Murder British Style

 Murder British Style (1993) ~Martin H. Greenberg (ed)

A collection of short British mystery stories plus one novella by John Dickson Carr. I've read a number of the short stories before and those that I had read were all quite good (both times of reading). Of those that are new (Rendell, Keating, Aiken, Symons, Lovesey, Meade & Eustace, Morrison, and Brett), I have to say that I didn't care for most of them. As I mention below, Keating's Holmes pastiche is one of the all-time worst I've read in short form. And it gives The Veiled Detective (novel-length) by David Stuart Davies a good run for its money as all-time worst in any form. The Simon Brett is just icky. The best of the new-to-me stories are the two by Morrison and "Madame Sara" by Meade & Eustace. Overall, ★★★ and 1/2 for the collection,.

"The Four Suspects" by Agatha Christie: Sir Henry Clithering gives us a tale about Dr. Rosen who was instrumental in the downfall of a secret German organization. The doctor knew that eventually members of the group who had escaped punishment would seek him out and exact revenge, but he was satisfied that he had done the right thing and hoped to finish a research project before they got to him. He is found dead at the bottom of his staircase--possibly an accident, possibly not. The four members of his household fall under suspicion, but they all claim to have been out at the time (but no corroboration of their whereabouts). Miss Marple uses clues from the story and her own knowledge of gardens to point out the culprit. [one fell from height]

"Silver Blaze" by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle [one hit on head]: Sherlock Holmes & Dr. Watson are off to Dartmoor to investigate the disappearance of a famous race horse and the murder of the horse's trainer. Inspector Gregory & company have been on the case, but have made no headway. Holmes is in the area for a mere afternoon and soon has all the threads in his hand. The story has one one of Holmes's most famous exchanges:

          "Is there any point to which you wish to draw my attention?"
          "To the curious incident of the dog in the night-time."
          "The dog did nothing in the night-time."
          "That was the curious incident," remarked Sherlock Holmes.

"The Adventure of the Suffering Ruler by H. R. F. Keating (Holmes pastiche): When Watson is called to Hertfordshire to tend to a mysterious patient who mistrusts his neighbors, Holmes is sure that the patient is a foreign royal in disguise. 

Holmes has rarely been so poorly dealt with by an author of pastiche (though I could name others...). The more I read of Keating's work, the less I like it. Holmes may not be perfect--everyone makes mistakes, but I certainly can't seem him jumping to the outlandish conclusions that Keating foists upon him. Yikes.

"Rats!" by Dorothy J. Cannell: A wife takes an unusual (and unusually cruel) revenge on the other woman....Miss Gilda Sweet is used to receiving gifts from guilty husbands hoping to keep her as sweet as her name. So the fur coat that arrives through the delivery service is just the ticket. Or is it? [one death--to reveal how would be a spoiler]

"The Convolvulus Clock" by Ruth Rendell: Trixie swears that all her friends are "getting on" and "going a bit funny," but Trixie is the one overly fixated on a very special clock.[one hit by bus]

"Fair & Square" by Margaret Yorke: Mrs. Ford can't stand to see her old flame's granddaughter being "managed" by the daughter of the overbearing woman who stole Michael away from her. [2 natural; one fell from height]

"The Uninvited" (apa "A Prince of Abyssinia") by Michael Gilbert: Mr. Calder lives alone on the Kentish Downs with only Rasselas, a loyal and beloved deerhound, for constant companionship. Mr. Behrens, a retired schoolmaster, comes periodically to visit. But then an uninvited visitor arrives in the neighborhood...looking for revenge. [one hit on head; one shot]

"The Black Cliffs" by Joan Aiken: Irving thinks he's found a great way to get rid of his annoying friend Charley...and no one will ever know. Or will they? [one hit on head]

"The Dream is Better" by Julian Symons*: Andrew Blood's mother always told him hed' never marry--that the dream would always be better than reality. But what if the dream is a nightmare? [one natural; one stabbed]

"Behind the Locked Door" by Peter Lovesey: When a police inspector comes to inquire about his tenant, Mr. Braid can't help but wonder just what exactly Mr. Messiter has locked up behind that door in the apartment. The door with a lock Braid can no longer open.

