Bookshelf Traveling For Insane Times No. 8

Judith at Reader in the Wilderness hosts this meme: Bookshelf Traveling For Insane Times. The idea is to look through a bookshelf or a bookcase or stacks of books and share some thoughts on the books. And of course you can be inventive and talk about books in any context.

The two shelves I am featuring today are from my husband's mystery book shelves. The three authors featured on the shelves are Earl Derr Biggers, William Marshall, and Bill Pronzini.

Let's start with Bill Pronzini:

Pronzini is a very prolific author but today I am focusing on his Nameless Detective series, which now consists of over 40 books. The first book was published in 1971 and the last one in 2017. The series is set in San Francisco and the Bay Area. My husband has read all of the books except the last book in the series, Endgame.

I was the one who introduced my husband to the Nameless Detective series, but I am not close to finishing all the books in the series. I have not read any of the books in the photo above, and have read only one book in the series since I have been blogging: Boobytrap. I hope to continue reading the series soon.

The second shelf has books from both Earl Derr Biggers and William Marshall. I covered Earl Derr Biggers in an earlier Bookshelf Traveling post so I will move on to William Marshall, who is primarily known for his Yellowthread Street series.

Marshals' series is about a group of quirky detectives who work out of the Yellowthread Street Precinct in the Hong Bay district of Hong Kong. The first book in the series was published in 1975; the last one in 1998. Thus it covers roughly the last twenty two years of the British administration of Hong Kong. This series can be described as zany and humorous. Although Hong Bay is a fictional section of Hong Kong, the books do give the reader a sense of Hong Kong of that time. My husband is a big fan of the series and appreciates them for the setting, the eccentric characters, and occasional elements of the fantastical.

I have read and reviewed one book in the Yellowthread Street series: Skulduggery.

Bookshelf Traveling for Insane Times: from my husband's shelves

Judith at Reader in the Wilderness hosts this meme: Bookshelf Traveling For Insane Times. The idea is to look through a bookshelf or a bookcase or stacks of books and share some thoughts on the books. And of course you can be inventive and talk about books in any context.

Two weeks ago I featured books from my son's shelves, this week it is my husband's turn. My husband reads a mix of nonfiction and fiction books. He has many books I want to read but haven't gotten to yet.

The first two books are fairly recent purchases. The other two have been on his shelves for a while.

The Big Goodbye: Chinatown and the Last Years of Hollywood by Sam Wasson

Chinatown is one of my husband's favorite movies. Thus he was interested in this book about the making of the movie Chinatown. It focuses on the four men primarily involved: Robert Towne, Robert Evans, Jack Nicholson, and Roman Polanski. From what I understand, the story is much more than a blow by blow look at the making of the movie, but delves deep into these men's lives. It also depicts Hollywood filmmaking at a time when many changes were coming to the production of movies.

And it has a great cover.

The Awkward Squad by Sophie Hénaff
Translated from the French by Sam Gordon

A police detective, Anne Capestan, has been suspended for six months and expects her superior, Buron, to end her employment. Instead he gives her a new department and the mission is to follow up on unsolved cases. She is given a crew of misfits to work with. This premise sounds similar to that of The Keeper of Lost Causes by Jussi Adler-Olsen (set in Denmark). This one is set in France, and from what I understand it is more humorous in tone. 

My husband must have liked this first book in the series because he just purchased the next book in our second curbside pickup order from our local independent bookseller, Chaucer's Books. I plan to read this one soon.

The Black Camel by Earl Derr Biggers

This is the fourth of six books by Biggers that featured Charlie Chan. I am sure that I will like this book, because I have read four others in the series and enjoyed all of them. Charlie Chan is an awesome character. He always entertains.

Although we are also fans of the Charlie Chan movies and have watched most of them, Charlie Chan in the books is different from the movie character. 

The Charlie Chan novels were published between 1925 and 1932. The only disappointment I have had with them is that they are not always set in Hawaii. This one takes place in Honolulu of the 1920s and I am looking forward to that.

