The Hanover Square Affair

 The Hanover Square Affair (2003) by Ashley Gardner (Jennifer Ashley)

Captain Gabriel Lacey, late of His Majesty's Cavalry, has returned from the Napoleonic Wars with a ruined leg and bouts of melancholy. He's on half-pay because of a matter of honor--a matter that put him at odds with his commanding officer, who was also his closest friend. He feels himself to in a city of strangers with no friends and no purpose. But when an older man is shot and injured by a group of cavalrymen quelling a riot outside fashionable house in Hanover Square, Lacey can't resist getting involved. He discovers that the man was creating the disturbance outside of Mr. Horne's home because he believes the Parliament member to have abducted and ruined his only daughter Jane. Lacey takes the man home, dresses his wound, and vows to find the Thornton's daughter.

His search takes him from the Hanover Square to the backroom of brothels and from the gentle countryside to a home for fallen women. He learns of other young women who have gone missing, but can find no clue to Jane's whereabouts. Then Horne is murdered in his own home and the last person to have seen him is one Mr. Denis--a man who it is said can obtain anything for anyone...at a price. And a man who has friends in high places. Lacey finds himself deep in danger, but a new friendship with a man about town comes just in the nick of time.

When I first read this almost 20 years ago, I said that this was a good start to a new historical mystery series. And I thought it good enough to go ahead and buy the second in the series as well. But then I never read that second book--or any that followed. A challenge that I'm thinking about signing up for in 2023 had a prompt to "read the next book in a series you haven't read in a while"--the perfect time to read the second book in the Captain Lacey series, I thought. And then I thought I better go back and reread this first book just to remind myself what had already happened. Now, I'm not so sure that this was a good idea.

Reading this book twenty years later, I'm trying to figure out what struck me so positively about The Hanover Square Affair. Honestly, Captain Lacey is not a very sympathetic lead character. I am sorry about what happened to him the war, but he seems to have been saddled with a multitude of issues to get over. He's on the outs with his best friend--a best friend/commanding officer that managed to ruin his career and nearly get him killed. He's got a damaged leg. He's living on half wages. His wife ran off on him, taking their daughter with him. He seems (to me) to be in love with his ex-best friend's wife (though he never says so). He's got a nearly ungovernable temper. He has bouts of extreme melancholia. I'm glad that Mr. Grenville decides to befriend him just so the man can have a little bit of good in his life. 

He's not exactly the world's best detective either. His temper leads him to suspect people without evidence. Sure, some of them are really nasty pieces of work and deserve to go to jail for something--but that doesn't mean they did what Lacey thinks they did. And even if they did, he needs to find some evidence and not just go around accusing people. Granted, he does do a fair job of thinking things through once he gets his hands on some clues. But he goes off half-cocked more often than not. The mystery itself is a fairly good one and I do like the friendship that is beginning between Lacey and Grenville. I also like the time period, though I think C.S. Harris does a better job of evoking it in her Sebastian St. Cyr series.

I am going to go ahead and give Lacey another shot in A Regimental Murder and I hope that he develops as a detective...and that he can work through some of these issues that he has. I also hope that more is made of the friendship with Grenville. They could make a very good team. ★★ and 1/2 stars for this reading.

First line: Sharp as a whip-crack, a shot echoed through the mists in Hanover Square.

Last line: "Even if he will not," she whispered, "I will."

Deaths = 6 (one stabbed; one influenza; three more illness; one beaten)

Holmes for the Holidays

 Holmes for the Holidays (1996) by Martin H. Greenberg, Jon L. Lellenberg & Carol-Lynn Waugh (eds)

 A fairly good collection of holiday-themed stories from the pen of authors both well-known to me (Perry, Paul, Estleman, Breen, DeAndrea, Crider, Douglas, Hill, & Hoch) as well as some who are new. Most do a pretty good job getting the voices of and relationship between Homes and Watson right--though I was disappointed with the Douglas story. The tone here (at least from my point of view) is more bickering and peevish than the comfortable back and forth between two old friends. My favorites of the collection are "A Scandal in Winter," "The Yuletide Affair," and "The Adventure of the Christmas Tree." It was definitely nice to see Watson get a chance to show that doctors have some good deductive skills as well. ★★★ and 1/2 for the collection.

"The Watch Night Bell" by Anne Perry: Holmes prevents the Christmas Eve murder of a wealthy, decorated Colonel. The obvious suspect is his elder daughter whose husband is deep in debt. But is the obvious always the answer? (one shot)

"The Sleuth of Christmas Past" by Barbara Paul: Miss Amy Stoddard comes to Holmes for help in determining whether her fiance is as trustworthy as he seems. (one accident)

"A Scandal in Winter" by Gillian Linscott: A tale of another encounter with "the woman"--late in Holmes' career. This time he works to clear her of a murder charge--not in a court of law, but in the court of public opinion. (one fell from height)

"The Adventure in Border Country" by Gwen Moffat: Holmes investigates the disappearance of Miles Aubrey--who left behind champagne glasses and a bit of game pie in a hunting cabin. (one fell from height)

"The Adventure of the Three Ghosts" by Loren D. Estleman: Sherlock Holmes fears the worst when three ghosts reminiscent of those in A Christmas Carol begin haunting Lord Chislehurst.

