Burglars Can't Be Choosers: Lawrence Block

The following overview of Lawrence Block's writing was in Marcia Muller's review of After the First Death (1969), first published in 1001 Midnights (1986, ed. Bill Pronzini and Marcia Muller).

Lawrence Block is a top-flight professional who has written numerous novels featuring extremely diverse characters and situations. His characterization ranges from the grim depths glimpsed in some of his non-series books and in his series about alcoholic ex-policeman Matthew Scudder, to the lightweight but amusing private eye/writer Chip Harrison, burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr, and spy Evan Tanner. Whether Block is chronicling a deadly search or a playful romp, he is a consummate master of suspense and manages to keep his reader fearing for the safety of — and solidly rooting for — his protagonist until the last page is turned.

The Bernie Rhodenbarr series by Lawrence Block now consists of 11 books. The series started in 1977, although the first book, Burglars Can't Be Choosers, was not intended to be the start of a series. The most recent book was published in 2013. I read some of these books many years ago; they would have been from the first five books which were published between 1977 and 1983.

This post on Burglars Can't Be Choosers is my submission for Past Offences' monthly Crimes of the Century feature, for the year chosen for April, 1977.

Bernie Rhodenbarr is a burglar. He is proud and confident of his ability at his craft. However he is a loner, and his acquaintances and neighbors have no idea how he supports himself. He usually scouts out his own heists, but this time he accepts an assignment from a stranger to break into an apartment and steal a blue leather box. The problem is he can't find the blue box, and while he is searching for it two policemen come into the apartment. But, worst of all, there is a dead man in the bedroom. Bernie successfully eludes the policemen but he then has the problem of not being able to return to his apartment. Not wanting to leave New York, he begins to try to clear his name.

This is another series that I find most appealing for the characters. Bernie tells his story in first person, and he is a very likable character. I don't condone burglary, but he makes you forget that his chosen profession is illegal and harmful. And, of course, he only robs the rich. He has been described as the Robin Hood type, but since his goal is to support himself, I don't see that as a fitting description.

Not only is Bernie charming, but he runs into many interesting people as he endeavors to prove that he is not a murderer. The setting is New York, and I enjoyed this picture of New York in the 1970's. The story is full of coincidences but none of them detracted from my enjoyment of the resolution of this mystery.

Of course, I have several more books in this series, and I look forward to finding out how Bernie's life as an unrepentant burglar progresses (as I remember very little about the books I read earlier).

The paperback reprint edition that I read includes a short essay about how Lawrence Block came to write this first book in the Burglar series. Lawrence Block has another popular series set in New York about Matt Scudder, an ex-cop who becomes an unlicensed private investigator. That one also started in the 1970s and continued for many years, the last book having been published in 2011. The author has also edited two anthologies of short stories set in New York, Manhattan Noir and Manhattan Noir 2: The Classics.

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Publisher:  Onyx, 1995. Orig. pub. 1977.
Length:      283 pages
Format:      Paperback
Series:       Bernie Rhodenbarr, #1
Setting:      New York City
Genre:       Mystery
Source:     I purchased my copy. 

The Diamond Feather: Helen Reilly

Roger Cram was visited by Godfrey Thorne right before he died, and Roger was left with a piece of jewelry called the diamond feather. It is a family heirloom, designed in the shape of a peacock feather, which Godfrey had taken to pawn only to discover that it was a fake. Later Roger visits Thorne's family to return the diamond feather to Godfrey's mother. While Roger is at Greystone, the family estate in New York, a family member is murdered.

The story is told mainly from  Roger's viewpoint; he stays on at the Thorne mansion after the death not because he is an old  friend of the family, but because Inspector McKee, the policeman in charge of the investigation, asks him to. McKee wants a source of information on the family and their actions. Roger's only connection to the family was Godfrey, and thus he is an outsider, not necessarily resented, but not welcomed either. He does get very involved with the investigation in a amateur role, so he and Inspector McKee share center stage in the activities. There is a small circle of suspects, but the plot is exceedingly complex, and lots of red herrings.

Of the four mysteries by Helen Reilly that I have read, this is my favorite. The story had me under a spell and I would gladly have stayed up all night to finish the book. That might be because this was closer to a police procedural and had much less of the "damsel in distress" element than I noticed in previous books. And less romance.

From what I have read, the first books in the Inspector McKee series were more straightforward police procedurals, as this one is. Police procedurals vary quite a bit as to how much detail of police work is included, and this seems to be true in this series. Later on the books entered the "had I but known" territory, and all the others I have read were much more centered on romantic involvements. This is discussed in some detail in an extensive article at Mystery*File written by Mike Grost and at a post on The Doll's Trunk Murder at Killer Covers of the Week.

This book is not easy to find at an affordable price. When I reviewed Mourned on Sunday, a commenter noted that The Diamond Feather was the first book in the series. I had never heard of that one. I found a hardback with no dust jacket for $25 at AbeBooks.com, and decided that was acceptable under the circumstances. Right now at that site there are two copies available, both with dust jackets, one for $100, the other for $300. I am now very glad I purchased the book because I enjoyed it so much. It doesn't always work out so well with first books in a series.

This book is my selection for a book published in 1930 for the Crimes of the Century meme, hosted by Rich at Past Offences. It is also my second book read for the R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril XI event. That event celebrates reading of books of mystery, suspense, dark fantasy, and horror, and continues through the end of October.


