Sleeping Beauty has always told the story from the side of the "good guys." Princess Aurora and her true love Prince Phillip vanquishing the curse from the evil fairy. This book--based on the movie--gives us the story from the "villain's" point of view. And shows us that things aren't always black and white; that evil has deep roots and sometimes love gets twisted into hate. And, if we're lucky, just might get another twist that will bring it back to love.
The artwork in this story is gorgeous and the motivations behind Maleficent's actions are interesting. There is a good basic plot here, but it didn't feel like it was realized as fully as it could have been. The characters should have been flushed out a bit more and a bit more action and less telling would have gone a long way. ★★★
Big changes are in store for Constable Evan Evans. He has recently been accepted into the plainclothes division of the force and he's making preparations to marry Bronwen and make a home in a shepherd's cottage that needs renovation. But he's just started working on getting the building clearances when Evans is called in to help with a missing child case. A five-year-old little girl has disappeared from the seaside caravan park where her mother had brought her for health reasons. The prime suspect is the little girl's estranged father, but an extensive campaign fails to find him...and exhaustive searches in the area fail to find any trace of the girl.
Evans snatches time when he can to make progress on his cottage. One of the tasks is to dig a new water line. And when he digs he finds the skeleton of another child. It appears to be about 20-25 years old and Evans remembers another little girl who went missing on the mountain. A little girl by the name of Sarah who looked a lot like the current missing child--small, fragile, blonde, and very pretty. When he finds out Sarah's family is back in the area--celebrating the birthday of an aged grandfather, he wonders if the two incidents are connected. He's had hunches in the past that panned out and he hopes that if he can find some clues from the past that it just might help solve the current case as well.
I first started reading the Evan Evans mysteries back in the late 90s/early 2000s when they were published. I found them charming, enjoyed the Welsh characters, and the descriptions of the Welsh countryside. And then other books caught my attention (as so often happens) and I wandered off and didn't read this one (that I had picked up at the library's used bookstore) or any later installments. Returning to the series, I still enjoy the Welsh setting and find the characters interesting--though there are fewer appearances of the locals than I remember in earlier stories. The mystery is decent, though the solution to the two cases is a bit dissatisfying--I had hoped they would tie up differently and I thought the explanation of Sarah's death and place of burial to be anti-climactic. I realize that this is a more cozy police procedural, but the answer really was a bit of a let-down. ★★★ for setting, characters, and interesting set-up. Would have been higher had the ending been stronger.
First line: The small girl moved over the springy turf of the mountainside, her light feet making so little impression on the grass beneath her that she appeared to be weightless, a bright spirit only barely connected to solid earth.
Last line: "I was right all along," he said in a low voice. "She was taken by the fairies."
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Deaths = 2 (one drowned; one fell from height)
Professor Stubbs is a gatecrasher at the Dilettantes Club. He once held a Chair in Logic and Philosophy at the University of Bonn and has heard about the exclusive club whose members debate all sorts of topics, including the odd mystery or two when the Assistant Commissioner of Scotland Yard, one of the members, brings an interesting case to their attention. The members are shocked at first that anyone would come to their meeting uninvited--but the professor is well-known in academic circles and his bona fides are soon established. At once he begins contributing regularly to the discussions, waiting until the others have asked questions or advanced theories before showing them all how to unravel mysteries using the power of logic.
The set-up has been used before by Anthony Berkeley in The Poisoned Chocolates Case and by Isaac Asimov in his stories about the Black Widowers. We have a group of experts in various fields (or a group dedicated to mysteries) and there is one member who shines at solving the puzzles. Miss Marple does it in the Tuesday Club stories as well. The classic outline is well done in the eight interconnected stories given here...and the Radfords put their own special twist on it. ★★★★
The first problem: Fred Banting, a rude and obnoxious man who is disliked by all his fellow lodgers, is found shot to death in his own room. The room was locked and no one got in the window--which was under casual observation by a street organ player. The other residents in the lodging house were all still seated at dinner. Did he kill himself? If not, how was it done? And by whom?
Problem two: Partners in a jewelry business get on a train to finalize a deal over a diamond necklace. Mr. Benton, one of the partners, has the necklace in a case in his pocket. The two men share sandwiches and coffee--bought while on the train. Mr. Benton dies of poison and the diamonds are found to be fake. Did he commit suicide because he knew they were fake. Or was he murdered and the diamonds taken? If so, when and by whom?
Problem three: Three Englishmen are suspected of smuggling stolen goods out of the country and into Italy, but searches are made at Customs at both ends and nothing is ever found. Then the police get a break and are ready to pounce on a meeting of the three men and the Italian at the other end...but when they pounce, they find the four men dead (poisoned) at a table where fifteen large rubies lie in the center. Who killed them?
