Vintage Mystery Reading Challenge Wrap-up

This is a list of the books which I have read for the Vintage Mystery Reading Challenge. I am very much looking forward to the challenge in 2014.

1.   The White Cottage Mystery  by Margery Allingham, 1928. Category 1, Colorful Crime.

2.   Four False Weapons  by John Dickson Carr, 1937. Category 2, Murder by the Numbers.

3.  The Long Divorce  by Edmund Crispen, 1951. Category 4, Jolly Old England.

4. The 12:30 from Croydon  by Freeman Wills Crofts, 1934. Category 5, Leave it to the Professionals. Inspector French investigates.

5.  Octagon House  by Phoebe Atwood Taylor,  1937. Category 6, Yankee Doodle Dandy.

6. Appointment with Death  by Agatha Christie, 1937. Category 7, World Traveler. This book is set in Palestine and Jordan.

7. Ride the Pink Horse by Dorothy B. Hughes, 1946. Category 8,  Dangerous Beasts.

8.  Spinsters in Jeopardy  by Ngaio Marsh, 1953. Category 10, Wicked Women.

9. Behold, Here's Poison  by Georgette Heyer, 1936. Category 12, Murderous Method.

10.  The Night at the Vulcan  by Ngaio Marsh, 1951. Category 13, Staging the Crime. The action takes place at the Vulcan Theatre.

11. Envious Casca  by Georgette Heyer, 1941. Category 16, Locked Room.

12.  The White Priory Murders  by Carter Dickson, 1934. Category 17, Country House Criminals.

13.  The Mystery of the Hansom Cab  by Fergus Hume, 1886. Category 19, Planes, Trains and Automobiles. This book involves a mode of transportation in a very important way.

14.  Holy Disorders by Edmund Crispin, 1945. The mystery is solved by Oxford professor Gervaise Fen. Category 20. Murder is Academic.

15.  Murder within Murder  by Francis and Richard Lockridge, 1946. Category 25, Dynamic Duos.

16. Seeing is Believing by Carter Dickson, 1941. Category 27, Psychic Phenomena. There is hypnotism involved in the crime.

The Long Divorce by Edmund Crispen: a Review

On his way to the village of Cotten Abbas, Mr. Datchery encounters Penelope Rolt, a very pleasant teen age girl. She tells him about the problem of the anonymous letters which are being sent to the residents of Cotten Abbas. She also tells him that she is in love with the village schoolmaster, Peter Robi, and that Peter is a student of psychology and has been trying to locate the letter writer. Her father certainly does not approve of Penelope's seeing Peter Robi. Following this conversation, Mr. Datchery arrives in Cotten Abbas, and takes a room at The Marlborough Head which is run by Mr. Mogridge. By the way, if the name Mr. Datchery seems familiar, think back to The Mystery of Edwin Drood.

Dr. Helen Downing is a young physician who has purchased her first practice in Cotten Abbas, and is having a hard time of it. People in this small village find it difficult to accept a woman physician. Also, there is a very personable male physician, George Sims, in the village to offer competition. Helen's debts are beginning to pile up. She has made a good friend in Miss Beatrice Keats-Madderly, but Miss Keats-Madderly went to Dr. Sims when she needed medical treatment. Helen had received an anonymous letter, but paid no attention to it. It was a great shock to her when her friend, Miss Keats-Madderly committed suicide apparently because of one of these letters. The letter was found burned and unreadable in the fireplace.


Mr. Datchery had been making his way around the village, and meeting the residents, and finding out about the village hostilities. The new residents of the village were upper middle class, and wished to keep the village a show place of quaint and historic life with no unpleasant additions such the mill which Harry Rolt, Penelope's father, had built. He openly disliked and was disliked by the residents. Datchery also attended the services at the chapel which was headed by Amos Weaver, the village butcher. The chapel was looked down upon by the residents who preferred the Church of England services.

Murder came to the village when Peter Robi's body was found one Sunday morning. Inspector Casby and Constable Burns were in charge of the investigation of this crime. Helen Downing became the chief suspect in this murder and of having been involved in causing the suicide of Miss Keats-Madderly. This was very unfortunate for Inspector Casby because he and Helen had just become engaged.

The reader of Edmund Crispen mysteries has realized by this time that Dr. Datchery is really Oxford professor Gervaise Fen. Colonel Babbington, the chief constable, had requested Fen to come to Cotton Abbas to investigate the anonymous letters. Fen finds the writer and the murderer. with the assistance of Lavender, the cat.

I really enjoyed this book. It is well written, and the characters are well developed. I must admit that I do not know what the title has to do with the book.  It was written in 1951, and has been reissued.

The White Priory Murders by Carter Dickson

Marcia Tait wished to be an actress and got her first acting job in London. She was a flop, and the critics were cruel. So she went to America where a director named Rainger got hold of her, trained her and groomed her. Rainger and a press agent named Emery made Marcia a movie star. Now she has returned to London to appear on the stage again. She will appear in "The Private Life of Charles II" with Jervis Willard. The play was written by history scholar Maurice Bohun and will be produced by his brother John Bohun. That is it will be presented if they can get financial backing from Lord Canifest.

Marcia has been invited to the White Priory which is the home of Maurice Bohun. Also coming are Rainger, Emery, Jervis Willard, and John Bohun and his daughter Katherine. In addition James Bennett has been invited. Bennett is the nephew of the famous detective Sir Henry Merrivale.

The White Priory is a stately home whose most outstanding feature is the pavilion in the lake. The pavilion was built to provide a private spot for meetings of Charles II, and Lady Castelmaine, his mistress. It is surrounded by water, and the only access is by a bridge. In the house itself, there is a secret stairway by which Charles could leave the house without going through the hallways.

