Challenge Complete: Super Password

I actually closed the Super Book Password Challenge back on September 1. It just wasn't getting at much participation as I had hoped for. But...since I posted two password clues for each category through the cancellation, I definitely think I can claim this as complete. Besides, I'm the challenge hostess so I can make the rules. Right? :-)

 

It's possible that I'll try to host this again in the future. I'll have to think about ways I might make it more attractive.

Monthly Categories and my reads:

January/February: Famous Person

Clue #1: Ride the Pink Horse by Dorothy B. Hughes (1/3/15)
Clue #2: A Dead Man in Istanbul by Michael Pearce (1/14/15) 
Clue #3: Rod Serling's Twilight Zone Revisited by Walter B. Gibson [adapted by] (1/20/15)
Clue #4: Pixie Tricks: The Greedy Gremlin by Tracey West (1/21/15) 

[William Shatner]

Clue #1 Death of a Tall Man by Frances & Richard Lockridge (1/31/15) 
Clue #2 Mystery! A Celebration: Stalking Public Television's Greatest Sleuths by Ron Miller (2/3/15)
Clue #3 I Killed: True Stories of the Road from America's Top Comics by Ritch Shydner & Mark Schiff (2/10/15)
Clue #4A 13 Steps Down by Ruth Rendell (2/15/15)
Clue #4B A Stitch in Time by Emma Lathen (2/17/15)

[Dick Van Dyke]

March/April: Historic Event  
Clue #1 Glenn Ford: A Life by Peter Ford (3/9/15)
Clue #2 Playground of Death by John Buxton Hilton (3/18/15) 

[Assassination of President Lincoln]

Clue #1 The Poisoner's Handbook by Deborah Blum (3/22/15) 
Clue #2 The False Inspector Dew by Peter Lovesey (4/1/15) 

[1st use of telegraph to catch a murderer--the Crippen case]

May/June: Movie Title   
Clue #1 The Eye in the Museum by J. J. Connington (5/8/15)
Clue #2 The Great Dinosaur Robbery by David Forrest (5/15/15)
Clue #3 Bones in the Barrow by Josephine Bell (5/29/15) 
Clue #4 The Silver Leopard by Helen Reilly 

[Bringing up Baby]

Clue #1A Falling Star by Patricia Moyes (6/12/15)
Clue #1B The Diamond-Studded Typewriter by Carlton Keith (6/14/15)
Clue #2 The Riddle of the Traveling Skull by Harry Stephen Keeler (621/15) 

[Around the World in Eighty Days]


July/August: Musical Group  
Clue #1 Grammy Lamby & the Secret Handshake by Kate & M. Sarah Klise (7/3/15)
Clue #2 The Lack of the Irish by Ralph McInerny (7/11/15)

[The Chieftains]

Clue #1 Brighton Rock by Graham Greene (previous: 3/2/15) 
Clue #2 The British Invasion by Barry Miles (7/20/15)
Clue #3 Conundrums for the Long Week-End by Robert Kuhn McGregor & Ethan Lewis (8/7/15) 

[The Hollies]

Super Password: Update

Well, it's supposed to be time for the fifth round of Super Book Book Password. But interest seems to be lagging. Ryan jumped in for a correct guess on the first of my two Musical Group Passwords ("The Chieftains") but after a couple of early guesses no one captured points for the second ("The Hollies"). Since the first two rounds, I've been the only participant offering up Passwords for guessing....at this point I'm prepared to throw in the towel on this particular challenge and call it officially finished. If anyone has an interest in another round, I'm open to hosting (and will replace this post with a Sept/Oct link-up). I'm even willing to go off the proposed schedule and offer an open-category round (or two). If you'd like to pick a Password Category and secret password to guess, just send me an email at phryne1969 AT gmail DOT com. If I have no takers by the end of September, then I will call the challenge closed and award the prize to our current point leader.

Here are our current point totals:

Ryan@Wordsmithonia: 210 points

Debbie@Exurbanis: 130 points

Phinnea@ravenscroftcloud: 40 points

John@Pretty Sinister Books: 30 points

Noah@Noah's Archives: 10 points

Bev (hostess, playing for fun): 460 points [reading those books and giving out clues really adds up!)

Keep Cool, Mr. Jones: Review

In Keep Cool, Mr. Jones (1950), Ed "Jupiter" Jones has grown up, left Harvard, stopped professoring--although he's still an academic at heart, and moved to the country for the quiet life with his lovely wife Betty and a nice place to raise their children. He's put amateur detecting behind him. Or so he thinks. That works just fine until the night of the annual square dance (in aid of raising funds for the local library) at Jack Maney's place.