"The Adventure of the Canine Ventriloquist" by Jon L. Breen: Mr. Maplethorpe is a very long-winded author of stories, reviews, and poems who has a very long tale to tell to Sherlock Holmes. He is being driven mad by a dog that apparently can speak. Is the man really mad or the victim of a dastardly plot?

"The Adventure of the Man Who Never Laughed" by J. N. Williamson: In order to find Miss Eleanor Chesterfield's missing brother, Holmes goes to church and joins a band of carolers. (one died from fever)

"The Yuletide Affair" by John Stoessel: Watson shows that he can deduce with the best of them when he is called to tend to Inspector Lestrade--who has apparently been stabbed by a well-known crook. The man pleads innocent and Watson spots the clues that will either prove the truth of the crook's statement or send him back to prison.

"The Adventure of the Christmas Tree" by William L. DeAndrea: Why would anyone steal the Christmas tree intended for a duke and then make it reappear again right on schedule for the Christmas Eve festivities? The duke's forester is troubled by it...and so is Holmes when he hears the story. (two blown up)

"The Adventure of the Christmas Ghosts" by Bill Crider: Franklin Scrooge, nephew and heir to Ebenezer Scrooge, finds himself suffering nighttime visitations just as his uncle before him. But instead of immediately changing his ways, he seeks Holmes' help in discovering the source of the visions.

"The Thief of Twelfth Night" by Carole Nelson Douglas: Holmes tells a tale of a lost emerald, a Twelfth Night cake, and the return of the precious stone...which took place right in front of a much younger Dr. Watson.

"The Italian Sherlock Holmes" by Reginald Hill: While convalescing in Italy, Holmes is on hand to see the results of case detected by "the Italian Sherlock Holmes"--a man who claims to follow Holmes's methods. But how skillfully does he employ them? (one throat cut; one beheaded)

"The Christmas Client" by Edward D. Hoch: Holmes comes to the aid of Charles Dodgson (aka Lewis Carroll) who is being blackmailed by a certain professor mathematics. But is blackmail all that Moriarty is after?

"The Adventure of the Angel's Trumpet" by Carolyn Wheat, ASH: A man who derided Holmes's detective skills in a previous court case comes to Baker Street for assistance in clearing his client of a murder charge. (one poisoned)

First line (1st story): My friend and colleague Sherlock Holmes had not a high regard for the logical nature of women.

Last line (last story): I, on the other hand, sampled a glass with last night's chop and found it most satisfactory, if a trifle young and forward, a quality that renders it not unlike the daughters of the great republic from which it came.

12 Challenge

12 Challenge: 12 Months to Read 12 Books Recommended by 12 Friends

Suggested by moonpiereadss on Instagram

A simple challenge--ask twelve friends for book suggestions and then read those twelve books by the end of 2023. I've solicited suggestions from my friends on Facebooks-if I get more than twelve then I may do more (will add as they come in).

My First Dozen:

January: Hopeland/Skippy Dies (part one) by Paul Murray (rec by Katie Levin) [1/19/23]

               A Gentleman's Murder by Christopher Huang (rec by Ryan Groff) [1/22/23]              

February: The Lioness by Chris Bohjalian (rec by Aubrey Nye Hamilton) [2/12/23]

                The Country Girls by Edna O'Brien (rec by Ivan Kreilkamp) [2/27/23]

March: Speakers of the Dead by J. Aaron Sanders (rec by Adam Burgess) [4/1/23]

            Nala's World by Dean Nicholson (rec by Dianne Winand) [5/6/23]    

April: Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel (rec by Miranda Wojciechowski) [4/20/23]

          Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie (rec by David Higgins) [4/27/23]

May: Alif the Unseen by Willow Wilson (rec by Andy Oler)

        Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan (rec by Katy Balma) [6/19/23]

June: Piranesi by Susanna Clarke (rec by Anushka Sen) [6/10/23]

          All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr (rec by Lavonne Weller & Richard Nash [6/15/23]

 

My Second Dozen:

 

 

July: Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus (rec by Petra Meyer) [6/30/23]

        The Lost World by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (rec Katie Anderson) [8/9/23]

August: The Night Gardener by Jonathan Auxier (rec by Becky Laney) [9/2/23]

             Manhunt: The Twelve-Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer by James Swanson (rec by Yvette Banek) [9/18/23]

September: The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt (rec by Joe Morgan) [10/2/23]

                    Murder on the Purple Water by Frances Crane (rec by Brad Friedman) [10/8/23]

October: Camera Hunter by James H. McCommons (rec by Leslie Warren)

               Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey (rec by Julie Kraft)

November: The Third Policeman by Flann O'Brien (rec by Dustin Long) [11/16/23]

                   Enchantment by Orson Scott Card (rec by Stacy Maugans)

December: Evelina by Frances Burney (rec by Celia Barnes)

                   Night Film by Marisha Pessl (rec by Amy Locklin)

 

 

Reprint of the Year: Murder at the College

 In 2018, Kate at Cross Examining Crime came up with brilliant brainstorm. In the wake of various publishing houses recognizing the virtues of Golden Age (and more recent) vintage crime novels through reprint editions of both well-known and more obscure titles, Kate thought those of us who love those vintage mysteries would like the chance to feature the year's reprints and make a pitch for our favorites to be voted Reprint of the Year. We loved the idea so much that we have mande it an annual event.