The house party takes places in December, and there is snow on the ground when John Bohun discovers  Macia Tait dead in the pavilion where she had insisted on staying. It is early morning, and the only footprints in the snow are those of John going into the pavilion. This is confirmed by Bennett who comes upon the scene slightly later.

The police are called to investigate, and Inspector Humphrey Masters arrives. Then, of course, Sir Henry Merrivale is called in to solve this impossible crime. The members of the party accuse each other of the murder, and try to come up with solutions of how the murder was committed. There are people wandering the halls at night, and the dog, Tempest, which barks or doesn't bark at strategic moments. There are other successful and unsuccessful murder attempts. H. M., of course, clears everything up at the end.

This book was published in 1934, and currently seems to be out of print. Carter Dickson is the pen name of John Dickson Carr.

The 12:30 from Croydon by Freeman Wills Crofts: A review

Charles Swinburn had financial problems. He was head of the Crowther Electromotor Works, and the country was in the midst of a "slump" (recession?). He was quite sincere in his wish not lay off his workers, and he badly needed to buy new machinery so that he could place competitive bids for jobs. He also wanted very much to marry Una Mellon who would not settle for an impoverished man. Charles had put a lot of his own money into the company, he was overdrawn at the bank, and the bank and a moneylender would not loan him any more. As a last resort, Charles appealed to his uncle Andrew Crowther for money. Andrew had been one of the founders of the company, and he had retired with a payment of 190,000 pounds for his share of the company. He was now ill, and somewhat senile. Charles would receive half of Andrew's estate upon Andrew's death, and he wished to borrow against that amount. Charles had hoped for 2000 pounds, but Andrew only gave him 1000 and told him to work harder. Charles decided that the only solution to his problems was to murder Andrew Crowther.

Andrew Crowther died on the 12:30 flight from Croyden. This book presents the elaborate steps which Charles took to murder his uncle in a method which would not be detected. Charles is a sympathetic character. He is an ordinary man who realizes the moral consequences of what he is planning. He also recognizes the need to keep his factory workers employed, and he really loves Una Mellon.

Then Inspector French takes over the case of Andrew's death.  It had been declared a suicide, but the police were not satisfied with this verdict. The result is inevitable.

I really enjoyed this book, and I highly recommend it. Most of the book deals with commission of the crime rather than the detection of the murderer. The reader sees the events through Charles' eyes, and, at times, cheers on his efforts.

This book was published in 1934. It no longer seems to be in print, but used copies are available.

Night at the Vulcan by Ngaio Marsh: A Review

Martyn Tarne came from New Zealand to London hoping to find a career in the theatre. Her money and references were stolen at the dock in London, and now this nineteen year old aspiring actress is hungry and homeless. After fruitlessly trying theatrical agencies, she has found herself at the Vulcan theatre. She takes the job as dresser to Helena Hamilton who is the beautiful leading lady in the latest production.

She meets the people who are involved in this play. There is Adam Poole who is both an actor and manager of the Vulcan. Martyn bears a striking resemblance to Adam, and they are distantly related.  Clark Bennington is the hard drinking husband of Helena Hamilton, but she is much more interested in Adam Poole. Other supporting actors include J. C. Darcy who does character roles, and Parry Percival who is a young and possibly gay. Lastly the cast includes Gay Gainsford who got her role because she was the niece of Clark Bennington. She definitely lacks the skill to do her role successfully. Jacques Dore is an assisstant to Mr. Poole and carries out a great many jobs in the theatre. Dr. John James Rutherford is the dour and demanding author of the play.

The Vulcan theatre has a bad history. Several years earlier when it was named the Jupiter, an actor was murdered by another actor. Adam Poole has renamed it and updated it. Still, some of the actors feel that it has bad vibrations.  On the opening night of the new production, a death of an actor occurs which may be suicide or may be murder.  Enter suave and mannered inspector Roderick Allyn. He had  investigated the first death at this theatre, and is back to find a solution to the latest one.

I thought this a very well written book. The death does not occur until half way through the book which gives the reader enough time to get to know the characters and their relation to each other. For theatre fans, there is a very good description of the rehearsals for the production of this new play.

This book was originally published in 1951. It is now available as an ebook.

Seeing is Believing by Carter Dickson: a review

"One night in midsummer, at Cheltenham in Gloucestershire, Arthur Fane murdered a ninteen-year-old girl named Polly Allen." So goes the opening line of Seeing is Believing which was written by Carter Dickson which is the pen name of John Dickson Carr who is the master of the puzzle mystery.

Two people knew about the murder. Vicky Fane, his wife, who did not tell anyone, and Hubert Fane, his uncle, who began blackmailing Arthur. Vicky was also trying to hide the fact that she was now in love with Captain Frank Sharpless, just as Arthur was growing quite fond of Ann Browning.

Uncle Hubert arranged a dinner party which would include Arthur, Vicky, Frank Sharpless, Ann Browning and himself. He also invited another interesting guest, Dr. Richard Rich, who was a stage hypnotist. After dinner, Dr. Rich hypnotized one of the members of this party, and a murder occured. I will not tell you who was murdered or how they were murdered because this is one the most curious points in the book. Indeed, it was an impossible crime.

Meanwhile, Sir Henry Merrivale is also in Cheltenham, staying with a friend. HM is dictating his rather racy and scandalous autobiography to the ghost writer, Philip Courtney. Philip is a good friend of Frank Sharpless and thus HM is drawn into investigating this crime. While the investigation was going on, other murder attempts were made. These attempts were also very difficult to explain. It took the incredible thinking skills of Sir Henry Merrivale to find the solution to these impossible crimes.