Another great cover. Actually all of these books have nice covers.

And this is one of my husband's books that I just finished reading...

The Provincial Lady Goes to London by E.M. Delafield

Diary of a Provincial Lady is a fictional account of a middle-class wife and mother, living in an English village, and dealing with money problems, servant problems, etc. This book, published in 1931, follows up with her life after her book has been published to much success. She takes a flat in London to have time and quiet to work on the next book she is writing. Both books were a lot of fun to read, but I enjoyed this one more because I had adjusted to the style and tone of the first one.

 This book ends with the provincial lady planning a trip to America and I will be reading The Provincial Lady in America soon.

Behind That Curtain: Earl Derr Biggers

Although there were many Charlie Chan movies released in the 1930's and 40's, there were only six novels in the series, published between 1925 and 1932. This one is set in San Francisco, and Charlie meets a retired Inspector from Scotland Yard, Sir Frederic Bruce, who has come to the US to continue the investigation of a case he was never able to solve. Unfortunately, Sir Frederic is killed at a dinner party and Charlie Chan must find his murderer.

I found San Francisco to be a more engaging environment than the California desert, the setting for the previous book in the series, The Chinese Parrot. Throughout this book, Charlie is eager to return to his home in Hawaii where his eleventh child, a son, has been born. Yet he feels a responsibility to see the case through before he leaves. And it is a complicated case, with many suspects.

This is the third book in the series, and the fourth that I have read. Earl Derr Biggers is a wonderful story teller and he always keeps me entertained. I find his characters engaging and enjoyed the romance in this one, which does not overshadow the plot.

My reviews of other books in the series:

• The House Without a Key
• The Chinese Parrot
• Keeper of the Keys

Other reviews of this book at Vintage Pop Fictions, The Broken Bullhorn, Classic Mysteries, and Mystery*File.


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Publisher:    Academy Chicago Publishers, 2009 (orig. pub. 1928)
Length:        279 pages
Format:       Trade Paperback
Series:        Charlie Chan, #3
Setting:       San Francisco, CA
Genre:        Mystery
Source:       Borrowed from my husband.

Reading Summary, October 2018

I read eleven books this month. One book was a re-read. One book was a fantasy, the rest were crime fiction. About half the books I read were vintage mysteries. I started one new (to me) series, and continued a few more recent series that I am glad I returned to.

FANTASY FICTION

The Halloween Tree (1972) by Ray Bradbury

This book is described as being both as fantasy and horror fiction. I would  categorize it more as spooky, not so much horror. I was initially attracted to this book because of it cover. It is a  charming children's book that I can see myself re-reading every Halloween. My thoughts are here.

CRIME FICTION reads in October:

Behind That Curtain (1928) by Earl Derr Biggers

My first book in October was a return to the Charlie Chan series. Although there were many Charlie Chan movies released in the 1930's and 40's, there were only six novels in the series. This one is set in San Francisco, and Charlie meets a retired Inspector from Scotland Yard, Sir Frederic Bruce, who has come to the US to continue the investigation of a case he was never able to solve. My husband and I are both fans of this series.  

The Case of the Weird Sisters (1943) by Charlotte Armstrong

I picked up quite a few books by Armstrong at the 2017 Planned Parenthood book sale, but I had not read any of them. Colm Redmond's review at Clothes in Books motivated me to read this one. I remember Armstrong's books as being just a bit more creepy and weird than I like but this one was "pleasantly creepy" as described on the cover.

The Book of the Dead (1944) by Elizabeth Daly

I remember Elizabeth Daly as one of my favorite authors from the 1940's, but it had been a long time since I had read one of her books. I was glad to find that I still enjoy her writing. My review here.

The Mirror Crack'd (1962) by Agatha Christie

This is a Miss Marple mystery and I always enjoy a visit with that elderly sleuth. This time Miss Marple is really feeling her age, which made me sad. But her wits are just as sharp as ever and I liked the picture of the changing times in St. Mary's Mead, with a new housing development and more modern shops.

