Just the Facts 2019 Prize Winners!

It's time to take one last peek at the Just the Facts, Ma'am Vintage Mystery Challenge of 2019 and hand out some well-deserved prizes. First, I want to thank everyone who worked at filling in their detective notebooks over the year. I'm so glad you joined me in vintage mystery sleuthing. I do hope you'll think about joining me for the Vintage Mystery Extravaganza in 2020.

And now...for the prizes. First up--the drawing from all those who reported in: Steve/Puzzle Doctor @ In Search of the Classic Mystery Novel, Kate @ Cross Examining Crime, dexter96@librarything, Rekha @ The Book Decoder, Countdown John, Rick Mills (our mid-point winner!) Joel @ I Should Be Reading, and Christina @ You Book Me All Night Long. I fed your entries into the Custom Random Number Generator and it whirled and clicked and served up an envelope with....

Kate @ Cross Examining Crime

as our winner. Congratulations, Kate!

And...pulling out my magnifying glass and examining all the details in the entries, I find that our Super Sleuth of 2019 is....

dexter96@librarything

who completed all 120 categories from both the Gold and Silver notebooks. That's an awful lot of hours on stakeouts and following footprints and questioning suspects! Well done!

I will be contacting both of you sometime on Thursday (1/9/20) with the prize list to choose from.

ADDENDUM: Our Super Sleuth has mentioned to me that I may have missed a competing detective. He is correct. I managed to miss that Joel also filled in every category. That being the case, I am going to declare joint winners for this year's challenge. More prizes!

Let's give our winners a final round of applause.

Last Reviews of 2019: Trixie Belden Triple Threat

As 2019 drew to a close, I decided to spend my end-of-year reading with Trixie Belden and the Bob Whites. In the last several years I have started collecting vintage editions of both Trixie and Nancy Drew--the two girl detective series that were most important to me when growing up. It had been a long time since I had read the first two books of the series where Trixie meets the new friends who will become her very best friends. Trixie Belden & The Secret of the Mansion (1948) was most likely the very first cliff-hanger series book that I read and had me on the edge of my seat wondering what would happen to Trixie and Honey Wheeler when they set out to track down Jim. But--I get ahead of myself.

In The Secret of the Mansion, we meet Trixie who is bored stiff at her home in the country. Her two older brothers, Brian and Mart have been away from home working at a boys' camp in upstate New York and there isn't a thing to do. She also just knows she'll die if she doesn't get a horse. So, her mother comes up with an idea to help Trixie fill her summer and start saving up money towards a new four-footed friend--extra chores including weeding the garden and watching her six-year-old brother, Bobby. Trixie has barely started on her new duties when she notices cars going up the Manor House on the hill. The Wheelers, a wealthy family from the city, have bought the empty show place and are moving in. Word also comes that the "crazy miser" who lives in the old, broken-down mansion on the other side of the Beldens has been struck with pneumonia. Mr. Belden found him and took him to the hospital--but Mr. Frayne isn't expected to live.

The impulsive Trixie, who has always wanted to explore Frayne's place and search for the fortune that's rumored to be hidden there, sweeps up her brand-new friend Honey and convinces the timid city girl to go exploring. Before they know it, they're in the middle of a mystery involving Mr. Frayne's missing heir--his nephew Jim, a search for a will, and Jim's nasty step-father, Jonesy. Jim has run away from his mean step-father (think a male version of the Cinderella story) and Trixie & Honey help him try to find proof of his inheritance. Along the way, Trixie has her horse-riding dreams come true through the Wheelers' stables and has the adventure of a life-time. But it's not over when the book ends--because Mr. Frayne dies, Jonesy shows up, the mansion is set on fire, and Jim runs away before learning that he really is the heir. So, Honey and Trixie must convince their families to let them head for the boys' camps in the north where Jim had mentioned he'd try for a job if he had to run away again.... ★★★★★


Of course, the families agree and Miss Trask--Honey's governess--takes the girls and the Wheelers' camper on their next adventure in The Red Trailer Mystery. While the main objective is to find Jim, tell him about his inheritance, reassure him that the Frayne's family lawyer and executor of his uncle's will won't let Jonesy take him back, and then convince Honey's parents to adopt him, the girls also get caught up two more mysteries. The mystery of the down-trodden family traveling in a red camper and the outbreak of camper thefts that has Miss Trask worried about how long they can stay and look for Jim. The kind-hearted girls just can't help wondering why the family in the red trailer seem so sad and when the oldest girl runs away they can't help but search for her while they look for Jim. Trixie is convinced that if they solve the mystery of the camper thieves then they will find both Jim and Joeanne. It winds up that she's right as usual...though not quite in the way she expects. A happy ending is in store for everyone... ★★★★★


The next installment of the Trixie adventures was The Gatehouse Mystery. But I just read that two years ago (review at the link), so I decided to jump ahead to the fourth book: The Mysterious Visitor. This book brings in another member of the Bob Whites, Diana Lynch. Diana is the original poor little rich girl. Since her father became suddenly rich with some shrewd business deals, she has withdrawn from all her friends. She thinks nobody likes her because her life has changed so much and they can't have fun at her fancy new home which is over-run with servants. Trixie, Honey, and the Bob Whites decide to be extra nice to Diana and make her one of their secret club.

Trixie immediately senses a mystery when it becomes evident that Diana is very afraid of her Uncle Monty. Mrs. Lynch's long-lost brother has shown up and is throwing his weight around--influencing the family's choices in all sorts of things that affect Di. He becomes especially annoying when he takes over the planning for Diana's Halloween party. Trixie becomes convinced that the man is an impostor, but lacks proof. And even if Di is afraid of him, she doesn't take too kindly to Trixie investigating her family. Will Trixie lose her newest friend over her sleuthing habits? Or will she be able to curb her curiosity so she won't offend Di? Or...will she find out the truth about Uncle Monty and save the day again? [Anyone who reads (or ever read) these series books on the regular knows the answer...] ★★★

I loved the first two books. I have always enjoyed the stories that introduce us to Trixie and her core group of friends. I loved meeting Jim and Honey and the adventures they all got up to around the mansion. These were definitely two of my favorites of the series while growing up and I was able to enjoy them now as an adult. On the other hand, The Mysterious Visitor has always been one of my least favorite Trixie books. I never liked Uncle Monty and I didn't care much for the way Diana defended him even when she obviously didn't like him and was afraid of him. It would be one thing if he were an uncle she had grown up with and adored and Trixie thought he was suspicious. But Diana is the one who starts Trixie's curiosity going by telling them that she's afraid of Monty. Then she gets upset when Trixie thinks there's a mystery to solve. But I do appreciate the fact that it is another book that helps establish the group of friends and Trixie does do some good detective work tracking down the clues around Uncle Monty. Overall, a fun reading trip down memory lane.