So, last Saturday and this, I and my illustrious colleagues Aidan, Brad, Hayley, Janet,  Jim, John (Pretty Sinister Books), John (Countdown John), Puzzle Doctor, Karen, and Kate will feature our picks of the 2022 reprint crop and make our best bid for reprint stardom.

Originally, my second pick was supposed to be Peter Cheyney's Dangerous Curves (1937--reprinted this year by Dean Street Press). I had read a couple of Cheyney's work before and enjoyed them, so I thought this would be a good chance to get another of his books off my teetering TBR stacks. Yeah. Not so much. If we were doing Anti-ROY Awards, then this would be my nominee for that. I wasn't expecting a poor example of a hard-boiled detective transplanted to England with lots of derogatory racial tidbits thrown in for good measure. Bottom line--DON'T vote for Dangerous Curves for Reprint of the Year.

Instead, turn your attention to Murder at the College (1932) by Victor L. Whitechurch--reprinted this year by Oleander Press. There is nothing I love more than an academic mystery...unless it is a really good academic mystery with a hint of impossible crime thrown in. While this is not a strict rendering of an impossible crime, it does appear throughout most of the story that it is impossible for any of the suspects to have gotten in and/or out of the room during the critical time period without being seen. Our up-and-coming young Detective Ambrose spends a great deal of his time figuring out who was where when and could they have possibly committed the crime and gotten out of the room in small time fram allowed. 

But what is the book about? you ask. A group of architecture enthusiasts who make up a diocese board meet on Tuesdays in the college rooms of one of their members, Sidney Henlow. There they decide whether renovations and changes fancied by churches throughout the area meet aesthetic standards and should be allowed. They normally break for lunch at one and go out to various pubs and restaurants for their mid-day meal. On this particular Tuesday,  Henlow is away but has arranged for the rooms to be ready as usual. When the morning's business is finished, Francis Hatton breaks with habit and stays behind in the rooms to eat a brown bag lunch and write letters. But when the other members return, they find Hatton stabbed to death in a chair by the fire.

Workmen had been hard at removing flagstones and digging a large hole for drainage right at the bottom of the staircase all morning and were only gone from the site for a short time during the lunch hour. The porter was also away from his post for just a short while. All say that no unknown party came through the college while they were on duty. An office clerk across the street from the college (and who, coincidentally, has a very good view of the windows of the rooms in question) also helps narrow the time in which the murder could have taken place. If "helps" is the word, because the more Detective Ambrose of the Exbridge police learns, the more certain it becomes that none of the likely suspects had time to commit the deed and get in and out of the rooms without being seen. It also doesn't help that there doesn't seem to be a whiff of a motive--unless you count the quarrelsome county squire who wasn't too happy that Francis Hatton came and looked at his proposed design for a new stained glass window for his local church and predicted that the board would turn down the proposal. Would the squire really kill over a stained glass window--even given his volatile temper? Evidence then comes to light that indicates that Hatton fancied himself a bit of an amateur crime-solver. Did his detecting ways lead to his death? Ambrose must decipher cryptic notes left behind in Hatton's notebook titled "Detection Problems" before he will see his way clear to the solution of Hatton's murder.

Okay, sounds interesting. But why should I vote for it as Reprint of the Year? Well, this is just a delightful book. If you like college-settings, then this is a book for you. If you like interesting characters, then you'll find some here. If you like cryptic clues, then Whitechurch has you covered. If you like a surprise ending, then he manages to give you that as well. If you're just looking for a fun, fast-moving read, then here you go. Whitechurch ticked off so many boxes that needed covered for me, that I'm tempted to sit down and read it again just for the pure pleasure of experience. There is a slight disappointment at the end (which is more a "me" thing than a Whitechurch thing), otherwise I would probably give this five stars. That's how much I enjoyed it.

There is one trope that frequent readers of mystery stories may feel is obvious or over-used, but at the time of publication I'm sure it was more surprising for Whitechurch's readers. I can appreciate how much it would have baffled readers of the time. I did spot what had happened before Ambrose did, but that didn't detract from my enjoyment and I hope that it wouldn't detract from yours. Overall, just a really fun mystery reading experience. ★★★★ and 1/2.

First lines: "Hallo! There he is again. First Tuesday in the month, as per usual."

Last line: I congratulate you, however, on the efficiency of your detective officer; and, though, I presume it would be useless to ask you to convey what are my heartfelt regrets to Miss Hatton--regrets which will burden me for the rest of my life, perhaps you will deem it no hypocritical sentiment on my part if I beg you, as one of the friends I had at Exbridge, though you judge me as I deserve to be judged, at least to pray for me. 

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

Deaths = 3 (two natural; one stabbed)

Reading Randomizer 2023

 

The Reading Randomizer 2023 Challenge is sponsored on StoryGraph by thrakaboom, but it's easily adapted to GoodReads or any spread sheet that you might use to track your books. It's intended for folks who have obnoxiously large TBR piles (over 100 books)...do you think they had me in mind?