The Water Rat of Wanchai (2011) by Ian Hamilton

This is the most current book that I read this month. Ava Lee is a forensic accountant who works for a family friend, Mr. Chow, who she calls Uncle. Ava is Chinese-Canadian, living in Toronto, but Uncle is based in Hong Kong. Together they track down large sums of money for their clients. I found this story to be a bit over the top but it engaged me so much I will be coming back for more. A book by a Canadian author with a setting initially in Toronto, but later the action moves to many other parts of the world. 

And Be a Villain (1948) by Rex Stout

This book, the 13th in the Nero Wolfe series, is the first in a trilogy that features Wolfe's archnemesis, Arnold Zeck. This is a re-read for me, of course. In this case, the characters are a radio talk show host, Madeline Fraser, and her entourage. A guest on the show dies from poisoning, and Wolfe investigates. An enjoyable read, as always.

His Burial Too (1973) by Catherine Aird

This is the fifth installment in the Inspector C.D. Sloan book series by Catherine Aird. The novels are set in the fictional County of Calleshire, England, and also feature Sloan's assistant, Detective Constable Crosby. Although Sloan usually tries to avoid working with Crosby because he is generally inept. There is always an element of humor in the stories, although it is not prominent. I must mention here that this is a locked room mystery, since I forgot to say that in my review.

A Colder Kind of Death (1994) by Gail Bowen

The fourth mystery in the Joanne Kilbourn series. This book won the Arthur Ellis award for Best Novel in 1995. At this point in the series, Joanne is a widow, with older children, but now raising an adopted child, the daughter of a close friend who died. She is an educator who is deeply involved in politics. In this book, the man who killed her husband a few years earlier has been shot and killed while in prison, and the fallout from that event reveals secrets and surprises for Joanne. Another book by a Canadian author, set in Saskatchewan.

The Shortest Day (1995) by Jane Langton

The 11th book in the Homer Kelly series. This story is set in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where Homer and Mary Kelly are teaching a class at Harvard University. Mary is participating in the annual Christmas Revels when a young singer in the event dies in an automobile accident. When other deaths follow, Homer resists getting involved, even though he was once a homicide detective. This book centers around the production of the Revels and an activist group seeking housing for the homeless; the author illustrated the story with her own pen and ink drawings. 

Blood and Rubles (1996) by Stuart M. Kaminsky

The Inspector Rostnikov series began in 1981 when Russia was still part of the USSR; the 16th and  last book in the series was published in 2009. I am now at book 10 in the series. The protagonist is Moscow detective, Chief Inspector, Porfiry Rostnikov. Per the book cover: "Crime in post-communist Russia has only gotten worse: rubles are scarce; blood, plentiful. In the eyes of Inspector Porfiry Rostnikov and his metropolitan police team, newfound democracy has unleashed the desperation that pushes people over the edge, and has emboldened those already on the path to hell. ...A trio of nasty cases confirms their worst fears."

Charlie Chan: Yunte Huang

The full title of this book is Charlie Chan: The Untold Story of the Honorable Detective and His Rendezvous With American History. The author, Yunte Huang, is a professor of English at the University of California, Santa Barbara. My husband and I are both fans of the Charlie Chan mystery novels by Earl Derr Biggers and the many Charlie Chan films that were based on or inspired by the novels. When this book came out, he bought a copy and he and my son both read it years ago.

When I first heard about this book, I thought it was about Charlie Chan the fictional character and Chang Apana, the Hawaiian police officer that Charlie was based on. That is true, but it is so much more. The book covers much of Earl Derr Biggers' life and it talks about most of the books he wrote, then moves on to the success of Charlie Chan on film. It also provides some background on the history of racism in the US.

All of that is a lot to digest and many reviewers complain that the book tries to cover too much and loses focus. For me, that approach worked fine and made the topic more interesting. The writing was fine and I had no problem staying interested. I was worried about getting too much information about the plots of the books (I have only read 3 of the 6 Charlie Chan novels), but that did not happen. The ones that were mentioned were given an overview and where they fit into Biggers' life.

