Wednesday, April 14, 2021

#1936Club: Murder in Piccadilly

This is my second post for the 1936 Club hosted by Simon at Stuck in a Book and Karen at Kaggsy's Bookish Ramblings. There are so many good books published in 1936, it is hard to choose just one or two. This one was reprinted by the British Library, and available in the US from Poisoned Pen Press. The cover illustration is gorgeous.

Murder in Piccadilly tells the story of a young man, Bobbie Cheldon, who has expectations of inheriting the family estate and a large income when his uncle dies. The hitch is that his uncle, Massy Cheldon, is healthy and and could easily live another 20 years.

Bobbie has been spoiled by his mother, Ruby, so he is not interested in working and not prepared for a job. He daydreams about his uncle dying (sooner than expected) so that he can get his inheritance while he is still young.

Bobbie's desire for more money becomes more important when he falls in love with a nightclub performer in a London nightclub. She has made it clear that she will not marry a man without money. Some of her friends start plotting the uncle's death, hoping to gain from it.

My thoughts...

This was a good picture of London in the 1930s. I liked the big city setting, especially the depiction of the less well-to-do London environments. The contrast between Uncle Massy's luxurious lifestyle and the extremely reduced circumstances that Bobbie and his mother live in is interesting. 

This story is a variation on the inverted mystery, even though the death doesn't take place until midway into the story. We don't know who did it, but we know who is planning the crime. That is not unique, but I liked that the structure of the story is a bit different. 

For most of this book I was on the fence about whether I liked it or not. The characters were portrayed well, but the majority of them were unsympathetic, and there was no one character that I liked or cared about. Even so, I did enjoy a lot of the conversations and scheming of the characters. When there finally is a murder, Chief Inspector Wake of Scotland Yard takes on the challenging case. However, he is not a major player in the story.

Ruby's machinations to convince her brother-in-law to help Bobbie out are both humorous and painful. Massy, though miserly, is not a mean person. He just doesn't approve of Bobbie wanting others to support his lifestyle and he points out that if Bobbie had a job, he and his mother could afford better lodgings, etc.

The story moves fairly slowly at times, but the slower pace is to be expected in vintage mysteries. And I often enjoy that. In this case I wanted the story to pick up and move on. 

Yet in the end there was a marvelous twist, delivered in a very realistic and entertaining way, which made up for any quibbles. At least for me.

After reading this book, I would like to read more of Charles Kingston's books, especially more in the Chief Inspector Wake series. I am interested in whether Wake has a larger role in later books.


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Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press, 2015 (orig. pub. 1936)
Length:    305 pages
Format:    Trade paperback
Series:     Chief Inspector Wake #1
Setting:    London
Genre:     Mystery
Source:    On my TBR piles since 2015.


24 comments:

CLM said...

Good choice, and what an attractive cover! We could have many posts on the subject of whether one can like a book when the characters are unappealing. Sometimes the answer is no but when an author provides a picture of an era (as this one clearly does) can really capture the imagination.

I wish the library had more of these books. I want to support the series but I am trying not to buy too many books while I have tuition to pay.

TracyK said...

I agree, Constance, that is a good subject for discussion. I know that unlikable characters affects my enjoyment of a book but I am sure that there are cases where the characters can be both unlikable and interesting. But generally I like to have someone to root for, some outcome to look forward to.

The British Library Crime Classics are not terribly expensive, but I cannot afford to pay full price for many of them. Many of the copies we have were purchased at the Planned Parenthood book sale and usually cost under $5. This one I got at the local independent bookstore though.

pattinase (abbott) said...

I don't mind unlikable characters at all as long as they are interesting and the writing is good. In fact, if all the characters are likable I find it dull. Why I can never read cozies, I guess.

Margot Kinberg said...

I know what you mean, Tracy, about unsympathetic characters. I prefer stories to have at least one character I care about; still, it sounds as though there are things to like about this one. It is nice when a story gives a really clear picture of a time and place.

Kate said...

