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One of my favorite Ngaio Marsh books, Les. I love the title too. And I too am fond of Troy. Another Troy book I love is SPINSTERS IN JEOPARDY which is a bit of nonsense, but features the whole Alleyn family including their little boy who in this book steals the show.
From the Vault: "Clutch of Constables"
If my calendar is correct, we are now in the so-called "dog days" of summer, when many of us try to get away from the stress of our everyday lives for a little while. Sometimes, our plans may go a bit awry. Certainly that's what happens to Agatha Troy - the wife of Scotland Yard Superintendent R...
I'm with you on this one, Les. I am especially fond of the audio version narrated by Ian Carmichael. If you've never heard it, I highly recommend it.
From the Vault: "Busman's Honeymoon"
My selection "From the Vault" this week may be a bit controversial with some fans - and some detractors - of Dorothy L. Sayers and her creations, Lord Peter Wimsey and his eventual wife, Harriet Vane. While I believe there's general agreement on Sayers's contributions to the Golden Age of Detect...
I enjoyed this book, Les, when I first read it a couple of years ago. I think this one and LADY IN THE LAKE are my two Raymond Chandler faves. But not sure - you know how old lady memory works. :)
"Farewell, My Lovely"
Philip Marlowe certainly seemed to have a knack for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. His curiosity about a man he just happened to see while walking down the street got him involved with -and in - several murders, the theft of a valuable jade necklace, several cops (all corrupt to som...
One of my favorites as well, Les. I really enjoyed Marsh's 'theatrically' centered mysteries. I read all of Marsh's books in one giant binge a couple of years ago and I highly recommend this way of indulging in an author one has always meant to read but never got around to. Now if only I could remember more details about the books...Actually, there are several which I do remember, so it wasn't a total loss.
Ha!
I think I want to read this one again.
'...in full lurk.' LOVE THIS choice of words.
From the Vault: "Killer Dolphin"
Ngaio Marsh is regarded by many readers as being one of the Golden Age "Mystery Queens," whose books helped to popularize the genre. It's worth noting, however, that many of her books were, in fact, written and published long after the end of the Golden Age (if you accept the general guidelines ...
Recently re-read this for the umpteenth time, Les. It never gets old. :)
But I hadn't realized that THE FBI NOBODY KNOWS by Fred J. Cook was a real book. Wow.
Rex Stout was a brave man for sure.
From the Vault: "The Doorbell Rang"
Regular visitors to this blog know that Rex Stout is one of my favorite authors. I love the books, featuring the sedentary genius, Nero Wolfe, and his right-hand assistant, Archie Goodwin; a check of the blog's backlist page will show that I've reviewed a great many of those novels and novella c...
Les, I've just reserved this at my local library. Today I found out that they have quite a few of these British Crime Classics so I'm in heaven. :)
Looking Back: "The Secret of High Eldersham"
One of the newest additions to the fine series of British Library Crime Classics, published in the U.S. by Poisoned Pen Press, is Miles Burton's mystery/thriller, The Secret of High Eldersham. I reviewed the book on this blog more than two years ago, based on an earlier edition, and it was also ...
I like the sound of this, Les. I believe I have the title on my Vintage Mystery board over at Pinterest and that means that I will be reading it at some point. Pinterest has changed greatly and isn't very much fun these days, but it's a good way to keep track of books you mean to read and other lists in visual form.
I'm not all that crazy about 'locked room' mysteries since to me they all seem contrived - even the best ones - but for whatever reason that never seems to stop me reading them. I'm contrary that way. :)
"Death in the Tunnel"
If you enjoy difficult puzzles, seemingly impossible crimes and the like, here's a recommendation for one that you're likely to find suited to your taste. It's a death on a moving train that is going through a long tunnel. The victim is shot once with a single bullet through the heart and is fou...
Off to visit family for Christmas, Les. I'll be gone for a few weeks. So just dropping in to wish you and your family a very Happy Holiday and wonderful New Year. God bless.
R.I.P. Peter Dickinson
Saddened to learn of the death of British mystery writer Peter Dickinson, who, according to the BBC, died yesterday on his 88th birthday after a brief illness. The Beeb focuses on his books for children, but he was also a very fine writer of traditional mysteries - Wikipedia has a complete listi...
I loved this book too, Les. I wrote about it on my blog just a couple of weeks ago. For reasons that elude me, my library had this copy on a shelf and I happened upon it. I say 'for reasons that elude me' because my library is not known for having much in the way of vintage golden age stuff lying around. :)
Now that I've read DEATH OF AN AIRMAN I naturally want to read more from this author, but Sprigg's books are not exactly readily available. Too bad. I really loved this one.