Problem four: "Lady Dan," a famous safe cracker is found dead on a train to Nice. He is supposed to have had nearly 20,000 pounds of jewels on him. There are no jewels and no clue to who killed him.
Problem five: The professor, who has solved the previous mysteries, brings up a case of murder--claiming that the convicted man is innocent. It is a case of the other woman having been poisoned. The poison used was readily available to the married man and it is supposed that he tired of her and she was going to be difficult. The evidence seems to point to him. But the professor asks to be given the chance to provide the defense that the man's counsel did not. Will he prove that someone else did it?
Problem six: The case of the strange sleepers. Several people who are in possession of valuables--ranging from money to priceless jewels--suddenly go to sleep for no apparent reason. When they awaken, the valuables are missing and there seems to have been no one who could have taken them
Problem seven: Miss Alicia Menston has been known to go out and about with various men. She comes home to her apartment with her latest escort, is heard to say goodbye to him, and the porter observes no one else going into the flat. The next day her cleaning woman finds her strangled. Who got in and out without being seen? And why was everything in the apartment disturbed as if in a whirlwind search--except for one cabinet?
Problem eight: Marcus Silver, notorious as a moneylender, is found stabbed to death. He was killed at 7:30 pm...that's what the doctor says. So, how could he have been seen later that night at ten and ten-thirty? And by people who apparently knew him well?
First line (1st story): The Dilettantes' Club meets on the first and last Thursday of each month (except in August, when the members are scattered for their holidays).
Last line: (encoded in ROT13 because it would give away a major plot point otherwise) Vafcrpgbe Xrajnl zbirq gb uvf fvqr. "Znephf Fghoof, nyvnf Urezna Rvfqnyr," ur fnvq, "V neerfg lbh..."
To decode, copy and paste the coded portion as directed at the link.
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Deaths = 10 (one shot; six poisoned; one heart attack induced by sleeping drug; one strangled; one stabbed)
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Alfie and his "gang" are a group of children trying to make a living on the streets of Victorian London. There's Alfie, the leader, and his brother Sammy as well as his cousins Jack, Tom, and Sarah. Oh--and there's Musty their loyal guard dog. Sarah works in a pub, serving dinners. But the boys do everything from singing songs, providing rides on what sounds to me like a surfboard on the ponds, working for anyone who could use an extra hand--from tradesmen and fishermen to dockworkers needing help unloading cargo, and having Musty perform tricks for the crowds around Trafalgar Square. They just manage to make ends meet so they can keep their small home near St. Giles. They also have a way of stumbling into mysteries and Inspector Denham at their local police station often provides them with a few coins for assistance to the police.
This time they just might earn tenpounds....if they live long enough. Alfie and Jack are in Trafalgar Square one night when the come across the body of Jemmy, a well-known beggar, lying at foot of the statue in the square. Jemmy has been killed by a blow to the head. Just as they're discussing who would want to kill a beggar, cries of fire break out and in the confusion the post office cart is stolen. Alfie catches a glimpse of the masked man driving the cart and instantly recognizes a scar marking one Flash Harry, the leader of a hardened mob of criminals who have no second thoughts about eliminating those who get in their way. A piece of paper flies out Harry's hand and flutters to Alfie's feet. It's a scrap of very posh paper with no writing but containing a picture of a clock with hands pointing to 12 and a picture of the moon. The boys have no time to wonder about the paper because they see two rough men making their way towards them. Alfie quickly rolls the scrap into a little ball and shoves it into the carved pattern at the base of the statue. And the boys take off running.
When Alfie checks in with Inspector Denham, he's told that there is a reward for information leading to the arrest of the criminals. But he wants the boys to concentrate on the death of Jemmy. Denham is convinced that the beggar must have gotten in the way of the Flash Harry's plans, so he's sure that solving that mystery will lead them to where Flash Harry has hidden himself, his gang, and the diamonds that were in the stolen mail bags. And he thinks it's safer for the boys to ask questions about Jemmy than to try and hunt down Flash Harry. Harry has a way leaving the bodies of those who ask too many questions behind him. But Alfie is determined that his gang will do what they must to earn that 15 pounds.
This is a fun, fast-paced middle grade book. It introduces readers to Victorian England and has plenty of adventure and mystery to keep young readers interested. The gang all use their various gifts to help solve the mystery. Alfie and Jack are more adventurous and get involved in scrapes--picking up clues that they bring back to Sammy to help unravel. Sammy is blind--but very intelligent and very perceptive. Occasionally, Sammy goes along with Alfie and his perceptive hearing and sensitive nature picks up on clues that others would miss. He can also repeat overheard conversations with great accuracy and even can mimic voices he hears. Sarah's job in the pub gives her access to a lot of gossip, allowing her to overhear conversations that the others wouldn't. And Tom also has connections among some of the tradesmen he does odd jobs for. It all makes for a logical co-operative endeavor that allows the gang to bring vital information to Denham--just in time to catch Flash Harry before the gang can remove the diamonds from England for good. ★★★★
First line: Alfie saw the body just before all hell broke loose in Trafalgar Square.