Somebody decides to lock Maney and three of his guests in the walk-in freezer when he takes them on a tour to show them his pheasants. There are many people in the community who may have wanted to get their own back on Jack Maney--whether through a practical joke or an attempted murder. But who could have wanted it so badly that they would include three innocent people? What may have been at best an ill-considered practical joke soon leads to definite murder and revived rumors of a long-lost treasure add a certain spice to the speculations.

Maney's wife "Slim" asks Jones to investigate and, of course, Jupiter can't resist poking his nose into another case...Slim is pretty difficult to resist as well. She promises him a reward that even the dedicated family man can't resist. But before he can earn the reward, he'll find that nearly every male in a 25 mile radius was interested in Slim to varying degrees--he just has to figure out if that's germane to the case; he'll have to decide whether Slim deliberately shot her husband in the leg; he'll have to find $90,000 in gold as well as a disappearing Indian; and he'll have to out-track a bloodhound and out-talk the killer in a dangerous grand finale.

This story is the fifth and final entry in Timothy Fuller's series starring Jupiter Jones. Jones starts his sleuthing career as a graduate student in Harvard Has a Homicide when his advisor, Professor Singer is murdered. The detective bug sticks with him through grad school through his term as a professor himself and then, when a convenient relative dies and leaves him enough money to exit the academic world, in semi-retirement. He's supposed to be working on a book in the relaxing little town of Saxon, but he quickly sets that aside when a murder rears its ugly head.

Jones is full of breezy, witty conversation and the story provides a nice feeling of the post-war period. The wit and social commentary are smoothly integrated into the tale, making for an enjoyable read. As is well-known here on the Block, I do love those academically-inclined amateur detectives and Jones is perfect. He has an educated wit without being pedantic and his academic mind helps him ferret out the details necessary to solve the mystery. The characters are fleshed out as nicely as one could hope for in a short (160 page) crime novel and they add plenty of local color. A good, solid post-war read. ★★★ and a half.

This fulfills the "Man in the Title" square on the Golden Vintage Bingo card and gives me one more Bingo.

Conundrums for the Long Week-End: Mini-Review

Warning! If you have not yet read the Lord Peter Wimsey novels by Dorothy L. Sayers, then you will not want to read this book before doing so--unless you want the plots spoiled. Robert Kuhn McGregor and Ethan Lewis have no compunction about giving away virtually every clue and unmasking every villain in the novels and (most) short stories of the well-known mystery writer while expounding the Conundrums for the Long Week-End: England, Dorothy L. Sayers, and Lord Peter Wimsey. They assume (rightly, I believe) that anyone plunging into their literary critique will be well-acquainted with the ins and outs of Sayers's works.


MacGregor and Lewis fully examine the plots of the Wimsey novels, tying them firmly to both the events in Britain and the world during the "Long Week-End"--the period between the two World Wars--and to the life of Dorothy L. Sayers. They find themes and events in the fictional life of Lord Peter, and later Harriet, and use them to understand Sayers's views on love, marriage, the evolving place of women, and the social changes which are rapidly shaping Sayers's world. They also reveal how each of the Wimsey novels play upon different mystery conventions--from the thriller to the time-table focused crime to the how-dunnit. Sayers worked hard at her craft and used it consciously to explore her own views as well as to comment on (and sometimes criticize) the methods and conventions of other Golden Age mystery practitioners.

For readers of Sayers's work, there may be little to surprise in the examination of the novels themselves, but the historical groundwork, social critique, and background on Sayers herself is interesting and useful for anyone who wants to understand her work better or see it in a different light. ★★★★

The British Invasion: Mini-Review

The British Invasion by Barry Miles attempts to cover everything that was the British invasion of the 1960s. It wasn't just an influx of music--from The Beatles to the Dave Clark Five to the Kinks and the the Rolling Stones. British actors made their mark on Hollywood snagging Oscars and making Americans long for London. The Avengers invaded television to become a cult icon and hip and mod styles became the dream fashion of thousands of teenagers.

The book is filled with photographs that will bring back memories for those who lived through the period and will bring the era to life for those who came along too late to experience it first-hand. While Miles does make the effort to bring in music and pop culture beyond The Beatles, he still brings everything back to them. The focus is on the Fab Four and the many ways that their arrival in America in 1964 made everything else possible. An interesting look at the pop culture of the 1960s and especially of interest to Beatles and music fans. ★★★ and a half.

