The Cipher Garden

 The Cipher Garden (2005) by Martin Edwards

Warren Howe was a ladies man as well as being a difficult man to get along with. One afternoon he was surprised by a person in a hood while working in a garden in Old Sawrey--a village in England's Lake District. But at the end of the day, the police are unable to pin the murder on anyone. There are plenty of suspects from jilted lovers to the wife he was cheating on to the men in the lives of the women he seduced. Even his own son hated him. The day of the murder was a miserable, rainy afternoon and the killer left no forensic evidence behind. So, the case was abandoned.

Then years later, an anonymous tip comes in to the Cold Case Review Team and DCI Hannah Scarlett gets interested. The anonymous tipster points the finger of guilt at Warren's wife Tina even though she had an alibi. 

Tina Howe was jealous of her husband Warren, so she murdered him.

That isn't the last of the anonymous letters. Various members of the Howe family and their friends are all favored with poison pen missives. When Scarlett starts investigating, she realizes that her sergeant, Nick Lowther, seems disturbed by her determination to open up this particular cold case. He was part of the investigation the first time around, did he discover something at the time and not share it with the team? 

Meanwhile, Daniel Kind, celebrated historian who considers the work of the historian to be akin to that of the detective, is looking into a mystery of his own. He has been working on the garden at his newly-acquired cottage--a garden that seems at first to be a random mess of plants. But he soon learns that the garden has a history and is referred to by local folk as the "Cipher Garden." What is the secret of the random planting? And what happened to the original owners of the cottage? His mystery leads him to the cold case investigation when he hires Peter Flint to help him renovate the garden. Flint was Warren Howe's business partner at the time of the murder--and is now involved with Howe's widow. Was he involved with her while Howe was still alive? And is there a motive for murder in that? By the time Scarlett and Kind follow their respective trails they will find a shocking conclusion...one that changes a number of the suspects' lives forever.

As I mentioned in my review of the first book in the series (The Coffin Trail), I'm not a huge fan of protagonists with baggage. We all know that Hannah and Daniel's respective relationships are not the most solid. We know where things are heading eventually. And, while I know that real life is messy, I don't really need my escapist mystery literature to measure up to real life. How much cleaner if we could skip the angst and doubts and the mess of getting out of relationships that aren't working and just have Hannah and Daniel meet up (single) in the debut novel and work their way towards a relationship of their own. Then we could all just focus on the main point of a mystery novel--the mystery, the clues, the suspects, and looking for a solution. This would be my main complaint about more modern mysteries, so many "mystery" authors bury their plot so far beneath the drama and angst in their detective's life that it's difficult to care about the actual mystery. 

Sorry, Martin, I didn't mean to get on my soapbox.

Fortunately, Martin Edwards, doesn't bury his plot. And he writes a darn good mystery. So I can more easily forgive the baggage that Hannah and Daniel are dragging about. It also helps that Martin completely pulled the wool over my eyes this time. In the first novel, I spotted the culprit thought I didn't get the motive right. This time I was totally at sea. And sometimes that's a very good place to be. I don't mind being fooled when it's done by an expert and Martin is certainly that. ★★★ and 3/4 (getting closer to a full four-star mystery!)

First line (Prologue): "I thought you were dead."

First line (1st Chapter): Welcome to Paradise.

Last line: This time she left it longer before easing her hand away from his.

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Deaths = 7 ( two stabbed; two fell from height; two poisoned; one auto accident)

The World's Best 100 Detective Stories: Volume Ten

 The World's Best 100 Detective Stories: Volume Ten (1910) by Eugene Thwing (ed)

A very mixed bag of stories. I've read the Malcolm Sage stories before and enjoyed them. The Barney Cook mysteries are pleasant "boys own adventures," and the Old Man in the Corner is quite entertaining, but the post-World War I soldier stories by Detzer really aren't all that. Very little mystery or detection going on--and, as mentioned with the final story, I do see the moral of his stories. I just don't think he develops them very well. Over all, a mid-range entry in the "world's best" series. ★★★

"The Stolen Admiralty Memorandum" by Herbert Jenkins: Malcolm Sage is summoned to a country mansion where the Prime Minister, the First Lord of the Admiralty, and the Secretary of War are all in a panic.  A very sensitive memorandum has gone missing and a great deal of damage could be done if it finds its way into the wrong hands.  There is a houseful of weekend guests and servants.  Who is the guilty party?

"The Holding Up of Lady Glanedale" by Jenkins: A jewelry-loving cat burglar seems to be on the loose.  Five weeks ago, Mrs. Comminge was the victim of a burglar who crept into her bedroom and threatened to shoot her if she didn't hand over her jewel case and keep quiet until he could make his escape.  Now, it appears that he has struck again at the home of Lady Glanedale.  The Twentieth Century Insurance Corporation Limited calls in Sage to verify the particulars--and he reveals the surprising identity of the Glanedale cat burglar.

"The Missing Heavyweight" by Jenkins: Charley Burns, the British champion is set to fight Bob Jefferson (whose name changes to "Joe" towards the end of the story) for the heavyweight championship of the world.  But then he disappears two days before the match.  It's up to Sage to find the clues that will produce the fighter in time for the bout.

"The Blackmailers" by Harvey O'Higgins: Barney Cook is a sixteen year old telegram delivery boy who wants to be a detective. When he delivers an ad from a detective agency looking for an "intelligent, trustworthy [boy] for confidential office work" he uses his initiative to wangle an interview with the chief  of the operation. He's immediately put to the test in a little matter of coded telegrams and blackmail.

"Barney Has a Hunch" by O'Higgins: Barney Cook has established himself with the detective agency and has been assigned the job of trying to find a certain man. While disguised as a newspaper boy, he notices another man's abrupt reaction to the headline about a missing society girl. Barney's hunch leads him on a chase that will make or break his standing with the Chief.

"The Mystery of the Pearl Necklace" by Baroness Orczy: The ladies of London donate money to buy a fabulous pearl necklace for a woman who is a heroine in their eyes. They choose a trusted man and his wife to act as courier. When the man disappears as well as the necklace, the rumors fly. Eventually, the man and the necklace are found and the necklace reaches its rightful destination. But really happened? The Old Man in the Corner has an unusual theory.

"The Music of Robert the Devil" by Karl W. Detzer: A French village is periodically terrorized by the ghost of a blacksheep nobleman who looted their town and stole their women in the days of William the Norman. In the days after the first World War, it seems he come back again. But an American soldier (our narrator) plays detective an discovers what's really going on. (one stabbed)

"Through Bolted Doors" by Detzer: Our American soldier plays detective again--this time investigating who shot both a fellow soldier and an old woman found killed behind bolted doors. (two shot)

"Neglect of Duty" by Detzer: Once again our narrator is called upon to solve a mystery. A large sum of money held in trust by the officer with a certain company has disappeared. The soldier/detective must discover who took the money & why.

"Number 52 Rue Nationale" by Detzer: American soldiers are stealing food and goods from a village and surrounding countryside. Our narrator looks into the reasons why these normally law-abiding men are taking things at gunpoint.