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Publisher:  Doubleday, Doran & Co., 1930.
Length:      309 pages
Format:      Hardcover
Series:       Inspector McKee, #11
Setting:      New York
Genre:       Police Procedural
Source:      I purchased my copy.

The Case of the Restless Redhead: Erle Stanley Gardner

My summary of TCOT Restless Redhead:

Perry Mason is at the courthouse in Riverside to pick up some papers from Judge Dillard. While waiting, he watches a trial in progress in Dillard's courtroom. A young lawyer, Frank Neely, is defending a redheaded waitress, Evelyn Bagby, who had been arrested for theft while stranded in Corona waiting for her car to be repaired. He ends up giving some advice to Neely, which leads to the waitress being acquitted.

Evelyn had been on her way to the L.A. area to seek acting work in Hollywood. She stops by Mason's office in L.A. to thank him for the help. Evelyn has very little money and Mason helps her find a job waitressing for the time being. Very shortly she is implicated in another crime and this time it is murder.

It has been so long since I read a book in the Perry Mason series that I don't remember if this book is a typical story or how it stacks up against the others in the series (about 80 novels). I do think it is typical for Mason to take on the client before the actual murder happens, and in this book, we are nearly 1/3 of the way into the story before there is a murder. That works fine for me, I like the plot to build up to the crime and give me an overview of the characters in advance.

These are other things I noticed about this novel:

Mason must be doing pretty well financially to be able to drop all his other work to pursue justice for a waitress whose case he becomes interested in. There is no indication here that he is rich and he doesn't flaunt his status at all, but he appears to be able to take cases that appeal to him whether or not they will pay off for him financially.

He comes to the aid of a young lawyer in Riverside who has been assigned a pro bono case. The young lawyer is making rookie mistakes in the first trial and Perry Mason helps with tips and advice. This lawyer remains in the picture throughout the story, but mainly as a demonstration of Mason's generosity, in sharing both his expertise and not charging for the advice.

Mason falsifies and meddles with the evidence, but not to the extent of breaking the law (I think). I guess he walks the tightrope between doing something illegal and just bending the rules to prove a point. Of course, in the end it all comes out well for his client and District Attorney Hamilton Burger turns up looking pretty silly for not taking some precautions with the evidence and the witnesses.

There do seem to be some logical inconsistencies. Mason indicates by his actions that he thinks his client is being framed, but his advice seems to put her in obvious danger. Yet, with the fast paced action and the entertaining courtroom scene to tie the story up, the inconsistencies don't seem bothersome.

A very interesting tidbit is that The Case of the Restless Redhead was the basis for the script for the first episode of the television series.

Is this a good read? Yes. The story is fast-paced. The characters may be stereotypes but they are interesting characters regardless. The plot is intriguing, regardless of the inconsistencies. My only disappointment was that I was expecting an even better story.

However, this was mitigated for me by the fact that the first trial takes place in Riverside, California (where I lived for several years) and some of the action early in the story takes place in Corona, a city nearby. I worked for 5 years in Norco (short for North Corona), so I can picture what those areas were like in the 1950s. Corona was small townish and surrounding areas were fairly rural even in the 1970s, so in the 1950s I am sure that they were more so.

I knew that the Perry Mason series was set in Southern California, and that Mason had his offices in L.A. I did not know that Erle Stanley Gardner spent so much of his life in California. He was born in Malden, Massachusetts, but he graduated from high school in Palo Alto, California (in the San Francisco Bay area). In 1921, he joined the law firm of Sheridan, Orr, Drapeau and Gardner in Ventura, California (about 35 miles south of Santa Barbara). While working there he wrote and published a lot of short stories, and wrote his first novel, The Case of the Velvet Claws, published in 1933. At that time he left the law firm and moved to Temecula, California, where he lived and wrote until he died in 1970. Temecula is in the southwestern corner of Riverside County.

This book is my selection for a 1954 book for the Crimes of the Century meme, hosted by Rich at Past Offences. Every month he designates a year and bloggers contribute a post on a crime fiction book (or film, TV, comics, or short story) published in that year. There is still time to join in for August.

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Publisher:   Pocket Book edition, 4th ed., published 1967. Orig. pub. 1954.
Length:      229 pages
Format:      Paperback
Series:       Perry Mason
Setting:      Southern California
Genre:       Legal Mystery
Source:      Purchased at the Planned Parenthood book sale, 2012.

Fire Will Freeze: Margaret Millar

First things first. I do love the cover of this book. It is not an accurate depiction of the story.  There is a woman in a sable coat, she is on a bus, and it does get stranded on a country road. There is even a rifle in the story somewhere. But she never holds the rifle, nor does she come off as that belligerent. Nevertheless, it is a very nice cover.

The woman in the sable coat is Miss Isobel Seton, a 35 year old woman who thinks a lot about marriage but has no prospects. She is on a bus with a group of people headed for a skiing lodge and is getting so fed up that she is composing a letter of complaint (mentally) to Abercrombie & Fitch:

Because one of your irresponsible clerks did not prevent me from buying a pair of skis, I am sitting here in what these damned Canadians call a Sno-bus, which means a bus that meets a Sno-train and conveys one to a Sno-lodge. I am marooned in the wilds of Quebec in a raging Sno-storm. My nose is red. I am thirty-five, which not an age for adjustments. I am hungry.

[Keep in mind that Margarer Millar was born, raised, and educated in Canada.]