I found the author very interesting. For one thing, we have some things in common. When Yunte Huang moved to the US from China, he chose to go to the University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa for his undergraduate studies. That is where I went to college also. He chose Alabama because it was the first state alphabetically, not knowing much about that area of the country. And today he teaches at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and Santa Barbara is where I have lived for decades. (In the middle he did post graduate studies in New York... but I have never been to New York.)

Resources:

• Southern Hospitality, but not for Newcomers is an article by Huang about his experiences in the South in the early 1990's (mostly good) vs. newer laws in Alabama which are anti-immigration.
• Investigating The Real Detective Charlie Chan gives some information on Yunte Huang and an excerpt from the Introduction of the book.

-----------------------------

Publisher:   W. W. Norton and Co., 2010
Length:       297 pages
Format:      Hardcover
Settings:     Hawaii; USA
Genre:        Nonfiction
Source:       Borrowed from my husband

Reading Summary for July 2018

I cannot believe it is August. And hot and muggy in Santa Barbara. I read ten books in July.  Seven of them were on my list of 20 Books of Summer.

I read two books that were not in the crime fiction genre. Although one of them was strongly related to crime fiction.

Charlie Chan: The Untold Story of the Honorable Detective and His Rendezvous With American History (2010) by Yunte Huang

This non-fiction book is a blend of many things. It covers much of Earl Derr Biggers' life and it talks about most of the books he wrote, including the success of Charlie Chan in novels and on film. It also provides some background on the history of racism in the US.  

It was a very readable book; I often have problems with non-fiction writing but this one was informative... without being boring or dry.

The Night Watch (2006) by Sarah Waters

The second was a historical novel, set in the 1940's in the UK, one of my favorite times and places to read about. This novel has an unusual structure, with three sections, one set in 1947, the next set in 1944, and the last in 1940. The book never returns to 1947 so we know the ending early on, so to speak. I did not find it totally successful, but I am glad I read it.

The crime fiction books I read this month are:

They Do It with Mirrors (1952) by Agatha Christie

In this fifth Jane Marple book, Jane visits Carrie Louise Serrocold at her Victorian mansion, Stoneygates, at the request of an old friend. The US title is Murder with Mirrors. My thoughts on the book are HERE.

Gasa-Gasa Girl (2005)  by Naomi Hirahara

This is the 2nd book in a crime fiction series featuring Mas Arai, a Japanese-American gardener in Los Angeles. Mas is seventy years old and the book starts as he arrives in New York City on his first visit with his daughter and her family. Mas and his daughter have not gotten along for many years, but now she is asking for his help. I enjoyed it very much.

Moskva (2016) by Jack Grimwood

I have read two of this author's books published as John Courtenay Grimwood and I was very impressed with them, so when I heard he had written a cold war spy thriller set in Russia, I had to read it. I was not disappointed, but there was more violence and sex in the novel than I was prepared for.

The Diggers Rest Hotel (2010) by Geoffrey McGeachin

Set in post-World War II Australia, the hero is Charlie Berlin, who rejoins the Melbourne police force after the war. This book won the 2011 Ned Kelly Award. I look forward to reading more of the series, although affordable copies are not easy to find.

Night Rounds (1999) by Helene Tursten

The second book in Helene Tursten's series featuring Inspector Irene Huss, set in Sweden. I enjoyed this book; it covers social issues in Sweden and sexual harrassment in the police department. My full review (and links to other reviews) is HERE.

The Woman Who Married a Bear (1992) by John Straley

This first novel about Cecil Younger, unofficial private investigator, is set in Sitka, Alaska, a port city on the Alaska Panhandle. I found Cecil to be a very unusual character that I grew to like. This book was winner of the 1993 Shamus for Best First P. I. Novel.

A Study in Scarlet (1887) by Arthur Conan Doyle

I have finally read a novel in the Sherlock Holmes series. This very short novel introduces both Sherlock Holmes and his friend Dr. John H. Watson. I did enjoy reading A Study in Scarlet, but it was not at all what I expected.