The prompts will help you randomly select 24 books (2 per month) from your TBR and work on whittling those piles down. Click on the link to see full details.

January Book 1: Generate a random number (1 - # of books on your TBR) and read the book that appears at that position on your TBR list. The Becket Factor by Michael David Anthony (1/9/23)

January Book 2: Sort TBR list by date added in ascending order. Generate a random number and read the book that appears in that position on your list. The Dante Game by Jane Langton (1/13/23)

February Book 1: Sort TBR list by date added in descending order. Generate a random number and read the book that appears in that position on your list. Phi Beta Murder by C. S. Challinor (2/20/23)

February Book 2: Sort TBR list by author in ascending order. Generate a random number from 1-50 and read the book that appears in that position on your list. The Fear Sign by Margery Allingham (2/22/23)

March Book 1: Sort TBR list by author in ascending order. Generate a random number from 50-100 and read the book that appears in that position on your list. The Woman in the Picture by John August (3/10/23)

March Book 2: Sort TBR list by author in ascending order. Generate a random number from 100-end of TBR and read the book that appears in that position on your list. Bony & the Kelly Gang by Arthur W. Upfield (3/23/23)

April Book 1: Sort TBR list by author in reverse alphabetical order. Generate a random number from 1-# of books on your TBR and read the book that appears in that position on your list. Gone West by Carola Dunn (4/6/23)

April Book 2: Sort TBR list by author in reverse alphabetical order. Generate a random number from 1-50 and read the book that appears in that position on your list. Silent Witness by Margaret Yorke (4/22/23)

May Book 1: Sort TBR list by author in reverse alphabetical order. Generate a random number from 50-100 and read the book that appears in that position on your list. Mystery of the Hidden Hand by Phyllis A. Whitney (5/7/23)

May Book 2: Sort TBR list by author in reverse alphabetical order. Generate a random number from 100-end of TBR and read the book that appears in that position on your list. Murder in Burgundy by Audrey Peterson (5/17/23)

June Book 1: Sort TBR list by author in alphabetical order. Generate a random number from 1-# of books on your TBR and read the book that appears in that position on your list. Murder Is Pathological by P. M. Carlson (6/8/23)

June Book 2: Sort TBR list by title in ascending order. Generate a random number from 1-25 and read the book that appears in that position on your list. 52 Miles to Terror by Ruth Christoffer Carlsen & G. Robert Carlsen [eds] (6/9/23)

July Book 1: Sort TBR list by title in ascending order. Generate a random number from 50-75 and read the book that appears in that position on your list. And Be a Villain by Rex Stout [audionovel] (6/9/23) [I accidentally selected this for my road trip--so I read it just a little early.]

July Book 2: Sort TBR list by title in ascending order. Generate a random number from 75-100 and read the book that appears in that position on your list. The Art of the Mystery Story by Howard Haycraft (8/29/23)

August Book 1: Sort TBR list by title in ascending order. Generate a random number from 100-end of TBR and read the book that appears in that position on your list. Beverly Gray on a Treasure Hunt by Clair Blank (8/31/23)

August Book 2: Sort TBR list by title in reverse order. Generate a random number from 1-25 and read the book that appears in that position on your list. The World's Best 100 Detective Stories Vol 3 by Eugene Thwing, ed. (8/26/23)

September Book 1: Sort TBR list by title in reverse alphabetical order. Generate a random number from 25-50and read the book that appears in that position on your list. Who Is Simon Warwick? by Patricia Moyes (9/22/23)

September Book 2: Sort TBR list by title in reverse alphabetical order. Generate a random number from 50-75 and read the book that appears in that position on your list. While the Clock Ticked by Franklin W. Dixon (10/9/23)

October Book 1: Sort TBR list by title in reverse alphabetical order. Generate a random number from 75-100 and read the book that appears in that position on your list. The War of the Worlds Murder by Max Allan Collins (10/24/23)

October Book 2: Sort TBR list by title in reverse alphabetical order. Generate a random number from 100-end of TBR and read the book that appears in that position on your list. The Floating Lady Murder by Daniel Stashower (10/28/23)

November Book 1: : Sort TBR list by ISBN in ascending order. Generate a random number from 1-# of books on your TBR and read the book that appears in that position on your list. Black Friday by David Goodis (11/3/23)

November Book 2: Sort TBR list by ISBN in descending order. Generate a random number from 1-# of books on your TBR and read the book that appears in that position on your list. Death of a Doll by Hilda Lawrence (11/17/22)

December Book 1: Sort TBR list by ISBN in ascending order. Generate a random number from 1-100 of books on your TBR and read the book that appears in that position on your list. The Clue in the Jewel Box by Carolyn Keene (12/7/23)

December Book 2: Sort TBR list by ISBN in descending order. Generate a random number from 1-100 of books on your TBR and read the book that appears in that position on your list. John Dickson Carr: The Man Who Explained Miracles by Douglas G. Greene (12/19/23)

TBR 23 in '23

 

 

 

Gilion at Rose City Reader is sponsoring her yearly TBR-conquering challenge--this year TBR 23 in '23--that fits right in with my Mount TBR Challenge, so...here I am signing up for another challenge (Surprise!). For full details check out her blog a the link above. Basically--just read 23 books from your owned TBR stacks. Here we go...