"The Guilty Party: by Detzer: A hodge-podge of various military cases. A bit of a mess really. I appreciate the point behind the mini-stories within the story--to ask who's really to blame in certain situations. But I think it could have been better illustrated. (one shot)

First line (1st story): "Wel!" cried Tims, one Saturday night, as he pushed open the kitchen door of the little flat he occupied over the garage.

Last line (last story): Which proves again that even in the best of wars the guard-house did not always claim its own, and the Guilty Party went on blithely about his or her affairs.

The Strange Case of Eliza Doolittle

 The Strange Case of the Eliza Doolittle (2021) by Timothy Miller

Synopsis (from the back of the book): Sherlock Holmes has retired to the Sussex countryside...that is, until a most formidable puzzle is dropped upon his doorstep by a certain Colonel Pickering.

One Miss Eliza Doolittle, once nothing more than a cockney guttersnipe, has been transformed into a proper lady of London--perhaps even a duchess?--as if overnight. When Colonel Pickering recovered from a bout of malaria, he was astounded by the woman before him. Is it possible this transformation is due to nothing more than elocution lessons and some splendid new hats? Or has Professor Henry Higgins surreptitiously traded one girl for another? And for God's sake, why?

As the case unfolds, Holmes and Watson find themselves in ever stranger territory. Who are the four identical "Freddies" pursuing Miss Doolittle? What part do the respected Dr. Jekyll and his malevolent associate, Mr. Hyde, long thought dead, have to play in this caper? And who the devil is the devilish Baron von Stettin?

So--why mess about with one author's characters when you can mess about with three? So, we have Holmes and Watson taking up a case that not only brings in characters from My Fair Lady but also shadows of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Oh, goody! How much damage can we do in 248 pages to other people's characters since we don't really want to develop main characters of our own? Well...quite a bit, actually.

First of all--Holmes and Watson. They aren't really. Holmes doesn't really sound like Holmes even if he does spout standard Holmes phrases (The game's afoot! Do you have your service revolver? Good old, Watson! etc.). And Watson has been turned into a sort of grown version of a Baker Street Irregular with Holmes ordering him to follow people and whatnot. If Holmes were truly Holmes, I can't imagine how the incoherent babblings of Pickering would have interested him so greatly that he would abandon his bees in Sussex and go back to London to investigate the mysterious transformation of Eliza Doolittle. Especially considering the list of cases he's turned down since retirement--according to Watson. Pickering's story makes very little sense as he tells it and not one phrase stands out to me as something that would pique Holmes' interest.

Then we have Henry Higgins and Eliza Doolittle. George Bernard Shaw through the lens of the 1964 film has been done a great disservice. Eliza bears little resemblance to the original in either form. The only time she's "delightful" (as she is often described) is when she is under the influence of Dr. Guest, which isn't necessarily a good thing. And, finally, there is the way we shoe-horn the Jekyll/Hyde story into the whole thing. I can't say more about that without spoiling the story--and, judging by the ratings on Goodreads--there's a possibility that some of you will enjoy this WAY more than me (lots of people did and apparently think the depictions herein are just dandy). So, I won't spoil it for you. As for me, not a huge fan.

Oh--and lest I forget--suddenly, at the end of the story, our logical Mr. Holmes seems ready to follow in his creator's footsteps (Doyle) and wants Watson to join him in investigating the supernatural and what lies "behind the veil." Seriously? 🙄 Not my favorite Holmes pastiche by a long shot. ★ and 1/2

First line: I have perhaps left the impression among my readers (such stalwarts as remain) that when Sherlock Holmes retired to his villa in Sussex to pursue his avocation as a beekeeper, his extraordinary career as the world's first consulting detective came to a lamentable end.

Last line: There is only one mystery left to explore, and as always, Holmes is one step ahead of me.
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Deaths = 4 (three hanged; one beaten)

The Silver Peril

 The Silver Peril (1931) by Maryse Rutledge

Britton (apt name, that) of the British Secret Service takes on evil mad scientist bent on destroying the civilized world.

My reviewer's work is done. Short and to the point. What's that? You want more? Are you sure? Well, okay...here's what we have from the dustjacket: No one knew where Torad, the mad pilot, would strike next, but it was up to Britton of Scotland Yard [though he's explicitly identified as a "secret agent"] to stop him.

The Silver Peril, a glistening gray helicopter, rose and descended vertically like a hummingbird with its pilot fantastically garbed in silvery coat and helmet. It showered destruction on the streets of Bucharest, killing and maiming hundreds.

the As de Couer, a dingy cafe on the the Rue des Vertus in the blackest part of the Montmartre, headquarters for le Rouge's Apache gang--knife men--supplied Britton with his first clue. A moment later he found himself allied with those from whom he had most to fear, battling for his life in a fierce struggle against ruthless Apaches.

A story of mystery and intrigue; of love and adventure; of the activities of Scotland Yard, and Torad, the wizard of science who, wreaking vengeance for personal sufferings, discovers himself vulnerable to the charms of an American Girl.

So...Britton is asked by his chief to discover where Monsieur Michel (a person of interest) is getting his money. Coincidentally while dining with his girl (or, rather the young woman he has hopes of being his girl), he spots Michel with another person of interest, de Raskoff (an infamous scientist). The Service has yet to prove anything against either one of them. And it's Britton's job to try and rectify that. His assignment will test himself and the girl he cares for to the limit.

According to the same dustjacket this is "Maryse Rutledge at her best!" Hmmm. If this is her best, I'm not sure I want to see what else she did. It's supposed to be a "story of gripping adventure and mystery in the air," but, I'm afraid, I wasn't gripped at all. It was a quite standard, evil-madman-wants-to-destroy-civilization-because-reasons story. Britton is a fairly likeable chap, but I have to say that I don't care much for Jane, he hoped-to-be girlfriend. I mean, here they are at dinner and she realizes that the two men across the way are of interest to Britton (professionally) and she practically shouts in the restaurant how exciting it all is and, wow it's not everyday I'm with a secret agent! 

***************SPOILER!! I'm not recommending this book, but if you do happen across it and decide to give it a look then you might not want to read further....

So....at the end of the book she supposedly is all in for Britton. And, apparently, cared for him all along. As Nero Wolfe would say, "Pfui." She certainly doesn't act like it. She treats him appallingly throughout the early chapters. She nearly reveals who he is to the bad guys. And then falls under "Torad's" spell. Even at the end after she's supposedly let him know how she really feels with a look (while under Torad's watchful eye), she still comments to Britton (as noted in the last line below), "But--he was rather grand, you know--" If I'm Britton (and thank goodness, I'm not), I'm not trusting Jane an inch. What happens when the next "rather grand," mesmerizing bad guy saunters along?

I like Britton (except for his fascination with Jane) and he might make a good investigator in a case that focused on him and left out the love interest. So, all stars for him. ★★

First line: You know everyone in London.