The Lack of the Irish: Review

The University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana is gearing up for a highly anticipated football game. Baylor University, the country's preeminent Protestant college, will meet the Catholic football powerhouse for the first time. Game day, most ironically, falls on Reformation Day--the day recognizing the historic moment when Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of the Schlosskirche (castle church) in Wittenberg in 1517.  Off the field, scholars prepare a theological conference featuring participants from the rival schools that will address Catholic and Protestant history. And a female pastor (who seems to be a bit of a loose cannon) plans to protest the game as some sort of statement about Protestantism's superiority over Catholicism. She hopes to stir up a religious fervor to eclipse the football fanaticism. 

Sparks seem to be flying everywhere. Even the campus event coordinator is stirring up trouble--she seems to believe it her duty to throw as many obstacles in the path of conference directors as possible. When she is found strangled shortly before the big day, there seems to be no shortage of candidates for the role of murderer. Roger (a professor) and Philip (a private eye) Knight use their various skills to help search for the killer. But there are no definite clues until Notre Dame's famed, brilliant, and troubled quarterback mysteriously disappears and evidence links him to the crime. But did he do it....or does he just know who did? 

The Lack of the Irish is a fairly solid mystery offering from the late Ralph McInerny. Very light, cozy feel with the academic setting and most of the mystery-solving provided by the professor half of the brothers Knight rather than the private eye. Interesting characters and a realistic motive for the culprit. Not really in the fair-play tradition...either that or I was asleep at the wheel when it came to noticing clues, but it was a fun, quick read and I do enjoy Professor Knight and his brother.  ★★★

Grammy Lamby & the Secret Handshake: mini-review

Grammy Lamby & the Secret Handshake by Kate and M. Sarah Klise is a delightful children's book about the relationship between grandparent and grandchild. Instead of a more expected, traditional view--where "grands" are natural allies and friends, the book gives us Larry Lamb, a boy who seems to meet his grandmother later in life and who is embarrassed and confused by this loud, exuberant person who wears loud hats, sings much louder than anyone else in church, and wants him to do the secret "I love you" handshake when all he wants is for her to go away.  

But Larry soon learns that Grammy's spirited personality can be a great thing when storms hit and his family and his community need help. As he helps Grammy to help others, he finds out what a special person she is and what it can mean to have a secret handshake meant just for you. A really sweet book with a great story told in simple language and beautiful illustrations.

 **********
This is the first book in my July/August "Musical Group" Password clues. The clue is "Grammy."

Super Password #4: July & August Musical Group

It's time for the fourth round of Super Book Book Password. We had a couple of new participants snag some points in the May/June round. Thanks for joining in, John and Noah!

Here are our current point totals:

Ryan@Wordsmithonia: 180 points

Debbie@Exurbanis: 130 points

Phinnea@ravenscroftcloud: 40 points

John@Pretty Sinister Books: 30 points

Noah@Noah's Archives: 10 points

Bev (hostess, playing for fun): 360 points [reading those books and giving out clues really adds up!)

I'm all set for the Musical Group Category for July/August. Anybody going to join me?  I will again post linkys for each month rather than weekly links. Eight clues are not required, but participants are asked to provide as many clues as possible with their reading schedules. Remember that points can be claimed for each clue until the next clue from that particular participant goes up. So--if I post my first clue this week, but don't post my second clue until the last week of June, then participants will have three weeks to ponder my Musical Group and try to claim the full points. If I post the second clue next week, then first clue points will only be available until next week.  And, from now one, if a participant posts at least four clues and manages to stump the panel, I will award a bonus of 40 points.

When you post your clues, please use the following format: 

Bev's Clue #1 ("book" title)***

and link to your blog or other review site (Goodreads, etc). If you do not have a blog and would like to post clues, then please use the format above and submit your clues in the comments. Don't forget to email me (phryne1959 AT gmail DOT com) your chosen password.  Let's have some more fun--and see if anyone can catch Ryan in the points category!

Complete rule may be found through the Headquarters (sidebar) or HERE.

***Just as a point of clarification: If only part of your title is the clue, please indicate which word or words are relevant--put that portion in quotes for the link up (see above). My clues will also be in bold at my review site. 




And...we have a winner on my first round of "Musical Group" clues. Ryan continues to show off his Password awesomeness with a guess of The Chieftains. Congratulations, Ryan! Off to see if I can manage another musical group with the books I've got hanging about....

Second Musical Group is off and running (two clues given in July and more on the way)!