1. The White Priory Murders by Carter Dickson (1/7/23)

2. Beauty Marks the Spot by Kelley Roos (1/7/23)

3. The Becket Factor by Michael David Anthony (1/9/23)

4. The Dante Game by Jane Langton (1/13/23)

5. Swing Low, Swing Death by R. T. Campbell (1/17/23)

6. The Angry Heart by Leslie Edgley (1/21/23)

7. Over Sea, Under Stone by Susan Cooper (1/23/23)

8. Mysterious Invitation by Bernice Bloom (1/27/23)

9. The Crimson Clue by George Harmon Coxe (1/30/23)

10. Wings Above the Diamantina by Arthur W. Upfield (2/3/23)

11. Here Come the Dead by Robert Portner Koehler (2/5/23)

12. Garden of Deadly Delights by Cynthia Manson [ed] (2/7/23)

13. Murder R.F.D. by Leslie Stephan (2/9/23)

14. Bats in the Belfry by E.C.R. Lorac (2/19/23)

15. Heart of the Sun by Pamela Sargent & George Zebrowski (2/19/23)

16. Phi Beta Murder by C. S. Challinor (2/20/23)

17. The Fear Sign by Margery Allingham (2/22/23)

18. It Walks by Night by John Dickson Carr (2/24/23)

19. Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome (2/27/23)

20. The Moving Finger by Agatha Christie (3/1/23)

21. Towards Zero by Agatha Christie (3/5/23)

22. The Black Cat Murders by Karen Baugh Menuhin (3/7/23)

23. The Woman in the Picture by John August (3/10/23)

Complete!

 

What's in a Name 2023

 

Andrea at Carolina Book Nook is back with another round of the What's in a Name Challenge. And I'm so glad--I've been anxiously awaiting the new version. This has always been a favorite of mine, so of course I'm back for another round as well. The format is the same--six categories and one book required for each one. The prompt must appear in the title of the book. For full details, see the link above.

My Tentative List:

1. Punctuation: Dead, Mr. Mozart by Bernard Bastable (Robert Barnard) {a comma and a period] (3/15/23)

2. 7 Deadly Sins: The Pride of the Peacock by Victoria Holt (4/23/23)

3. "You" and "Me": I, Robot: The Illustrated Screenplay by Harlan Ellison & Isaac Asimov (7/5/23)

4. Chess Pieces: The Beauty Queen Killer by John Creasey (5/14/23)

5. Celebration: The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley (5/11/23)

6. X, Y Z: 6 X H by Robert A. Heinlein (6/19/23)

Complete!

Where Two Ways Met

 Where Two Ways Met (1946) by Grace Livingston Hill

When Paige Madison comes home from the battlefields of war, he knows he must find a good job. A job that will allow him to take some of the burden off his father, whom he knows is getting past the point where he can work. He thinks he's found that good job when Harris Chalmers, the president of one of the town's most prosperous real estate firms offers him a job. But from the first meeting with the board he felt uneasy--that those men were too self-satisfied, too sleek and smug. He just didn't know if their world-view and values would sit right with his own.

He soon discovers that his first fears are justified. He's confronted by situations that that challenge his faith in human nature and his own principles. Chalmers and his board are men who take no interest in the humanity of their tenants. There is no lee-way for those who have faithfully met their obligations but have an honest set-back that prevents payment. The policy is "Pay or get out" and Madison is forced to carry out orders to that effect. Meanwhile, the boss's daughter Reva, a spoiled beauty used to getting her own way, has set her sights on Paige. His reserved manner and little liking for the high life makes her determined to win his affection (for which read slavish devotion) or to ruin him if he won't come to heel. She believes that he'll be willing to do her bidding just to save his job. She may have misread her man...

Paige wrestles with his conscience over the business practices he's asked to follow and just when he feels attacked on all sides, he meets June Culbertson, the sweet, faithful daughter of a local minister. They find that they share beliefs and principles that could never appeal to Chalmers and his daughter and while helping families less fortunate than themselves they also find that they may share more. But will Reva find a way to disrupt their peace? And will a train accident put a final end to their budding relationship? You'll just have to read and find out....

Grace Livingston Hill does her usual good job of sprinkling her religious themes throughout the story without being too heavy-handed. She's straight-forward, so there's no doubt about what she and her characters believe, but she doesn't press. I am a bit in two minds about this one, though. It doesn't pull me into the story the way her best novels do (Crimson Roses, Miranda, The Honor Girl...). It's a sweet story and fairly predictable, making it a good comfort read for those who enjoy books with Christian themes. There is one unusual aspect--at least to me--this is the first Hill novel I've read that focuses so much on the man. All of the books I've read in the past have focused on the young woman and we see everything from her perspective--here we have a man of principle finding his way to the woman he can spend his life with. That does make this one stand out a bit from other books I've given three stars to, but not enough to raise the rating any higher. A good, solid read. ★★★

First line: The sky was dark and the wind was cold.