Last line: "But--he was rather grand, you know--" 
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Deaths (named--hundreds unnamed): 3 (one fell from height; two blown up)

No Vacation from Murder

  No Vacation from Murder (1973) by Elizabeth Lemarchand

Life is busier than usual at St. Julitta's School in Kittitoe during the summer holidays. Normally, they lease the grounds for just one session, but this year the board of governors have been convinced to let the school to Horner's Holidays for one of the company's Horner Discovery Fortnights. Previous visits to the area had found the Discovery retreat at a hotel in nearby Biddle Bay, but a fire had caused enough damage to the hotel to prevent its use. The board was unsure at first, but the fee that Horner's was willing to pay was definitely a deciding factor. The naysayers were afraid that there might be unwanted publicity associated with the venture. After all, Horner's is "so commercial." But the educational aspects of the Discovery Fortnights also helped win the day. The retreat provides an opportunity for adults to engage in outdoor and recreational interests, such as amateur archaeology, botanical exploration, and British architecture.

So, late summer finds 80-90 visitors descending upon St. Julitta's. Marcia Makepeace, Domestic Bursar for the school, is fully prepared--accommodations ready, meals planned, staff on duty (extra pay packets!). Horner's guiding lights and instructors arrive first: Michael Jay, Paul and Janice King, Susan Crump, and Geoffrey Boothby. Nearby, is Eddy Horner, founder and owner of the firm. He has recently become a grandfather and his daughter Penny Townsend and new grandson are staying with him in "Uncharted Seas," his bungalow on the coast. His son-in-law works in London and comes down on weekends and a relation of his first wife's Wendy Shaw, is on hand to provide nursing support for Penny and the baby. Wendy is training to be a nursery nurse and is a quiet and serious girl.

On the first evening of the Fortnight Horner invites the Discovery staff and Marcia to his bungalow for a small reception. Everyone gets a tour of the made-to-order bungalow and the women are all invited to admire the new grandson. The Discovery Fortnight is off to a swinging start. Everything goes well until the last evening. There is a massive rainstorm. There is a huge glitch in the timing of the final bus tour which puts the entire farewell program behind. After a lavish final dinner, there is a showing of the Discovery Fortnight film. Paul King always takes video of all of the lectures and outings during the Fortnight and shows an edited final version that is a big hit. Due to the late return from the bus tour, he's not sure he'll get the final edits made in time...but after filling in with a previously-made film on birds in the area, the big show is ready. 

As things are wrapping up, Marcia is called to the phone. Eddy Horner is a bit upset. He and his daughter had gone to the train station to meet his son-in-law leaving Wendy in charge of the baby at home. The train was late (what a day for lateness!) and when they got back to the bungalow, there was no sign of Wendy. Her coat and purse are gone as well and Eddy wants to know, "Was young Wendy Shaw at your place this evening?" Even though both Eddy and Marcia (who talked with the quiet young girl that evening at the bungalow) don't believe she would have abandoned the baby, the police believe she must have taken off with a man. But then...her strangled body is found at the seaside end of a blowhole near the school and Superintendent Tom Pollard and Sergeant Toye arrive from Scotland Yard to take up the investigation. The more they learn about Wendy, the more they realize that Eddy and Marcia were right--the young woman wouldn't normally have abandoned a baby in her charge. So, what could have happened to cause her to do so? And why would anyone have needed to kill her? Motives are pretty thin on the ground, but Pollard doesn't believe this was a random killing or a theft gone wrong. Proving that and finding the evidence to convict is going to be pretty tricky, though.

The Pollard and Toye books are good, solid police procedurals with fully realized characters. Even those characters, like Wendy's mother, who appear briefly come to life during their short appearance. Pollard and Toye have a nice dynamic and work well together and Pollard is an intuitive investigator who adapts his questioning style to fit the person he's interviewing. He's able to handle the neurotic Mrs. Shaw and the intense, in-charge Eddy Horner with equal ease. 

I did spot the culprit, though I didn't pick up on the various instances of emphasis that should have told me the motive. That's all I lacked to complete the case. I was very suspicious of the apparent alibi and was not surprised when Pollard saw how to get round it. Those who are swifter on the uptake than me might figure out what the culprit was really after and why Wendy had to die. ★★★★

*I do have one random question though. What on earth does the cover have to do with anything? I mean, considering that a high percentage of British mysteries take place in England and having tea is kind of a big thing in England, this could, quite honestly, be a scene from any British mystery ever. It certainly doesn't represent this book in any meaningful way.

First lines: "Those in favour?" From the Chair Philip Cary ran a practised eye round the library table.

Last line: "Really," Marcia said, "aren't our policemen wonderful?"
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Deaths = 2 (one car accident; one strangled)

Ambush for Anatol

 Ambush for Anatol (1952) by John Sherwood

In an opening that might remind GAD readers of their introduction to Tommy and Tuppence Beresford, we are introduced to Philip and Diana Abinger. Like the Beresfords, they are a young couple who are in need of funds and Philip, at least, isn't adverse to a bit of risk if it will help the cash flow. A chance meeting with a former RAF man just may be the ticket. Count Jan Piatovsky and his friend Miss Lena Watson invite Philip and Diana for a drink. Piatovsky tells Philip that he may be able to set him up with a man named Anatol who can use men like Philip and the Count. They make an appointment to meet on Hampstead Heath where Piatovsky will make the introduction. But unknown to the Abingers...

The man known only as Anatol uses blackmail to pressure his associates into handling shady currency deals for him in the years following World War II. Even if he has to manufacture the blackmail evidence. Everyone from Polish refugees to members of the British aristocracy are fair game. He knows everything about them all and they know nothing about him. But when one of his band of fraudsters stumbles across some unsavory information about Anatol, the consequences are dire and Scotland Yard finds themselves with a pair of corpses in the middle of Hampstead Heath during the Bank Holiday. Inspector Lunt is sure it's going to be a long and fruitless search...

Meanwhile, Mr. Charles Blessington, a civil servant with the Ministry of the Treasury, is waiting for a man to show up for an appointment. An appointment that was made with Blessington's secretary after he had left for the long holiday and with a man about whom he knows nothing. When Count Jan Piatovsky is half an hour late, Blessington realizes that the name does sound familiar and goes back to the morning's paper. Count Piatovsky was one of the pair killed on Hampstead Heath. Soon our mild mannered civil servant is mixed up in a dangerous hunt for a very dangerous man as well as helping Diana search for her husband who has unaccountably disappeared. The trail leads from London to Paris (with murder and mayhem on the famed Blue Train) to the French Riviera. Blessington may look mild as milquetoast but he's on hand to help Scotland Yard and the Surete get their man. But he doesn't consider himself skilled (other than in financial matters. As he says in response to a compliment from Lunt on a previous investigation (after the inspector realizes who he is):

"Neat? My dear Inspector, it was far from neat. I have always reproached myself bitterly for strangling that poor fellow in the railway yard. If I had not bungled matters it would not have been necessary."

There is very little mystery here--we know who the bad guy is from the beginning and we know who has killed whom. The fun is in the adventure and watching Blessington work in his quiet way to unravel the whole of Anatol's plot. I also enjoyed the Philip and Diana subpot once it really got going. The first half is a bit iffy, but there are definite shades of the Beresfords in the second half--particularly as played by Francesca Annis and James Warwick. ★★★★

First line: Philip and Diana Abinger stood on a street corner in the West End of London.