"The Invisible Man" by G. K. Chesterton: Father Brown explains how a man can become invisible to harass not only the woman he claimed he wanted to marry but his rival in love. [one stabbed]

"Lamb to the Slaughter" by Roald Dahl: The well-known mystery that features a very clever way to get rid of the evidence.... [one hit on head]

"Madame Sara" by L. T. Meade & Robert Eustace: Madame Sara is a beautiful but evil femme fatale. This time she has her sights set on a family's fortune. [one poisoned; one natural]

"The Case of Mr. Foggatt" by Arthur Morrison: Martin Hewitt identifies the killer of Mr. Foggatt--based on the trifling little clue of a half-eaten apple. [one shot; two natural]

"The Case of the Late Mr. Rewse" by Morrison: A lawyer asks Martin Hewitt to investigate the death of his young client--a man who supposedly died of small pox just a month or two shy of inheriting a fortune. The lawyer suspects foul play and wants Hewitt to find out how it was done. [one death--to reveal how would spoil the suspense]

"In the Fog" by Richard Harding Davis: The members of the exclusive Grill Club gather on a foggy night in London and hear the story from an American diplomat about a recent night when he was lost in the fog and heard someone scream. When he follows the sound, he finds a man dead in a strange house. Scotland Yard is baffled, but will the Grill Club solve the murder? [2 stabbed; one natural]

"Big Boy, Little Boy" by Simon Brett: Larry Renshaw is tired of living under his rich wife's thumb and decides to get rid of her. When the plan goes awry, he relies on his ever-loyal "Little Boy" from boarding school days to keep him away from the gallows. Peter Mostyn is eager to help...maybe a little too eager. [one shot; one fire]

"The Story of the Lost Special" by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle: As Mr. Bland the Superintendent of the Central L. & W. Railway Company says in the story, "Does a train vanish into thin air in England in broad daylight? The thing is preposterous. An engine, a tender, two carriages, a van, five human beings--and all lost on a straight line of railway." And yet, it does happen [three fell from height]

The Three Coffins by John Dickson Carr: see separate review

*Symons owes a huge debt to Robert Bloch for this one.

First line (1st story): The conversation hovered round undiscovered and unpunished crimes.

Mr. Gladstone sought relaxation in the Greek poets, Sir Andrew finds his in Gaboriau. Since I have been a member of Parliament I have never seen him in the library withoug a shilling shocker in his hands. He brings them even into the sacred precincts of the House, and from the Government benches reads them concealed in his hat. ("In the Fog" by Richard Harding Davis)

Last lines (last story): "I have committed another crime, Hadley," he said. "I have guessed the truth again."

Top Bloody Secret

 Top Bloody Secret (1969) by Stanley Hyland

When the lights on Big Ben do some odd flickering on a night that Parliament closes early, the Night Custodian of the Houses of Parliament makes a very nasty discovery. Tom Rendle, a new man on the night shift, has been brutally bashed over the head and left seated on the Sergeant-at-Arm's bench in the Chamber. And the ceremonial mace is missing. It doesn't take much to decide what the weapon must have been. It's tricky enough to have to bring Scotland Yard to the seat of politics to investigate the first murder in the House of Commons since 1812. But when the investigation also reveals that a Top Bloody Secret document regarding nuclear secrets and the existence of a new aircraft has been tampered with MI5 has to get involved.

While Scotland investigates the initial murder (and those that follow in its wake), MI5 sends agents to Belgium, German, Greece, and Turkey to try and track the opposition to their source. But it is Sir Hubert Bligh who is sent on a top-secret mission to find out what happened to fellow MP Austin Lombard and to stop a nuclear disaster if he can? But with agents just barely missing out on the capture of enemy agents, explosive (sometimes quite literally) situation following explosive situation, and people on both sides dying right and left, will Bligh be in time?