Last line: And wherever he went, everyone would call him "sir."
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Deaths = one hit on head; one strangled; one shot
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Addie Hill, an elderly neighbor of professor-detective Ira Cobb, calls on the erudite sleuth and his guest Steve Barnes (also a professor) to witness her new will. It seems that a house guest of her husband's, a certain Robey Pearson, has been blackmailing Ellis Hill and when he wouldn't pay up began to demand money from Addie. She also refused to pay blackmail money and Pearson turned around and threatened her life--knowing full well that Ellis would inherit the bulk of her rather hefty estate. Addie has already had difficulties with other greedy relatives and has decided that making a new will that cuts out both her husband and the rest of the money-grubbing clan will protect her from any unfortunate accidents.
She would be wrong. The will gets signed, Cobb and Barnes head back to Cobb's place--taking the will with them for safety. The plan is to mail it to Addie's lawyer. Cobb hands an envelope addressed to the lawyer to Barnes, who promptly sets out to mail it. He's later found knocked out cold and the envelope missing. Cobb is certain that Addie's life is in danger and they rush back to her house to check on her. They're too late. Someone has already hit her over the head as well...doing a more thorough job and killing her. Pearson is also lying dead in her room, but evidence shows that he didn't kill her. It only makes sense that whoever hit Barnes over the head and stole the envelope also killed Addie to prevent her from replacing the will. But everyone with a motive also has an alibi for at least one (if not both) of the attacks. It's up to Cobb to figure out who really had time to do the deeds...and also why Pearson was killed as well.
This turned out better than I thought it would. I picked this up at one of our Red Cross Book Fairs back in 2014. Never heard of Roy Winsor before, but, by golly, he had a professor acting as sleuth and you know how those academically-inclined mysteries grab me. And then--I kept picking it up and thinking I might read it, but the opening paragraphs just never did much. And then--this year I fixed myself up with a Reading Randomizer reading challenge that was meant to get books off the ol' TBR pile whether you wanted to or not. And the randomize prompt brought this one up for April. So now, if I wanted to complete the challenge, I HAD to read the Winsor book
I'm glad I did. Once I got past those first few pages (that still didn't excite my reading heart), it got interesting. I really like Addie and was sad to see her killed. But I knew it was coming as soon as I heard about those greedy relatives and she decided to cut them out of her will. I also enjoyed the two professors working together and the fact that Cobb likes to drop quotations here and there. Though I must point out--he doesn't do it quite so effortlessly and adroitly as Lord Peter Wimsey. The ending is a little clumsy (which is why I didn't give a full four-star rating) and anti-climatic. Even though I didn't get why Cobb immediately knew who hit Steve Barnes over the head as soon as they found the weapon, the complete solution was telegraphed a little too plainly two-three chapters from the end. So when the "big reveal" came in a gather all the suspects moment in the final chapter...well, it really wasn't all that big.
But overall I enjoyed my introduction to Ira Cobb and I'm looking forward to reading the other title I picked up at that same book fair. ★★★ and 1/2.
First line: Below the high bluff at Siasconset on the northeastern coast of Nantucket and as far out as I could see, the ocean lay motionless, iron-gray under the dark overcast of the mid-August evening.
Last line: And that's just what we did do, closing both the house and our minds to the aftermath, the sweeping up of ashes of the two murders on that Thursday night and of those who had committed the crimes.
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Deaths = 3 (one hit on head; two poisoned)
The Lodger is the first known novelization based on the murder attributed to Jack the Ripper. Last fall I read a volume which contained two shorter fictional pieces (The Hypno-Ripper edited by Donald K. Hartman), but this is the first novel-length story. Here the terrifying murderer signs himself "The Avenger" and seems to have a fixation on drunken women. His murders take place when the streets are fairly empty and come in pairs--either one murder on two nights close together or two murders in a single night. But the story doesn't focus on the murders themselves, rather it focuses on Mr. and Mrs. Bunting, former servants--butler and maid--who have fallen on hard times and have decided to take in lodgers to bolster their dwindling finances. But they've had little luck and have just about given up hope when Mr. Sleuth arrives at the door.
He's looking for somewhere very quiet and is pleased that he will be the only lodger. In fact, he pays well over the asking price so the Buntings will not take in any other lodgers. And Ellen and her husband believe their luck has turned at last. But then...they each begin to suspect that there may be more to their reclusive, rather odd tenant than first appeared. Could it be possible that they are harboring the villainous creature who preys upon women at night?