In my next existence, if I have one, I shall take jolly good care to be a scarlet adventuress. (Julia Barclay; p. 69)

[the Surete's response to Mr. Blessington's despair over his inexpert shadowing attempt]
My dear fellow, you set yourself an impossible task. For really thorough work we like to use twelve men to one suspect. We sometimes manage with eight when we're feeling economical, but one--no. (Commissaire Special, Monsieur Lebon; p. 93)

The chauffeur joined in on a basis of easy conversational equality. He spoke the rich, garlic-flavoured southern French in which mute e's are not mut at all, and wonderful things are done with the letter r. Mr. Blessington soon gave up trying to understand. Instead he fell to admiring the easy and dramatic eloquence with which even the least educated Frenchman can tell a story. (pp. 171-2)

Last line: It was a relief to get back to humdrum work, in the orderly world he really understood.
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Deaths = 4 (three shot; one stabbed)

The Sleep Is Deep

 The Sleep Is Deep (1952) by Hugh Lawrence Nelson

Lieutenant March Richards is the head of the Colorado City Detective Bureau and assigned to investigate a murder at the home of one of the city's oldest and most respected families. Ferdinand Spencer is found stabbed to death in his den, in the middle of what is meant to look like a robbery attempt. But Richards suspects that the murderer will be found within the Holt household and not among the burglars who might be roaming the city. And he sure hopes that's true. Because Richards holds a grudge against the Holts, even as it becomes obvious that he's in love with Joan Carpenter, the granddaughter of Mary Holt, the family matriarch. Mrs. Holt also suspects a deeper story and hires Jim Dunn, a private eye, to investigate. His instructions? To investigate not only the murder, but Mark Richards--and find out why he seems bent on revenge.

The two men agree to pool information whenever possible while following their own lines. And Richards does finally realize that there's another perfectly good candidate for suspect-in-chief--but then that man is murdered--with a gasoline-filled water pistol (that was stolen from Dunn!) and a cigarette lighter and Richards starts focusing on the Holt women again. It takes a lot of digging by Dunn and a "come-to-Jesus" moment for Richards (over his incredible bias) before the two men can finally pin the murders on the right culprit.

An interesting twist on revenge--where the detective in charge wants so badly for a certain person to be found guilty that he can't see any evidence that doesn't fit his theory. He is still honorable enough that he won't manufacture evidence to frame the person, but he really has a hard time considering anyone outside the Holt household as a viable suspect. Nelson gives us a really good character study of how focusing on those who have hurt us can twist how we see the world. Fortunately for Richards, Jim Dunn is a good detective and a good man and he likes the lieutenant enough to risk shaking him up and showing him how destructive his hate for the Holts is. Nelson actually provide terrific character studies overall--from Richards and Jim Dunn to Mary Holt (who has a sense of honor that Richards doesn't even begin to suspect) to Police Chief Drover who believes in Richards and doesn't want to see his career come to grief over a need for revenge.

The thing that keeps this mystery from a full four stars is the plot. The motive seems pretty flimsy to me and there are not really any clues that might point the reader in the right direction. I actually suspected the right person, but that was purely my reaction to them when they came on stage. I have no evidence to point to prior to Dunn and Richards explaining everything at the end. ★★★ and 1/2.

First line: A loose tire chain clanked rhythmically as Detective Lieutenant Mark Richards drove through the six inch snow which had not dampened the New Year's Eve celebrations in Colorado City.

Superintendent Thompson's word was not law. It was something far better than that. His word was good. (p.78)

Last line: Known to be somewhat eccentric in his later years, Ben Norwood's entire estate was left to an old friend, Mrs. Emily Holt Carpenter Spencer Watson, who has been honeymooning in Taos.
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Deaths = 5 (one stabbed; three natural; one strangled)

A Thief or Two

 A Thief or Two (1977) by Sara Woods (Lana Hutton Bowen-Judd)

If Antony Maitland, barrister and sometimes detective, doesn't believe that you're innocent then what's an accused man supposed to do? Maitland is notorious for believing his clients when nobody else does and finding ways to prove them innocent. Malcolm Harte is a jeweler's assistant who has been accused of murdering one of the two brother's who owned the business where Harte worked. And of having stolen a fortune in jewels that were being shown to special client's at George DeLisle's home that fateful night. Motive? Well, Malcolm was scheduled to get married and was, as even his fiancée admits, "desperate" for money. His are the only fingerprints on the safe that stands wide open and empty of jewels. Nevermind the fact that Malcolm was the one who was asked to put the jewels in the already open safe after the showing and that no one can prove that he knew the combination to open it again. 

Interestingly enough, it isn't Harte's fiancée who comes to Maitland and begs him to look for more evidence to clear the accused, but another female guest from the private party. When she points out a discrepancy on one of the guest's evidence, Maitland gets interested. And one thing leads to another. Before he knows it, he's doing the thing his uncle Sir Nicholas Harding most dreads--meddling. When one of the witnesses winds up dead (while Harte is in prison), it becomes obvious that Maitland's meddling has made somebody nervous. But who? It may be enough to get his client off, but Maitland would rather be able to hand the police the right suspect...

It's been a little while since I've read an Antony Maitland mystery, but from what I recall this is pretty standard fare. The two things that stand out here are the fact that Maitland seems so very reluctant to believe that Harte might be innocent and the little intermissions we get in the court proceedings where Woods provides the thoughts of the jurors. From the foreman who listens to the opening statement from the Prosecution and decides he's heard all he needs to hear, "The prisoner, who looked a sickly sort of chap, was obviously guilty, or what was he doing here?" to the juror who also believes him guilty, though tries to convince herself that she's impartial, "But of course, you had to hear all the evidence, she hadn't made her mind up yet..." We also get to see how little most of them pay attention to most of the evidence with thoughts wandering to their farms and their young men and matters of business on which their time could be better spent. You have to wonder how fair a "fair trial" really is. 

The plot is perfectly fine--nothing extraordinary in the way of motive, but it's always entertaining to watch Maitland once he becomes convinced that there is something to work on. It just takes him longer than usual this time around. I think I prefer it when he's working on the mystery from the beginning, but that's just personal preference and I can understand that Woods might have wanted to break the mold a bit. ★★★

First line: There was a stir among the spectators in the courtroom as Counsel for the Prosecution, having finished his opening address, gathered his gown about him and seated himself with a marked air of satisfaction.

Last line: Sir Nicholas's portrayal of a martyr, misunderstood by his nearest and dearest, lasted no longer than it took her to get dinner on the table.
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Deaths =2 (one hit on head; one strangled)

Nothing Is the Number When You Die

 Nothing Is the Number When You Die (1965) by Joan Fleming

Nuri bey, accidental detective (who helped find a murderer and a drug ring in his last book), is asked by his friend Torgut to leave Turkey and and go to London to look for his missing son, Jason. Jason is in his third year at Oxford and should be studying for his final examinations. He also should have come home during the last holiday--and didn't. Torgut is sure that something dreadful has happened to the young man. Nuri has never been to England and isn't sure that he's the right man for the job and insists he must think it over. After taking a very long and circuitous route home, he arrives to the news that Torgut has been brutally murdered...just moments after he and another friend, Landrake had left he house. 