What we have is a kind of Keystone Cops meets Inspector Clouseau meets a slightly parodied version of James Bond. There are absolutely hilarious interactions between characters and in the efforts of each branch of the investigation (the Yard, MI5, and Parliament) to keep the others in the dark as much as possible. Share information to speed the work? Don't be silly. It all makes for some laugh out loud moments and great commentary on Cold War era espionage in action. But does it make for a great mystery? Not really. 

While the scenes are funny in and of themselves, Hyland switches between players in fast and furious fashion and it makes it difficult to keep up with the action (with or without a scorecard). I was often left behind at the post and struggled to keep track of who was tracking whom and who exactly had the upper hand in each situation. The kaleidoscope of action shifts so often that I was convinced that anything could happen (and so often did), so when what I'm sure was supposed to be a huge surprise happened at the end it didn't surprise near as much as Hyland probably expected it to. The penultimate surprise was actually a bigger shock--but only because, in the frantic shifting about from scene to scene--I couldn't actually remember one of the major participants ever being mentioned before that particular chapter. It was like being told that Elton John was coming to pitch for the Cubs. ("What? I didn't even know that he was in the stadium, let alone that he knew how to play baseball?!)

So, yeah. Not the all-time greatest mystery. But Hyland creates characters and situations that are memorable. There is the makings of a good mystery, but I think he got a little too involved in making the hole-in-corner spy story as convoluted as possible. I'd really like to see what he does with a straight mystery story...if that is to be had in either of his two other detective novels. ★★★

First line (Prologue): The rifle fire was sporadic but getting nearer, and very quickly.

First line (1st chapter): Constable P. Wiltshire of the Metropolitan Police counted the arches of Westminster Bridge.

"They can't."
"Can't be careful! They've got to be."
"They can't send a gunboat. They say they haven't got one handy. They say they're sorry." (Tom Slaughter, agent; Malplaquet, his boss; p 75)

"Just doped." Bligh muttered it. He was wondering what would happen in London if a whole group of M.P.s were found to be doped. The idea began to appeal to him so he brought the shutters down quickly. (p. 111)

The car when it arrived, exactly an hour later, looked as though it ought to be wearing dark glasses. (p. 112)

Last line: "Lucky for some."
************************

Deaths = 9 (five hit on head; one beheaded; one throat cut; two shot)

Murder Every Monday: You Rang, Sir?

 

Kate at Cross Examining Crime hosts a fun mystery cover game on Instagram called Murder Every Monday. Our assignment, should we choose to accept it, is to display book covers and titles from books you own that meet prompts which she posts well in advance (see link). 

 

Today's theme is Covers &/or Titles with a servant (butler, maid, gardner, etc.). I managed to find a few obscure positions.

Why Shoot a Butler? ~Georgette Heyer

The Affair of the Fainting Butler ~Clifford Knight

Maid to Murder ~Roy Vickers

In the Teeth of the Evidence ~Dorothy L. Sayers

Servant's Problem ~Veronica Parker Johns

A Tasty Way to Die ~Janet Laurence

Jeeves & the King of Clubs ~Ben Schott (the ultimate gentleman's gentleman)

The Ghose & Mrs. Jeffries ~Emily Brightwell (housekeeper)

Murder Is Served ~Frances & Richard Lockridge

Death & the Dancing Footman ~Ngaio Marsh

Kill the Butler! ~Michael Kenyon

The Murder of Sir Edmund Godfrey ~John Dickson Carr (sedan chair bearers!)

Too Many Cooks ~Rex Stout

Busman's Honeymoon ~Dorothy L. Sayers (gardener!)

Patrick Butler for the Defense ~John Dickson Carr

The Voice of the Crab

 The Voice of the Crab (1974) by Charlotte Jay (Geraldine Halls)

Synopsis from the book flap (with a few additions--in bold--by me): A man named To'ula returned home to Kipi Island (where only seven people had wrist watches) in the southeastern division of Papua-New Guinea after having three years in prison in Port Moresby for the murder of his wife.

He'd just come back when the Voice of the Crab burned in his body. He fell, foaming  at the lips, onto the sand--and when he regained consciousness he hurried to tell the village elders that he had a message.