Last lines: "Go on back to sleep, father. I'll drive carefully."

The Clue of the Velvet Mask

 The Clue of the Velvet Mask (1953) by Carolyn Keene

Nancy Drew finds herself in the middle of another mystery when she and Ned Nickerson attend a masquerade party at the Hendricks mansion. Her father, half-joking, tells her not to let any thieves spoil the party, but there have been a string of recent thefts at house parties. Nancy and Ned spot a mysterious man in a black cloak and velvet mask scoping out the trellis beneath a second-story window. Nancy later finds a similar velvet mask which will eventually give her a clue to the thieves' plans. But despite the sleuth's watchful eye, valuable miniatures and jewels are stolen. 

There seems to be a link between the thefts and the Lightner Entertainment Company--a company that helps manage parties as well as providing costumes when needed. One of Nancy's school friends, Linda Seeley, works for the company and comes under suspicion of, at the very least, disclosing party details to the wrong people if not being in league with the thieves. Nancy is certain Linda is innocent and redoubles her efforts to find clues that will lead her to real culprit/s. Along the way, she and George devise a daring plan to try and capture the crooks--George will dress up as Nancy! This doesn't go well and George winds up brain-washed (or something) and suddenly afraid of Nancy's mystery-solving ways. But--even though Nancy can't depend on George for back-up, she and Bess...and Ned manage to track down the crooks and serve them all up to Chief McGuinness on a silver platter.

This was another of the Nancy Drew mysteries that I didn't reread much. It definitely has an intriguing theft plot with the use of the parties as cover for stealing. But it just didn't click the way some of the titles do. For one thing, the main culprit is ultra-obvious. For another, there really isn't a reason why George needs to pretend to be Nancy. Nancy could just be herself and George and Bess could have stood by to try and catch the crooks (not that it would have turned out much better--since the bad guys had them all covered from the get-go). But still--disguise wasn't necessary unless we were just going along with the whole masquerade theme. And, finally, it's never really explained how the nasty woman managed to get gutsy George to suddenly turn into a fraidy cat. There's been danger before. George didn't back down. There have been threats to Nancy and her father and Hannah Gruen before. George was still gung-ho for solving mysteries. 

Overall, another good entry in the series. I enjoyed the descriptions of the parties and behind-the-scenes look at the company which managed them. Nancy is on the ball as usual and it was nice to have Ned taking an active part in apprehending the crooks at the end. ★★★ and 1/2.

~One surprising note on the original text version (I read both side-by-side just to see the differences): While Nancy and Mrs. Gruen wait downstairs while Carson Drew helps Ned get into his 18th Century costume, we get this little tidbit: During the next ten minutes weird sounds filtered down to Nancy and Mrs. Gruen. They were certain that the costume would be ripped to shreds before Ned's muscular body could be encased in it. (?!)

First line: "You look lovely, Nancy, and very mysterious," said Hannah Gruen, housekeeper for the Drew family, as she smiled fondly at the slender. blue-eyed girl.

Last line: "I tried it once and found it too dangerous!"

Historical Fiction Reading Challenge

 

Marg at The Adventures of an Intrepid Reader will be hosting the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge again this year. I've still got a couple of historical series to work on and plan to join in for another round.. If historical fiction is your thing (or you'd like to see if it is), take a peek at the details at the link above.

I'm going to sign up for the Victorian Reader level (5 books). I may wind up venturing further, but if I reach my initial goal then I will claim the challenge complete

1. A Gentleman's Murder by Christopher Huang (1/22/23)

2. Mysterious Invitation by Bernice Bloom [over half the story takes place in the past] (1/27/23)

3. The Lioness by Chris Bohjalian (2/12/23)

4. Marple: Twelve New Mysteries by various (2/15/23)

5. Wild Seed by Octavia E. Butler (3/4/23)

Victorian Reader (Commitment Complete!)

6. The Black Cat Murders by Karen Baugh Menuhin (3/7/23)

7. Sidney Chambers & the Perils of the Night by James Runcie (3/11/23)

8. Dead, Mr. Mozart by Bernard Bastable (3/15/23)

9. Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn [half the story takes place in the past] (3/30/23)