Unfortunately, this book seems to no longer be in print.

Appointment with Death by Agatha Christie: a review

Mrs. Boynton was like an obese, obscene spider sitting in the middle of a web in which the members of her family were trapped. She kept them prisoners by the force of her will. They were discouraged from meeting other people or from going out in the world on their own. She controlled their money so that they could not afford to leave her. There was her stepson Lennox who was married to Nadine. This marriage had been arranged by Mrs. Boynton. She had two other stepchildren, Raymond and Carol. Most disturbing of all was her own daughter Ginevra who seem to be escaping into a fantasy world or a complete mental breakdown.

Mrs. Boynton had brought them all on a trip to Jerusalem. Here they would encounter Sarah King, a young doctor who was attracted to Raymond when they first met. Also they would meet Dr. Gerard, a world famous psychiatrist. Dr. Gerard and Sarah were fascinated and appalled by the Boynton family, and could not resist analyzing their relationships.

Also staying at their hotel, was Lady Westholme who was force in English politics. "She was much respected and universally disliked."  Also, there was Miss Pierce, a vague middle-aged woman, and  a famous Belgium detective, Hercule Poirot.

The Boynton family, Sarah, Dr. Gerard, Lady Westholme and Miss Pierce  set off to view the sights of Petra. It was a challenging trip in the 1930's and the traveler could choose to stay in a tent or a cave. On one afternoon, the members of the Boynton family except for Mrs. Boynton and Ginevra set out on a walk to view the sites. Mrs. Boyton was much too large and old to undertake this exercise, and remained behind sitting at the entrance to her cave. She was still sitting here when the members of the group returned. When a servant was dispatched to call Mrs. Boynton to dinner, he found that she was dead.

It was very possible that Mrs. Boynton died of a heart attack, but Colonel Carbury of the police suspects that she was murdered. He calls upon Hercule Poirot to investigate, and Poirot has one day to find the murderer. Poirot interviews all the people who were there on that afternoon. He, of course, arrives at the correct and well reasoned solution of the problem.

This book was published in 1937, and is still available in print and as an ebook.

Mount TBR Reading Challenge 2014

I am so glad to see this challenge. I will only sign up for the Pike's Peak level which will make a small dent in my TBR pile but that will be something that is badly needed. The rules are given below. For more information, see My Reader's Block.

Challenge Levels:

Pike's Peak: Read 12 books from your TBR pile/s
Mount Blanc: Read 24 books from your TBR pile/s
Mt. Vancouver: Read 36 books from your TBR pile/s
Mt. Ararat: Read 48 books from your TBR piles/s
Mt. Kilimanjaro: Read 60 books from your TBR pile/s
El Toro: Read 75 books from your TBR pile/s
Mt. Everest: Read 100 books from your TBR pile/s
Mount Olympus (Mars): Read 150+ books from your TBR pile/s

And the rules:
*Once you choose your challenge level, you are locked in for at least that many books. If you find that you're on a mountain-climbing roll and want to tackle a taller mountain, then you are certainly welcome to upgrade.  All books counted for lower mountains may carry over towards the new peak.

*Challenge runs from January 1 to December 31, 2014.

*You may sign up anytime from now until November 30th, 2014.

*Books must be owned by you prior to January 1, 2014. No ARCs (none), no library books. No rereads. [To clarify--based on a question raised last year--the intention is to reduce the stack of books that you have bought for yourself or received as presents {birthday, Christmas, "just because," etc.}. Audiobooks and E-books may count if they are yours and they are one of your primary sources of backlogged books.]
*You may count any "currently reading" book that you begin prior to January 1--provided that you had 50% or more of the book left to finish in 2014.  I will trust you all on that.

*Books may be used to count for other challenges as well.

*Feel free to submit your list in advance (as incentive to really get those books taken care of) or to tally them as you climb.


*There will be quarterly check-ins and prize drawings!

*A blog and reviews are not necessary to participate. If you have a blog, then please post a challenge sign up and link THAT post (not your home page) into the linky below. Non-bloggers, please leave a comment declaring your challenge level--OR, if you are a member of Goodreads, I will once again put together a group for the challenge there. Feel free to sign up HERE.  And, finally, I will once again have a sidebar link for Progress Reports-->  ***Coming Soon: Reviews may  be posted at links found at Review Headquarters (click link).

Books Read for this challenge:

1. A Talent for War by Jack McDevitt

2. Matter by Iain Banks

3. Burning Paradise by Robert Charles Wilson

4. Full Dark House by Christopher Fowler

5. The Cassandra Project by Jack McDevitt and Mike Resnick

6. The Magnificent Ambersons by Booth Tarkington

7. Adam and Eve on a Raft: Mystery Stories by Ron Goulart

8. Winesburg, Ohio by Sherwood Anderson

9. Cocaine Blues by Kerry Greenwood

10. The Gilded Nightmare by Hugh Pentecost

11. Fen Country by Edmund Crispin

12. The Human Division by John Scalzi

Vintage Mystery Bingo Challenge 2014

I will join the 2014 Golden Mystery Bingo Challenge.  This is hosted by Bev at My Reader's Block. The rules are given below.

* All books must be from the mystery category (crime fiction, detective fiction, espionage, etc.).  The mystery/crime must be the primary feature of the book--ghost stories, paranormal, romance, humor, etc are all welcome as ingredients, but must not be the primary category under which these books would be labeled at the library or bookstore.