There were very few whites who lived in Kipi. Among them was tall, handsome Bruce Harding, the district officer, and his restless though calm-eyed wife, Alice. there was Sam Creeby, who was bitter and suspicious, who kept tinned food locked in a closet, who'd been a partner of a man named Dutch Willy (an undesirable, who had been told to keep away from Kipi). There was Arthur Knox, who'd once been a Queen's conssul, and his proper wife, Elsie, who wore stocking attached to a tight corset--and who lived by the times and mores of proper society. And there was Father Paul and Dr. Maximillian Schramm, a doctor whose skills are rusty and who has spent his life on drink ever since his daughter was raped and murdered. A murder that was never solved...

There was also Ivan West, an anthropologist, who'd been the first to write about the Kipis and their ancient Kula rituals. and who, when he returned to the island, recognized that something was very wrong, and not only because the Kipi chief was mysteriously ill, perhaps dying.

Billed as a mystery/suspense novel written in the 1970s and set in the 1950s on the fictional Papua-New Guinea island of Kipi, this reads to me as really bad social commentary disguised as a really poor mystery. Is there a mystery? Sortof. Are there murders? Sure. But they seem almost incidental. Bruce Harding, the man who's supposed to represent the law on the island (as he likes to remind folks) doesn't really investigate them. Actually, pretty much nobody investigates much of anything. A few of the white inhabitants go searching when people don't show up when/where expected. But they don't look for much in the way of evidence. The one thing they save (saying the officials on the main island will want to see it) probably isn't going to keep very well...Even when we finally find out who did what and why, there is no evidence that justice is going to be served for those who died. I like my mysteries to be given with clues and for the detective (there isn't one here) to arrange for the villain of the piece to get their just desserts. Not happening.

As far as I can tell, the purpose of this novel is to talk about the social effects of the white invasion on the islands of Papua New Guinea. And to discuss the social structure of the native inhabitants and the white settlers. Fine. I'm all for social commentary in its place--especially good social commentary (again, this isn't). If the mystery were stronger and could be linked to the social commentary, then that could work. But don't wrap it up in a flimsy mystery coating and try to pass it off as a "Harper Novel of Suspense." 

I'm having difficulty deciding on the the rating for this one. I keep waffling between one and one & 1/2 stars. But there's no way I'd round it up to two, so I guess I'll just stick to ★.

First line: One evening, just before sunset, a native of the Southeastern Division of Papua-New Guinea, named To'ula, was walking along the water's edge.

Last line: And Alice felt that never, never in her whole life had she been so happy.
************************

Deaths = 8 (two hit on head; two natural; one of fever; two stabbed; one broken neck)

Murder Every Monday: What a Crowd!

 

Kate at Cross Examining Crime hosts a fun mystery cover game on Instagram called Murder Every Monday. Our assignment, should we choose to accept it, is to display book covers and titles from books you own that meet prompts which she posts well in advance (see link). 

 

Today's theme is Titles that have a word indicating a group of people.

Bony & the Kelly Gang ~Arthur W. Upfield

The Gelignite Gang ~John Creasey

The Will of the Tribe ~Arthur W. Upfield

The Obituary Club ~Hugh Pentecost

The Dante Club ~Matthew Pearl

The Marlow Murder Club ~Robert Thorogood

Murder at the Boat Club ~Lee Strauss

This Club Frowns on Murder ~Albert Borowitz

The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club ~Dorothy L. Sayers

The Tuesday Club Murders ~Agatha Christie

The Club Dumas ~Arturo Perez-Reverte

Murder at the Diogenes Club ~Gerald Lientz

Family Affairs ~Jan Ellery

The Family Tomb ~Michael Gilbert

The Family at Tammerton ~Margaret Erskine

Family Affair ~Ione Sandberg Shriber

The Hunting Party ~Lucy Foley

Death of the Party ~Leela Cutter

Hallowe'en Party ~Agatha Christie

A Little Class on Murder ~Carolyn G. Hart

The September Society ~Charles Finch

The Ship Without a Crew ~Howard Pease

Sherlock Holmes: The Army of Dr. Moreau ~Guy Adams

Fellowship of Fear ~Aaron J. Elkins

Grey Mask

 Grey Mask (1928) by Patricia Wentworth (Dora Amy Turnbull)