Queenpin (2007) by Megan Abbott

I did not know quite what to think about this book but I do rate it very high. The tension that builds wore me out when I was reading it, similar to when I was reading Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith. The two books are very different; Highsmith's book centers on two men, this one centers on two women. Set in the 1940s or 50s, in the world of gangsters and gamblers. In 2008, Abbott won the Edgar Award for Best Paperback Original Novel for Queenpin.

Mysteries in October and Pick of the Month

I cannot believe that October is nearly over and Halloween is here (although by the time you read this it will probably be past). There are only two more months in the year. I like the cooler months better (although it can be very hot here in October and even into November). So the end of the year is a favorite time of year. I was very happy with my reading this month. Everything I read was crime fiction.

Two of the books I read this month were vintage mysteries published in the year 1932. Rich at Past Offenses gathered links to reviews of books published in that year HERE.


I participated in the R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril IX event, hosted by Carl of Stainless Steel Droppings during September and October. That event celebrates reading books of mystery and suspense and viewing films (or TV) in the same area. None of my reading this month was particularly spooky or scary, but The Coroner's Lunch by Colin Cotterill did have elements of the supernatural. 


These are the books I read in October:

Garden of Beasts by Jeffery Deaver

The Saint vs. Scotland Yard by Leslie Charteris

Keeper of the Keys by Earl Derr Biggers
Death is a Lonely Business by Ray Bradbury
Siren of the Waters by Michael Genelin
The German Agent by J. Sydney Jones
The Coroner's Lunch by Colin Cotterill

The Crime Fiction Pick of the Month meme is hosted at Mysteries in Paradise. You can go HERE to see more summary posts for the month and choices for favorite crime fiction reads.

This month, I don't know that I can narrow it down to one novel as my favorite this month. I hope to read more books by all of these authors, and each book had its high points. If I was forced to choose, I would make it a tie between Keeper of the Keys by Biggers and Death is a Lonely Business by Bradbury.

Books of 1932: Keeper of the Keys by Earl Derr Biggers

In Keeper of the Keys, Charlie Chan is working on a case in California. He has been invited to the home of Dudley Ward on Lake Tahoe. Ward was the first husband of the famous opera singer Ellen Landini. Chan arrives at Ward's home along with Luis Romano, opera conductor, and fourth husband of Landini. He finds that he is joining a gathering of all of Landini's husbands, past and present. And Landini just happens to be in Reno, across the border in Nevada, waiting to get a divorce from Romano. An interesting setup, which leads to murder.

This book, the last in the series, has plenty of atmosphere. Much is made of the cold weather and snow, which Charlie has never experienced. Because it was written in 1932, I was surprised to see that a charter airplane and its pilot feature prominently in this book. The picture of the sparsely populated area around Lake Tahoe in the early 1930's is intriguing. Chan takes the train to Truckee; he and other guests are driven to a tavern on the lake, then taken by motor boat to Ward's home across the lake.  His home is very isolated.

There are six novels featuring Charlie Chan, and many movies. Most of the movies are not much like the novels, but they are a lot of fun. And in the movies, Charlie Chan is known for his pithy sayings. The first book, The House Without a Key (review here), is set in Hawaii. Charlie Chan does not show up until later in the book, and he seems to be in the background during most of the investigation. He doesn't speak English very well, and does not use the aphorisms for which he is known in the movies. In the second book, The Chinese Parrot (review here), Charlie is on a special case for a friend in California. In that one, he does use aphorisms, but sparingly. By this last book in the series. Charlie is spouting aphorisms very frequently and just about as much as in the movies. Each motto fits the scene though; they are not just there for effect. Some may even contain clues.

I found that of the three books I have read, each is very different. The first one involves a romance, and Charlie plays a smaller part. The second one seems more to be a classic puzzle plot. This book does fit the traditional mystery form, and there are clues. But this one was more entertaining for me than the second one, which was set in the desert. Maybe it was the location or the different set of characters involved. Although Charlie is a policeman in Hawaii, in most of the books he is outside of Hawaii working for an individual.