Within the first chapter, the bus has become stranded and the bus driver has left the bus to find help. Soon, the travelers leave the bus to follow in the footsteps of the bus driver, who has failed to return. They come upon an isolated house; they are shot at as they walk up to the house but they seek shelter anyway. It is a large house but with only two residents, an insane woman and her female caretaker. Neither one is thrilled to have company in the house, and the group from the bus is allowed to stay only under duress.

In the one night  that the group spends in the house, there are three deaths and numerous strange occurrences.

So what did I like about the book?

I liked the characters as they developed throughout the book. At first I found almost all of them either irritating or boring and silly. The first chapter reveals more about Isobel Seton than any other character and we mostly see the others through her eyes. As the story continues, each one reveals more about themselves and becomes a more interesting person, for good or bad. And this is the way it would happen in real life if you were on a bus with a group of strangers. At first you would only see the surface and then various facets would be revealed.

The "stranded in a snowed-in mansion" story is not one that I am overly familiar with, so this did not feel tired to me. I liked the comic aspects and the humor broke up the tension of being stuck in an enclosed space with some genuinely nutty people and not knowing who to trust. The women in this story were much braver than I; I would hide under the bedclothes until help arrived.

What did I dislike?

Nothing. I enjoyed reading the book; the story and the characters engaged me. Isobel is the most well defined character, but we learn more and more about the others in the group. The mystery plot is not very strong, but so far that has been my experience with the books I have read by Millar, and I don't find fault with that.

This is not considered one of Millar's better novels. However, of the ones I have read, I enjoyed it the most. If the reader is looking for a good puzzle mystery, this is not the best book to choose, although there are clues, all of which I missed. A warning: An animal is killed in this book.

This book is my submission for 1944 for the Crimes of the Century meme at Past Offences.

Margaret Millar wrote some books set in Canada, where she was born, and some set in Southern California, where she lived most of her adult life. I have read and reviewed Wall of Eyes (1943), also set in Canada, and Ask For Me Tomorrow (1976), set in California and Mexico.

See other reviews here:

• At the Scene of the Crime 
• Tipping My Fedora
• The Dusty Bookcase

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Publisher:   International Polygonics, 1987 (orig. pub. 1944)
Length:      158 pages
Format:      Paperback
Setting:      Québec countryside,  Canada
Genre:        Mystery
Source:      Purchased at the Planned Parenthood book sale, 2014.

The Seven Dials Mystery: Agatha Christie

The Seven Dials Mystery begins with a house party at Chimneys, the country estate of Sir Oswald Coote and Lady Coote. They are renting it from Lord Caterham, and have invited a slew of young people to join them. The title comes from a prank that is pulled on one of the guests, Gerald Wade, who always wakes up very late in the day. Eight alarm clocks are put in his room to awaken him, but the morning of the prank he does not wake up at all. It is initially determined that the death was accidental. One of the guests then notices that seven of the clocks were lined up on the mantel in Gerald's room. When another guest at this house party is killed, although not while still at Chimeys, a connection between the deaths is suspected.

This is the second book featuring Superintendent Battle, who seems to be called in when affairs of state are tied up with a crime. The first book was The Secret of Chimneys. Much of action in The Seven Dials Mystery also takes place at Chimneys, and many of the characters from the first book return in this mystery.

Agatha Christie described this book as a thriller in her autobiography,:

I had followed up The Murder of Roger Ackroyd with The Seven Dials Mystery. This was a sequel to my earlier book The Secret of Chimneys, and was one of what I called "the light-hearted thriller type". These were always easy to write, not requiring too much plotting and planning.

This Agatha Christie mystery did not disappoint, although I would not place it among my favorite Christie novel.

PROS:

The characters are delightful, from the main characters to the bit players. I find Superintendent Battle to be very appealing, and I like the role he plays in this story.  Lord Caterham and his daughter Lady Eileen are very unique and charming characters. They provide a lot of the humor that makes this book stand apart for me.

I especially enjoyed the character of Lady Coote, who features most prominently in the initial chapters of the story, and the contrast she provides to Lady Eileen, known to friends and family as "Bundle". Lady Coote worries about everything: people coming late to dinner, how to deal with the gardener. There is an extended conversation with MacDonald, the gardener, regarding doing some work on the estate, and he circumvents her wishes very easily.  As soon as Bundle is back on the estate, she asks him to do exactly the same things and takes no flak from him when he demurs.

Overall, I found this to be a fine and engaging story. Initially, I was not impressed with the plot, which seemed too light and silly. For the first half of the book, I was aghast at how unbelievable the story was, though even at that point I enjoyed the various character portrayals. Very shortly, the plot picked up, the story came together, and made more sense.

Even though I was making no effort to guess the perpetrator of the crimes, I was totally surprised by the identity of this person. As many point out, this is a thriller and as such is not trying to lay out clues for the reader to discover, but still, I though Christie did a great job of obfusating the bad guys.

CONS:

I wasn't thrilled with the element of the secret society in the plot, but that was par for the course in thrillers written at this time, and an element that Christie used more than once. Other than that and the time it took to get engaged in the plot, I was quite happy with this book by Christie. I liked it better than The Secret of Chimneys, but some Christie fans go the other direction.

Other resources:

• Review of The Seven Dials Mystery at Ryan's blog, Wordsmithania
• My review of the first Superintendent Battle mystery, The Secret of Chimneys
• Yvette of In So Many Words reviews the film version of The Seven Dials Mystery starring John Gielgud 

This book was my choice for the Crimes of the Century meme, hosted by Rich at Past Offences. I also read this book for the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge, hosted by Kerrie at Mysteries In Paradise, which I am working on very gradually. And it fits into the Golden Vintage Scavenger Hunt in the "Hand Holding Weapon" category.