Unholy Dying

I am not a policeman but as an avid reader of detective stories, I don't want anyone to be wrongly suspected if I can help it. [Professor John Stubbs; p. 36]

Unholy Dying (1945) is the first of a series of mysteries featuring Professor John Stubbs, the larger-than-life botanist-cum-amateur sleuth, by R. T. Campbell. This initial outing is told primarily from the point of view of Stubbs' "Watson," his nephew Andrew Blake. Blake, who earns his keep selling "culture" pieces to the Daily Courier newspaper, has joined Stubbs at a formal Congress of geneticists where he is expected to come up with interesting stories on such things as blood groups and taste tests. But soon something far more exciting than genetic presentations happens.

Dr. Ian Porter, a vastly unpopular scientist who is well-known for stealing the ideas of others, is found dead from cyanide poisoning in the middle of the taste-testing exhibit. Pretty much everyone who ever met the man disliked him and had a motive to murder him--from Dr. Stubbs himself to Porter's unfortunate assistants to fellow scientists in his field and even Blake has the police's interest as a suspect. Ever the knight-errant, Blake had taken a swipe at Porter the evening before when the scientist pushed his unwanted attentions on one of his students, the lovely Mary Lewis. 

Mary, of course, is also a suspect having had to fend off such advances repeatedly with more and more evident dislike. Her current beau, Dr. Peter Hatton naturally hates Porter for making Mary's life so uncomfortable. There is also the American Dr. Swartz who has even more reason to hate Porter. While in the States, Porter had snagged the affections of the girl Swartz loved and then promptly dropped her like a hot potato when she found herself "in trouble." She couldn't bear the heartache and dishonor and shot herself. And finally, there is Dr. Silver, Porter's right-hand man. Silver claims to be devastated and to have been Porter's only friend--but he was also in the position to have had the most intellectual property stolen.

The police in the form of Inspector Hargrave provide the foil for Professor Stubbs' efforts at amateur detecting. In fact, Hargrave makes a pretty poor showing for the official force, repeatedly wanting to arrest people on the slimmest of suspicion. Fortunately, Stubbs is digging up honest-to-goodness clues and is able to lay a trap that will catch the real villain of the piece.

So...my reading log tells me that I read this once back in the mists of time, but I honestly don't remember a thing about the book. Which is actually a good thing--I got to approach this absolutely delightful and funny mystery as if I were reading it for the very first time. I love collecting good quotes from the books I read but I would be copying whole pages at a time if I tried doing that with this one. But I will give a small selection at the end of the review. 

Stubbs is a wonderful character. I can't imagine wanting to long be in the same room as a man described at various times as everything from an elephant to a tank and noted for hooting, shouting, rumbling, and "whispering" in one's ear loud enough to make the teeth rattle. But he is great fun on paper. Campbell's character descriptions in general are quite vivid and interesting. And his plotting was well done for a first attempt at mysteries. Most enjoyable.★★★★ and 1/2.

Deaths = 4 (three poisoned; one shot)


Quotes
Conversation in this car was an impossibility. All one could do was to hang on to the sides and hope for the best, thanking God that there was no boom to swing over suddenly and catch you a crack on the head when Uncle John brought her to, rather too suddenly. (p. 4)

Uncle John concentrated on his driving with the grim concentration of a chess player.  I have an idea that he really is rather frightened of it, but is determined that he will show it who is the master.  His idea of showing it consists of driving as fast as he can and braking just in time to avoid disaster. (Ibid.)

In a pub like this you should never get anything with a French name, it only covers the fact they are using up the things that were left over from yesterday. (Professor John Stubbs; p. 5)

[after a mini-lecture from Peter Hatton on genes and how everything we are is due to bits and pieces we've inherited from our parents and other ancestors...back to the primordial goo unless one is a mutant (freak)] I did not like to think that if I had any individuality it was the result of my being a freak and I told him so and he went on to wound my vanity even further by telling me that, after all, I was only something frothed up around an egg, by that egg in order to guarantee its continued existence. Having reduced me to the level of a milk-shake, I wondered whether the hot tea would not melt the froth but decided I would risk it. (p. 7)

I thought the whole affair was developing into a melodrama and, while I can stand my melodrama on the stage or in one of my favourite gothic novels, I do not feel comfortable when I am, however remotely, mixed up in it.... (p. 9)

[the janitor--when the police arrive after the murder] "Is one of you gentleman, Mr. Blake? Did you ring up for the police?" I assured him that I had indeed telephoned the police and his face cleared a little; anything, I could see, was better than that he should be the victim of a practical joker. (p. 28)

Like one of those crocodiles in which schoolgirls enjoy their ration of fresh air, we followed him. First came my uncle and Professor Silver, then Dr. Swartz and myself, his assistants, and Mary and Peter. One of the detectives walked at the tail of this procession, as if to see that none of us evaporated in the journey. (p. 29)

I think we'll go back to the White Lion. No one can interrupt us there, and you can give me a full list of your  indiscretions and misstatements, for I've no doubt but that you've been tyin' yourself  up in a net under the impression that you makin' things sound better. (Stubbs; p. 34)

Don't be afraid to tell me anythin' you like. I don't mind if one of you did murder Porter, but if you did  I hope you managed it in such a way that you won't be found out. [Stubbs; p. 36]