10. Speakers of the Dead by J. Aaron Sanders (4/1/23)

Renaissance Reader

11. Where Serpents Sleep by C. S. Harris (4/3/23)

12. Gone West by Carola Dunn (4/6/23)

13. Bellman & Black by Diane Setterfield (4/7/23)

14. Fatal Enquiry by Will Thomas (4/9/23)

15. Pride of the Peacock by Victoria Holt (4/23/23)

Medieval Reader

16. The Mammoth Book of Roaring Twenties Whodunnits by Mike Ashley, ed. (4/30/23)

17. Blackstone Fell by Martin Edwards (5/23/23)

18. Murder Is Pathological by P. M. Carlson (6/8/23) 

19. All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr (6/15/23)

20. The Distant Hours by Kate Morton (6/29/23)

21. Who Cries for the Lost by C. S. Harris (7/4/23)

22. See Also Murder by Larry D. Sweazy (7/7/23)

23. Ghostwalk by Rebecca Stott (7/16/23)

24. The Private Wound by Nicholas Blake (7/25/23)

25. Schindler's List by Thomas Keneally (8/6/23)

Ancient History

26. The Mystery of the Yellow Hands by Jake & Luke Thoene (8/16/23)

27. The Night Gardener by Jonathan Auxier (9/2/23)

28. Holding by Graham Norton (9/5/23)

29. Hemlock Hollow by Culley Holderfield (9/19/23)

30. Becoming Mrs. Lewis by Patti Callahan (10/6/23)

31. Death & the Conjuror by Tom Mead (10/26/23)

32. The Floating Lady Murder by Daniel Stashower (10/28/23)

33. The Red Death Murders by Jim Noy (11/6/23)

34. A Most Efficient Murder by Anthony Slayton (11/18/23)

35. Murder in Mayfair by D. M. Quincy (11/29/23)

36. Murder in Bloomsbury by D. M. Quincy (11/30/23)

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Prehistoric

Buzzword Reading Challenge

 Books and Lala sponsor the Buzzword Reading Challenge on Storygraph. The goal is pretty simple--just read one book per month which has the following prompt words in the title. I decided that I just don't have enough reading challenges, so here we go for one more...

I'll post my tentative picks below and will update as I go along.

January ("Life" & "Death"): Swing Low, Swing Death by R. T. Campbell (1/17/23)

February (Verbs/Action Words): It Walks by Night by John Dickson Carr (2/24/23)

March ("Secret"): The Genesis Secret by Tom Knox (3/29/23)

April (Emotion words): Pride of the Peacock by Victoria Holt (4/23/23)

May (Flavor-related words): Murder & Blueberry Pie by Frances & Richard (5/25/23)

June ("Other"): Death Among Friends & Other Detective Stories by Cyril Hare (6/12/23)

July (Weather-related words): The Bell in the Fog by John Stephen Strange (7/29/23)

August (Body-related words): The Mystery of the Yellow Hands by Jake & Luke Thoene (8/16/23)

September (Game-related words): Depart This Life by E. X. Ferrars [Life board game] (9/30/23)

October (Magic-related words): Death & the Conjuror by Tom Mead (10/26/23)

November ("Good"): Only the Good by Mary Collins (11/12/23)

December (Sound-related words): Sound of Revelry by Octavus Roy Cohen (12/10/23)

2022 Reprint of the Year: The Conjure-Man Dies

In 2018, Kate at Cross Examining Crime came up with brilliant brainstorm. In the wake of various publishing houses recognizing the virtues of Golden Age (and more recent) vintage crime novels through reprint editions of both well-known and more obscure titles, Kate thought those of us who love those vintage mysteries would like the chance to feature the year's reprints and make a pitch for our favorites to be voted Reprint of the Year. We loved the idea so much that we have mande it an annual event.

So, this Saturday and next, I and my illustrious colleagues Aidan, Brad, Hayley, Janet,  Jim, John (Pretty Sinister Books), John (Countdown John), Puzzle Doctor, Karen, and Kate will feature our picks of the 2022 reprint crop and make our best bid for reprint stardom.

My first pick is The Conjure-Man Dies by Rudolph Fisher. It was first published in 1932 (reprinted this year by Library of Congress Crime Classics) and is remarkable for the time period. Fisher was an African American author of the Harlem Renaissance and his mystery features an all African American case of characters--from the victim to the suspects to the doctors and the police offiers. Set in Harlem, Fisher gives us an insider's view of Harlem in the early 1930s. The story centers around the death of Frimbo, a conjure-man or fortune teller. But Frimbo was more--he was an African king who came to America, earned a degree from Harvard, studied philosophy and was proficient in science. He had a gift of observation (almost Holmesian) that allowed him to pick up little details about his clients--making his pronouncements about them and their circumstances seem magical. He makes his predictions in a room shrouded in darkness save for a bright light focused on the client. Frimbo is killed while he is in the middle of a consultation with Jinx, a somewhat surly man who refuses to tell the truth about anything on general principle. 

His best pal, Bubber, runs across the street to summon Dr. John Archer who finds the victim with a head wound. But upon close examination he determines that the blow was not the cause the death. By this time the police, with Detective Perry Dart in the lead, have arrived and the first task is to determine exactly how the conjure-man was killed. And then they will have to sift through seven suspects to find the culprit. The plot is full of red herrings and twists. We have everything from the mysterious servant who has vanished, somewhat hidden passageways, a disappearing corpse, a man who comes back from the dead, a possibly not-so side plot with vengeful gamblers, and the burning of evidence in the middle of the night. And--an exciting finish to wrap it all up.

This is an absorbing book and well worth your attention. Not only is it important historically to the Golden Age of American mysteries, but it is a cleverly constructed mystery with enough twists and turns to satisfy mystery readers of all sorts. I figured out part of the twisty plot--but the final reveal was a definite surprise. I've read that, had he not died much too soon after this was published, Fisher planned to write at least two sequels and I believe the mystery field is much poorer for his loss. This is quite a good book for a debut mystery and one can only believe that the follow-up stories would have been even stronger.  

Though it has seen reprints since its first appearance in 1932--including the copy I read printed by the University of Michigan Press--The Conjure-Man Dies has not yet been included in our annual ROY awards. I hope the judges will give great consideration to this important early mystery. 