The cover painting on my edition is by the wonderful artist, Tom Adams.

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Publisher:   Bantam Books, 1981. Orig. pub. 1929.
Length:      217 pages
Format:      Paperback
Series:       Superintendent Battle, #2
Setting:      UK
Genre:       Adventure, spy thriller
Source:      Purchased at the Planned Parenthood book sale, 2015.

The Guns of Navarone: Alistair MacLean

The Guns of Navarone was Alistair MacLean's second novel, and one of the best known of his works. Published in 1957, it is set during World War II on a Greek island in the Aegean Sea. This is my submission for the Crimes of the Century meme, hosted by Rich at Past Offences. Every month a year is selected and bloggers read a crime book, watch a film, or listen to a radio show from that year and comment on their selection.

Summary from the back of my Sterling trade paperback edition:

Twelve hundred British soldiers are isolated and waiting to die on the small island of Kheros, off the Turkish coast. Their lives can be saved if only the long-range, large-caliber, and catastrophically accurate guns of Navarone are silenced before the British Royal Navy arrives. 

Manned by a mixed garrison of Germans and Italians, Navarone is a grim iron fortress perched high atop an island ringed by cliffs. Captain Keith Mallory and his small, handpicked team of saboteurs must scale the sheer cliffs and infiltrate the German base to blow up the massive guns.

When I first picked this book to read as my book for 1957, I wondered if it truly fit the definition of crime fiction. However, when I checked it out, I found that it was selected as #89 on The Top 100 Crime Novels of All Time by the British Crime Writers' Association. So I stopped worrying and proceeded to devour it.

The men on the team are of various backgrounds and talents. The team leader, Mallory, is a New Zealander and was a famed rock climber before the war. Andrea, a Greek soldier whose specialty seems to be bulk, strength, and indestructibility, has worked with Mallory in the past. Dusty Miller is an American and a specialist in explosives. Casey Brown is a Scottish engineer who also specializes in radio communications. Andy Stevens is the youngest and least experienced member of the team, but is also a talented mountain climber.

It would be hard to name a favorite character. Most of them are fleshed out with some background explaining their role and temperament, and the characters are further developed by their interactions while on the mission. If I had to point out any flaws, it would be that this is a very male universe, and most of the characters are just too good, too heroic. But truly, these facts did not bother me. This was standard at the time the book was written, and this is a war story; the environment and activities were not ones that women would usually take part in.

I don't know how this book succeeds at being suspenseful. It seems fairly clear from the beginning that the team will succeed to some extent in their goal. This reader assumed that there must a traitor who provides additional tension. But even as the book seems to have a very obvious plot line, it still kept me reading eagerly. The author throws enough spanners into the works to ratchet up the tension and it never got dull.

I did see the movie many years ago on  DVD, but I had forgotten much about the plot. One difference in the movie is that there are women characters, but I did not remember that.  I will be watching the movie in the next month and hope to write a post about that later.

See other reviews at Past Offences and Gravetapping.

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Publisher:   Fawcett Gold Medal edition, 1957. Pub. same year as the Doubleday 1st ed.
Length:      288 pages
Format:      Paperback
Setting:      Greece
Genre:       Adventure, Thriller
Source:      Purchased both copies at the Planned Parenthood book sale.

Trouble on the Thames: Victor Bridges

Trouble on the Thames by Victor Bridges was published in 1945, but is set in the late 1930's, in the lead up to World War II. Owen Bradwell loves his career as a naval officer but fears he will be stuck with a desk job because he has become color-blind. His former skipper has sent him to talk to Captain Greystoke about a possible assignment. Greystoke requests that he go undercover and watch a man who is suspected of being a Nazi agent. As luck would have it, he was already planning to vacation near the area he needs to surveil. He will borrow a friend's punt to travel down the Thames. If you are like me and don't know what a punt is, here is a definition: "a long, narrow, flat-bottomed boat, square at both ends and propelled with a long pole, used on inland waters chiefly for recreation."

A second set of characters is introduced: Ruth Barlow and Sally Deane, who own and run an interior decorating shop. An unsavory character is blackmailing Sally's younger sister and Sally plans to come to her rescue. She ends up rescuing Oliver when he walks into a bad situation and  is hit on the head, resulting in amnesia.

This novel is described as a spy thriller but it is heavy on the adventure and romance, and thus not my usual cup of tea. Yet I was thoroughly engaged in the story. I can't say why exactly, but it really pulled me in and kept me turning the pages. There were some slow parts at the beginning when the author set up the various characters and their background and in the middle when Owen is punting around, but the rest of the story moved at a nice pace. Publisher's Weekly described this book as a "charming entertainment" and I would agree with them.

The characters seemed like stereotypes to me. There was the spunky heroine (Sally), the brave male protagonist (Owen), etc. Most of the characters were described as very good or very bad, with very few shades of gray. Yet I did like the main characters quite a bit. The bad guys were not portrayed with much depth.

Although this book was published in 1945 and the setting is London and surrounding areas right before the beginning of World War II, the writing felt more modern to me. The text did have its share of ethnic slurs, although this fit in with the times, with war threatening.

This book was my choice for the Crimes of the Century meme, hosted by Rich at Past Offences.