Now, then, I'll  make a list of everyone that we know about at present, just to see who had the opportunity, motive and so on to murder Porter. I'll put myself at the top of the list so that no one can say that I'me being unfair. This business of making a list is common to many of the best detective stories, so I don't see why we should not follow their examples, do you? [Stubbs; p. 39]

Well, I don't know what you think, but for the present I'd like to keep our friend X out of it. He's such a strange chap, and he only appears in the worst detective stories when the author cannot hink of a way in which to link up one of the suspects with the murder, havin' provided him with too good an alibi. [Stubbs; p. 40]

I want to relax. And I relax best when I am reading. [Stubbs; p. 42]

I may tell you that I wouldn't bother to find Porter's murderer if he had not done his murder in such a way as to spread suspicion among several people, and general suspicion clings to the innocent no less than to the guilty if we can't prove the guilt of one person. [Stubbs; p. 45]

I told [the reporter from the Courier] that I was going to write up my notes on the [tasting and blood grouping] demonstration and he seemed to think they would make a popular article and one that would be of educational value as well, for the Courier liked even its murders cultural. The murder of a scientist among scientists would receive far more notice than the murder of a grocer by common burglars. [pp. 45-6]

Inspector Hargrave looked at him with the sympathy which one gives to an unfortunate lunatic who gives no real reason for certification, and Dr. Flanagan shook his head with the air of having known John Stubbs for a long time but of having rarely seen him as eccentric as he was now. [p. 51]

There's you reason for the murder takin' place at this congress. It's the opposite of the sealed room mystery, anyone could have done it and the murderer was trustin' to the fact of Porter's unpopularity to spread suspicion as widely as possible. [p. 66]

I've been readin' about murders, the most impossible murders, the more impossible the better, for donkey's years, and now I have a good plain murder dumped down under my nose with plenty of nice suspects, and I wan to be clever about it. I would like a murder of a man in a sealed room, so the only murder I get is the opposite of that. A man in a room to which about twelve hundred people have had free access. [Stubbs; p. 74]

The Bells of Old Bailey (spoiler at the end)

The Bells of Old Bailey (1947) by Dorothy Bowers

For such a small village, Long Greeting seems to run to a lot of suicides. Five deaths in a very short period--none of them questioned by the authorities for what they seemed to be, the unfortunate taking of one's own life. But after the fifth death and the receipt of some very unpleasant anonymous letters, Miss Bertha Tidy decides to go to the police and voice a concern about the validity of the inquests' findings.

Unknown to her, Scotland Yard has already taken an interest in the form of Detective-Inspector Raikes. He and local Superintendent Lecky listen seriously to her concerns and start investigation in earnest, but they soon have a very definite murder on their hands--that of Miss Tidy. Further investigation reveals a web of blackmail, greed, hatred, and buried secrets, all providing numerous motives for Miss Tidy's death. Yes, there are plenty of suspects, but very little evidence to point out the guilty party. The detectives will have to dig up some of those old secrets before they will have enough to make their case.

One item I noticed that reflects only indirectly on the crime is that Dorothy Bowers had a great deal to say about women and how they operate in the world. She appears to represent the standard lines of "women aren't logical;" "women are such gossips;" "women will spread things they only think are true or might be..." This is indicated by a number of the quotes I gleaned and have listed below. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Possible Spoiler Ahead!

As soon as Jane Kingsley decided to keep information to herself and then check on whether what she noticed meant what she thought it did, I knew that she was going to die. Either the killer was going to think she was trying to blackmail them or they would just decide she was too big a danger to let run around. I was right. But then...once I knew what it was she noticed (not that it was produced in quite that way--Bowers didn't announce it as "here's the thing that Jane noticed"), I didn't realize what it meant.

This was an enjoyable vintage mystery. I enjoyed the village setting and the characters that Bowers created for us. I will say that even if I had recognized the clue mentioned above for what it was, I don't see how I could have known the motive behind the murder. There is a very slender hint given, but I don't feel about it as I do with many good plots--where once the mystery is wrapped up, I say "Oh yes--so that's what that meant." If the motive had been more clearly indicated, I would give this a full four stars...as it is ★★★ and 3/4. 

[Finished on 12/22/19]
Quotes
JK: We're all really a bit close with what we do know.
SW: Oh no, Jane. You're quite wrong. women always tell more than they know.
(Jane Kingsley, Samela Wild; p. 15)

Samela, as a rule, quoted the husband she adored only in support of her own arguments. (p. 14)

However, women don't know how to be logical---and that goes for both of us. (Kate Beaton; p. 33)

Women aren't content with suicides. Nothing short of murder for them. And we call 'em the gentle sex! (Dr. Hare; p. 40)

After all, she argued in defensive silence as, Raikes holding the door for her, she went out--after all, each of them had had the same opportunity as herself of observation and inference. If they hadn't taken it, it wasn't her fault. If they failed to question her about it specifically, she wasn't obliged,was she, to proffer the information? (Jane to herself; p. 43)

Everybody who speculates about an unexplained event is setting up to be a detective. You mean, you don't want the responsibility of detection. Unscientific poking about and baseless rumor and furtive hints in unsigned letters is more in Ravenchuch's line, isn't it? (Inspector Raikes; p. 48)

"You never know," Mrs. Weaver defended her astonishing theory. "Women do queer things, especially at middle age, or when they've passed it. It isn't impossible some of Miss Tidy's clients were too senstitive to have facial buildups and so on, by day. I don't know much about these things, but I do know a little about women, Inspector." (p. 61)

"Let him run on," Sammy said with a sort of tired indulgence. "Now and then he has to get off his chest what he feels about feminine inferiority." (Samela Wild; p. 105)

That was why, when Raikes arrived, he remarked some tension between the two. He remarked it without suspicion. There was always tension betweeen women, even when they were plastering one another with reciprocal smiles. (p. 107)

Whatever those two children might have done, feminine criticism would have inferred the worst. Women were made that way. Nor was their particular form of gratification necessarily achieved by tooth-and-claw methods. A note of pseudo compassion here, a hint of tolerance for youthful peccadilloes, and the job was done. (p. 137)

***********
Deaths = 8 (2 strangled/hung; 1 shot; 3 drowned; 1 hit on head; 1 poisoned)
Just the Facts = Who: Bookshop owner
Mystery Bingo:
Weapon - Rope

Just the Facts: Wrap-up and Prize Entry

It's that time of year to start thinking about wrapping up our challenges. As noted in the sign up post, all challengers who fulfill the minimum six categories from a single era (Golden or Silver) are eligible for the prize drawing. Those who have exceeded that goal can compete for the additional Super Sleuth prize for the detective who has the most complete notebook/s and has read the most books. In the event of a tie--names will go in a hat and a winner will be drawn by my son.