The Last Noel

 The Last Noel (1997) by Jean Hager

It's time to get ready for the annual Christmas pageant at the Community Church in Victoria Springs. Tess Darcy, owner of the Iris House Bed & Breakfast, is delegated to let the church's usual director, Claire Chandler, know that she's being repaced by an out-of-town drama professor. That's enough to make Claire furious, but it doesn't help that Sherwood Draper was recommended by her least favorite person in the world, Lily Brookside. It isn't long before the womanizing professor has most of the pageant personnel up in arms at the first meeting. His wife knows Lily wanted him to come direct the pageant so she could try to get her hooks into him and is giving them both the evil eye.. Denny Brookside isn't at all pleased at how his wife looks at this Noel Coward wannabe. The organist, Elizabeth Purcell, is incensed that she's being replaced by taped music; the children's director, Pam Yoder, can't believe he plans to ditch the children's portion of the program all together; and the choir director, Mike Tandy is so outraged that the choir has been reduced to three little Christmas songs that he gets up and leaves the sanctuary. 

The afternoon session doesn't go any better. In fact, it gets worse when Draper gets caught a little too cozy with one of the ladies in the dressing room. Sometime later he's found in that same dressing room with a pair of shears sticking out his back. The local police chief is out of town and his eager stand-in thinks he's got it all sewn up when a witness claims to have seen Draper's wife with shears that afternoon. But Tess isn't convinced he has really investigated all the angles and she's determined to be sure it's truly the guilty behind bars. 

This is the third Christmas-themed book I've read in a row--and the second to feature a Christmas a pageant (or it's rehearsals) as the venue for the crime. I have to say that I immediately spotted the primary reason Draper was killed--though I didn't see the way it shook out coming. I got completely confused about who could have been involved in the primary reason and then Hager shook the kaleidoscope a bit and changed the view of the pieces anyway. It also didn't help that life happened in the middle of my read and I may have lost my original train of thought. All told, it was an enjoyable holiday read and The Last Noel is my favorite Christmas mystery so far this season.  ★★★ and 1/2.

First line: "You're the last person I expected to stab me in the back, Tess Darcy!" stormed Claire Chandler as soon as the phone was picked up, without even giving Tess a chance to say hello.

Last line: She made a U-turn at the next corner and headed for Luke's house.

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

Deaths = 4 (one stabbed; one car accident; two natural)

Book Challenge by Erin 18.0

 

Book Challenge by Erin 18.0 

First and foremost, have fun. Don't stress. No one is being judged, graded, or penalized. Even if you finish only one book the entire challenge, if you enjoy it and it's an accomplishment for you, then that's awesome.

The challenge runs from January 1, 2023 - April 30 2023. You submit your book list prior to beginning the challenge. Exchanges are accepted for the first round, but not in the bonus round (announced later). No books started before 12 a.m. on January 1 or finished after 11:59 p.m. on April 30 will count. (We live in different time zones--follow according to your own time zone.) Each book must be at least 200 pages long. Audio books are fine too. Read one book for each category. For full details see Erin's page on Facebook (link above). You will need to join the private group to view (link above).

Update: Am going to try the Bonus Round again this year. Selections appear under first round books.

My list:

1. (5 points) Freebie (any book at least 200 pages): Over Sea, Under Stone by Susan Cooper [252 pages] (1/23/23)

Bonus: The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde 

2. (10 points) Book set in Australia or by Australian author: Wings Above the Diamantina by Arthur W. Upfield [302 pages] (2/3/23)

Bonus: Sabriel by Garth Nix (3/21/23)

3. (10 points) Author goes by three names: The Crimson Clue by George Harmon Coxe [214 pages] (1/30/23)

Bonus: Little Men by Louisa May Alcott (4/14/23)

4. (15 points) Book with "black" or "white" in title: The White Priory Murders by Carter Dickson [214 pages] (1/7/23)

Bonus: The Black Cat Murders by Karen Baugh Menuhin (3/7/23)

5. (20 points) GoodReads award winner from any year: Dead Wake by Erik Larson (3/4/23) (History/Bio Winner 2015) [430 pages]

Bonus: The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold (4/4/23)

6. (20 points) Set in small town/rural area: Murder R.F.D. by Leslie Stephan [241 pages] (2/9/23)

Bonus: A Murder Is Announced by Agatha Christie (3/17/23)

7. (25 pointa) Book with "heart" or "love" in  title: Heart of the Sun by Pamela Sargent & George Zebrowski [245 pages] (2/19/23)

Bonus: In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, & an American Family in Hitler's Berlin by Erik Larson (4/18/23)

8. (30 points) Book starts with first letter of your first name: Bats in the Belfry by E. C. R. Lorac [253 pages] (2/19/23)

Bonus: Bellman & Black by Diane Setterfiled (4/7/23)

9. (30 points) Book with unusual narrator: Mrs. Frisby & the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. Obrien [233 pages] (1/1/23)

Bonus: Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

10 (35 points) Book with prime number under 1000 in title: Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome [315 pages] (2/27/23)

Bonus: Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel (4/20/23)