Now, it is not Torgut begging his assistance, but Torgut's lovely half-Russian, half-English widow Tamara--a woman that Nuri has long adored from afar. Like the knights of old, it's possible that if Nuri is successful  that he will win the lady's love and it isn't long before she has convinced him to go. He hopes that the young man has just wanted to sow a few wild oats before finishing school and heading out into the "real world." But as soon as Nuri sets foot in England, he finds himself followed by a man he noticed on the plane. Amazingly, a brief scuffle with his shadow gives Nuri the upper hand and his investigations show ties between the shadow, Jason, and another trail of drugs....a trail that leads right back to Turkey and puts his lady in danger.

This is one of those titles that got put on my "To Be Found" list so long ago, that I can't remember how I came across it or what made me so interested in the first place. I suspect it was the mention of Oxford and the missing student (giving me an academic mystery vibe), but as I started reading it I really wasn't feeling the love for it as a mystery. Nuri bey is an interesting character (he loves books and I feel his pain when we're told that his house full of books burned down--at the end of the last mystery?), but he's most definitely not a gifted amateur detective. As mentioned above, he's an accidental detective. He wanders into situations or gets finagled into them by beautiful ladies. He seems to be awfully lucky in keeping out of the clutches of the bad guys. He somehow figures out the whole drug plot and even having read the book I can't tell you how he did it. I can tell you what the plot was--but I have no clue how Nuri was able to lay it all out based on what "we" found while looking for Jason. He also gets the answer to the murder of his friend Torgut--but not because he solves it, the culprit confesses to him. With no provocation whatsoever. And, honestly, Nuri didn't even need to know...he wasn't trying to solve the murder. He only wanted to find Jason (which he did) and return to Tamara to live happily every after (which it looks like he will...). ★★ and 1/2--all for Nuri's character and interactions with all the people in the book. But none for the book as a mystery.

First line: "...and I shall always remember you saying, my dear Nuri, after that historic occasion, only two years ago, when your house was burnt down and all of your books destroyed, that now you would study, not books, but the people amongst whom you lived."

Last line: "Can it be, can it be," Nuri bey asked with great shining eyes, "that it is, when 'all is said and done,' a woman's world?"
*********************

Deaths = 4 (one natural; one shot; one explosion; one strangled)

Lord Darcy: Murder & Magic; Too Many Magicians; Lord Darcy Investigates

 Lord Darcy (original 1983; revised 2002) by Randall Garrett

This omnibus volume contains two short story collections and one novel (all published previously as separate works) in addition to two stories not included in any of the collections--listed last, though the Lord Darcy collection organizes all of the detective works chronologically according to Darcy's timeline. The final story actually occurs the earliest in Darcy's career, but as our editor points out, it is a story of Darcy's war years and not truly a fantasy/detective story. I plan on reading these as if they were the separate volumes they once were (with the final stories as a bonus and counting for the Lord Darcy overall collection). 

Our editor also tells us about the detectives making appearances (albeit under different names) throughout. He especially challenges us to find three puns referring to The Man from U.N.C.L.E. in Too Many Magicians. I spotted two...but the third one has eluded me.

Murder & Magic (1979)  

"The Eyes Have It": Lord Darcy is called upon to investigate the murder of Count D'Evreaux, found shot in his bedroom. A gun is found in a hidden staircase (used by the count's lady friends for privacy) and it's distinctive nature seems to point towards a certain suspect. But there is more to the mystery than meets the eye... (one shot)

"A Case of Identity": Lord Darcy begins his investigation with a quest for the missing Marquis of  Cherbourg. When another man who looks enough like the Marquis to be a twin is found dead, Darcy suspects an even deeper plot. One that involves a plot by the Polish kingdom to disrupt the Anglo-French economy. Shades of Sherlock Holmes as well as espionage thriller in this one. (one natural; one hit on head; three stabbed; one shot)

"The Muddle of the Woad": When the Duke of Kent dies after an illness, his master woodworker prepares to bring his coffin for the burial. What a surprise to find that the coffin already has an occupant--the Duke's chief investigator who had disappeared while on a mission to Scotland. Lord Darcy is called upon to get to the bottom of the mystery. This has a definite air of tribute to Lord Peter Wimsey--The Nine Tailors in particular. Instead of bell-ringing, we have a focus on woodworking. But a great many of the character names used by Sayers in the bell-ringing scenes may be found here--Masters Gotobed, Lavender, Wilderspin and Venable all tip their hats to the Sayers work. And Master Gotobed is every bit as particular about his woodworking as Harry Lavender ever was about bell-ringing. There is even evidence given by the young woman of the piece--just as Hilary Thorpe provides a vital clue to Lord Peter. (one natural; one stabbed; one drowned; one shot)

"A Stretch of the Imagination": When a publisher is found dead, it appears to be suicide. But since a member of the aristocracy is involved Lord Darcy is asked to investigate. Interesting locked room mystery where Lord Darcy must figure out how a man could be hanged (other than suicide) in a room where no one entered and the window was shellacked so it could not have been opened far enough to admit anyone. (one hanged)

Overall, Randall Garrett has given us a fine look at what the world might have been like in such an alternate history. And he mixes the best of fantasy and detective fiction to produce a very interesting collection of fantasy-driven mystery short stories. The mysteries are fairly straight-forward and most are fairly clued. The final (and shortest), "A Stretch of the Imagination," is the most Holmes-like with Lord Darcy appearing very much as the detective genius with admiring audience and few clues given to the reader, but it is the exception. A very entertaining book--coming in at ★★★★ (up from a previous reading of the stand-alone edition)

First line (1st stor): Sir Pierre Morlaix, Chevalier of the Angevin Empire, Knight of the Golden Leopard, and secretary-in-private to my lord, the Count D'Evreux, pushed back the lace at his cuff for a glance at his wrist watch--three minutes of seven.

Now, come, my lord. You have that touch of the Talent that all the really great detectives of history have had--the ability to leap from an unwarranted assumption to a foregone conclusion without covering the distance between the two. You then know where to look for the clues that will justify your conclusion. You knew it was murder two hours ago and you knew who did it. (Master Sean in "A Stretch of the Imagination"; p. 437 in Lord Darcy edition)

Last lines (last story): "Come, Master Sean. We have an appointment for dinner, and the hour grows late."

**************************

 Too Many Magicians (1966): Lord Darcy is asked to investigate a murder in Cherbourg, but before he can get very far his assistant Master Magician Sean O'Lochlainn is arrested in London for murder of a very important master magician at a magician's conference. Sir James Zwinge, a Master Magician as well as spymaster for London's branch of intelligence for the Empire, has been killed behind a locked door. A door locked not just in the conventional sense, but with a level of magic that few could tamper with. But with a hotel full of magicians is a locked room ever really just a locked room? And since Master Sean was the last one near the room...and was known to have had a "loud discussion" with Sir James...he's the prime suspect.