If you have a blog or have tracked your progress through other media (such as Goodreads or Library Thing), then please enter your url/link in the form below. If you do not have a link to enter--skip that section of the form and then please send a list of the books read, vintage era they count for, and categories fulfilled to phryne1969 AT gmail DOT com.

Killer Dolphin

Killer Dolphin (1966) by Ngaio Marsh is a mystery whose title has a double meaning. The Dolphin refers in part to the Dolphin Theater, a Victorian-era theater which had languished in disrepair after being damaged in the war but which has recently been restored through the work of Peregrine Jay and the support of the wealthy Vassily Conducis. It opens to the public in grand style--fully restored to its previous glory--with a brand new play by Peregrine Jay. The dolphin also refers to the odd murder weapon used to dispatch the theater's nightwatchman. One of a pair of statuettes given by Conducis--it is quite heavy and quite deadly. Murder occurs when a thief attempts to make off with the recently discovered Shakespearean glove and letters which have inspired Peregrin's play The Glove. Someone realizes that there are unscrupulous collectors who will pay large sums without worrying too much about how the item was obtained. But who among the small cast of suspects had the opportunity? It is up to Inspector Roderick Alleyn and Inspector Fox to sort among the beautiful femme fatale, the terribly vain leading man, the sharp-tongued supporting actor, the woman scorned, the actor with a penchant for puzzles (and figuring out combinations), the house manager, and the patron who avoids publicity and public contact and yet was in his box on the fateful night.

As I noted the last time I read this, the mystery takes quite a while to get to the main action--there is no murder until about half-way through. But the lead-up is quite interesting. Peregrine Jay's first visit to the theater and his encounter with Conducis provide a nice back-drop to the main story. I also enjoyed the build-up of the story and play surrounding Shakespeare and the glove that was supposed to belong to his son. Jay is able to make the items and the incident into a very affecting play. The characters of the actors are perhaps a bit stereotyped, but it does make for a lot of sarcastic back-chat and witty in-fighting. 

I was a tad disappointed this time round that Marsh wasn't able to fool me at all--often if it has been long enough I'm able to read some of these vintage mysteries and still be unsure of the solution. This particular plot I remembered right down to the last detail. But overall I still enjoyed the set-up and the interactions of the characters enough that I've nearly given it the same rating as before. ★★★ and 1/2 for this go-round.


Deaths = one (hit with blunt object)
Mystery Bingo
Weapons = Blunt Object
Clues/Cliches = Gloves

December Just the Facts Reviews

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Eyes at the Window

Eyes at the Window (1966) by George Selmark

Do you ever get the feeling when you're reading a book that you're swimming against a very strong current? Or working your way through the thickest fog? Yeah, that was this book. It is only 143 pages long, but I felt like I was working very hard to get nowhere fast and I couldn't really see what was happening at all.

So what do we have here? Well...as far as I can make out: We have Agatha Virgil. She is in her 90s and, according to the village folk, crazy as a loon. She lives as a recluse--seeing only her oldest friend, Mrs. Thurston; Sister Root, the nurse who comes regularly to check on her and give her an iron injection (which the book credits as keeping her alive); her daily woman Mrs. Wansbeck; and a local farmer by the name of John Millbank who seems to act as a kind of watchdog to help keep unwanted visitors away. Miss Virgil spends her time looking into the past and talking to people who aren't there.

The past contains secrets and mysteries. For instance, what really happened to Agatha Virgil's sister Melanie? It's rumored that the sisters were rivals for the affections of William Brownlow. Melanie won the day, married Brownlow, and moved to Africa with him. Three years later, the Brownlows returned with their small son for a visit and Melanie died...supposedly of a heart condition. But was it? James Brownlow (the now middle-aged son of William and Melanie) has come from Africa with his daughter Bryony with the hopes of getting financial help from his Aunt Agatha and maybe finding out a few answers about the mother's death. It's difficult to get answers, though, when Aunt Agatha refuses to see anyone. And then a new set of deaths take place...

As mentioned, I spent the entirety of this book feeling like I was wandering around in a dense fog--seeing shadowy shapes that never quite materialized into solid objects. I think I know what happened, but I certainly would bet anything valuable on that. The mystery isn't very solidly plotted and it's really quite a mess. The most solid part of the whole thing is the motive as it's finally revealed, but you certainly aren't going to figure it out based on any clues given along the way. Selmark appears to have focused entirely on the atmosphere surrounding crazy Aunt Agatha and has wasted little time on marshaling his facts.  

Then there's the whole subplot with the beautiful (but wilful) Bryony and her romance with a mysterious young itinerant artist who just happens to be on the spot whenever something mysterious happens...like the death of Mrs. Thurston. Of course Bryony plays the part of the young woman who throughout the book can't stand the man she's going to wind up with in the end. Both the mystery and the romance are huge washouts as far as I'm concerned. A very disappointing read. ★

Quotes
[First line] The dead cat was lying at the foot of the portico steps with its teeth bared as though in fury.

Everybody wants to give advice and nobody wants to take it. Not even from the family solicitor. That's peculiar, isn't it? (Marcus Bex; p. 27)

[Last lines] She said softly, "I think I'd look rather sweet in uniform. I think I'd like to be a female copper."