Over four years ago Charles Moray was all set to marry the love of his life, Margaret Langton. But on the eve of their wedding, she suddenly broke their engagement with no warning and no explanation. England had nothing left for him and with ample funds to do as he liked, he set out to travel the world and try to forget the past. But now his father has died and he has come home to his inheritance. The house of his youth (and his family's for several generations) has remained closed for some time, save for the caretaker and his wife. Charles collects the keys and initially tells his lawyer that he won't go to the house for a few days. But a sudden fancy strikes him and he decides to go that very evening--only to find the Latterys out and mysterious men in what was his mother's sitting room. He creeps into a hidden cupboard and listens, appalled, to what can only be meetings between various members of a criminal organization led by someone referred to as Grey Mask. He overhears plans that seem to threaten the elimination of an unknown person. He's all ready to go for the police when a final person and enters and he hears a voice that he hasn't heard for four years.

What on earth is Margaret doing being number Twenty-Six for this dreadful group? Charles realizes that he can't possibly go to the police until he knows what Margaret's involvement is and can figure a way to keep her out of jail. Even if there's nothing left between them, he can't let her be arrested. He soon realizes that the gang's next victim is a new heiress who has just lost her father to a boating accident. When he confides in his friend Archie Millar who advises him to consult a trained detective, a sleuthess, and thus we first hear of Miss Maud Silver. Miss Silver has been simply a wonder tracking down lost jewelry and other odd little mysteries amongst Archie's cousin's set. Charles isn't at all sure that a female detective is what he needs, but he goes along to meet her anyway.

Between Miss Silver's investigation behind the scenes, the work of Charles and Archie to save the heiress, one Margot Standing, and Charles and Margaret coming back into contact--the group manage to foil the evil plot. But not without danger to nearly one and all. Margot is nearly run over by a bus and Charles and Margaret are shoved into a soundproof secret cellar by Grey Mask. Fortunately, Margaret is clever enough to leave a trail that only Miss Silver and Archie can follow and the cavalry (so to speak) gallup in to save the day at the last moment. 

This is the first entry in the Miss Silver mysteries by Wentworth, appearing nearly ten years before the second novel, The Case Is Closed (1938), would be released. It has more in common with Edgar Wallace and the other thrillers of the 1910s and 1920s than it does with the more mystery-focused stories of the later installments. All of the Miss Silver mysteries have an element of suspense and danger, but this first one is focuses on those elements far more than on the identity of Grey Mask. And the Margot Standing character brings in a romantic gothic element as well--she thrills with the idea of being the romantic heroine with brave men to rescue her and suffering (but not too much) at the hands of the villain. Even when she briefly comes down to earth and realizes the very real danger she's in, she still pictures herself as the center of a romantic plot.

Very fast-pace. Lots of action and melodrama. It isn't difficult to spot the villain, but it is good fun to watch everything unfold. Knowing the later novels, I did miss seeing more of Miss Silver in this one, but I imagine that Wentworth was still trying to figure out what she wanted to do with her. I gave this ★★★ and 1/2 when I first read it about thirty years ago and I haven't changed my mind on that rating.

First line: Mr. Packer dangled the heave bunch of keys for a moment before laying them on the table.

Last lined: ...so she and Charles aren't really going to have a wedding--they're just going to be married. I call it frightfully dull...
*********************

Deaths = 2 (two natural; one drowned)

Six Nuns & a Shotgun

 Six Nuns & a Shotgun (1975) by Colin Watson

In the eighth book of the Flaxborough series, it looks like the English town is about to be overrun by US gangsters and scantily clad ecclesiastics. Flaxborough has its "big wheels" (as known in the United States)--businessmen with their fingers in several pies. And two of them have a bitter rivalry going on. Councillor Henry Crispin and Arnold Hatch, owner of the Floradora Club have been trying to outdo and sabotage each other every chance they get. If Crispin adds on to his house, then Hatch must build a swimming pool. If Hatch gets a sailing yacht, then Crispin must get a slightly bigger one. Snide remarks and subtle digs aren't in it. But then things ramp up. Hatch installs what we designate today as "smart" curtains. When the light dims outside, the curtains automatically close--and, of course, when things get bright, they automatically open.

