Keating, H(enry) R(aymond) F(itzwalter)

(British, 1926– )

Keating was born in St Leonards and educated at Trinity College, Dublin. He was a journalist before becoming a full-time writer. Begin by meeting his best-known creation, the amiable Inspector Ganesh Ghote of the Bombay Police. The detective's many appearances include Inspector Ghote Caught in the Meshes (1967), in which the investigation of an American visitor's violent death finds Ghote caught up in intrigues between rival secret service organizations. The Iciest Sin (1990) thrusts Ghote into a web of illegality and corruption as he deals with the blackmailing of a government official. Keating has also written futuristic novels, notably A Long Walk to Wimbledon (1978), in which a man struggles to reach his wife after a catastrophe has wrecked London, and The Strong Man (1971), depicting a dystopia under a dictator whose removal has unforeseen results.

Julian Symons, John Wain, John Carr  DH