The Marquis de London (and, incidentally, Lord Darcy's cousin) knows full well that Master Sean didn't do it, but he also knows the arrest will bring Darcy to London and he wants Darcy to investigate without having been asked directly. Because that would involve a fee and the Marquis is not only lazy (though brilliant), he hates spending money on anything other than himself...and his hobby, rare plants. As soon as we meet the Marquis, we recognize the detective Garrett has modeled this story after...Nero Wolfe. The Marquis is a hefty fellow, brilliant, lazy, and uses ten-dollar words. He says, "pfui" and "flummery." He has a side-kick who does his legwork and who appreciates the female form as much as Archie Goodwin. (The Marquis doesn't.) He has a red leather chair for important guests. Lord Bontriomphe (a lovely French nom de plume for the Archie character) doesn't quite have the smart-aleck commentary style down, but it's definitely there. And when Lord Darcy first enters Wol--er, the Marquis's rooms, he seems to have taken on a Cramer-liker attitude towards his cousin, though only briefly.

Garrett gives us not only a very fine Nero Wolfe pastiche, while sneaking in some references to The Man from U.N.C.L.E., he also gives us a very clevery locked room mystery. It's evident throughout Garrett's magical detective works that he is well-steeped in both detective literature and popular media and he employs references to both in ways that will delight mystery connoisseurs of all types. ★★★★★

Deaths= 6 (two stabbed; one fell from horse; two natural; one strangled)

First line: Commander Lord Ashley, Special Agent for His Majesty's Imperial Naval Intelligence Corps, stood in the doorway of a cheap, rented room in a lower middle-class section of town near the Imperial Naval Docks in Cherbourg.

"That's what I said: Smollett is holding out on us. You want to hold him while I poke him in the eye, or the other way around?" (Lord Bontriomphe; p. 293 [Lord Darcy edition])

Last line: In the golden tracery work surrounding the shield were the lions of England and the lilies of France.

**************************

Lord Darcy Investigates (1981) 

The last collection of Lord Darcy short stories printed during Garrett's lifetime. Another enjoyable quartet of mysteries. ★★★ and 1/2

"A Matter of Gravity": Another locked room mystery. This time we have an aristocrat who has apparently flung himself out of closed tower window. The only clue is a bright flash of light that seemed to bounce around the room (and observed by guardsmen below) before he fell. Garrett's story, like many of his others, pays homage to various Golden Age detectives/authors. John Dickson Carr was the master of locked room mysteries and both he and Michael Innes have stories which feature a death involving a tower. But the murder itself most resembles a Sayers story featuring Lord Peter Wimsey.  But to speak plainly about it would reveal all to anyone who has read the story. So ROT13 coding for the rest: Gur zrgubq bs zheqre va Ohfzna'f Ubarlzbba vf zbfg qrsvavgyrl ng cynl urer. V pna nyzbfg urne Jvzfrl fcrnxvat gb Ohagre nobhg gur zrpunavfz sbe gur pnpghf nf Ybeq Qnepl rkcynvaf ubj gur Pbhag jnf cebcryyrq bhg gur jvaqbj. (two fell from height; one shot)

"The Ipswich Phial": More cloak and dagger with Polish agents. The body of one of His Majesty's secret agents is found shot to death on the unbroken sand of a Normandy beach. A visiting gentlewoman out for a walk discovers him and the only footprints are her own. The agent had been on the trail of a Polish spy who had stolen a new secret weapon--the Ipswich Phial. Darcy not only solves the apparently impossible murder, but retrieves the missing weapon. No direct references to other authors/detectives that I caught, but the plot has the feel and humor of a Steed & Peel Avengers episode. (one shot)

"The Sixteen Keys": Lord Sefton is found dead in a locked room in his locked summer cottage. He had gone to retrieve an important packet containing a top-secret naval treaty for the Duke of Normandy. Now he's dead and the packet is nowhere to be found. Lord Darcy & Master Sean are on the case! This one returns to the very Holmesian feel of some of the others--Lord Darcy keeps things very much in the dark till the very end. There is also a connection to Oscar Wilde--though the maintenance of youth isn't as much due to the dark arts. (one rapid old age)

"The Napoli Express": Lord Darcy and Master Sean are travelling incognito to deliver the naval treaty rescued in the previous story. While aboard the Napoli Express, the murder of a naval officer occurs and the two simply must get the crime solved quickly so they don't miss their appointment with foreign dignitaries. But how can they do so without breaking their cover--especially Lord Darcy's? Garrett has given us a Murder on the Orient Express pastiche with both very familiar scenes and dialogue: "They are lying," Praefect Cesare said flatly, three hours later. Each and severally, every single one of the bastards are lying." after interviewing the passengers one-by-one in the dining car. And they all know each other, though they are trying (unsuccessfully) to pretend otherwise. But Garrett also gives circumstances and scenes a twist allowing for a different solution. (one hit on head; one poisoned)

First line (1st story): The death of My lord Jillbert, Count de la Vexin was nothing if not spectacular.

This, Lord Darcy thought, is what comes of assuming that others, even one's closest associates, have the same interests as oneself. ("A Matter of Gravity"; p. 454 [Lord Darcy edition]

Last line (last story): The train moved on toward Napoli.

***************Bonus Stories***********

"The Bitter End": An unknown man is poisoned in a bar in Paris at the same time that an entire family of some importance is killed by gas. Master Sean is on the spot--a patron in the bar as he waits for a connecting train to take him back to Rouen--and gives assistance to the local investigating team--although the sergeant in charge of the case views him with grave suspicion and insists he can't leave the city. Lord Darcy arrives from Rouen to clear up the case; mostly because he's in need of evidence that Master Sean was bringing back with him. Here Master Sean gives us a bit of Dr. McCoy from Star Trek: "I'm a thaumaturgist, not a miracle worker." [despite being a magician which seems to me to be very similar....]. I don't this time see an obvious connection to any particular classic mystery, however. (one poisoned; four gassed) Not quite as good as previous stories, but still very enjoyable. ★★★ and 1/2

First line: Master Sean O'Lochlainn was not overly fond of the city of Paris.

Last line: Lord Darcy said nothing, he had the Zellerman-Blair case to worry about, and he had no wish to meddle in the affairs of wizards.

"The Spell of War": The last story about Lord Darcy written by Garrett, but it takes the reader back to the first meeting between Lord Darcy and the magician Sean O'Lochlainn. Not strictly a mystery in line with the other stories, but Lieutenant Darcy (as he was then) does have to figure out how the Polish Army is stealing such a march on his company of soldiers. He solves the puzzle neatly and manages to pull of a nifty bit of counter-strategy as well The meeting of the two men makes me think of what it might have been when Lord Peter and Bunter met in World War I. (three shot--named; many more not named)  Interesting backstory episode and it shows the early stages of Darcy's abilities as an investigator. ★★★

First line: The lieutenant lay on his belly in the middle of a broad clearing in the Bavarian Forest, on the eastern side of the Danau, in a hell of a warfare, on the eastern side of Dagendorf.

Last line: The Hell with it, he thought. And knocked the dottle from his pipe.

