Freeling was born in London, but travelled widely, and ended his life at his long-standing home at Grandfontaine to the west of Strasbourg.
[1] Freeling got bored with writing about his Amsterdam detective Van der Valk and killed him off in 1972, when the character was shot while following up a rather unpromising lead.
[3] Freeling's The King of the Rainy Country received a 1967 Edgar Award, from the Mystery Writers of America, for Best Novel.
His novel Gun Before Butter won France's Grand Prix de Littérature Policière and was a runner-up for the UK Crime Writers' Association's 1963 Gold Dagger Award.
Created by Freeling, the British television crime drama Van der Valk (1972 TV series) is an adaptation of the novels.