Charlie is easygoing and pleasant, but he never loses sight of his goal, to catch the murderer and prevent further crimes. In this book he is working in tandem with the sheriff. The rustic sheriff makes this clear:

It's going to be pretty unpleasant for all of us, I guess. I'm Don Holt, sheriff of the county, and I don't aim to cause no innocent person any unnecessary trouble. But I got to get to the bottom of this business, and the shorter the route, the better for all of us—well, most of us, anyhow. I've asked Inspector Chan, who's had more experience in this line than I have, to give me a hand here, an' I want to say right now, that when he asks, you answer. That's all, I reckon.

Don Holt is a nice guy and he and Charlie work together well. All in all, a very enjoyable book.

Two years ago I read my first Charlie Chan book, and I read it for the first R.I.P. event that I participated in. I submit this review for R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril IX. This book is also for the Books of 1932 challenge at Past Offences.

 -----------------------------

Publisher:    Academy Chicago Publishers, 2009 (orig. pub. 1932)
Length:        251 pages
Format:       Trade Paperback
Series:        Charlie Chan, #6
Setting:       Lake Tahoe, California
Genre:        Mystery
Source:       I own a Dell Mapback edition but I read my husband's reprint edition.

B is for Earl Derr Biggers

Today I am featuring The Chinese Parrot (1926) by Earl Derr Biggers for my submission for the Crime Fiction Alphabet meme. Please visit the post at Mysteries in Paradise to check out other entries for this letter.

Biggers wrote six Charlie Chan mysteries. The Chinese Parrot is the second book in the series. The first book in the series is set in Hawaii, where Charlie is a detective on the Honolulu Police Force.

I did not realize when I chose this book for a CFA post on police procedurals that Charlie was on holiday for this outing. My plans were to feature police procedural novels that fit a more standard definition of a police procedural novel.

It is difficult to settle on a definitive description but this one by Julian Symons in Bloody Murder (revised ed., 1985) comes close to what I am looking for.

The police novel, or the police-procedural as it is now called, concentrates upon the detailed investigation of a crime from the point of view of the police, and in the best examples of the kind does so with considerable realism.

However, it is not that unusual for an author of a police procedural series to take a break from the standard fare and send his detective on holiday, so I decided to go ahead and include this book. (Not to mention the fact that I thought about moving to the next in the series, but it has the same type of plot.)

In this book, Charlie has traveled to the mainland (San Francisco) to deliver a valuable string of pearls. He is doing this as a favor for his old friend and owner of the pearls, Sally Jordan, who needs to sell them because she has lost all of her considerable fortune. Alexander Eden, another old friend of Sally's, has negotiated the deal.

The opening paragraph:

Alexander Eden stepped from the misty street into the great, marble-pillared room where the firm of Meek and Eden offered its wares. Immediately, behind showcases gorgeous with precious stones or bright with silver, platinum and gold, forty resplendent clerks stood at attention. Their morning coats were impeccable, lacking the slightest suspicion of a wrinkle, and in the left lapel of each was a pink carnation, as fresh and perfect as though it had grown there.

The majority of the book is set in a small town in the California desert, where the buyer of the pearls has a ranch. Charlie and Bob Eden, Alexander's son, travel to the ranch. When they arrive, suspicious circumstances lead Charlie to convince the buyer that the pearls will be arriving at a later date, even though he has them with him. Shortly after that, Charlie and Bob discover evidence that points to a murder, but can find no body.

At this point, we are about one third of the way into the mystery. The story gets even more complex, and the book is a great read. There are many interesting supporting characters, including a local newspaperman and a young woman who scouts for movie locations.

Racism rears its ugly head, as is common in many books written at the time. Charlie and other Chinese characters in the book are treated with a lack of respect and outright hostility. However, the author depicts Charlie Chan as an intelligent and insightful detective, well-known and respected even outside of Hawaii.