"Death of an Airman"
When George Furnace crashed his small plane near the Baston Aero Club, the crash seemed inexplicable to his friends and colleagues. Suicide? Perhaps, though those friends didn't think much of the idea. An accident? No, Furnace was a top-notch pilot and the plane was in excellent condition. Murd...
I have just about given up on the Mrs. Bradley mysteries, Les. Having just struggled through DEATH AT THE OPERA with it's unworkable plot.
I've read three or four so far and only really enjoyed one. So that's about it for me. Except that you make ST. PETER'S FINGER sound pretty good. So maybe I'll give this one a try before I abandon all hope.
"St. Peter's Finger"
The good sisters at the English convent of the Sisters of St. Peter in Perpetuity were deeply upset over the death of a young girl, Ursula Doyle. The coroner insisted it had to be suicide. The nuns, argue that a child like Ursula, brought up to regard suicide as the ultimate sin, would never ta...
My favorite Miss Marple story, Les. There is a major clue in the story which is passed right in front of our noses and slips right on by. Christie was SO adept at this sleight of hand.
Even after I realized it at the end, I had to go back and double and triple check.
I defy anyone to guess the killer.
"A Murder Is Announced"
Suppose you had been living in the small English village of Chipping Cleghorn, reading the weekly newspaper, delivered to your door each Friday filled with all kinds of announcements and offers in the "PERSONAL" column. And suppose this item had caught your attention: "A murder is announced an...
Don't you hate it when the body up and disappears and everyone looks at you as if you must be nuts? Happens to me all the time. Ha.
I've never read any George Harmon Coxe, Les. At least I don't think I have. But maybe I will. One of these days. I'm slowly going through as many vintage mystery authors as I can find for a reasonable price (cheap, cheap) on abebooks.com.
"The Crimson Clue"
Kent Murdock wasn't eager to get involved in a murder case. A photographer, he was hired to take private photos of a society wedding - just for the family, of course. But then, at the wedding, Murdock tripped over a dead body. Naturally, he shot some pictures of the body. Good thing, too, since...
Les, I haven't read any Robert Barnard is quite a while. But I do remember reading some years ago and enjoying whatever the novel was - you can't expect me to remember the title - right? :)
This one sounds good and vaguely familiar. I think I'll add the title to my TBR list.
DEATH OF AN OLD GOAT. very similar to the way M.C. Beaton titles her Hamish Macbeth books. I used to read those too, once upon a time.
"Death of an Old Goat"
There is no doubt that the visiting Professor of English was a crashing bore. Professor Belville-Smith of Oxford University was on a lecture tour through minor universities in Australia, delivering the same lectures which had stupefied many other listeners. But surely being a bore was not justi...
I've read one Henry Gamadge book (or maybe two) but I can't say I was overly impressed, Les. Truth to tell, I found it kind of boring. Disappointing because I love Gamadge's profession and can see how it might dip him into mystery. But it's just not handled very adroitly. At least that I remember. But still, I might give another one a try one of these days. I think I'm running out of easily available vintage authors to binge on. :) Still hanging in there with Michael Innes, though I'm skirting the later books which aren't as intriguing as his earlier stuff, though still enjoyable.
"The Book of the Lion"
There was definitely something peculiar going on within the Bradlock family. Book and document expert Henry Gamadge had been invited to look over some papers belonging to the late poet, Paul Bradlock, who had been murdered in Central Park a couple of years back. But then, just as Gamadge was be...
I'm with you on most of this, Les. Though for Josephine Tey I'd have added BRAT FARRAR and A SHILLING FOR CANDLES as well as DAUGHTER OF TIME.
For Michael Innes I'd have made different choices simply because there are Innes books I liked better.
It's so hard to know what other people will enjoy reading.
“Where Do I Begin”: Suggestions for Starting Points with Classic Mysteries
At the Deadly Ink conference in New Jersey last weekend, I was invited to talk about mysteries that I like and would recommend to other readers. As a handout to attendees, I turned out a list of some favorites. This is NOT meant to be a "10 best" list - it's merely a list of books that I enjoy r...
It seems Bev knows this author! Well, I don't. But again, thanks for the introduction, Les. I think I may have actually heard of the name Helen McCloy in the context of mysteries and golden age, but that's about it.
"Panic"
"You may hear Pan with impunity. But to look upon Pan face to face is death..." In ancient mythology, the Greek God Pan was, among other things, the god of woodlands and nature, a kind of goat-man, playing the pipes. But it is worth noting that he was also the god of fear. His name, Pan, comes ...
Sounds good, Les. Needless to say, never heard of this guy's work. But I checked around online and I'm intrigued. Thanks for the intro to a 'new' author. Maybe Kindle will do a download special.
Punshon Bag
It's always good to be able to report that another wrongfully neglected author from the Golden Age of Detective Fiction is returning to print. Our friends at Dean Street Press are continuing their planned release of all 35 of E. R. Punshon's mysteries featuring Bobby Owens. Five novels are alrea...