Deaths = 4 (poisoned)

Tragedy at the Unicorn

Tragedy at the Unicorn (1928) by John Rhode (Cecil John Charles Street)

The titular tragedy involves the murder of the perfectly odious Dr. Grinling at the Unicorn Hotel in the coastal city of Clayport. The Unicorn is owned by Mrs. Burgess and the guests are tended to by her two daughters, Phyllis and Joan. Of the guests who spent the fateful weekend in Clayport, Dr. Grinling and his valet Ferguson were the only ones who weren't there for the end of the yachting season. The yachting group includes Grinling's nephew Richard Gateman (who is in love with Phyllis); the group's first mate (and our narrator) Mr. Attercliffe; Percy Hunter, a serious young man in love with Joan; Mr. Mortimer, a fellow boatsman; and Bob Weldon, the skipper of the yachting crew. 

Grinling's appearance at the inn is a surprise--and not a pleasant one it seems. After an evening of high-spirited entertainment, unattended by Grinling and his man, the doctor is found dead behind his locked bedroom door. At first glance it looks to be a suicide or accidental death from a heroin overdose. Dr. Murchison (called in to examine the dead body) is not surprised that the doctor was dosing himself with heroin for sleeplessness. "A doctor might very well prescribe for himself heroin injections for sleeplessness. He would have no difficulty getting the stuff, and he would know it would do him no harm unless he took an overdose." (!) However, the postmortem reveals that Grinling didn't die from heroin after all--but from "an over injection of morphia, which as you probably know, is a far more dangerous drug." [So, yeah, in the 1920s it's no big deal to take a dose of heroin to go nighty-night--but stay away from that morphine.]

Neither his nephew Richard nor Dr. Priestely once he's called into the case believe that the doctor took morphia by mistake or committed suicide. In fact, Richard admits that he had an unpleasant interview with his uncle regarding money. You see, Dr. Grinling had a life interest in an inheritance from his father (Richard's grandfather) and Richard would inherit the principle once Grinling was gone. Not only would the doctor not loan Richard any money based on his prospects--but he declared his intention to live as long as possible to keep his nephew from the money as long as possible. 

But Richard isn't the only one in the inn that night with a motive to hustle Grinling into the grave. Pretty much everyone except our narrator Attercliffe had reason to wish the doctor dead--even the ladies of the house. Dr. Priestley will have to sort through the motives as well as determine how the killer got into the locked bedroom before his work will be done.

My thoughts:

There seems to be no thought of fingerprints. I realize it's early days in police forensics, but the Scotland Yard Fingerprint Bureau was established in 1901. When Superintendent Collison arrives on the scene, he handles the syringe and the glass vial with no precautions at all. In fact, beyond sending those things to be analyzed by the doctor, he doesn't seem terribly interested in looking over the scene of the crime for clues at all. His method is chatting up all the suspects and making them think he's not the sharpest tool in the drawer. He soon proves them wrong and, even though he does need Dr. Priestley's help, he winds up being a very capable detective indeed.

The early part of the story is quite good. Rhode builds up the various motives in a very convincing manner in an effort to spread the wealth in the suspicion department. To be quite honest, I spotted the culprit quite early despite the publisher's blurb on an early edition proclaiming "The reader who detects the murderer is to be congratulated on possessing no ordinary astuteness." The only thing I couldn't quite figure out was how the murderer managed to get in the room considering certain obstacles. The second half of the book presents some difficulties as the investigators seem to get distracted from the murder inquiry by the injection (no pun intended--well, maybe a little bit intended) of a drug-smuggling sub-plot. 

The best part of the book is the humor. The underlying humor in Collison's interactions with the suspects. The reader realizes how astute the detective is and it's humorous to watch the reactions to his methods. There is also a good deal of humor in the interactions and byplay between the yachting group. All good fun. ★★★ and a half stars.

Quotes

[First Line] Clayport, although not one of the best-known yachting centers on the south coast, is pretty popular among the owners of small craft.
 
Dinner is undoubtedly a meal to be enjoyed in brilliant company, but breakfast--breakfast is a solemn function to be performed in monastic seclusion. (p. 17)

I'm very pleased to hear you say so. Murder's an ugly word and it's the last thing I should like to hear whispered in connection with the Unicorn, for which I have the deepest regard. But you know what one's superiors are. As soon as I report that we can't quite fathom the cause of Dr. Grinling's death, some fellow in an office, always on the look out for something sensational, is bound to ask, "How do you know he wasn't murdered?" (Superintendent Collins; p. 44)

Mrs. Bunce suffers too severely from the rheumatics for her to go gallivanting about the house with lethal intent in the small hours of the morning. (Collins; p. 48)

I didn't know, Mr. Attercliffe. But in my profession one soon learns the value of a little harmless bluff. (Collins; p. 54)

I'm no mathematician, but it two heads are better than one, then it seems to me that half a dozen heads must be better than two. (Collins; p. 61)

Why the man's a natural detective!...Don't you see that his innocence is assumed so as to get the truth out of each one of you? (Harold Merefield; p. 72)

We shall probably discover that Mortimer had some motive for wishing Dr. Grinling out of the way; it seems a fashionable complaint in this part of the country. (Merefield; p. 93)

That evening Mr. Gregson arrived at the Unicorn. I took an instant dislike to him, though I should find it difficult to explain exactly why. Perhaps it was because he disapproved of everything he saw, and managed to convey his disapproval so obviously. (p. 107)

...when I first described the circumstances of Dr. Grinling's dead, he remarked that if a crime had been committed, it had been thought out by a man with some imagination. A novelist is popularly supposed to have imagination, and I rather think he wanted to gauge the depth of yours by reading your book. (Merefield; p. 119)

[Last Line] It was two o'clock before we finally decided that it was time to go to bed. And then the Skipper pushed Richard away from the piano and slowly and hesitatingly, with an expression of rapt concentration, picked out with one finger the notes of the Wedding March.

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Golden Just the Facts: Locked Room
Deaths = 1 (poisoned)

The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club

My haphazard rereading (listening) of the detective novels of Dorothy L. Sayers continues. This week's installment is The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club (1928). One really must admire the British sangfroid which calls the death of a club member (which proves ultimately to be murder) "unpleasantness." I have, of course, read Sayers's novels many times--most recently here on the Block in 2011 for the As My Whimsy Takes Me reading challenge. At that time I read the books featuring Lord Peter Wimsey in published order...this time I really have taken them on "as my whimsy takes me." And my whimsy decided that it was time to sit down and listen to Ian Carmichael read to me about the death of General Fentiman again.