So...one night when Hatch and a friend are entertaining a couple of young women in the master bedroom, some thoughtless person parks right outside and turns on their high-beam headlights. And the antics are on display for all the world to see. Not long after, during the Commodore's Muster, the annual opening of the boating season when all the boat owners sedately run their vessels down the river, Hatch goads Crispin into a bit of a race and Crispin's boat comes a cropper on a submerged log (that mysteriously has spikes sticking out of it--of which, we the reader are aware, but is never proven to our friends in the book).

When Inspector Purbright gets a warning that American gangsters and naked nuns are descending upon Flaxborough, he wonders if this is more of the feud between the two businessmen. But he can't find any evidence of nuns (either in habits or out) and the only likely candidate in the gangster department is a Sicilian-American importer of olive oil who has recently arrived. The feud comes to an abrupt end when Hatch is ruthlessly murdered with his own shotgun during his annual Medieval banquet at the Floradora Club. The good inspector must untangle the clues to see if the American or Crispin...or persons unknown have done away with businessman.

Once upon a time (back in about 1991), I read this one from the library. That was before blogging and writing up more detailed reviews. I simply recorded it as "This book is classic Colin Watson and very funny." Let's see how that holds up in 2025. Well, Watson is funny...but I think I'd knock the "very" off that statement now. The funniest bits are when Inspector Purbright is interacting with his Chief Constable, Harcourt Chubb. Chubb doesn't really seem to grasp police work and Purbright leads him ever so gently through the details of routine while Chubb tries to sit back and look wise. The give and take of these exchanges are quite amusing, but I wouldn't say the book is "very funny" overall. 

The prose is pleasant enough and the mystery is fairly good--and even fairly clued, though I didn't spot some of the clues early enough (SLIGHT SPOILER: I got a bit muddled over which pieces of furniture belonged to which character). I think at this point in my reading life I would have enjoyed this a bit more (and kept my original rating of four stars) if we had been in Purbright's company for more of the story. Crispin and Hatch annoyed me and I think I would have liked the murder to be more upfront and to have followed Purbright as he investigated the incidents rather than to live through them with Crispin and Hatch on the way to the murder. But--still an enjoyable mystery and a very quick read. ★★★ and  1/4.

First line: The cablegram was addressed to Hatch, Floradora, Flaxborough, England.

"Let's hope one of those nice people don't get knocked off," said Bast, leaving. "The species is nearly extinct." (p. 76)

Last lines: The inspector's [car] took some time to start. It usually did.
*********************

Deaths = one shot

Eyes That Watch You

 Eyes That Watch You (1952) by William Irish (Cornell Woolrich)

A short collection of Woolrich stories that emphasize the psychological nature of his work as well as the attention to detail. I was surprised that there were no repeats from an earlier collection that I reviewed and I enjoyed this collection very much. ★★★★

"Eyes That Watch You": A paralyzed woman who can neither speak nor communicate in any way (such as writing or sign language) overhears her daughter-in-law plotting with her lover to kill the woman's son. She can't save him but does manage to work with the detective on the case to bring the crime home to the culprits. (one gassed)

"Stuck": Two gangsters think they've found a fool-proof way to frame a man for a murder they commit. But they don't take into account the rule-breaking maid who works in the hotel where the murder takes place. (one stabbed)

"Charlie Won't Be Home Tonight": When a hold-up man known as the Phantom eludes the police for weeks, Captain Keene begins to suspect that the man has been hiding in plain sight--right in his own house.