Per the Poisoned Pen Press web site:

Victor Bridges (1878-1972) was a prolific author of crime and thriller novels from the years before the First World War to the 1960s. Much of his fiction was set in Essex and East Anglia. His most popular book, Greensea Island, sold over 300,000 copies, but his work has been largely forgotten since his death.

Martin Edwards wrote the introduction for this edition, and he provides more information about the author.


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Publisher:    Poisoned Pen Press, 2015 (orig. pub. 1945)
Length:        222 pages
Format:        Trade paperback
Setting:        Late 1930's, UK
Genre:         Espionage fiction

Source:        I purchased my copy at my local independent bookstore.

Minute for Murder: Nicholas Blake

Minute for Murder by Nicholas Blake is my submission for the Crimes of the Century meme for the year 1947. I selected this book because the story was related to World War II. You would think just about any book written between 1940 and 1947 would have references to the war and how the war affected people and their lives, but that isn't true. This one was perfect in that respect.

The Crimes of the Century meme is hosted by Rich at Past Offences. Every month he designates a year and bloggers contribute a post on a crime fiction book (or film, TV, comics, or short story) published in that year. There is still time to join in for March.

The book opens shortly after V-E Day. Nigel Strangeways works in the Visual Propaganda Division in the Ministry of Morale. A war-hero (and former member of the division) returns to visit the group, and the director's personal secretary is poisoned at the office gathering to celebrate his return. Nicholas Blake is the pseudonym of Cecil Day Lewis, who worked as a Publications Editor for the Ministry of Information during World War II, and used his experiences in writing this book.

In this excerpt from the book, Nigel ruminates on his former co-worker, the "improbable hero, Charles Kennington."

It was pleasant to reflect how many of his sort this war had thrown up. The long-haired, sensitive types, who had voted at the Oxford Union that under no circumstances would they die for king and country, and a few years later had gone up into the air with the professionals of the R.A.F. and helped win the Battle of Britain, fighting with the same skill and abandon as once they had speechified. The conscientious objectors, who refused to kill but performed prodigies of valor during the blitzes as members of rescue squads and fire brigades. The clever little dons, who vanished one day from their universities and were next heard of having dropped by parachute into occupied territory, organizing the resistance, dynamiting bridges, standing up to a firing party in a squalid backyard. The anonymous-looking scientists, who walked up to unexploded bombs and coldly took them to pieces, as though they were demonstrating an experiment in a laboratory, and generally were not blown to bits. ...

I have read some of Nicholas Blake's mysteries in the distant past but I wasn't sure I wanted to read more of them, with the exception of The Beast Must Die, which has a very good reputation. After reading this book, I know I want to find more of his books. Primarily, I liked the author's style of writing, although I have a few quibbles with this book.

Quibble 1: There is too much conversation at the end about the reveal of the culprit. Once the detective (in this case, the amateur detective) knows who it is, I don't want the denouement to be strung out.

Quibble 2: The portrayal of women. Not many women have roles in this book, and those that are there are not especially complimentary. There are plenty of secretaries and assistants mentioned towards the beginning but they fade away when the real detection gets underway. Maybe it makes sense in this context, but still, I noticed the absence.

Thus not a perfect book, but entertaining and a good depiction of the time period. I must be a sucker for mysteries set in the office environment because I also liked With A Bare Bodkin by Cyril Hare (set in another fictitious wartime Government office) and Murder Must Advertise by Dorothy Sayers (set in a publicity firm).

Some quotes from a review at PaperBack Swap:

He captures the tensions among different grades of staff and the problems of supervising talented but temperamental people. 

The material on the human factor and red herring combine to make this rather longer than the typical old-time whodunnit, but he’s such a charming writer that we don’t mind.

This review is also a submission for the Golden Vintage Scavenger Hunt in the "Blond (woman)" category.

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Publisher:   Perennial Library, 1985. Orig. pub. 1947.
Length:      261 pages
Format:      Paperback
Series:       Nigel Strangeways, #8
Setting:      Wartime Britain
Genre:       Mystery
Source:      Purchased at the Planned Parenthood book sale, 2010.

13 at Dinner: Agatha Christie

13 at Dinner is the seventh novel featuring Hercule Poirot. It was first published in the UK in 1933 as Lord Edgware Dies. Thus this is my submission for Past Offences' monthly Crimes of the Century feature.

In this novel, Poirot is approached by the well known actress, Jane Wilkinson, to mediate for her to convince her husband, Lord Edgware, to divorce her. She states very openly that things would be much better for her if he was dead. The next day Lord Edgware tells Poirot that he has already agreed to the divorce and had mailed a letter to Jane months ago telling her this. That very evening Lord Edgware is murdered. The police assume that Jane is the murderer based on the evidence of two witnesses who saw her visiting him at his house the same night; she is soon released because she has an alibi. The rest of the book has Scotland Yard Inspector Japp and Poirot following leads to discover the real murderer.

>>> What did I like?

I liked the humor in this novel. Poirot's friend Hastings is the narrator, and he was especially critical of Poirot's conceit, which I always find entertaining.

'Mon cher, am I tonight the fortune-teller who reads the palm and tells the character?'
'You could do it better than most,' I rejoined.
'It is a very pretty faith that you have in me, Hastings. It touches me. Do you not know, my friend, that each one of us is a dark mystery, a maze of conflicting passions and desires and attitudes? Mais oui, c'est vrai. One makes one's little judgments - but nine times out of ten one is wrong.'
'Not Hercule Poirot,' I said, smiling.
'Even Hercule Poirot! Oh! I know very well that you have always a little idea that I am conceited, but, indeed, I assure you, I am really a very humble person.'
I laughed.
'You - humble!'
'It is so. Except - I confess it - that I am a little proud of my moustaches. Nowhere in London have I observed anything to compare with them.'
'You are quite safe,' I said dryly. 'You won't....'