The story is full of psychological suspense. We watch the effect Mr. Sleuth's presence and the onslaught of news about the murders have on the Bunting's--particularly on Ellen. Ellen is the one who has the most contact with Sleuth--serving his meals and cleaning his rooms. It isn't until Mr. Bunting encounters Sleuth when returning home late one night that he begins to have doubts about the man. But the first time Mr. Sleuth is out late, Ellen is wakeful and hears him moving about. From that moment on her fears and suspicions grow. She tells herself that if he is the killer, then he isn't responsible. Obviously, he's a bit odd--what other man sits up reading the Bible at all hours, reciting all the cruel bits about women? How many people talk to themselves in that bizarre manner? His oddness serves as a shield--and an excuse for her to accept his money for the lodging. She believes he must be The Avenger, but she doesn't want to have to accept it.
This is an excellent example of early psychological suspense--it mounts steadily until the final scenes and provides a satisfying ending. ★★★ and 1/2.
First line: Robert Bunting and Ellen his wife sat before their dully burning, carefully-banked-up fire.
Last line: Mr. Bunting and his Ellen are now in the service of an old lady, by whom they are feared as well as respected, and whom they make very comfortable.
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Deaths = two stabbed (there were several more--but the names were not given for those)
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New York private eye Steve Conacher thinks he off on a simple little skip trace case--with the bonus of a free cruise to Puerto Rico and a bevy of beautiful babes to fraternize with along the way. Nancy Scott's father has hired him to track down his daughter and convince her to come back home to New York. Conacher's first contact is a pleasant one--at least temporarily--a lovely young woman who knows Nancy and just may know where she's at...as well as having a definite yen for anything in trousers. But Conacher gets one night with her and only manages to learn part of what she knows before Nancy is strangled and her body dumped overboard. Steve's the only who believes she's been murdered and the captain "sadly" notes her down as a suicide. So, while looking for Nancy, Steve is also on the track of a murderer. And the trail leads him to one San Juan's night spots as well as to a picture gallery. He winds up mixed up with artists and gallery owners, drug smugglers and killers. But his nosy little questions and tendency to follow the cast of characters about soon leads him into trouble. And maybe this time he's in too deep to get out.
I hate to spoil things....but there isn't...a sunburned corpse, that is. Corpses we got--plenty of 'em. One's a little bit tanned. But no sunburns to be had. Hope you weren't counting on it.
I do wish that sellers on Ebay would stop grouping this kind of thing in with a lot of Golden Age Detective novels. For several Christmases and birthdays now my husband has picked up an Ebay offering with several books in it (books on my To Be Found list) and the seller--desperate to get rid of them, I guess- will shove in a Steve Conacher private eye or something totally off-the-wall like The Ugly American. And I keep hoping the Conacher books will get better--because I can't resist reading books that come into my house. After three, I can tell you--they don't. In fact, this fourth entry drops back to the level of the first book in the series. It doesn't have a very interesting plot and unlike I'll Kill You Next! (book 5) the motive isn't particularly exciting either. We've got drugs and diamonds...and high class gangsters and their gunsels as well as low-class swindlers trying to muscle in on the racket. Conacher gets knocked out a few times--which seems to be one of the things he's good at; it happens in every book. I'd think the man would be permanently brain damaged. It's all too dreary for words. ★
First line: The girl with the straw-colored hair was beautiful.
Last line: I ran to the telephone and called them.
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Deaths = 4 (one strangled; two hit on head; one shot)
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Jimmy Carter brings us his Depression-era boyhood on a Georgia farm before the civil rights movement was imagined. He writes vividly, powerfully, and honestly about his family and the area he grew up in--providing a portrait of the rhythms of farming in a sharecropping economy and giving us an intimate look at his father, who was a brilliant farmer. Earl Carter was a strict segregationist, but treated black workers with respect and fairness--allowing his son to play with the children of his black farm workers and to learn farming and life-long skills from the parents. His mother was strong-willed, well-read, and a registered nurse who flouted segregation in many small ways. He also tells us of the five other people who shaped his young life--three of whom were black
Told as if he were reminiscing--one topic leads to another and then circles back again. It is a rich, evocative story of a time when family was first and closest. A time when everyone worked hard, played hard, and spent evenings sitting on the front porch. A time when everyone knew their neighbors--and their vehicles, mules, and dogs--and knew when someone or something was around who didn't belong. Carter gives us an excellent recollection of what life during the Depression was like for farmers in the South and tells how the times shaped him as well as the nation. ★★★★
First line: If you leave Savannah on the coast and travel on the only U.S. highway that goes almost straight westward across the state of Georgia, you will cross the Ogeechee, Oconee, and Ocmulgee rivers, all of which flow to the south and east and empty into the Atlantic Ocean.
Last line: After all, the land belonged to the Indians before it was ours.