*Challengers may play either the Silver Age or Golden Age Card—or both.  For the purposes of this challenge, the Golden Age Vintage Mysteries must have been first published before 1960. Golden Age short story collections (whether published pre-1960 or not) are permissible provided all of the stories included in the collection were originally written pre-1960.  Please remember that some of our Golden Age Vintage authors wrote well after 1959--so keep an eye on the original publication date and apply them to the appropriate card.  Silver Age Vintage Mysteries may be first published any time from 1960 to 1989 (inclusive).  Again, Silver Age short story collections published later than 1989 are permissible as long as they feature stories first published during the declared Silver Age years and include no stories first published later than 1989.  Yes, I admit my dates are arbitrary and may not exactly meet standard definitions of Golden or Silver Age.

*Challenge runs from January 1, 2014 to December 31, 2014. Sign up any time between now and November 30, 2014.  Any books read from January 1 on may count regardless of your sign-up date. If you have a blog, please post about the challenge and a little bit about your commitment—if you’re going Silver or Gold…or maybe some of each. Then sign up via one of the linkys found below. And please make the url link to your Challenge post and not your home page. (Links that do not follow this rule will be removed.)  If you decide to go for broke and try to score on both cards, you only need sign up once--pick a card, any card for your link.

*One Free Space per card—you may use your Free Space to cover any spot on the board.  The Free Space book must fulfill one of the categories from the card, but it may fulfill ANY space you like—even a category you have already fulfilled.   For example…if you are having trouble finding a book to meet the “mode of transportation” category, but you really need that space to complete a BINGO then you may read a book that meets any other category on the board and use your Free Space to claim the “mode of transportation” space.

*No double-counting.  A book may not count for both the original category (say, "Woman in the Title") and as the Free Space to replace "mode of transportation."  A second "Woman in the Title" would need to be read to complete the Free Space and replace "mode of transportation."

*BINGOS may be claimed by completing all spaces in a row--horizontally, vertically, or diagonally.  You may also claim a “Four Corner” BINGO by reading a book for each of the four corners plus two more spaces—any two.  A valid BINGO must have six complete spaces.

*Any challenger who completes one BINGO will be entered in a drawing at the end of the year.  Any challenger who completes two or more BINGOs (either from the same card or BINGOs from each card) will automatically be offered a prize from the prize list.  Any challenger who covers a card by completing all categories will automatically be offered a prize from the prize list (as referred to in the "two or more BINGOs" section) PLUS a special surprise bonus.

*The categories are open for interpretation.  Many of these categories were featured in the 2013 version of the challenge and it may help to refer to the 2013 Challenge List.  If you have doubts whether a potential book will meet a category, please email me at phryne1969 AT gmail DOT com.  The “Out of Your Comfort Zone” is absolutely up to you.  For me—that will most likely mean hard-boiled or spy/thriller—but if that’s what you prefer, then you might go for a nice cozy mystery.  *Borrow = from the library, from a friend, using free electronic downloads. In my world “own” means that you have purchased the book (preferably hard copy—but that’s just me, :-)  ) or received it as a present. For more information, see My Reader's Block

Books Read for the Golden Vintage Mystery Bingo Challenge:

G1 The Woman in Black by Leslie Ford. A book with a color in the title.

G2 Colour Scheme by Ngaio Marsh. Read one book set anywhere except the U.S. or England.

G3 The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins. A book that features a crime other than murder.

G4  The Case of the Constant Suicides by John Dickson Carr. A locked room mystery.

G5 Old Hall, New Hall by Michael Innes. An academic mystery.

G6 Enter a Murderer by Ngaio Marsh. A book set in the entertainment world.

O1 Look to the Lady by Margery Allingham. A book published under more than one title.

O2 The 9 Dark Hours by Lenore Glen Offord. A book with a number in the title.

O3 Too Many Cooks by Rex Stout. A book which features food/cooks in some way.

O4 Meat for Murder by Lange Lewis. A book by an author I've never read before.

O5 Poison in Jest by John Dickson Carr. A book with a method of murder in the title.

O6 The Vanishing of Betty Varian by Carolyn Wells. A book with a woman in the title.

L1 Haunted Lady by Mary Robert Rinehart. A book with a "spooky" title.

L2 The Odor of Violets by Baynard Kendrick. A book that has been made into a movie.

L3 Bodies in a Bookshop by R. T. Campbell. A book with an amateur detective.

L4 The Case of William Smith by Patricia Wentworth. A book with a man in the title.

L5 The Clue of the Judas Tree by Leslie Ford. A country house mystery.

L6 The After House  by Mary Roberts Rinehart. A book which involves a mode of transportation (a yacht).

D1 Final Curtain by Ngaio Marsh. A book by an author that I have read before.

D2 The Case of the Velvet Claws by Erle Stanley Gardner. A book with a lawyer.

D3 Mr. Bazalgette's Agent by Leonard Merrick. A book which has been read by a fellow challenger.

D4 One Man Show by Michael Innes. A book with a professional detective.

D5 Fatal Venture by Freeman Wills Crofts. A book which involves water.

D6 The Great Impersonation by E. Phillips Oppenheim. A book outside my comfort zone.

E1 Death Takes a Bow by Richard and Francis Lockridge. A book with a detective team.

E2 Spring Harrowing by Phoebe Atwood Taylor. A book with a time, day, month, etc. in the title.

E3 Pietr the Latvian by Georges Simenon. A book that is translated.

E4 The Old Man in the Corner  by Baroness Orczy. A short story collection.

E5 Murder Underground by Mavis Doriel Hay. A book set in England.

E6 Murder is Served by Francis and Richard Lockridge. A book which I had to borrow.