The inclusion of Inspector Japp was also a bonus. This is the fourth Poirot novel to include Japp in the investigation, and he plays a large role. In Peril at End House, Japp only shows up at the end. In this novel, Japp is in charge of the investigation, but he encourages Poirot's participation and even follows up on aspects of the case when requested by Poirot.

>>> What did I dislike?

The case goes on too long with no resolution and no real breaks in the case. At the beginning of the book, Poirot states that he would never have solved it without hearing a chance comment when walking down the street. He leaves most of the work to Japp and makes little effort to pursue the investigation, even though he is sure Japp is going in the wrong direction.

This was not a major problem because Christie's writing and characterizations are good, but in this story it was the interaction of Poirot with other characters, particularly Hastings and Japp, that entertained me, not the plot.

I figured out the guilty party early on. I don't mind solving the puzzle, especially as I don't do it that often, but I did not feel that Christie was particularly good at introducing red herrings in this book.

>>> How well did the book reflect the times?

The book gives us a picture of the social classes in England at the time. The victim is the "wealthy but slightly eccentric" Lord Edgware, and Jane wants him out the way so that she can marry the Duke of Merton, also wealthy and able to give her the position in society she craves. There are plenty of other characters who are not in the upper classes, at times so many I could not keep track of them, but they all revolve around those households.

I noted that there were many female characters and a good number of them were supporting themselves. I don't know how commonplace this was but I liked seeing that in a vintage mystery. None of them seemed to be the clinging type, although Jane, who is a successful actress, is looking for a marriage that will improve her status. Carlotta Adams, another important character, is an American entertainer who does impersonations. Carlotta is not doing so well financially, which is a key point in the book, but she is supporting herself. Also featured are Miss Carroll, Lord Edgware's secretary, and Carlotta's friend Jenny Driver, who has her own hat shop.

In summary, I would not place this book in my list of favorite Agatha Christie books. There were too many characters, and it went on too long. But it was still a good read. Reading Agatha Christie is never a waste of time.

This post is also submitted for the Golden Vintage Scavenger Hunt in the "Clock/Timepiece" category.

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Publisher:  Dell, 1944. Orig. pub. 1933.
Length:     239 pages
Format:     Paperback
Series:      Hercule Poirot, #7
Setting:     London
Genre:       Mystery
Source:     I purchased my copies.

Blood Will Tell: George Bagby

I read a lot of books by George Bagby when I was younger -- he wrote at least fifty books in the Inspector Schmidt series -- but I am sure I did not read them all. I do remember liking them a lot, so over the last few years I would pick up one now and then in used bookstores.  Blood Will Tell was my first foray into the Inspector Schmidt series in many years.

This is one of those series where the author name is the same as the name of one of the characters; in this series George Bagby narrates the books. In Blood Will Tell, a very rich and obnoxious man has been murdered at the Basingstoke building on Park Avenue. Inspector Schmidt is not looking forward to the investigation because the upper crust think that no one in their circles could be responsible for such a crime.

The main players are: Rudolf, the princely doorman; Simon H. Merrill, the victim, described on the dust jacket as "a very dirty man with lots of even dirtier lucre"; Diane Leggett, engaged to Merrill; and Sybil Swain, another friend of Merrill's. Both Diane and Sybil have apartments at the Basingstoke.

Bagby describes Sybil, when they first meet her at her apartment:

She filled in the outlines of my mental picture too perfectly. A tall woman of ripe and handsome figure, she displayed to even the most casual glance the fact that nature had endowed her generously and that she had freely and fancifully indulged her every whim to improve upon nature. She had the longest lacquered fingernails I have ever seen. She had hair the color of a Halloween pumpkin. She wore a fiery red negligee of some diaphanous stuff that gave you the illusion that if you looked you might see everything she might have to show.

The story is told almost entirely via interviews at the Basingstoke apartment building with various suspects or persons who were familiar with Merrill's routine. Bagby also gives his views of how the inspector works and the various characters.

Much of the story depends on the way the building is designed. Merrill's body is discovered on the fire stairs, which is a set of stairs behind the apartments that allow access only from the apartment (the door only opens one way). Another key element is an elaborate ruse carried out by a mother and her daughter to represent their apartment as large and sumptuous to impress people (especially Simon Merrill). They are clearly trying to give the impression that they are doing well financially.

At least based on this book, the only parts of police procedure that are chronicled in the Inspector Schmidt series are interviews and gathering evidence from the scene. The author was quoted in his New York Times obituary as saying "I don't go in for descriptions of what police labs do and that sort of thing. My books pretty much depend on the mental processes of the detective."

As I read this book, I realized that George Bagby's narration resembles that of Archie Goodwin in the Nero Wolfe series. There are other similarities. In both series, the novels are primarily set in New York City and they often feature prosperous people who have no idea how the rest of the world lives. There are differences, of course. Archie actually works for Wolfe and participates directly in the investigation. Bagby is more of the Watson type, telling the story, giving his thoughts on the investigation as it proceeds, but not taking part in the investigation.

In Whodunit? A Guide to Crime, Suspense, & Spy Fiction (1982, ed. H.R.F. Keating), the series is described:

The stories are upbeat, the New York background as real as being there, and for about fifty years Bagby has never aged, always a pleasure to read.