Bodies from the Library 5

 Bodies from the Library 5: Forgotten Stories of Mystery & Suspense from the Golden Age of Detection (2022; all stories pre-1989) by Tony Medawar (ed)

Tony Medawar has done it again. He's gone searching the highways and byways of Golden Age Detection fiction and authors to bring us another collection of little-known or never-before-seen mystery stories. In previous collections there have, actually, been more that I had read before (thanks, in part to some of the obscure little anthologies I've been able to get my hands on). But this time, there are only two that I vaguely feel like I've read before and I can't nail down where I would have gotten hold of them. This is a strong selection and almost all by authors I had already read. ★★★★

"The Predestined" by Q. Patrick (Richard Webb): Jasper, an orphan with a doting grandma, is sure he's meant for great things. But periodically an odd red weal appears around his neck, inhibits his breathing, and manages to to put him out of sorts in very important situations. We learn that he is predestined...but perhaps not quite in the way he anticipates. (one drowned; one hanged)

"Villa for Sale" by Ellis Peters (Edith Pargeter): A wealthy widow offers a fabulous villa to a young couple for a mere pittance. There must be a catch somewhere and there is...but who is going to be caught? (one natural)

"The Ginger King" by A. E. W. Mason: An insurance representative calls on M. Hanaud, who is visiting in England, because he's not quite satisfied over an insurance claim. A fire that cleaned out the stock of a furrier has been investigated every which way and no one can see anything but an accident. But John Middleton will feel much better about paying the claim if Hanaud would take a look at the case as well. It could save his company 25,000 pounds.

"Sugar-Plum Killer" by Michael Gilbert": Probationary Detective Walkinshaw is determined to make the grade as a detective on the force. He gets his chance when D.I. Chapman is killed in a hit & run and the perpetrator winds up being someone Chapman had sent to prison. (one hit & run)

"Vacancy with Corpse" by Anthony Boucher (William Anthony Parker White): Lt. Ben Latimer is asked by his fiancee, Liz (Felicity) Cain if he could arrange for protection for her grandfather, Judge Cain. Someone has been sending the elderly judge threatening notes. Soon there's murder done in the Cain house...but has the wrong man died? (one poisoned; one shot; one natural) [The whole time I was reading this one, I felt like I'd read it before. Like déjà vu--not enough that I knew the solution. But I have no idea where I would have read it.]

"Where Do We Go from Here?" by Dorothy L. Sayers: George is in a hurry to get his wife Laura out of the house. Why? Because he's expecting a blackmailer. Lucky for him, Laura sneaks in the back way and hears all about it. Or is it really that lucky? (two dead)

"Benefit of the Doubt" Anthony Berkeley: A young doctor is called out in the middle of the night to attend a man who has supposedly been in severe gastric distress. He can find little wrong with the man, so it is quite a shock when the man is dead by the next morning. (one poisoned)

"Scandal of the Louvre" by S. S. Van Dine (Willard Huntington Wright): A gang of thieves (who specialize in getting the "ungettable" for collectors arrive at the Louvre in the guise of holidaymakers. They manage to steal the Mona Lisa, collect a hefty reward for the deed, and.... (well, that's the twist and I'd hate to spoil it)

"The Pressure of Circumstance" by J. J. Connington (Alfred Walter Stewart): The Lessingham family holds a promise as a sacred trust. So when Jack Lessingham leaves for an expedition to Brazil, he asks his father to see that "Claire [his wife] comes to no harm" while he's away, his father tells him, "Of course. That's a promise." And not even the man who's dangling after the lonely little wife will keep him from keeping his promise. (one poisoned; one from the "bends")

"The Riddle of the Cabin Cruiser" by John Dickson Carr: George Randolph, wealthy stockbroker, is found stabbed to death in his drifting cabin cruiser--found by his wife and Mr. Huntley Hurst. There have been rumors about Mrs. Randolph's "friendship" with Hurst. Was Randolph's death suicide as has been posited by Hurst and Mrs. Randolph? There's one telling sentence in this radio play that will give you the answer--if you catch it. [I didn't.] (one stabbed)

"Skeleton in the Cupboard" by Ianthe Jerrold: Corney Dew was sure he'd found the perfect spot to dispose of his brother-in-law's body when he buried him in the ancient mound on his property. But then the local Antiquities Club gets interested in digging the place up...and the club's sponsor doesn't seem to want to take no for an answer. (one natural; one hit on head) [Another déjà vu story...I'm sure I've read this one before, but not sure where.]

"The Year & the Day" by Edmund Crispin (Robert Bruce Montgomery): Two old school fellows meet at their club and one (a doctor) reminds our narrator (a barrister) of another school fellow who has recently died. The barrister begins to wonder why "X" (as he calls him) has brought the subject up. [And, quite frankly, so did I. Was there a point to implying that something nasty had happened when apparently no one suspected it? (one natural; one hit on head)

"Murder in Montparnasse" by John Bude (Ernest Carpenter Elmore): The disappearance of an artist coincides with the death of a paralyzed, drunken old man. Inspector Moreau must find the connection, (one drowned; one poisoned) [*I agree with Kate at Cross Examining Crime that this is much longer than it needed to be. A short story would have been sufficient. As a novella, it seems to have a lot of padding.]

"The Thistle Down" by H. C. Bailey: Reggie Fortune is asked (nay, commanded) to investigate the death of Sir Max Tollis's secretary. It's being put down as suicide, but Sir Max insists it isn't. (one shot)

"The Magnifying Glass" by Cyril Hare (Alfred Alexander Gordon Clark): A meeting between two men to settle up over a couple of cases of forged bank notes ends in death and tragedy. (one shot; one in fire)

"The 'What's My Line?' Murder" by Julian Symons: One of the panelists on the famed British version of the game show is poisoned in the studio. But it's soon proved that he poured his own drink and nobody went near it between the pouring and his drinking. So who poisoned him and how? (two poisoned) [Once again, I'm in agreement with Kate--I don't always get on with Symons' work. But I think I'm discovering that I prefer him in short form to his novels. This is quite good--not least because of its connection to "What's My Line?" (though I'm more familiar with the US version started in 1950).]

First line (1st story): It was Jasper's tenth birthday.

Last line (last story): "What a pity that [they were a murderer] too." (some or part has been changed to prevent a spoiler)

Behold a Fair Woman

 Behold a Fair Woman (1954) by Francis Duncan (William Underhill)

Mordecai Tremaine, whose hobby is amateur detecting under the guise of people watching, decides that he needs a little break from bodies he seems to stumble over. His friends Mark and Janet Belmore had invited him to come stay with them at their cottage on the quiet little island of Moulin d'Or. Nothing much ever happens there on the sun-warmed beaches. Well...until Mordecai shows up. 

He makes the acquaintance of other holiday-seekers--those in cottages near the Belmores as well as those staying at the island's Rohane Hotel. What seems at first to be a nice group of young people (well--younger than Mordecai, anyway, who describes himself as elderly) soon prove to be otherwise. There are tensions running underneath the surface and Mordecai's curiosity is aroused by the interactions between hotel owner Hedley Latinam, his sister Ruth, and their guests, Nicola Paston, Geoffrey Bendall, Ivan Holt, Major Ayres, and Mrs. Burres. Every sentence seems to have a double-meaning, but he's got his work cut out to discover what those meanings are. And, although cottage-dwellers Alan and Valerie Creed claim not to know the Latinams, Mordecai chances to see a furtive meeting between Alan and Hedley. The only one who seems well out of it (besides the Belmores) is Ralph Exenley. 