My previous review (see link above) gives details on the heart of the matter. At its most basic, it is a pretty standard plot with a pretty common motive--greed. Two elderly people have died and depending on who died when, somebody is going to very wealthy. At first, Lord Peter is merely asked to try and find out who died first--General Fentiman or his sister Lady Dormer. It soon becomes clear that some highly unpleasant shenanigans have been employed to mystify the times of the death. But that isn't all. Somebody has been even more unpleasant and rushed the General to his final reward. But who? And how?

It is always a delight to listen to Ian Carmichael read the works of Sayers. He was very invested in the characters--he had, in fact, tried very hard to get someone to film the books much earlier the 1970s (when he was, truth be told, just a bit too old for the part of the younger Wimsey. The Ian Carmichael of the 1950s would have been perfect--especially for the early books where he is a bit more "Bertie Woosterish with brains."). With this one slightly more full of gentlemen than some of the other books, Carmichael uses his full powers to give a different sound and quality to each speaker to help the listener keep everything straight. Another fine reading performance by a fine actor. ★★★★

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Golden Just the Facts--Who: Artist/Photographer. We have Marjorie Phelps sculpting; Ann Dorland painting (albeit rather badly); and Bunter photographing evidence.
Deaths = three (one natural [but highly important to the plot]; one poisoned; one shot)

The Eel Pie Murders

Probably no man in the C.I.D. ever had a more unimpressive Watson than Inspector Bull had in the little gray Welshman who had been waiting at Strand Corner House long past the hour Bull had appointed for lunch. In fact it might be said that as a Watson Mr. Pinkerton was positively insignificant, except of course that he had frequently helped out, which Watsons, properly speaking, seldom or never do. 

The Eel Pie Murders (1933) by David Frome (Zenith Brown)

First off--let me just say that I don't know what book that blurb on the cover is supposed to be for, but it's definitely NOT The Eel Pie Murders. There is no chic spa. No "exploding" scandals. And Mr. Pinkerton doesn't "confront" anybody. Mr. Pinkerton is, quite frankly, as insignificant to the story as the quote above implies. He does, randomly, follow one of the suspects and that helps Inspector Bull (who is the true hero of the piece) sort out who did what to whom. But honestly, if Mr. Pinkerton weren't around, I'm quite sure that the good inspector would still get his man (or woman). I'm still trying to figure out why the books are billed as "Mr. Pinkerton Mysteries."

The back of the book is a little better:

[Inspector Bull and Mr. Pinkerton] find the body when the tide goes out. It is the best-dressed corpse Eel Pie Island has ever seen, and even Mr. Pinkerton has to admit the dead girl is beautiful. She is also the victim of an extraordinarily clever killer

Good so far...but then the blurb-writer takes another flight of fancy:

Before long, the shy sleuth wanders too deeply into the scandal-laden maze of Eel Pie Island. First a young woman runs for her life {Huh?}; then Mr. Pinkerton himself becomes the target of the very persistent, very brutal murderer. {Double Huh? Mr. Pinkerton is about as far from being in danger as one can get....}

You'd think that Mr. Pinkerton is the intrepid man of action taking on all perils instead of the of the shy, gray policeman wannabe that he is.

So...what is the story really about? Glad you asked. Mrs. Sheila Campbell's red & white silk pajama*-clad body is found early one morning on the shore of Eel Pie Island. She was stunned by a blow on the back of the head and then drowned. Once Inspector Bull (and his shadow, Mr. Pinkerton) get down to cases, they find that various people might have wanted her out of the way. There's her ex-husband whose finances have taken a sudden down-turn and could stand to be relieved of the £500 payments he's been forced to make to her. There's the current boyfriend who has tired of her and whose wife knows about the affair. There's the owner of the gambling den that she'd managed to do out of quite a sum of cash when she discovered how to use his own rigged game against him. There's her own sister whose arguments weren't quite as private as she thought...At first, it looks all neat and tidy--the boyfriend was on the spot and has an adequate motive. But Inspector Bull isn't convinced of his guilt, especially after another murder and an attempted third, and decides to set a clever trap. No one is more surprised than he when the trap is sprung and he sees whom it has caught.

Despite my comments about Mr. Pinkerton above, this really was an enjoyable book. I happen to think it would have been even better without Mr. Pinkerton--but that's neither here nor there. I don't have anything against the shy little man and he's not a detriment to the book, but I also don't see that he's essential to the story. Even though there is just a small handful of suspects, Frome manages to keep the reader guessing and Inspector Bull is a very satisfactory protagonist. He's a smart copper with a bit of intuitive flair--but not too many leaps of logic. He's very indulgent of his Watson and doesn't mind Pinkerton tagging along on investigations. Most of the clues are fairly displayed and sharp readers have every chance to identify the culprit. ★★★


*think 1930s/40s Hollywood lounge pajamas in the movies

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Deaths = 3 (two drowned; one shot)

Dead Water

Dead Water (1963) by Ngaio Marsh takes us back to the village setting--this time a small fishing community at Portcarrow. It begins with a scene two years in the past when a young boy by the name of Wally Trehern experiences what seems to be a miraculous cure. Plagued by warts all over his hands, he has suffered the jeers and taunts of his schoolmates for years. On this occasion he runs away from them to a local spring where he encounters a lady in green who tells him to wash his hands in the spring water...and if he believes his warts will be cured. The next day his warts have fallen off as if by magic and soon the legend of the green lady and the newly christened "Pixie Falls" is spread. 

Mrs. Fanny Winterbottom , the current owner of the land where the spring is found has no problem with pilgrims coming to the site and the village making what profit they can from the magical waters. An entry fee is established, a gift shop is set up, and the local pub/inn begins turning a profit for the first time in recent memory. And then...two years later, Mrs. Winterbottom dies and her sister Miss Emily Pride, a French language expert, comes into possession. Miss Pride doesn't hold with commercializing people's belief in mystical cures. She sends messages to the village that all commercial enterprises connected to the spring must stop--she won't prevent folks from coming to the spring if they want to, but there will be no more advertisement and no more profiting from it. She also announces her intention to visit the area to see what exactly needs to be done to return the spring and surrounding land to its former condition.