N1 The Murderer is a Fox by Ellery Queen.  A book with an animal in the title.

N2 The Lake District Murder by John Bude. A book with a place in the title.

N3 The Tall House Mystery by A. E. Fielding. A book with a size in the title.

N4 While the Patient Slept by Mignon G. Eberhart.  A book which features a doctor or nurse.

N5 There's Trouble Brewing by Nicholas Blake. A book written by an author with a pseudonym.

N6 The Benson Murder Case by S. S. Van Dine. A book set in the United States.

Review: The Queen's Gambit by Diane A. S. Stuckart

In Milan in 1483, the duke. Ludovico Sforza has ordered his court engineer, Leonardo da Vinci, to prepare for a living chess match. During the match, one of the "pieces", the Conte de Ferrara is murdered. Ludovico, who does not trust his close associates, charges Leonardo to find out who the murderer is.

Leonardo is assisted in his detective work by his young apprentice Dino. Dino is actually Delfina della Fazia, a young woman who has run away from home to become an artist and to avoid marriage. She is pretending to be a young man because she knows that a woman would not be accepted as an apprentice to Leonardo or any other artist.  Her disguise must be carefully maintained because she lives and works with Leonardo's other young male apprentices.

This book is narrated by Dino. It is through her eyes that we see Leonardo and the activities of his apprentices as they prepare to do a mural on the last supper of Christ which will be in the monk's dining hall.  Leonardo's inventions will also play a part in the story.

The reader will learn about all types of people at the court of Milan. Unfortunately we do not learn much about the murdered man which makes it a little difficult to speculate on reasons why he would be killed. The personalities of Leonardo's apprentices and the members of the court whom Leonardo interviews are well drawn. There is also an look at the complicated diplomatic situation at this moment in Renaissance history.


I do recommend this book. It will appeal to mystery readers with an interest in the Renaissance or in art history.

The Mystery of the Hansom Cab by Fergus Hume

Fergus Hume was born in New Zealand, but moved to Melbourne, Australia. He was determined to be a dramatist, but the managers of Melbourne theaters did not like his plays. So Hume decided to write a novel. He asked booksellers which novels sold best. Hume was told that the mystery novels of Emile Gaboriau were selling well so he bought all of these books, read them, and decided to write a mystery containing "a mystery, a murder, and a description of low life in Melbourne". In 1886, The Mystery of the Hansom Cab" was published and it became one of the best selling mystery novels of the 19th century. He went on to write other mysteries, but none was as popular as this one.

Late on one Thursday evening, a very drunken Oliver Whyte collapsed on the sidewalk. According to the cabman, a man in a light brown coat came along, hailed his cab, and put Whyte into it, and then the man walked away only to return and get into the cab with Whyte. Later, when the cab reached St. Kilda Road, the man in the brown coat got out, and gave the cab man an address to take Whyte to. When the cab man reached this address, he opened the door of his cab to let his passenger out, and found Whyte dead from cloroform poisoning.

Oliver Whyte and Brian Fitzgerald were rivals for the affections of Madge Frettlby, the daughter of a very wealthy Australian land owner. It was found that Brian Fitzgerald was the man in the brown coat who initially hailed the cab. Fitzgerald denied that he was the man who got into the cab with Whyte.

There are two detectives and several other people who are friends of Fitzgerald  investigating this sensational Melbourne murder.  The investigation does reach from the slums of the city to one of the wealthiest families in the city. It gives an interesting picture of what life was like in Melbourne in the late 1800's. The locations in the city are accurate and you can use Google maps to follow the action.

Hume is a good and very witty writer.  Despite its age, this book is well worth reading as both a classic of the early mystery novel, and for the story itself. It is available as an e-book.

Spinsters in Jeopardy by Ngaio Marsh

Chief Detective Inspector Roderick Alleyn is on his way to Roqueville, France to do a bit of undercover detecting. He is also combining business with pleasure, and has brought his wife, Troy, and his five year old son Ricky to this beautiful part of France. Troy also plans while they are there to visit her cousin M. P.E. Garbel whom she does not remember, but who has been writing rather peculiar letters to her.

While they are still on the train to Roqueville, Troy and Alleyn see a very strange event through a window of a chateau by the side of the train track. The conductor tells them that this is the Chateau de la Chevre d'Argent This the place which Alleyn has come to investigate. On the morning on which they are to arrive at Roqueville, Miss Truebody, one of the passengers, has an attack of apendicitis. She is taken from the train. Alleyn finds that the town doctor is away at a medical conference, and that the only doctor nearby is Dr. Baradi who is a resident of the mysterious Chateau of la Chevre d'Argent. He hires a car driven by Raul Milano to take Miss Truebody, and the Alleyns to the Chateau.

Dr. Baradi is a rather suspicious looking Egyptian, but  appears to be a very competent physician. He operates on Miss Truebody in a makeshift operating room with the assistance of Alleyn and Raul. Meanwhile, Troy and Ricky meet some of the other occupants of the Chateau. There is Mr. Oberon who owns the chateau, an actress, an artist, and a young couple. All in all,  this seems to be a place offering spiritual advice to the well-to-do, and the famous.

The story becomes more complex and many questions may be asked.  What are the religious rites at the Chateau? What is actually being done there? Will Alleyn's undercover identity be revealed and his true occupation become know? Where does Ricky go? Who is Troy's mysterious cousin? What did Troy and Alleyn see from the train window? Who are the spinsters who are in jeopary?

This book was first published in 1953. Used copies are available at Amazon. A 1960 printing has the title "Spinsters in Jeopardy: A Fresh Victim for the Black Mass" which gives you a clue about what is going on.