I have only read one other mystery in this series, the first one. Charlie is more central in this novel. In the first novel, The House Without a Key, Charlie does not show up until half way through and the story of the Winterslip family is more prominent than the detecting. My review of the first novel is here.

This book is also submitted for the Vintage Mystery Challenge (Dangerous Beasts: a book with an animal in the title).

New (to me) Authors, October - December 2012

Today I am joining in on the meme on best new-to-me crime fiction authors 2012 at Mysteries in Paradise. The goal is to share authors that are new-to-us this year, especially the ones we liked.


This meme runs at the end of each quarter. Check out other posts for this quarter.

In the last quarter of 2012, I read five books by authors that I have never read before. Three were vintage mysteries.

1. The House Without a Key by Earl Derr Biggers
2. The Greene Murder Case by S. S. Van Dine
3. The Yiddish Policemen's Union by Michael Chabon
4. A Trace of Smoke by Rebecca Cantrell
5. The Cape Code Mystery by Phoebe Atwood Taylor

My top new author out of this group is Rebecca Cantrell. A Trace of Smoke is the first in a historical mystery series, set in the years between World War I and World War II, starring Hannah Vogel, a crime reporter in Berlin.  If I had not had other reading commitments at the time, I would have started reading the second book in the series immediately.

While reading the first half of this book, I was not so sure. I wasn't comfortable with the author's style of telling the story. But at the halfway point, all of a sudden I was hooked by the story, by the character; the last few chapters were a roller coaster ride. The book did not end at all like I expected, and I liked the ending a lot.

Of the vintage authors I read for the first time, I was most impressed with Earl Derr Biggers. I will definitely be reading the rest of that series also.

The book I read was the first Charlie Chan mystery, The House Without a Key. I have seen many of the Charlie Chan films, and I have always enjoyed them, but I had not read any of the books. I was pleasantly surprised that I found this first book very enjoyable. The book has a complex plot that held my interest.

Both of these books were borrowed from my husband. He has copies of the entire series for both of those (lucky me).

Vintage Mystery Reading Challenge 2012: Wrap Up Post

In 2012, this was one of the first challenges I joined. I read vintage mysteries a lot when I was younger, had a lot of vintage mysteries in my To Be Read stacks, and needed motivation to read some of them.

My goal was to read (and review) eight books for two themes, Golden Age Girls (books by a female author) and Cherchez l'Homme (books by a male author). I finished my last vintage mystery for the year in late November. I am glad I joined the challenge because I did need the motivation.

Here is my list of books read, with links to reviews.

Golden Age Girls

1. Christianna Brand: Heads You Lose
2. Christianna Brand: Green for Danger
3. Ngaio Marsh: Night at the Vulcan
4. Phoebe Atwood Taylor: The Cape Cod Mystery
5. Helen Reilly: Lament for the Bride
6. Helen Reilly: The Dead Can Tell
7. Agatha Christie: Murder on the Orient Express
8. Agatha Christie: The Secret Adversary

 Cherchez l'Homme

1. Eric Ambler: A Coffin for Dimitrios
2. Akimitsu Takagi: The Tattoo Murder Case
3. S.  S. Van Dine: The Greene Murder Case
4. Earl Derr Biggers: The House Without a Key
5. Cyril Hare: With a Bare Bodkin
6. Cyril Hare: An English Murder
7. Rex Stout: Fer-de-Lance
8. Ed McBain: Cop Hater

My favorite book for this challenge (that was not a re-read) was The House Without a Key by Earl Derr Biggers. Fer-de-Lance by Rex Stout is my favorite mystery ever, and I highly recommend it. The books by Cyril Hare were also re-reads, and maybe the ones by Agatha Christie. Christie wrote so many books, I am not sure which ones I read in my teens and twenties.

Phoebe Atwood Taylor, Helen Reilly, Akimitsu Takagi, S. S. Van Dine, Earl Derr Biggers, and Ed McBain were all new authors to me.