 

The Riddle of the Traveling Skull: Review

my edition

For it must be remembered that at the time I knew quite nothing, naturally, concerning Milo Payne, the mysterious Cockney talking Englishman with the checkered long-beaked Sherlock-holmsian cap; nor of the latter’s “Barr-Bag” which was as like my own bag as one Milwaukee wienerwurst is like another; nor of Legga, the Human Spider, with her four legs and her six arms; nor of Ichabod Chang, ex-convict, and son of Dong Chang; nor of the elusive poetess, Abigail Sprigge; nor of the Great Simon, with his 2163 pearl buttons; nor of–in short, I then knew quite nothing about anything or anybody involved in the affair of which I had now become a part, unless perchance it were my Nemesis, Sophie Kratzenschneiderwumpel–or Suing Sophie! (p. 13)

As you might gather from the excerpt above, Harry Stephen Keeler's The Riddle of the Traveling Skull (1934) pretty much has it all--jammed in every which way. This is one of the craziest concoctions I've ever read. Keeler seems to have no regard for the standard storytelling method and definitely doesn't subscribe to any of the "rules of detection fiction" that were bumping around in the Golden Age. He'll bring in Chinamen, have all sorts of coincidences, make you suspect the butler (valet)...and according to rumor even wrote a book where he introduced the murderer on the very last page. The only thing that's missing is the secret passage.

And yet...his style is compelling. It attracts the attention and the curiosity much the way those cliff-hanger serials in the movies (Perils of Pauline, anyone?) kept folks on the edge of the seat. Every chapter ends in such a way to leave the reader breathless and flipping the page as quickly as possible to see what new and unlikely twist Keeler is going to spring on his unsuspecting hero, Clay Calthorpe.

Poor Clay. All he wants is to return from his travels (in search of the rights to the rare Julu berry for use by his boss, Roger Pelton, in his wondrous wholesale candies), hand over the signed Julu berry papers, hide from Suing Sophie (who may try to sue him for breach of promise) and get down to the business of making the boss's daughter his wife. He hops off his train and catches a street car to his boarding house in Chicago, Illinois. At some point in the journey, his bag gets mixed with that of a harmless-looking clerical fellow and when he reaches his room and opens "his" bag he finds not his very own purple pajamas (!) but a polished, grinning skull. The skull has a silver name plate affixed to it, a bullet inside it and, in the wads of paper that keep the bullet from rattling around, he finds bits of carbon paper with snatches of phrases on them.

At first this oddity seems no more than the beginning of a curious adventure. But then he's lured to a deserted house (supposedly to exchange bags with the clerical gentleman), bashed over the head and robbed of the bag containing the skull. He later shares his adventures with his friend John Barr (inventor the famous Barr Bag--the kind he had) and his fiancee's family. As soon as Roger Pelton hears the story, he faints dead away. The next thing Clay knows he's no longer scheduled to marry the fair Doris Pelton--her father won't allow it. As far as Clay can tell it's all because of that dratted skull and so he determines to find the bag and get to the bottom of the skull story if it's the last thing he does.

There are so many twists and turns and surprises to this narrative that it would be difficult to give any more of a synopsis. Just know that in addition to those gems described in the quotation above, we also have a love triangle that inspires a murderous attack, a large sum of money embezzled from a bank, a ventriloquist's dummy, a pilfered safe, a train wreck, and the fictional country of San Do Mar, where no one can be extradited for a crime--any crime from stealing $100 from the till to cold-blooded murder.

I have to confess, when I got to the end of the story and All Was Revealed--I still couldn't tell you what really happened. I mean...I know what Keeler says happened. But the way he tells us--I don't know if I'm supposed to believe him. But you know what? I don't care. It was a wild and wacky ride and so much fun that it doesn't matter. This isn't necessarily the kind of mystery I'd want as a steady diet, but for an occasional flight of fancy it works very well. ★★★

With a "Skull" in the title, this fulfills the "Something Spooky" square on the Golden Vintage Bingo card. The word "Traveling" is also the second clue in the Super Book Password Challenge. And, finally,
this counts as a second entry for Rich's Crimes of the Century feature for June. This month is focused on crime fiction from 1934. This is-the book that really made me ask for 1934.

The Diamond-Studded Typewriter: Review

Well. The Diamond-Studded Typewriter (1958) by Carlton Keith was quite a pleasant little surprise. I had no idea what to expect from this volume when I added it to my already bulging bag of goodies at last year's Red Cross Book Fair. [That cover looks like he has laser beams shooting out of his body.] But I certainly wasn't going to pass on a first edition mystery with a nearly pristine dust jacket at bargain basement prices. [Don't ask me what that white splotch is...this is an actual scan of my cover and there is no splotch. Maybe there was something on the scanner....]

But enough preliminaries. What exactly do we have here? 

