Wildfire at Midnight

First edition
(publ. Hodder & Stoughton)
Cover art by Eleanor Poore

Wildfire at Midnight is a novel by Mary Stewart which was first published in 1956. Stewart herself described the book as "an attempt at something different, the classic closed-room detective story with restricted action, a biggish cast, and a closely circular plot".

Synopsis

Fashion model Gianetta Brooke leaves her usual glamorous surroundings to go on holiday to the Scottish island of Skye, only to find that her ex-husband, writer Nicholas Drury, is staying at the same hotel in Camasunary. Set against the backdrop of recent events at the time of publication—the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II and the Hillary expedition that was the first to reach the summit of Mount Everest—this romantic suspense novel now has a "bygone era" sense of time and place.

After two murders take place locally, suspicion falls on the hotel guests, who include an aging "femme-fatale" star stage actress, a mountaineer, a possessive climber and her ingenue apprentice, a jealous wife and philandering husband, an old acquaintance of Gianetta's and Nicholas's, a writer of travel guides, and a handsome local versed in pagan folklore. Gianetta, above suspicion due to her more recent arrival at the hotel, finds herself divided when assisting the police, torn between old loyalties, new sympathies, and her civic duty.

Plot Summary

In 1953 London, Gianetta Brooke, a top fashion model, needs a break and wishes to get away from the crowds for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. Gianetta’s father, a clergyman interested in religious folklore, suggests a hotel in the Scottish island of Skye.

On the ferry to the hotel, Gianetta meets two local mountaineers, Rhodri MacDowell, the ferry operator, and the handsome Roderick Grant, both versed in pagan folklore. They discuss the awe-inspiring magnificence of the mountains, and the conversation turns to the ongoing Edmund Hillary expedition to climb Mount Everest.

At the hotel, Gianetta finds an old friend, Alastair Braine, on a fishing holiday with the Corrigans, who is unaware Gianetta has divorced her husband and may now be fancying his chances. Gianetta finds she is not the only celebrity. Aging theatrical star, Marcia Maling, provides gossip on the rest of the guests. Ronald Beale, noted mountaineer, keenly follows the progress of the Everest expedition on the radio. Alma Corrigan is the long-suffering wife of a philandering husband, Hartley Corrigan, who openly flirts with Marcia Maling. Marion Bradford, an obstinate climber possessive of her younger protege, Roberta Symes, scorns advice from more expert climbers. To Gianetta’s chagrin, her cheating ex-husband, the dashing writer Nicholas Drury, walks in and instantly draws the interest of most of the women. Nicholas attempts to talk with Gianetta “about us,” but Gianetta replies “there is no us” and turns away.

Gianetta learns that days before on Mount Blahven, local Heather Macrae was found ritually murdered, with throat cut, by a bonfire, with jewelry and possessions in a pile by her body. The hotel guests are the main suspects, particularly the men, since Heather had been meeting a secret boyfriend.

When Marion and Roberta fail to return from an ill-advised climbing excursion by nightfall, a search party finds Marion’s body, with the safety rope securing her to another climber deliberately cut. There is no sign of Roberta. Earlier, another climber had spotted the women with an unidentified male. Gianetta spots a bonfire on Mount Blahven and sees a dark figure skulking away. Ronald Beale is laid out ritually, similar to Heather Macrae, with his throat cut. Nicholas is first on the scene in response to her cries for help, but Gianetta is wary.

Gianetta and Roderick renew search efforts. They find Roberta, unconscious, in a small cave on a ledge. Realizing that Roberta can name Marion’s killer—and likely Heather’s and Beale’s—Gianetta refuses to leave Roberta’s side. The police question hotel guests and ask Gianetta to spend the night with Roberta, guarded by police.

In the library, Gianetta finds a book on ancient myths and folklore, The Golden Bough, with a postcard bookmarking a passage that describes a ritual human sacrifice with a bonfire. Her father’s name is on the fly leaf, and the postcard, addressed to Nicholas, alludes to his request to borrow the book.

Someone tries to open the locked door to the bedroom where Gianetta and Roberta are sleeping but retreats when Gianetta calls for help. Marcia Maling finds a doll in her room with lipstick smeared around its throat to simulate a slit throat and leaves the hotel abruptly the next morning. Roberta remains unconscious.

When Nicholas again attempts to speak with Gianetta, she relates her suspicions of him. He asks bitterly why she doesn’t turn him in to the police, and she leaves, flustered, with conflicted emotions.

Gianetta seeks the protection of Roderick, who reveals himself to be the killer as he chases a fleeing Gianetta up a mountain as he rants insanely against the irreverence of climbers who presume to “conquer” nature. Nicholas arrives on the scene, shoots Roderick, and saves her.

Nicholas admits her parents colluded in staging a reconciliation. The doll with the mock slit throat had been improvised by Alma Corrigan to scare Marcia away. Nicholas had shown the police the passages in the Golden Bough and Roderick became the police’s prime suspect. He had not denied being the killer to Gianetta, perversely, because he believed she had become emotionally involved with Roderick and wanted her to sort out her conflicted feelings for herself. They acknowledge their lingering feelings for each other and reconcile.

Background and analysis

The mystery component blends 1953 news events with mountaineering, druid mythology and pagan ritual, along with conflicting views about the conquering of nature: heroic progress or human arrogance? Stewart was familiar with the Isle of Skye, which she had visited with her husband on tours of Scotland.