Review: Octagon House by Phoebe Atwood Taylor

Quanomet was a forgotten hamlet on Cape Cod. While other towns on the Cape had flourished, Quanomet had gone down hill. Then Quanomet gained a brand new large post office, and in that post office was a mural which made every citizen either laugh or grow very angry because it was filled with caricatures of the leading citizens of the town. The mural had been painted by Jack Lorne, with the possible assistance of his wife Marina. Quite possibly it might have been the reason why Marina was found stabbed to death with a knife which belonged to her sister Pam Frye.

Enter Asey Mayo who had been called "The Hayseed Sherlock" and The "Homespun Sleuth" by the newspapers who had reported on crimes which he has solved. He was a good friend of Pam Frye who had just had come into a great piece of luck. She had found a very large piece of ambergris on the shore. This ambergris would bring in enough money to solve the financial problems of Pam and her father. Unfortunately, Marina, who was greedy and selfish, also knew about the ambergris and wanted a very large amount if not all of the money. Then the ambergris  disappeared. Pam had hidden it, and somebody else had found the hiding place and stolen it.

Asey uses his folksy ways and knowledge of the area to try to solve both the murder and to locate the ambergris. There will also be another murder, and some fires. This book is a cozy written in 1937. The characters are curious and the descriptions of the crimes is rather mild. Octagon houses were built in the United States starting in 1850, and there is still one existing in Barnstable on Cape Cod.

The book has been reissued by Foul Play Press, and is available at Amazon.

Review: The Four False Weapons by John Dickson Carr

A revolver, a razor, a stiletto, and poison were all found at the murder scene. The master of mystery John Dickson Carr combines  these elements into a mystery novel of great complexity.

Ralph Douglas had in the past a romantic relationship with Rose Klonec; they had their affair at the Villa Marbre near Paris. But the affair ended, and Ralph now wants to marry Magda Toller. Ralph has reasons to suspect that something strange is going on at the now deserted Villa. His London lawyer, Richard Curtis, come to Paris to help with the investigation. When Ralph and Richard go to the Villa Marbre, they find the villa has indeed been used lately, and they find the body of Rose Klonec who has been murdered.

There are too many weapons and too many clues. The master detective Bencolin comes out of retirement to take on the case. He was living on land that he owned near the Villa, and was devoting his retirement to reading mind-improving books. He says "I am at present in the midst of an epic poem which is devoted chiefly to repeating every line three times. It appears to concern a Red Indian family living near a place incredibly called Gitchee-Gumee" No wonder he was eager to undertake the solution of this mystery.

The list of suspects grows as it was found that Rosa Klonec had a secret occupation. The Paris newspapers print interesting solutions to the crime. Especially curious are the articles which are signed Auguste Dupin. Several alternate solutions are proposed, and the suspense builds up to a game of cards at the smoked filled  Corpses Club, a gambling establishment for the very wealthy.

This is book for the reader who like complicated puzzle mysteries. It also give an interesting look at the techniques of scientific investigation in 1937. The card player will find the rules of the card game of Basset which is called the game of kings because only the incredibly wealthy could afford to play it.

The book was published in 1937. A modern reprinting does not seem to available.

Review: The White Cottage Mystery by Margery Allingham

The White Cottage Mystery is Margery Allingham's first detective story. The story was written as a serial which appeared in the Daily Express. As a serial, each publication included a segment which recapitulated events in the story. Joyce Allingham, Margery's sister, edited the serial and removed these recapituations, and  The White Cottage Mystery was published in book form in 1928. The first Campion novel, The Crime at Black Dudley, was published in 1929.

The story has several elements which would make it a good serial in its day. The murder victim, Eric Crowther, the victim of a shotgun blast, is so obnoxious and evil that everybody is pleased with his death. As part of his personal psychological experiments, he had threatened and intimidated his employees and the Christensen family who live in the White Cottage which is the house next to Crowther's. There is mention of a group of wealthy people who are involved in stealing art, and a mysterious Italian who runs away at a critical moment. Much of the story takes place in France. The mystery is investigated by Detective Chief Inspector W. T. Challoner and his son Jerry. Challoner is challenged by the facts that everybody wanted Crowther dead, and that he cannot find any evidence that any of them actually did the crime. The solution of the crime is indeed unexpected.

This book will mainly be enjoyed by fans of Margery Allingham who wish to read her very early work. It has been reissued and is available at Amazon in paperback and e-book formats.

Review: Murder within Murder by Francis and Richard Lockridge

"Miss Amelia Gipson presented a firm front to the world; she stood for no nonsense" Miss Gipson was a full-figured fifty two year old woman. She had firm moral opinions, and she had no hesitation in pointing out the moral failures of others. Indeed, she felt that it was her moral duty to point out the laxity of others

She had left her position as a professor of Latin at Ward College, a New England woman's college. She was now living in New York city, and was employed at North Books as a researcher. She was doing research for a book, My Favorite Murder, in which each chapter would deal with a well known murder, and would be written by a different author. Miss Gipson was doing research for three of the chapters.  It was the evening of Sept. 11th when she was poisoned in the New York Public Library while working on research for the Purdy poisoning case.

There were several possible suspects in the case. Miss Gipson managed the trust fund for her niece and nephew, both of whom had a reason to wish her dead. It could have been someone from the days when she taught at Ward College. It could be someone involved in one of
the old murder cases which she was researching who was afraid that she would unearth something incriminating.

Lieutenant Bill Weigand of the New York is assigned to the case, and Pam and Jerry North assist him. I found it difficult to believe that suspects would answer police questions with Pam and Jerry present,

This book was written in 1946, and the effects of the war still exist. Best of all is the efforts of Pam to make butter from whipping cream since it was so difficult butter at a store.