For starters we have James Garvin returning to his apartment after a trip to England and doing odd things with a typewriter, a few envelopes, and a beautiful diamond necklace. He no sooner finishes his little chores when an unknown (to the reader) person comes sneaking in through the kitchen and shoots him. 

Next up, we have Jeff Green--documents expert who specializes in identifying/verifying handwritten and typewritten materials. Jeff is brought into the case by Alice Anthony on behalf of her mother and herself. Her mother has seen the picture of James Garvin in paper and swears that the murdered man is her delinquent husband. The women want Jeff to use his expertise to prove that James Garvin and Albert Anthony were the same person so they can make a claim on any property he has left behind. It seems that Anthony cleared out the couple's bank account when he disappeared twenty-some years ago--leaving his wife and daughter in difficulties. 

The Puzzle Doctor over at In Search of the Classic Mystery has been discussing the issue of spoilers. And let me assure you--and him--that it is no spoiler to tell you that we also have a very soft tip of the hat to The Maltese Falcon. We don't venture very far into the story before we know that there are all sorts of characters who are interested in A. James Garvin for personal and financial reasons, B. the diamond necklace which he was known to be carrying, C. other bits and bobs that may have come back with him from England, or D. more than one or all of the above. All of these characters believe Jeff Green can help them with what they want. And they aren't inclined to take no for an answer. 

Joining the Anthony women in the search for Garvin's identity and/or his property are a smooth Englishman with some very rough-edged henchmen, a husky-voiced femme fatale who claims the necklace really belongs to her, and Anthony's former partner who claims to just be interested for old-time's sake. So, we have three women who may or may not be telling Jeff the truth about what they know and what they're looking for. At least one definitely isn't. There are men who don't mind roughing him up a bit to get what they want and who don't think a thing about searching a man's apartment without his consent. And there's at least one of these characters who won't stop at murder to get what s/he believes to be their just dues.

This is a caper story of sorts--there's no mystery about where the necklace is, the reader knows that in the very first chapter. The real question is: Will Jeff find it before the murderer does? And just who is the murderer anyway? The climax comes at a lonely hunting lodge in the forests of New Jersey with Jeff up against a killer who will make Jeff the next victim if s/he can catch him in the woods.

I was very happy to be so pleasantly surprised by this one. I'd never heard of Carlton Keith and when I found out that this is a pen name for Keith Robertson, a writer of children's stories, I still didn't know who he was. But he put together a nifty little caper and a very likeable protagonist in Jeff Green. Jeff plays by his own rules--law-abiding citizen for the most part, but not above stretching a point here or there to ensure that justice as he sees it is done. Not a puzzle plot, but recommended as a fun, light read. ★★★★

This serves as the second part of the first clue in my second Movie Title Password with "-Studded." The complete clue is "Star-Studded."

Falling Star: Review

And now for something completely different. Falling Star (1964) is a different kind of Patricia Moyes book than I've read to date. Till now each detective novel has been told in the third person, but Falling Star adopts Anthony "Pudge" Croombe-Peters as its first-person narrator. Pudge is a rather annoying fellow--both to the other characters in the story and to the reader. And quite a bit of time is spent trying to figure out if he's just an annoying, self-absorbed, snobbish member of the upperclass with too much time on his hands or if he's the unreliable narrator that he appears to be. This may be part of Moyes's plan to keep the reader too busy to spot the clues she obligingly provides.

There is also the fact that Moyes makes a fairly successful venture into the "impossible crime" genre for the second death. No, we don't have a locked room, but we do have an apparent suicide-turned murder (this isn't really a spoiler--it doesn't take long to realize there's something fishy about that death) where it appears that none of the likely suspects could possibly have committed the crime. Inspector Henry Tibbett spots a few clues here and there that tell him how the deed was accomplished. I missed it completely. Despite being shown exactly what he found.

It all starts on the set of a movie filming in 1960s London. Pudge Croombe-Peters represents the money angle of the production. He is a bored, wealthy middle-aged man who doesn't want to settle down to manage his father's estate. Getting himself talked into backing a brand-new film-company put together by his military buddy Keith Pardoe, his writer wife Biddy, and friend (and Producer-to-be) Sam Potman. They get the company off the ground and start filming a version of Biddy's script Street Scene. There are the usual cast conflicts with a prima donna leading lady who is determined to have her way about everything and to have her way with every available man and an aging (though still handsome) leading man who wants everything his way. 