"Murder with a U": Proving a man's death is murder instead of the apparent suicide the other police officers and the medical examiner declare it to be relies on Detective Bright's observation of an extra "U." [two shot]

"All at Once, No Alice" by Cornell Woolrich: Our narrator, Jimmy Cannon, fell head over heels in love with Alice Brown and his feelings were returned. So, after a very (VERY) short courtship, they elope--are married by a justice of the peace along the way and due to a shortage of hotel space in the town where they land for their honeymoon, have to sleep apart on their honeymoon. When Jimmy goes to collect his new bride the next morning, she's gone. And so is all trace that she ever existed. Only one man believes him...but will they find her in time?

"Damned Clever, These Americans": Frisco is a talented robber on the run from American authorities. He finds himself in a nice little Central American country with no extradition rights and thinks he's safe. But he's not happy that there isn't even a bank to knock off. Then he hears about Senor Zacata who has a nice, tidy haul of gold stashed at his hacienda. He thinks it will be easy pickings. He may be wrong.... [one shot]

"Flat Tire": Nick Demetrios, a Greek restaurant owner, is upset. Ever since Joe Markham opened his restaurant across the street profits are not only down, they're non-existent. So, he hires an expert in accidents to arrange a fatal one for his business rival. He's worried about the risk of being found out--but the experts assures him that he knows his job and absolutely nothing can go wrong. Famous last words.... [one hit on head]

First line (1st story): The house was a pleasant two-story suburban affair. set in its own plot of ground, not close enough to its neighbors to impair privacy and seclusion, but not far enough away to be lonely or isolated.

Last line (last story): The Greek had to be held back by all three of them from committing a second murder then and there.

The Mystery of the Merry Magician

 The Mystery of the Merry Magician (1954) by Ellery Queen, Jr.

Gulliver Queen comes to New York to spend a year with his famous uncle, Ellery Queen, and his grandfather, Inspector Queen. Currently, it's summer and Gully is looking forward to a week-long camping trip with Uncle Ellery. But Ellery gets called in by the government to investigate some strange goings on down on the New Orleans waterfront--reports of the sighting of strange creatures. So, he leaves his nephew with a notebook and tells him to taken notes from anyone who shows up wanting Ellery to take on a case. All he wants Gully to do is report the facts.

So, when Fisty Jones, a boy about Gully's age, is sent by Inspector Queen's old friend Captain Foster to consult the famous detective Gully sets out to do just that. But he soon becomes friends with Fisty--as well as Captain Foster's granddaughter Peggy--and the three can't resist doing a little investigating...er, fact-gathering. Fisty has seen what he can only describe as a space monster (all black, sleek, and one-eyed) and there are also odd thumping and pounding noises that seem to rise up out of the sea under Foster's barge. Gully can't resist getting more and more involved and runs up against a menacing tattooed man, the merry little Magnus Merlin (who is an extraordinary magician & his little dog Banjo, as well as the tall, slender man who lurks about watching Merlin. The teens make friends with Ryan, the nightwatchman, who takes their stories of late-night creatures and weird sounds seriously. And when Ryan is attacked, the three friends are even more determined to get to the bottom of the mystery. Once they figure out what's really going on, they're going to need Inspector Queen and Sergeant Velie...and little Banjo...to round up the bad guys.

This is a fun, adventurous mystery from a much simpler and innocent time--or at least from a time when the books written for kids were more innocent. Gully is a teenager and just having fun solving a mystery with his friends. I've seen a review saying how "unrealistic" it is for a teenage boy to behave the way Gully does. But, honestly, it's kind of nice to not have Gully swearing like a sailor and trying to get it on with Peggy. And there is danger--the boys get tied up and threatened by the bad guys (not just once, but twice), so it's not quite as innocent as, say, the Bobbsey Twins. I enjoyed the visit with Ellery's nephew and I know that I would have enjoyed the book even more if I had discovered it when I was reading the Hardy Boys and the Three Investigators. ★★★and 1/2

First line: When Ellery Queen opened the door and walked into his apartment, his nephew was sprawled on the floor, hidden by a tall-backed easy chair.

Last line: And Gulliver Queen saw his famous uncle's sharp eyes grow even sharper with wonder and admiration, and his own eyes shone with sheer happiness.

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