google-site-verification: googlef64103236b9f4855.html Philly Reader: December 2013

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

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.


Monday, December 9, 2013

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.

Friday, December 6, 2013

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.

Tuesday, December 3, 2013

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.