Review: Ride the Pink Horse by Dorothy B. Hughes

 

Sailor has come from Chicago to a small city (Santa Fe?) in New Mexico to get money from the Sen who is ex-senator Willis Douglas of Illinois. In the past, Sailor had worked for the Sen as his secretary.

Sailor arrives in the city and discovers that the Fiesta is going on. He cannot find a hotel room; they are all filled for the fiesta. Leaving his heavy suitcase at the desk at one of the hotels, he goes out to see the Fiesta and find the Sen. He walks into a world that he does not understand. There are Hispanics, Indians, and Gringos. They are speaking Spanish which he doesn't understand.

The descriptions are wonderful. The smell, the noise, the crowd pushing and shoving, the cheapness of everything, and the enjoyment the crowd seems to find in it all. Sailor comes to an old hand-operated Merry-Go-Round called Tio Vivo and meets the owner whom he calls Pancho. Pancho is an indian and will later in the book become a friend of Sailor.

Sailor also encounters McIntyre, a policeman from Chicago, who is here to watch the Sen. He is here to find out who murdered the senator's wife. McIntyre has gotten a fiesta costume of a red sash and a black hat with baubles. He seems to be everywhere and sees everything that Sailor does.

Sailor is isolated and afraid. He has no place to spend the night, he doesn't understand the people or the language. He is caught between his disdain of the poor people at the Fiesta, and his hatred of the rich people who have rooms at the best hotel in the city. He is afraid of both the Sen and McIntyre. He puts his faith in the revolver that he clutches in the right pocket of his jacket.

This is an excellent Noir novel. It was published in 1946. It has been reissued and is available at Amazon. It was made into a movie in 1947 which starred Robert Montgomery.

Review: Envious Casca by Georgette Heyer

Ah, Christmas - snow, mistletoe, bickering, fighting, dislike, distrust. This is the scene at Lexham Manor, the home of wealthy Nathaniel Herriard. His optimistic, cheerful brother Joseph has organized a Christmas party to bring together members of the family. There is his nephew Stephen who has brought his fiance Valerie. There is his niece Paula, an aspiring actress, who has brought Willoughby Royden, an aspiring writer of drama. Actually,  he has written only one play. Paula hopes to star in it, and also hopes Uncle Nathaniel will provide money to produce it. Added to this group is Mathilda Clare, a distant cousin, and Edgar Mottisfort, Nathaniel's business partner. And also, one of the most curious members of the group, Maud, Joseph's wife, who is bland, speaks very little, and is very, very fond of reading books about the life of royals.

Hostilities among the members of the group grow as Christmas Eve progresses culminating in the reading of Royden's play in the evening. Nathaniel hates the play and angrily goes off to his room where he is found dead the next morning. He had been stabbed in a room with all of the doors locked and the windows closed and difficult to reach. Scotland Yard is contacted, and Inspector Hemingway and Sargent Ware arrive to find the murderer.

This book is a gem. This book is worth reading just for the witty dialogue. Clues to who did it and how it was done are there, and the diligent reader may figure this out before Inspector Hemingway does.

This book was published in 1941. It has been reissued and is available on Amazon.

Vintage Mystery Reading Challenge: 2013

The Challenge is to read from 8 or more vintage mystery novels during the year 2013. These books must be from the Scattergories which have been defined by the clever person who issued this challenge. All books must be vintage as defined as having published before 1960.

More information may be found at the My Reader's Block Blog

Vintage Scattergories:

1. Colorful Crime: a book with a color or reference to color in the title
2. Murder by the Numbers: a book with a number, quantity in the title
3. Amateur Night: a book with a "detective" who is not a P.I.; Police Officer; Official Investigator (Nurse Keate, Father Brown, Miss Marple, etc.)
4. Leave It to the Professionals: a book featuring cops, private eyes, secret service, professional spies, etc.
5. Jolly Old England: one mystery set in Britain
6. Yankee Doodle Dandy: one mystery set in the United States
7. World Traveler: one mystery set in any country except the US or Britain
8. Dangerous Beasts: a book with an animal in the title (The Case of the Grinning Gorilla; The Canary Murder Case; etc.)
9. A Calendar of Crime: a mystery with a date/holiday/year/month/etc. in the title (Hercule Poirot's Christmas, Holiday Homicide, etc.)
10. Wicked Women: a book with a woman in the title--either by name (Mrs. McGinty's Dead) or by reference (The Case of the Vagabound Virgin)
11. Malicious Men: a book with a man in the title--either by name (Maigret & the Yellow Dog) or by reference (The Case of the Haunted Husband)
12. Murderous Methods : a book with a means of death in the title (The Noose, 5 Bullets, Deadly Nightshade, etc).
13. Staging the Crime: a mystery set in the entertainment world (the theater, musical event, a pageant, Hollywood, featuring a magician, etc)
14. Scene of the Crime: a book with the location of the crime in the title (The Body in the Library, Murder at the Vicarage, etc.)
15. Cops & Robbers: a book that features a theft rather than murder
16. Locked Rooms: a locked-room mystery
17. Country House Criminals: a standard (or not-so-standard) Golden Age country house murder
18. Murder on the High Seas: a mystery involving water
19. Planes, Trains & Automobiles: a mystery that involves a mode of transportation in a vital way--explicitly in the title (Murder on the Orient Express) or by implication (Death in the Air; Death Under Sail) or perhaps the victim was shoved under a bus....
20. Murder Is Academic: a mystery involving a scholar, teacher, librarian, etc.  OR set at a school, university, library, etc.
21. Things That Go Bump in the Night: a mystery with something spooky, creepy, gothic in the title (The Skeleton in the Clock, Haunted Lady, The Bat, etc.)
22. Repeat Offenders: a mystery featuring your favorite series detective or by your favorite author (the books/authors you'd read over and over again) OR reread an old favorite
23. The Butler Did It...Or Not: a mystery where the butler is the victim, the sleuth....(gasp) the criminal....or is just downright memorable for whatever reason.
24. A Mystery By Any Other Name: any book that has been published under more than one title (Murder Is Easy--aka Easy to Kill [Christie]; Fog of Doubt--aka London Particular [Christianna Brand], etc.)
25. Dynamic Duos: a mystery featuring a detective team--Holmes & Watson, Pam & Jerry North, Wolfe & Goodwin, or....a little-known team that you introduce to us.
26. Size Matters: a book with a size or measurement in the title (Death Has a Small Voice, The Big Four, The Weight of the Evidence, etc.)
27. Psychic Phenomena: a mystery featuring a seance, medium, hypnotism, or other psychic or "supernatural" characters/events
28. Book to Movie: one vintage mystery that has appeared on screen (feature film or TV movie).
29. The Old Bailey: a courtroom drama mystery (Perry Mason, anyone? Witness for the Prosecution...etc.) OR a mystery featuring a judge, lawyer, barrister, D.A., etc.

