WORRALS INVESTIGATES

First Published on 4th July 1950* - 173 pages

* This information is taken from a letter from A. P. Watt & Son to W. E. Johns in my collection

 

 

The original first edition dust jacket – showing the original book price of 6 shillings - by Reginald Heade (born Reginald Cyril Webb) 1901 – 1957

 

WORRALS INVESTIGATES

 

Click on any chapter for a summary of the events in that chapter or see the general story summary below

I – COFFEE FOR THREE

II – MORE COFFEE FOR THREE

III – BEYOND THE BLUE HORIZON

IV – MYSTERY UPON MYSTERY

V – A CURIOUS ENCOUNTERMARKOFF COMES BACK

VI – FRECKS GOES HER WAY

VII – THE SINGULAR STORY OF MABEL STUBBS

VIII – WORRIES FOR WORRALS

IX – TAKING THE BULL BY THE HORNS

X – DESPERATE MEASURES

XI – DOUBTS AND DANGERS

XII – HARD GOING

XIII – FRECKS TELLS HER TALE

XIV – HOME AGAIN

 

Worrals is asked by Air Commodore Raymond to investigate mysterious happenings on Outside Island near the Paumotu archipelago in the South Seas. A red-haired woman has shot at natives. Flying out with Frecks in a prototype flying-boat amphibian, Worrals goes to investigate. On the island, Worrals and Frecks find a wrecked boat named "Cleopatra" but Frecks discovers that it is really the "Vanity", a yacht that has been reported as missing. Locked up in the wrecked yacht is a native girl called Mari who has been beaten. The weather begins to decline and Worrals goes to look after their aircraft whilst Frecks explores further. A red-haired woman with a rifle captures Frecks. When Frecks doesn't return, Worrals goes to find her. Worrals meets a girl called Mabel Stubbs who tells Worrals that there are 20 girls being held against their will. Mabel had got a job with Miss Amelia Haddington, an eccentric millionaire, who has gone mad after the man she loved married someone else. Amelia has brought everybody to the Island where she can rule as Queen without any men. Amelia has eight other people running the Island with her, having made a will in their favour to buy their loyalty. One is a Doctor Borran, the red-head, and the others include Amelia's two nurses, Lily and Rose. Worrals goes to confront them all, in the Coral Palace where they live. Taking both Mabel and Mari with her, plus a gun, Worrals confronts Amelia whilst she is dining with her "ministers". Establishing that the captive girls all want to leave, Worrals takes charge and has Amelia, who is plainly insane, confined to her room. Other troublemakers are locked up, but the red-haired Dr. Borran, nicknamed 'The Geranium' escapes with a rifle. By this time, the weather is getting worse and worse. Frecks has to fly to get transport to take the girls off the island. On her journey to the aircraft Dr. Borran shoots at her. The next morning, Worrals finds Dr. Borran dead with an arrow in her back. She had previously shot at natives, killing one, and they had returned for their revenge. Frecks is able to signal a friendly ship and they call at the island to help evacuate the girls who want to leave. Amelia and her loyal "ministers" elect to stay on the Island and Worrals concludes that it is not for her to force them to leave. She thinks it is only her job to rescue the people being held against their will. Later, Worrals hears that the island has been swept clean by a tropical storm and inundated with water. There were no survivors. Talking with Air Commodore Raymond, Worrals' last line is "There'll be plenty of time for doughnuts when we're too old to get around".

This was the last "Worrals" book ever written by William Earl Johns

 

Click here to see the story illustrations from this book

 

 

 

French edition – L’ile Interdite – (Forbidden Island) – This edition contained no illustrations

 

Frontispiece

Click on the picture above to see it in more detail

 

Worrals Investigates

Subtitle - A further adventure in the career of Joan Worralson and her friend "Frecks" Lovell, one time of the W.A.A.F.

Publication Details - published by Lutterworth Press

 

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