The critical moment comes when they are prepared to film a crucial moment in the relationship between the two leading roles. It should be a very easy scene for Bob Meakin to play. All he needs to do is jam his eyeglasses on his nose, rush down the subway stairs, then look around wildly for his girl. But with the crew in position and the camera rolling, Meakin trips on the stairs, and falls directly beneath the wheels of the incoming train. The inquest declares it to be no more than an appalling accident and an insurance company is convinced enough to pay up on the policy which ensured the film company against just such accidents. But when a former member of the crew dies after falling out of her kitchen window, her mother shows up to dispute the ruling of suicide. This and subsequent events convince Inspector Henry Tibbett that murder was added to the script.

If it weren't for the annoying Pudge, this would be a full four-star book. The plot is quite good with plenty of twists and well-planted clues. Moyes does a very good job with her first impossible crime (the first I've read, anyway) and manages to come up with a fairly ingenious method for the killer to manage an alibi. I was quite taken in by the red herrings thrown across my path by the rather dim narrator--which would seem to be his best quality as far as the story goes. Henry Tibbett doesn't shine quite so well in this one, but I think that's because we're seeing him through Pudge's self-absorbed lens. Solid story earning ★★★ and a half.

This counts as the "Entertainment World" square on the Silver Vintage Bingo card. It also is the first half of a two-part clue for my second Movie Title Password. The clue is "Star."

The Silver Leopard: Clue #4 for Super Book Password

I had intended to reread Helen Reilly's The Silver Leopard for an entry in my Super Book Password Challenge. But the book is packed away and I don't feel much like sorting through boxes. So...since I need the book as a clue, I'll give you all the write up from when I read it originally... 

Reilly's career reached from 1930-1962. She was one of the first authors to feature police procedure in her work and she based her novels on research she had done on the New York homicide squad. Inspector Christopher McKee is her central detective and she shows him at work with a full complement of supporting officers--from fingerprint men to detectives ordered to shadow suspects. The Silver Leopard leans a little more towards the suspenseful Had I But Known school of her later works, but McKee still has a major role.

In this mystery Inspector McKee faces a knotty problem involving the members and friends of one of New York's oldest and most prosperous families. They are all privileged, suave, and used to getting their own way. At the center is Catherine Lister whose uncle passed away several years ago, but who still has ties to her Aunt and two cousins. Aunt Angela announces that she plans to remarry--her intended is an old family friend, the famous portrait painter Michael Nye. Catherine is then summoned to Nye's studio where she walks into a situation destined to make her the prime suspect in Nye's murder. The door is on the latch and there is a trail of clues leading straight to her and the silver leopard statue that Catherine's uncle had sent to her just before his death. When McKee becomes involved, his investigation will lead from downtown NYC to an old, run-down country inn and a lonely house in another state. The District Attorney begins to pressure him to arrest Catherine, and McKee has to walk the tightrope between keeping the girl's freedom and protecting her from the danger of her own death.

There is a lot of suspense in this one...and a definite atmosphere intended to imply that if Catherine had just paid attention to a few details then she might have known that someone would be desperate enough to at least frame her for murder if not murder her as well. But this is all nicely balanced with the clear, well written police procedure scenes with McKee. McKee follows the book, but also allows his compassion and humanity to see through to the real culprit.

Bones in the Barrow: Review

Josephine Bell's Bones in the Barrow (1953) relies on what a witness sees from his train window to set the wheels of justice in motion. Terry Byrnes is making his slow way to work aboard a train to London. Progress is slow because a crippling fog has made visibility near zero. For just a moment the fog clears as the train sits and waits and Byrnes stares out the window while he contemplates how angry his boss will be over his extreme lateness. He has an unimpeded view of a row of houses along the track. The scene that unfolds before him is like a murderous silent film.

....framed in his hole in the fog, all the dirty windows of the four or five houses were empty. At the next, he saw in one of them the distorted face and frantic figure of a woman. She was in a state of extreme terror; that was clear from her fixed staring eyes and desperate snatching fingers. She was trying to throw up the window....This in absolute silence, as far as Terry was concerned, the window being shut, and the fog all round, still and deep....For a few seconds the woman fought the window. Then Terry saw a dark shape behind her in the unlighted room. She turned her head, her mouth opening in a scream as she did so. A hand struck, and she toppled forward....

By the time he understands what he's seeing, the fog closes in and the train starts moving. There's no time to make any of his fellow passengers see what he's seen. Already very late and reluctant to look foolish before the authorities, Byrnes doesn't report the incident until much later that evening. Chief Inspector Johnson is the only one who takes him seriously, but even he has difficulty finding evidence of any foul play. A number of other suspicious incidents will have to be reported before the event can be properly investigated and solved--but Johnson always comes back to that first report of violence witnessed from a train window. 