The books which I have read so far:

The White Cottage Mystery  by Margery Allingham, 1928. Category 1, Colorful Crime.

Four False Weapons  by John Dickson Carr, 1937. Category 2, Murder by the Numbers.

The Long Divorce  by Edmund Crispen, 1951. Category 4, Jolly Old England.

The 12:30 from Croydon  by Freeman Wills Crofts, 1934. Category 5, Leave it to the Professionals. Inspector French investigates.

Octagon House  by Phoebe Atwood Taylor,  1937. Category 6, Yankee Doodle Dandy.

Appointment with Death  by Agatha Christie, 1937. Category 7, World Traveler. This book is set in Palestine and Jordan.

Ride the Pink Horse by Dorothy B. Hughes, 1946. Category 8,  Dangerous Beasts.

Spinsters in Jeopardy  by Ngaio Marsh, 1953. Category 10, Wicked Women.

Behold, Here's Poison  by Georgette Heyer, 1936. Category 12, Murderous Method.

The Night at the Vulcan  by Ngaio Marsh, 1951. Category 13, Staging the Crime. The action takes place at the Vulcan Theatre.

Envious Casca  by Georgette Heyer, 1941. Category 16, Locked Room.

The White Priory Murders  by Carter Dickson, 1934. Category 17, Country House Criminals.

The Mystery of the Hansom Cab  by Fergus Hume, 1886. Category 19, Planes, Trains and Automobiles. This book involves a mode of transportation in a very important way.

Holy Disorders by Edmund Crispin, 1945. The mystery is solved by Oxford professor Gervaise Fen. Category 20. Murder is Academic.

Murder within Murder  by Francis and Richard Lockridge, 1946. Category 25, Dynamic Duos.

Seeing is Believing by Carter Dickson, 1941. Category 27, Psychic Phenomena. There is hypnotism involved in the crime.

Review: Behold, Here's Poison by Georgette Heyer

Georgette Heyer is best know for her romances set in the regency period. She also wrote 12 mystery novels which are in the style of the English country house mystery. These books are witty and well plotted.

In Behold, Here's Poison, Gregory Matthews, wealthy head of the Matthews family, dies from a dose of poison. He leaves behind a group of relatives who do not seem to be grieving because of his death. His sister, Miss Matthews, continues in her very economical running of the house. His sister, Mrs. Lupton continues to lord it over the rest of the family. His sister-in-law, Mrs. Matthews, continues to do very little. His niece Stella still plans to marry Dr. Fielding; Gregory Matthews was much opposed to this alliance. His nephew, Guy, is much relieved because Gregory was planning to send him to work in the family business in Brazil, and Guy did not want to go. And then there is Randall Matthews who is cynical, insulting, but well dressed, and despised by the rest of the family. Randall stands to inherit most of Gregory's money, but Randall could not have done the murder.

Into this family setting come Superintendent Hannasyde and Sargent Hemmingway. They find the family to be very unhelpful, and rather unwilling to find the murderer. The nature of the poison and the method of administering it also present difficult problems. In the end, the case is cleared up in some unexpected ways.

If you enjoy country house mysteries, this book is your cup of tea. The book was originally published in 1936. It is still available at Amazon.

Review: The Deadly Joker by Nicholas Blake

John Waterson and his wife Jenny move from Oxford to what they believe will be a peaceful and relaxing life in the village of Netherplash Cantorum.  Life there is not what they expected because of the actions of practical joker. First there is an annoying cuckoo in the night. Then writing on the wall of a room in their new home followed by poison pen letters to several residents of the village.  Several more unpleasant events occur and a murder results.

Some of the problems in the village arise from the bad feelings between Alwyn and Bertie Card who had been the owners of the large manor in the village. They had fallen on hard financial times and sold the manor to wealthy Ronald Paston  and his very beautiful Indian wife Vera.  Matters are not helped by Bertie who will chase any attractive woman in sight. John Waterson becomes quite upset when members of his own family are drawn into this unpleasant situation, and sets out to find the joker and the murderer.

This is a conventional British mystery written in 1959. Nicholas Blake is the pen name of Cecil Day-Lewis who was a poet laureate of England from 1968 to 1972.