I look forward to joining in on the 2013 Vintage Mystery Reading Challenge. I know I will read at least eight vintage mysteries, or I may go as high as sixteen.

Mysteries in October and Pick of the Month

I upped my reading total to six books in October. As usual, all of them were mysteries.

The mysteries I read this month were:

1. The House Without a Key by Earl Derr Biggers
2. The Greene Murder Case by S. S. Van Dine
3. A Touch of Frost by R. D. Wingfield
4. Bimbos of the Death Sun by Sharyn McCrumb
5. Zombies of the Gene Pool by Sharyn McCrumb
6. XPD by Len Deighton

The Crime Fiction Pick of the Month meme is hosted at Mysteries in Paradise. Bloggers link to summary posts for the month, and identify a crime fiction best read of the month.

Two were vintage mysteries and I was reading those authors (Biggers and Van Dine) for the first time.  The other four were published between 1979 and 1992.

It is difficult to pick a favorite. The top three were, without a doubt, The House Without a Key,  A Touch of Frost and XPD.

I guess my pick for best book this month would be... the first Charlie Chan mystery, The House Without a Key. I have seen many of the Charlie Chan films, and I have always enjoyed them, but I had not read any of the books. I was pleasantly surprised that I found this first book very enjoyable. The plot was more complex than I expected. Charlie was less front and center in this book than he is in the movies. He did not show up until later in the book, and in some ways he seemed to be in the background during the investigation. But it is clearly his intellect and detection that solves the crime.

The House Without a Key: Earl Derr Biggers (RIP #5)

I recently read the first Charlie Chan mystery, The House Without a Key. I have seen many of the Charlie Chan films, and I have always enjoyed them, but I had not read any of the books. I was pleasantly surprised that I found this first book very enjoyable. My husband was the first to try them and he has enjoyed all of the Charlie Chan books that he has read (four of the six in the series).

The book has a complex plot that held my interest. A family originally from Boston, the Winterslips, has some members living in Hawaii. One of the wealthy Winterslips living in Hawaii is murdered. A younger member of the family, John Quincy Winterslip, has been sent to Boston to check up on his Aunt Minerva and persuade her to return to Boston. He arrives in Honolulu the day after the murder. He gets involved in the investigation and is determined to see it through to the end, before he returns to the mainland.

It turns out that the owner of a hotel is suspected of the murder. His daughter has recently returned to the islands and John Quincy is enchanted by her, and by his cousin Barbara (the daughter of the victim). Plus he has a fiancee back in Boston. This sub-plot of his various possible love interests is entertaining.

The Charlie Chan character has been controversial, especially in the movies. In the books, his speech is not perfect English but he is striving to speak English well. And he is never an object of ridicule. Charlie Chan does not show up until later in the book, and in some ways he seems to be in the background during the investigation. But it is clearly his intellect and detection that solves the crime.

Initially the Winterslips from Boston are shocked to see a Chinese detective in the police and are reluctant for the murder case to be assigned to him. The local residents who know Chan defend his capabilities and extol his virtues as an investigator.

I also enjoyed the picture this book gives us of Hawaii and Honolulu in the 1920's. This book is the second book I have read for the 50 State Mystery Challenge at Goodreads.

This post is my fifth for the R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril VII event. That event celebrates reading of books of mystery and suspense.

I would like to point out an interesting recent book: Charlie Chan: The Untold Story of the Honorable Detective and His Rendezvous with American History by Yunte Huang. My husband and son have both read this book and encouraged me to read it. I may wait until I have read more of the books, because it could spoil some of the stories for me.

In this review of the book by Huang at the Washington Post, Michael Dirda notes that "Huang does somehow neglect the most obvious aspect of the Chan books and movies: their status as mysteries, as minor works of art." Nevertheless, he also considers it a "terrifically enjoyable and informative book, one that should appeal to both students of racial history and to fans of one of cinema's greatest detectives."

This book also counts as one of my books for the following challenges:
New Author Challenge
1st in a Series Challenge
Vintage Mystery Challenge
Mystery & Suspense Reading Challenge