Inspector Johnson can only do so much, however, And, after waiting what seems like a very long time to hear what has come of his report, Byrnes winds up confiding his experience to Dr. David Wintringham--Bell's leading gentleman sleuth--a medical man with a penchant for solving crimes. Wintringham adds his efforts to those of the Yard to discover whether the bones belong to the missing Felicity Hilton--whose absence has bee reported by her rather fretful friend--and if her husband was the dark shape in the unlighted room. 

This is, I believe, one of my favorite Bell books yet. Suspenseful puzzle plot that keeps the reader guessing till the end. It comes up just a bit shy in the fair play arena--there are clues if perhaps a bit tenuous, but I did have that "Oh, I should have noticed that!" moment for what was there. Enjoyable ★★★★ outing.

This counts for the "Medical Mystery" square on the Golden Vintage Bingo card. And it also serves as a third clue in the Super Book Password Challenge. The clue there is "Bone."

The Great Dinosaur Robbery: Review

The Great Dinosaur Robbery by David Forrest (1970) reads like it was written with a movie deal in mind. Which is convenient because Disney made a movie from the book (One of Our Dinosaurs Is Missing) in 1975. I've never seen this particular Disney film with Helen Hayes and Peter Ustinov, but the novel's plot reminds a great deal of another Disney film, The North Street Irregulars. As in Irregulars, we have a group of ladies (middle-aged church parishioners in Irregulars and various-aged British-born nannies in Robbery) taking on a group of down-right baddies. 


In the records of crime there have been many great robberies--The Great Train Robbery, for instance--but never has there been a robbery like the The Great Dinosaur Robbery. Five very British nannies who are taking care of their charges in New York City find themselves plotting the biggest heist of them all...the lifting of a 200,000,000-old brontosaurus skeleton from the American Museum. It all begins when one of Nanny Hettie MacPhish's charges falls dead at her feet in the middle of the museum. His last words:

W-W-World security...avoid t-t-total destruction...m-m-museum...the m-m-message..microdot...room th-thirteen...largest beast...don't t-t-trust anyone...Get it to...to...G-G-God save the Q-Q-Queen.

After leaving the nursery, Lord Quincey de Bapeau Charmaine-Bott had become a very important person indeed...a member of the British Foreign Office and the most reliable, trustworthy, discreet, and fearless wearer of the Silver Greyhound, the insignia of the Queen's Couriers. 

The 25th Earl carried word of a top-secret plot by the Red Chinese under Mao Tse-tung to conquer England (and the rest of the world) using the Great Leap Downward plan. He had intended to pass the information (via microdot) on to his contact under guise as a British tourist. But his fellow Courier had not arrived and Mao Tse-tung's minions had pursued him through the museum. In a moment's respite from the gang, the British lord had stashed the secret in one of the museum's displays before collapsing at his former Nanny's feet. It's up to Nanny Hettie and her band of loyal caregivers to find the microdot before England's enemies. But who would have thought it would require stealing an entire dinosaur?

This is a very silly--but fun--take on the caper crime. I mean, after all, can you really call it a crime when a bunch of British nannies are stealing a whole dinosaur in the name of Queen and Country? Not terribly realistic and definitely not a puzzle plot, but I did enjoy myself. I'm pretty sure the Disney movie has toned it down though--there are a few adult scenes (one of the nannies has a lover!) and informational bits that I just can't see making it into a 1975 Disney film. Park your realism expectations at the front cover and settle in for a fun ride with Nanny Hettie and company.... ★★★

"You can drive a lorry, Nanny Emily?" 
"I drove a caterpillar tractor during the war..." 
"We heard about that," said Hettie. "At the Land Army Club they said it was the longest furrow ever ploughed....You nearly cut off Devon and Cornwall"

 This counts for the "Made into a Movie" square on the Silver Vintage Bingo card as well as making up Clue #2 in the Super Book Password Challenge. The key word is "Dinosaur."

 

The Eye in the Museum: Review

In The Eye in the Museum by J. J. Connington (pen name of Alfred Walter Stewart), the terms of her father's will ties Joyce Hazelmere to her odious, whiskey-swilling, gambling Aunt Evelyn until she turns 25. If she doesn't stay with the old battle-axe or leave with her blessing, then all the money reverts to Evelyn. It's not bad enough that Evelyn treats her horribly--spewing abuse every time she has a whiskey or two too many--but the older woman is also terribly jealous of her lovely young niece and is determined to stand in the way of young love when Evelyn meets the handsome Leslie Seaforth and wants to marry him. After a particularly acrimonious exchange with her aunt, Joyce tells Leslie that all their problems would be solved if only an accident would happen to Evelyn. After all, her aunt has a bit of heart trouble and it's just possible that a bit of excitement might bring on a particularly deadly attack.