For me, this book was partially successful. The story was a little convoluted and unrealistic for my tastes; but possibly the story isn't that unrealistic, even for these days. The telling of the story is entertaining, but I wanted more variety. Either spending more time outside of the building. Or more reporting on police procedures. I have a few more George Bagby books, published in 1952, 1956, 1965, and 1980. I will try those and see how I like them. There were at least 15 books in the Inspector Schmidt series published in the 1930s and 1940s. I would like to find some of those.

George Bagby is one pseudonym used by Aaron Marc Stein, who also wrote mystery series under his own name and the pseudonym Hampton Stone. He wrote over 100 mysteries from the 1930s through the 1980s.

This book is my submission for Past Offences' monthly Crimes of the Century feature. This month the year chosen was 1950.

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Publisher:   Crime Club, 1950.
Length:       219 pages
Format:      Hardcover
Series:       Inspector Schmidt
Setting:      New York City
Genre:        Mystery
Source:      I purchased my copy.

Mourned on Sunday: Helen Reilly

Mourned on Sunday is the ninth book in the Inspector McKee series by Helen Reilly and the third book by Reilly that I have read. The first one, Lament for the Bride, also featured Inspector McKee of the Manhattan Homicide Squad. In my review, I described that book as a "hybrid, part romantic suspense, part police procedural." That description fits this book as well. The second one was The Dead Can Tell; I found that book too focused on romance and not enough detection. However in all the books I have read, I have enjoyed the depiction of Inspector McKee.

In Mourned on Sunday, Nora Dalrymple has returned to the small town of Silverlock after her husband's death. She hopes to reunite with Roger Thew, a man she had fallen in love with while stil married to her much older husband. However, it turns out that he has married another woman from Silverlock, whose mother has inherited a lot of money. Through a series of strange events, Nora is lured away from her house late at night, and is later accused of the hit-and-run accident which occurred at that time.

The plot is very complex. The injured woman, Sylvia Thew, wife of Roger, remains in very bad condition and cannot testify about her attacker. Inspector McKee shows up in Silverlock and investigates the death of Sylvia's mother, who had fallen from a balcony of her hotel room in his precinct in Manhattan just a few weeks earlier. The reader, being privy to Nora's whereabouts during the attack on Sylvia, knows that she cannot be guilty of that crime. Reilly provides us with many possible suspects from Sylvia's circle of friends and acquaintances with a variety of possible motives. Roger behaves suspiciously and erratically, but no one can prove he has a connection to either crime. In the eyes of the local police, Nora is the most likely suspect for the hit-and-run attack on Sylvia, and there is a witness who saw her car nearby. McKee, however, is almost immediately convinced that someone is trying to frame her.

Mourned on Sunday has elements of the "damsel in distress" story and also bears some resemblance to the "had I but known" sub-genre, but doesn't fit neatly in either. The reader sees most of the story from the point of view of either Nora Dalrymple or Inspector McKee. Nora is a strong woman, capable of taking care of herself, but keeps her own counsel about some facts that could help clear her. McKee stays around in Silverlock with a team of his detectives, working alternately on the suspicious death of Sylvia's mother and the case of the hit-and-run accident.

I enjoyed reading this book, more than any of the other Reilly books I had read previously. I found the ending to be rather outrageous, but there were many clues I missed. I have a few more Inspector McKee books to sample and then I will seek out some others that get the best reviews.

I read this book for the Crimes of the Century meme at Past Offences. The year for this month is 1941. This book did seem to reflect the times, although I remember no mention of the politics at that time. It depicted both big city and small town New York. The focus seemed mostly to be on fairly well-to-do families, although they often complained about having fallen on hard times. Some of them had formerly been relatively poor and then inherited money.

 -----------------------------

Publisher:  Dell, 1944. Orig. pub. 1941.
Length:     240 pages
Format:     Paperback
Series:      Inspector McKee, #9
Setting:     New York
Genre:      Police procedural
Source:     I purchased this book.

The Red House Mystery: A. A. Milne

The Red House Mystery, published in 1922, is my choice for the Crimes of the Century Challenge at Past Offences.  I have picked up several copies at book sales over the years and finally I had the impetus to read it. I always stall when reading books of this vintage, for some reason. It isn't that I don't like "dated" books; that is why I read older books... to get some insight into the time. It may be that I think the writing style will be too stilted. I needn't have worried. This story was a great read.

This book was the only mystery novel written by A. A. Milne, famous for his books about Winnie the Pooh. He had me at the dedication of this book:

My dear Father,

Like all really nice people, you have a weakness for detective stories, and feel that there are not enough of them. So, after all that you have done for me, the least that I can do for you is to write you one. Here it is: with more gratitude and affection than I can well put down here. 

A. A. M.

As the title implies, this is a country house murder. The Red House is owned by Mark Ablett, a bachelor who often entertains friends there. The story begins with the servants in the house discussing the impending arrival of their employer's brother, who has been in Australia for 15 years. Mark has announced his brother's visit just that morning at breakfast. In the afternoon, the guests have gone off to play a game of golf; the house is empty except for Mark, his cousin, Matthew Cayley, and the servants. The brother arrives, is shown into the office, and the next thing we know a shot is heard and a dead body is found in the office. At the same time, Antony  Gillingham arrives to visit with one of the guests.