I enjoyed this one too, though it has been years since I have read it. It made me want to try more by Kingston also, but I have not tracked down anything else by him. Hopefully he might get reprinted some more.

TracyK said...

Patti, I am not sure why I was so bothered about these characters. Because all of them were after money? Certainly not many of them were truly bad. And I saw no ending that would redeem the situation. Maybe it is my need for a "happy" ending.

TracyK said...

Margot, I was glad I stuck with this one. I usually don't give up on books, especially ones from this time period. And end the end it was a rewarding read overall.

TracyK said...

Kate, it doesn't look like it is easy to find more books by him. What a shame, I should like to give him another try sometime.

Lark said...

My library has a bunch of these British Library Crime Classics and I've really been enjoying them. Even the more slowly plotted ones. :)

Katrina said...

I enjoyed this one too despite the fact that it takes quite a while for the murder to occur. I thought it was very atmospheric. I haven't managed to get a hold of any other books by the author though.

(Diane) Bibliophile By the Sea said...

Just popped over from Judith's blog and see you have read some very different mysteries. I jotted a fe down and wanted to check out them out more on this dreary New England day. Hope you have a nice weekend Tracy.

TracyK said...

Lark, there are some new-to-me authors featured in the British Library Crime Classics reprints that I want to try, so I need to start reading more of the ones on my shelves. Another thing I like about these vintage mysteries is the length... never too long.

TracyK said...

Katrina, I fear getting more books by this author is going to be harder than I thought. Oh well, I never know when one will show up at a sale.

TracyK said...

Diane, thanks so much for stopping by. Not dreary here today, but I often like overcast skies and am looking forward to the marine layer of low clouds and fog that we often get in Southern California in May and June.

My son is getting his first vaccination today so I am very happy and I think this will be a great weekend.

Rick Robinson said...

Sometimes, too slow is a problem for me with these. I didn't finish The Man Who Didn't Fly by Margot Bennett for precisely that reason, it seemed to go on and on with no reward for the reader in sight, and I just didn't care for the characters, especially the main one. This sounds similar, though by a different author. I think I'll give this one a skip.

TracyK said...

Rick, I like your description: "with no reward for the reader in sight." I think you are making the right choice for you. I liked the ending, but not sure that would make a difference to other readers.

Simon T [StuckinaBook] said...

Oo glad this was such a success. My British Library Crime Classics choice was less wonderful, so wish I'd chosen this one instead - but can still read it, of course. I love it when they come together.

Kathy's Corner said...

Murder in Piccadilly sounds like a book I will be reading. The plot, a wealthy man/woman murdered and the suspects being relatives fighting over the inheritance, may be common in the world of mystery novels but that's because it works so well. The writer can delve into each of the suspects. Why they want the money so badly and why they haven't bothered to live their own lives but instead have placed all their hopes on the inheritance. Thanks for this review!

TracyK said...

Simon, many reviewers have good things to say about this book, and a few don't like it at all. I liked the setting a lot, which always makes a difference.

TracyK said...

Kathy, it did amaze me that Bobbie could spend so much time focusing on getting money from someone else, and none on doing something for himself. And the story reminded me of other vintage mysteries about competing for an inheritance, but each story deals with different family relationships.

Neeru said...

I too read it for the 1936 Club and am with you regarding the characters. I didn't like even a single one and that marred my enjoyment of the book too. I also had a question: Who is the woman who screamed on the day of the murder? That last conversation between Nosey and Nancy makes the identity of the woman paramount but I couldn't think of any one who could have done it. What did you think?

TracyK said...

Neer, I just commented over at your post on this mystery, and said the same thing ... I have no idea who the woman could be and I would love to have an explanation.

This book has some really good qualities, and some qualities that disappointed me, but I am still glad I read it.

col2910 said...

I love the cover, but won't seek the book out.

TracyK said...

That is the problem with the British Library books, Col. It is easy to buy them for the cover, and then sometimes the book itself is not that great. But I am still glad the British Library is making the effort to reprint vintage crime from the UK.