You're a lawyer, Leslie. What would happen...suppose I lost my temper and struck back, and she...well, if her heart failed under the strain? They couldn't do anything to me, could they? It would just be an accident, wouldn't it?

And,then, as if her words had some sort of magic power, it seems like that very thing happens. That evening Joyce and Leslie go for a night-time canoe ride and when Joyce returns home she finds her aunt dead in the drawing-room. She calls out to Leslie (who's down by the canoe) who comes to help. There is no sign of violence or disturbance so it would seem that Joyce's wish for freedom has come true. All that remains is to call in Evelyn's doctor, get him to sign the death certificate, and all will be lovely in the garden....

Except Dr. Platt won't sign. He doesn't like the "atmosphere" between the two young people and he insists that although Evelyn's heart wasn't strong there wasn't any reason for her to die suddenly. By the time the postmortem results are in and the inquest is done there are hints of attempted poisoning, a definite death by pressure on the vagus nerve and carotid artery (a lovely method that required medical know-how or special training), and a verdict of "murder by person or persons unknown."

Superintendent Ross is called in to sort out the suspects and hunt for clues. He has to follow a trail strewn with forgery, gambling debts, digitalis, mysterious comings and goings in the dead woman's garden, stories of grudges past and jealousies present, and a view through an all-seeing eye. The harassed niece and her fiance aren't the only suspects. There are several to choose from--from the dead woman's estranged husband who wanted a divorce to marry his lady-love (Evelyn naturally couldn't possibly allow that) to Dr. Hyndford who wasn't Evelyn's doctor but may have had a different sort of bed-side manner to Watchet, Aunt Evelyn's estate agent who may have been cooking the books. Ross will get his villain in the end--after an adventurous chase down the river--and, as in all good vintage mysteries, all the clues will be displayed and the good detective's reasoning will be revealed in a final wrap-up scene.

Connington provides a very nice English countryside murder that is fairly-clued and complete with a red herring or two. Engaging characters--particularly Ross and a lawyer's clerk who turns out to be something of an expert in graphology--and the adventurous ending all make for an interesting reading experience. Quite enjoyable-- ★★★ and a half.

With Superintendent Ross investigating, this counts for the "Professional Detective" Square on the Golden Vintage Bingo card. This is also my first entry in the Super Book Password "Movie Title" category...the clue is "Museum."

Super Book Pasword May/June: Movie Title

It's time for the third round of Super Book Book Password. 

Here are our current point totals:

Ryan@Wordsmithonia: 180 points

Debbie@Exurbanis: 130 points

Phinnea@ravenscroftcloud: 40 points

Bev (hostess, playing for fun): 240 points

I've got my Movie Title all lined up. Anybody going to join me?  I've decided that rather than post weekly links that this round I will post one link for May and another for June. Eight clues are not required, but participants are asked to provide as many clues as possible with their reading schedules. Remember that points can be claimed for each clue until the next clue from that particular participant goes up. So--if I post my first clue this week, but don't post my second clue until the last week of May, then participants will have three weeks to ponder my Movie Title and try to claim the full points. If I post the second clue next week, then first clue points will only be available until next week.  And, from now one, if a participant posts at least four clues and manages to stump the panel, I will award a bonus of 40 points.

When you post your clues, please use the following format: 

Bev's Clue #1 ("book" title)***

and link to your blog or other review site (Goodreads, etc). If you do not have a blog and would like to post clues, then please use the format above and submit your clues in the comments. Don't forget to email me (phryne1959 AT gmail DOT com) your chosen password.  Let's have some more fun--and see if anyone can catch Ryan in the points category!

Complete rule may be found through the Headquarters (sidebar) or HERE.

***Just as a point of clarification: If only part of your title is the clue, please indicate which word or words are relevant--put that portion in quotes for the link up (see above). My clues will also be in bold at my review site.  

We have a winner for Bev's Password! Noah has correctly identified the romantic comedy "Bringing Up Baby" starring Cary Grant & Katharine Hepburn! We'll see if I can think of another Movie (that will fit with books I've got waiting in the wings....).

AND...we now have a winner for Bev's Second Movie Password. John from Pretty Sinister Books has correctly guessed the star-studded extravaganza "Around the World in 80 Days." I like both the David Niven film and the Pierce Brosnan TV mini-series. I've not seen any others. Do you have a favorite?

Please use the Google Form below for your Password guesses. The form time-stamps each guess, so points will be awarded to the first person to log the correct Password.