This is how Milne introduces our hero, Antony, to the reader:

At about the time when the Major (for whatever reasons) was fluffing his tee-shot at the sixteenth, and Mark and his cousin were at their business at the Red House, an attractive gentleman of the name of Antony Gillingham was handing up his ticket at Woodham station and asking the way to the village. Having received directions, he left his bag with the station-master and walked off leisurely. He is an important person to this story, so that it is as well we should know something about him before letting him loose in it. Let us stop him at the top of the hill on some excuse, and have a good look at him.

The first thing we realize is that he is doing more of the looking than we are. Above a clean-cut, clean-shaven face, of the type usually associated with the Navy, he carries a pair of grey eyes which seem to be absorbing every detail of our person.

Antony has come to The Red House to visit his friend, Bill Beverley. Matthew, the cousin, who functions as estate manager and secretary, has bundled off all the other guests to London, but invites Antony and Bill to stay. Mark has disappeared, and the police have quickly decided that he must be the one who fired the shot, whether in self-defense or not. Very shortly, Antony decides that all may not be as it seems and appoints himself as an amateur sleuth, taking on Bill as his Watson. They are quite a pair.

I enjoyed the puzzle although, strangely, at no time was I trying to follow the clues. I enjoyed Antony's journey in finding the truth, and I did not suspect the final results at any time, although I am sure many readers would. I was immersed in the story. The tone of the book is light, yet murder is not treated lightly.

Yes, humour abounds, as does witty dialogue and social satire, but the novel still acknowledges the dark side of human nature and the horror of the crime that has been committed. And if our Watson, Bill, is having a little too much fun with the investigation, the older and warier Antony acknowledges the tragedy of the situation.

That quote is from a review at Things Mean a Lot, which also has links to several other reviews.

Santosh Iyer's excellent review is at Goodreads.

I must note that Raymond Chandler thoroughly lambasted this book in The Simple Art of Murder. He makes some good points, if you want to quibble with the plot, but I think he misses the point that mystery novels can be different things to each reader. One book can be read for the enjoyment and another can be read to learn more about the world and both can be worthy examples of the mystery genre. He also starts out his tirade with huge spoilers, so only read that piece if you don't mind the spoilers. (You can find it here.)

I only regret that I read the paperback edition of this book and did not discover the introduction by Milne in my hardback edition as I was writing this post. An excerpt:

I have a passion for detective stories. Of beer (if I may mention it) an enthusiast has said that it could never be bad, but that some brands might be better than others; in the same spirit (if I may use the word) I approach every new detective story. This is not to say that I am uncritical. On the contrary, I have all sorts of curious preferences...

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Publisher:  E. P. Dutton, 1922 (22nd printing, 1965). 
Length:     211 pages
Format:     Hardcover
Setting:     UK
Genre:      Mystery
Source:    Purchased at the Planned Parenthood book sale, 2013.

The Old English Peep Show: Peter Dickinson

This month I read the first two books of the Superintendent James Pibble series by Peter Dickinson. My review of The Glass-Sided Ants' Nest, is here. Reading the second of the Superintendent Pibble stories, I continue to be besotted with Peter Dickinson's style of writing and his storytelling. And Pibble continues to be the character that enchants me.

At Peter Dickinson's website, The Old English Peep Show (also published as A Pride of Heroes) is described very briefly:

Pibble investigates the apparent suicide of a servant in a great English country house being run as a theme park, complete with lions, by two retired WWII heroes.

Dickinson calls his book "a baroque spoof." The San Francisco Chronicle said it was "a bit crazy, harrowingly suspenseful, surprising." And it is all of that. The thing that surprised me was that with all the elements of humor and caricature, the later part of the book still has definite thriller elements.

Pibble is an unusual protagonist, a middle-aged man with a wife who bullies him "into reading the Elsa books." (They figure into the story, of course.) He is sent off by Scotland Yard to handle the investigation of the loyal servant, Deakin, at Herryngs, not far from London. The two war heroes are twin brothers who have turned their home into "Old England" with tours and enactments of duels in order to keep it going financially. Shortly after Pibble arrives he senses that the family is hiding something.

I am being conned, he thought. I am a tiny figure in some larger drama of theirs, simply here to be gulled and sent home, more momentary and peripheral even than loyal old Deakin. I must do my duty by God and the Claverings, certify this suicide, touch my cap, and depart. Anyway, it is a certifiable suicide, not quite unfakable but as near as makes no difference.

Most of the characters outside of the Clavering clan are either devoted friends or servants, or dependent upon the family for their livelihood. Even the examining doctor and the son-in-law were participants in the raid that made the two brothers' famous and revered. So Pibble has difficulty finding anyone who does not follow the party line, even though he senses that something is amiss. And he keeps poking at things until he uncovers several layers of deception.

Like most of Dickinson's mystery novels, this won't appeal to everyone. I found it entertaining and a good puzzle, and it did succeed at thrilling me while examining class distinctions and politics and a multitude of other topics.

Many of Dickinson's novels are available as e-books at Open Road Integrated Media. And if you prefer print copies, as I do, you can get this book, The Glass-Sided Ants' Nest, Sleep and his Brother, and King and Joker at Felony and Mayhem.

This book is my submission for 1969 for the Crimes of the Century meme at Past Offences.

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Publisher:   Felony & Mayhem, 2007 (orig. pub. 1969)
Length:      199 pages
Format:      Trade paperback
Series:       James Pibble #2
Setting:      UK
Genre:        Police procedural
Source:      I purchased my copy.