Ralph is another neighbor of the Belmores and Mordecai gets on well with the tomato grower. He takes great interest in Ralph's gardening methods and the amateur detective finds it soothing to have a place where he can just talk about things (while he thinks over what he's observed in his people-watching). But his interest in Ralph's tomato production leads him to the discovery of yet another body. Ralph has an interesting water tank set-up to keep his plants watered and one morning Mordecai asks if he may climb the ladder and check things out. When he does, he discovers Hedley Latinam floating in the tank. 

Ralph knows of Mordecai's reputation as an amateur sleuth and mentions him to Inspector Colinet when he arrives to investigate the case. Soon Mordecai and the Inspector are discovering motives aplenty. And added to the mix is an escaped prisoner who has vowed revenge on the man whose testimony helped put him behind bars. The prisoner has made a beeline for the island...could that have anything to do with Latinam's death? And why do people keep milling about the old, abandoned mill...and then pretending that they weren't really interested in it?  

So...I started at the end of the series. Maybe not the best idea, but at least it doesn't spoil the plot for earlier ones, Generally speaking, I like Duncan's way with characters. Mordecai Tremaine is charming. I love that he secretly loves to read romantic, sentimental stories. He's a people person; genuinely interested in the people around him and his romantic soul would love to see them all happy. But his curiosity also makes him wonder what they're really up to. I have to say, though, he's not much of a detective. He stumbles into things. He overhears conversations. He just happens to be in the right place at the right time to see certain people together. He just happens to hear an odd sound late one night. And that's another thing...lots of coincidences and "just happens." The local church lesson "just happens" to be the very one that will explain a certain phrase to Mordecai just in time for him to figure out a key piece to the puzzle. It's all rather contrived and the wrap-up falls a bit short. 

On the whole, pluses in characterization and the setting balance out the minuses in plot and detection. ★★★

First line: The ship's passage through the water had transformed a light breeze into a chilling wind.

But it wasn't his fault that he seemed to have a remarkable propensity for discovering corpses. He didn't go around looking for the bodies of people who'd been murdered; they just happened, and there wasn't anything he could do about it. (p. 144)

When you were faced with such a tangle of problems you needed solitude and a place in which to think. Maybe, in the air and the sunshine, the solution would be easier to find. (p. 230)

Sometimes, though, things you thought were loose ends turn out to be very important indeed. (pp. 285-6)

Last line: Maybe he did know after all.
****************

Deaths = 3 (one hit on head; one shot; one fell from height)

Death in Shallow Water

 Death in Shallow Water (1948) by Miles Burton (Cecil Street)

Synopsis (from the book blurb): Three deaths by drowning within the space of a few weeks in one small English parish where nothing untoward has happened for many years are bound to set tongues wagging. One drowned body could have been an accident; two drowned bodies might have been coincidence; but when it comes to a third corpse found in shallow water, even the cautious village policeman began to think it was a bit of a rum go. Soon the experts are call in, and we meet again Inspector Arnold of Scotland Yard and, inevitably, Desmond Merrion, his complement and friend, in an investigation that gets "curiouser and curiouser" as accident begins to look more and more like Murder.

Our first death is Sir William Watkyn, wealthy ex-shipowner. He was out fishing and, presumably, fell off the bank into the shallow water where he was found. He had a weak heart and it's argued that the shock of the fall made it impossible for him to get up. Next, his unpleasant wife Lady Watkyn is found drowned in her bath basin (no--not bath tub, a sink) while she was apparently washing her hair. And it's argued that the fumes from the chloroform included (for who knows what reason) in the hair lotion was enough to make her woozy enough to fall headfirst in the basin and drown. Next up is the handyman who did jobs for both Sir William and his former captain, Captain Barnham.Two more drownings follow (whoever composed the synopsis above evidently couldn't count) and even though they all could have been accidents, it certainly does look funny that so many in the area are drowning in so little water.

So far I've read three mysteries under the Miles Burton pseudonym and this is the weakest outing yet. The villain of the piece is obvious from the moment they saunter onto the page. The "investigations" by various policemen up to and including Inspector Arnold of the Yard are lacklustre at best. There certainly aren't heaps of clues stacked about for the investigators (or the readers) to pick up. And Desmond Merrion, Arnold's amateur detective sidekick, whips up the solution out of nowhere. It's lucky the culprit thinks that Merrion must have evidence to back up his assertive declarations and decides to confess, because I don't know how they'd get a conviction otherwise. And--I'm not entirely sure that the possible collaborator in the plot is really as innocent as they (Merrion and Arnold) make it seem. The wrap-up is pretty messy (it certainly wouldn't meet Poirot's standard for order and method).

I lost interest in the plot by the half-way mark and only kept plodding along so I could count this for the various challenges that I'd lined it up for. I've got two more of the Burton books on my TBR pile and I hope that they each provide a more entertaining mystery. ★★

In Search of the Classic Mystery Novel, Do You Write Under Your Own Name and the Grandest Game in the World have all reviewed this as well. Please check out their take on Burton's late entry in the annals of Arnold & Merrion. 

First line: The man was evidently no stranger to Winderport, for he found his way by the shortest route from the Central Station to Watergate Street without inquiry.

Last line: It was rumoured that he was to be married intended to settle with his wife and her child in New Zealand.
******************

Deaths = 6 (one natural; four drowned; one hanged)

Murder on the Orient Express: The Graphic Novel

 Murder on the Orient Express: The Graphic Novel story by Agatha Christie (1934)
~adaptation by Bob Al-Greene (2023)

If you would like an in-depth look at Agatha Christie's mystery novel, then please see my previous reviews: HERE and HERE.

This review is devoted to the graphic novel. I'm not generally the target audience for a graphic novel, but when I find one devoted to the mystery field I definitely cannot resist. So, when I discovered that this was out in the world, I immediately put it on my Christmas list for 2023 and one of my personal Santas delivered.

Al-Greene gives us a beautiful book. The artwork is stunning and, for the most part, I appreciated his rendering of the story. I'm not sure that he got Poirot's mustache quite right and I think that he was influenced by Kenneth Branagh's choice for the character. I also thought there was a bit of influence from the interpretation of the final scenes of Branagh's movie--though we have a reversal with Poirot seated at the table and all the suspects standing before him. And we have a slightly more diverse cast (again, as with the film) Just a couple of passing thoughts as I read. But, overall, I absolutely enjoyed Al-Greene's vision of the novel. Given the format, he couldn't give us all of the dialogue word-for-word, but he managed to capture the essence of Christie's work in fewer words without losing anything important. And, unlike screen versions, he also managed to work in all of the essential clues. The few cuts made are handled in such a way that those who have read the story before may notice them, but they certainly won't miss them. This would be an ideal way to introduce more modern readers to one of Christie's more iconic mysteries. ★★★★★

Kate at Cross Examining Crime has done a marvelous, in-depth review of the graphic novel and you couldn't do better than check it out.

First line: Well...today is Sunday.

Last lines: Then...having placed my solution before you...I have the honor of retiring from the case. Adieu.
*****************

Deaths = 4 (one shot; one fell from height; one stabbed; one in childbirth)