Well...naturally this doesn't go down so well with those who have made a business of the thing and Miss Pride receives threats made of cut-up newsprint. So, she calls upon the help of one of her former pupils--Superintendent Roderick Alleyn. He advises her to give up the plan to visit Portcarrow and to conduct her business through an attorney. But Miss Pride is a determined woman and believes in facing up to one's obligations. She goes anyway...and is the victim of an assault (from rock-throwing) and more threats. Alleyn arrives in the village for the first (and, if Miss Pride has her way, only) Pixie Falls Festival and is just in time to discover the body of a middle-aged woman, knocked out and drowned at the spring. Surprisingly enough, it's not Miss Pride who has been murdered, but Elspeth Cost--a middle-aged woman who has been the driving force in the mystification and veneration of the spring. Was she, as it appears, mistaken for Miss Pride and then killed anyway to prevent her from identifying the attacker? Or were there reasons for someone to kill Miss Cost? Alleyn will have to sort that out in order to identify the killer.

This wound up being a middle-of-the road Marsh book for me. I had better memories of it (from my first reading 30ish years ago) than were realized in this go-round. The best of the book was Miss Emily Pride--even though she is well-named and pride almost goes before a fall. She is a determined and independent lady and it was nice to see Marsh portray a spinster in a more favorable light. I did appreciate her principled view of the supposed miracle cures. She didn't imply that they were fake, but she absolutely refused to be a party to anyone taking financial advantage of the situation. I was also amused by her relationship with Alleyn--it was fun to see him so disconcerted by his former French tutor. 

The book turns Alleyn into an action figure of sorts at the dramatic end--with the murderer bolting and Alleyn giving chase through a coastal storm and finding himself in danger of life. Not the usual drawing room summing up. With a fairly good plot (I didn't guess the murderer this time) and the exciting finish, this comes in at a solid  ★★★.

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Death = drowning 

November Just the Facts Reviews

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Blueprint for Murder

Blueprint for Murder (1948) by Roger Bax* is a rare thing for me--an inverted mystery. I generally find it very difficult to enjoy a mystery novel where there is very little mystery. The blurb on the back of my edition tries to make it seem more like a standard detective novel:

Wealthy industrialist Charles Hollison is found bludgeoned to death shortly after his son, Geoffrey, and nephew, Arthur Cross, return from World War II. As the principal beneficiaries of Charles's will, both men are suspects. Inspector James, called in to investigate, thinks he knows which of them is guilty.

But we know from the beginning who the guilty party is (Inspector James is right). And a nasty piece of work he is too.

When we first meet Arthur Cross, he is on the run towards the end of the war. He has made his way from a Nazi concentration camp (wearing a German uniform, by the way) and is trying to put as much distance between himself and the Germans and the invading Russians as possible. When he's just about on his last legs, a kindly Polish man and his daughter take him in after listening to his tale of an escape from the camp which involved knocking out a guard and stealing his uniform. He repays their kindness by murdering them. And we get our first glimpse of just how cold-blooded he is.

Upon his return to England, both he and his cousin Geoffrey are welcomed with gladness by Geoffrey's father, Charles. Arthur's parents died while he was young and Charles took him in and raised him as if he were another son. The elderly gentleman offers them both shares in the family business, a comfortable salary, and a home with him if they'd like it. He also (inadvisedly) tells them that he plans to update his will, leaving the bulk of his estate between them. 

Arthur has no desire to kick his heels in a stodgy business job. He plans to live life hard and fast (and fun) and needs a large influx of cash sooner rather than later. He also has pressing reasons to leave Europe and head for somewhere more remote. So, despite unemotionally recognizing how generous and kind Charles has been (and is being) to him, he begins methodically plotting his death. His goal is create an unbreakable alibi that will allow him to do the deed and even be suspected, but give the police no way to prove him guilty. And he does a pretty good job--using a method and devices that I'd not encountered before in my murderous reading. Once the crime is committed, the second leg of the book is spent wondering if Inspector James will find a break in the impenetrable alibi.

But, of course, there is one little thing that Arthur didn't think about...and when that begins to fall apart, the last leg of the book turns into a thriller with Arthur forcing his cousin to take him by boat into a raging winter storm and help him escape to Holland. Geoffrey must find a way to scuttle Arthur's plans and save both himself and the girl he loves.

This is a bit of a mixed bag for me. On the plus side, this is a marvelously plotted inverted mystery and I want to give credit to Bax for giving me an inverted mystery that I could appreciate. Bax has given Arthur the means to devise what really looks like an unbreakable alibi. I began to think that he might actually get away with it. And I thought the means by which his plot unravels was cleverly done as well. The ending was exciting and suspenseful without being too over-the-top (especially for a mystery portrayed in my edition as a police procedural). Negative points: there really is very little of Inspector James in this and very little actual detecting going on. James does a bit of interviewing--but most of the work is done off-stage. And, for me, there was way too much time spent with this cold-blooded, vicious killer and watching him plot the murder of a kindly, inoffensive man. But, even though it's really out of my comfort zone, it's a darn good mystery. ★★★★


*Bax is a pseudonym for Paul Winterton, an English journalist who wrote under the names of Bax, Andrew Garve and Paul Somers

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Vintage Golden: What (Out of Comfort Zone)
Deaths = 3 (two drowned; one hit on head)
Feb = author's birth month

The Perfect Murder (mini-review)

The Perfect Murder (1964) by H. R. F. Keating

Spoiler Alert! There is NO murder in The Perfect Murder. Sorry about that. But for all of you who might pick this up thinking that this is one of those impossible crimes or that your murder mystery actually has a murder in it, I thought you ought to know. I also think you ought to know that this is (in my opinion) far from the perfect anything--story, crime novel, etc. This is my second outing with Keating writing under his own name* and I have to say that I am beginning to think that he just isn't for me.

