting structural technique.
Readers who enjoy books about post-war England and how people found their way in a new world need to add this title to their TBR list. Fans of white-collar crime and spycraft will want to look this book up, which has to be one of Michael Gilbert’s best works ever. Fortunately there are plenty of copies on the secondary market. Highly recommended.