Nicolas Freeling

Nicolas Freeling, (Nicolas Davidson), British novelist and detective-story writer (born March 3, 1927, London, Eng.—died July 20, 2003, Grandfontaine, France), penned 36 works of fiction and several of nonfiction. While living in Amsterdam, he developed his first and best-known protagonist, Piet Van der Valk, a Dutch policeman. A dozen books later, after Freeling had moved to France, he killed off Van der Valk and created the French sleuth Henri Castang. Freeling’s awards included France’s Grand Prix du Roman Policier (1964) and the Edgar Allan Poe Award from the Mystery Writers of America (1967). He also wrote two books of memoirs.