Years ago, Les, I remember reading a bunch of Freeman Wills Croft mysteries (alongside my ex-husband who loved them as well) and then I went on to other writers and never returned. I think it's time for me to return. Don't remember reading this particular book, mostly I do remember train mysteries. Anyway, I'm looking for this one on Abe books. (Don't want to pay ten bucks on amazon, at least, not yet.)
Summer always brings out the vintage in me. :)
"The Hog's Back Mystery"
Tongues had been wagging in Surrey, England, near the geological formation known as the Hog's Back - wagging about Dr. James Earle and his wife, Julia. According to the gossip, Julia Earle had become involved with another man - and there were reports that her husband may have been seen with an...
You have to stop recommending all these wonderful books and authors, Les. You simply have to. HA! Well, who knows, maybe I'll live forever - that's the only way I'm going to get to read all the books on my TBR Lists - Vintage and otherwise. But here we go, I'm adding another author - thanks a heap!!! No, I mean it. Ha.
"Dead Man's Shoes"
Wilbury Larkin certainly was a bully. But was he a murderer - or a murderee? Larkin was traveling on board the cargo ship Saragossa from Tangier on his way back to England in order to meet with police, who thought Larkin might have murdered someone. But Larkin disappeared overboard one stormy n...
John Christmas. LOVE that name for a sleuth. I'm adding these to my TBR vintage list, Les. Thanks for the intro.
Extra: "The Studio Crime," by Ianthe Jerrold
"It's a bad night for most things. But a good night for crime." That observation comes from one of the guests at a dinner party, given by a young artist on an evening when London is enshrouded by one of those awful pea-soup fogs so dear to the hearts (and plots) of Golden Age mystery writers. Sh...
I definitely want to read this, Les. Thanks for the reminder. I'm going to look for the e book now that I have a Kindle. YES, I actually do! I always liked Mr. Goby and his preference for looking anywhere but. You may be be right - possibly he is a long lost relative of Mr.Gryce. One never knows. :)
"The Leavenworth Case"
Let's travel back in time today, all the way back to 1878. Mystery fiction was still fairly new at that point. Sherlock Holmes wouldn't be along for another eight years. But 1878 saw the publication of a book that really became a signpost pointing towards what the modern mystery would soon enta...
This sounds like my kind of book, Les. I've added the title to my list. I'm like you, I never know whether I'm grateful or not to learn of a new author (new to me at any rate) since I already have so many books waiting to be read. Especially now that I finally have a Kindle. (Thanks to a generous friend.) I'm almost afraid to think of all the books out there ready to be downloaded for free or for minimal cost. I'm like a kid let loose in a candy store!
"Lament for a Lady Laird"
We're going to take a short break from the Golden Age this week to tell you about a more recent book that remains true to the traditional puzzle mystery. Between 1979 and 1995, Margot Arnold wrote a series of 12 fine mystery novels featuring the combined detective work of anthropologist Penny S...
Interesting, Les. Remember the blind detective played by Edward Arnold in a movie whose name escapes me at the moment but which is available for viewing on youtube? If you haven't seen it, you must. I talked about it on the blog a while back.
I'm assuming that this film character was or might have been sparked by Isabel Ostrander's creation??
"At 1:30"
Damon Gaunt had developed quite a reputation among criminal investigators as a detective who never failed to reach a successful conclusion in a murder case. That's pretty amazing when you realize that Gaunt had been blind since birth - although he had developed his other senses to the point whe...
Hi, Les - stopping by to wish you a Happy New Year and to say that I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with in the new year. I'm not a 'challenge' person but I can see the 'lure' they cast. :)
I'm not going to be commenting or blogging as much in the new year as I have a new and time consuming art project I'm working on and that must, necessarily, take up most of my reality time. :) But I'll still be around and blogging when I have free moments.
Forward with Resolution
I'm not sure I would elevate any of these thoughts to the status of a "New Year's Resolution," but I do intend to try a few new things with this blog and podcast, to keep the blood flowing and prevent hardening of the mysterious arteries. First, although I'm participating in the Vintage Mystery ...
I've read this, Les, but damn if I can remember much. It's the usual way with me. My memory refuses to cooperate hence my liking for rereading. Maybe it's time to reread Chandler.
I know that my favorite of the Marlowe books was THE LADY IN THE LAKE. It also make for a good film with Robert Montgomery and Audrey Totter. Remember that one? You do if your memory is better than mine. :)
"The Little Sister"
Philip Marlowe is not the sort of private eye to flinch or shy away from troublesome clients. When he gets a phone call from a young woman who thinks she wants to hire him - although she doesn't approve of his drinking or smoking and doesn't think he's a gentleman - he hangs up the phone on her...
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