But...back to the story. Why, you might ask, is it called "The Perfect Murder" if there's no murder and what we do have going on isn't perfect? Glad you asked. It seems that the secretary of Lala Varde, a prosperous businessman, has been bashed over the head with a candlestick. Lala Varde reported it to the police as a murder--because by his logic someone was trying to murder his secretary, so by golly it's murder. Even if it didn't succeed. The name caught on with the newspapers and such and nobody seems to care that the man really didn't die. The ever-conscientious Inspector Ghote is assigned to the case and is immediately faced with lies, disdain, and corruption.

So...I'll just fess up now and tell you that I did not read every word of this. Not even as much as every other word. Only enough that I decided that I could legitimately count it for a few challenges and I'm shoving this thing off my Mount TBR and sending it back to the library's used book shop where it came from. I skimmed to the end just so I could know what really happened. Kate over at crossexamingingcrime says that Keating is "good at establishing an interesting setting in a culture which readers can identify with but also find difference in." I'm afraid I didn't find this to be the case. I never did settle into the setting that Keating gave us and I certainly didn't warm to the methods of Ghote and the culture surrounding him as represented. And don't even get me started on Lala Varde and his never-ending need to make silly rhymes about everything when talking. No rating because I didn't really read closely enough to hand one out. Others have handed out four and five stars...so your mileage may vary.

*I have also read a couple of his historical mysteries written under the name Evelyn Hervey. I enjoyed those more--handing out three stars.

The Dutch Shoe Mystery

The Dutch Shoe Mystery (1931) by Ellery Queen takes place in the Dutch Memorial Hospital in New York City. It features not one, but two murders carried out--practically under the nose of Ellery Queen himself (in the first instance) and a whole posse of NYC policemen (in the second). The hospital's wealthy benefactress, Abigail Doorn has an accident that requires an emergency gall bladder operation. Since she is a diabetic and her health is a bit fragile there is some concern, but her surgeon, Dr. Francis Janney, is absolutely confident that she will pull through the operation with no problem. 

Ellery has stopped by the hospital to consult his friend Dr. John Minchen over a medical point impacting another case and is asked if he would like to watch the operation. The men sit in the operating theater and watch as the patient is brought in. Ellery immediately notices her odd coloring--but puts it down to her ill-health until Dr. Janney bends over the patient, turns and crooks a "forefinger furiously toward Dr. Minchen." Ellery's friend rushes down to the operating table, looks at the neck of the patient (where Janney drew his attention), and then beckons to Ellery.

Ellery rose. His eyebrows went up. His lips formed one soundless word, which Minchen caught.
Dr. Minchen nodded.
The word was: "Murder?"

Yes, it's murder. Someone, somehow has managed to strangle the elderly woman without the hospital staff noticing until that moment in the operating theater.

It's soon revealed that Dr. Janney visited the patient in the prep room prior to surgery and was left alone with her while the attending nurse exited the room on his indication of a need of sterilization materials for his hands (no words were exchanged--gestures were all that were necessary). This, the doctor denies categorically--as Ellery and Minchen know he was called away to attend to a visitor during the time period indicated. And when a discarded set of doctor's clothes, including the cap and mask, are found in the hallway telephone booth, it begins to look like the killer masqueraded as Janney, imitating his characteristic limp, in order to create the opportunity for their deed.

Ellery sorts through all the clues--including the impostor's white canvas shoes with broken lace and folded back tongues--and all the suspects. The suspects include Dr. Janney, Dr. Minchen, Dr. Kneisel (all of whom benefit directly or indirectly from the woman's will), Hulda Doorn (Abigail's daughter), Sarah Fuller (Abigail's companion--who has had an on again, off again raging argument for years), the mysterious Mr. Swanson with whom Janney met (and whom Janney will not assist the police in finding...), and various members of the hospital staff. Ellery thinks that he has begun to see daylight when Dr. Janney is murdered, strangled in exactly the same way as Mrs. Doorn. This time while sitting peacefully at his desk. Ellery is stumped by how the murderer managed to slip behind Janney to deliver the knock-out blow (which allowed the murderer to strangle his victim with no fuss). There's no window behind the desk. In fact, when Ellery enters the doctor's office there is absolutely nothing behind the desk except a blank wall. He can't see a legitimate reason for anyone to go behind the doctor while he was at his desk. It isn't until Dr. Minchen idly mentions that something was removed before Ellery arrived on the scene that our detective has his eureka moment.

This is a decent mystery outing for Ellery. The initial set-up and the two murders are portrayed well. And I'll go along with Ellery's wrap-up. Mostly. One thing Ellery didn't explain: what exactly did the murderer hit Janney upside the head with? According to Dr. Prouty, he was hit by "some heavy blunt instrument" [emphasis mine]. What on earth could the murderer have carried back there (in their legitimate mission explained by Ellery) that wouldn't arouse Janney's interest? "I say, what are you doing with that hammer [insert any suitable blunt object]..." And, apparently, it was something they carried in and out with them because there wasn't anything in the room that was identified as a possible weapon or anything mentioned as missing (like, say, a paperweight always kept on the desk).

Also, I cry foul on the "you have all the evidence" business. Yes, I figured out the main part. But there is a final piece of evidence (which I can't mention without spoiling) that I don't see how the reader was supposed figure out. After all--we didn't get to actually see a certain bit of evidence that is vital. Also, I couldn't figure out the relationship between two characters based on what we were actually told and shown--and it's a relationship that's kind of important to the whole motive thing. 

I agree with Ben over at The Green Capsule that there is way too much mulling, interviewing, and reviewing the evidence going on in between murders and solution. If the point was fair play to the reader--waving evidence under our noses repeatedly--then it doesn't come off (see previous paragraph). In actuality, this 305 page book could have been cut to maybe 250 (251, if we add in a portion to at least hint a bit better at the crucial piece of evidence). Still, it was a good plot with a nice bit of misdirection. So-- ★★★ for a solid, mid-range mystery.

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Deaths= two (both strangled)
Golden Vintage card = Where: hospital