L'Automa

Dr. Gideon Fell #8

by John Dickson Carr

La casa, protetta da un muro di cinta e da una cortina di alberi, ha il colore rosso mattone scuro tipico dei quadri antichi. Dalle finestre filtra la luce debole del giorno che sta ormai svanendo. Nella biblioteca, qualche tappeto sul pavimento a lastroni di pietra e pesanti scaffali carichi di volumi fino al soffitto. Sir John Farnleigh, ultimo discendente di una stirpe di baronetti, attende di conoscere il responso che potrebbe sconvolgergli la vita. Alla presenza di testimoni, un uomo si accinge a dimostrare di essere il vero John Farnleigh. Lo scambio di persona sarebbe avvenuto molti anni prima, nientemeno che durante il naufragio del Titanic. Occorrono ovviamente prove ben solide a suffragare una simile pretesa, con cui oltre al titolo si reclamano la proprietà e la considerevole fortuna del presunto impostore. Ma una morte improvvisa e inspiegabile getta sulla disputa ereditaria un'ombra sinistra. E sarà difficile per i convenuti non provare un brivido nel domandarsi che ruolo abbiano nella vicenda un libro di stregoneria, una maschera bifronte e un vecchio automa meccanico. Per la soluzione dell'enigma dovranno sperare nel dottor Gideon Fell, del tutto immune da certe suggestioni.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Detective, Classics, Golden Age Mystery, Mystery Thriller

325 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1937

About the author

AKA Carter Dickson, Carr Dickson and Roger Fairbairn.

John Dickson Carr was born in Uniontown, Pennsylvania, in 1906. It Walks by Night, his first published detective novel, featuring the Frenchman Henri Bencolin, was published in 1930. Apart from Dr Fell, whose first appearance was in Hag's Nook in 1933, Carr's other series detectives (published under the nom de plume of Carter Dickson) were the barrister Sir Henry Merrivale, who debuted in The Plague Court Murders (1934).

Reviews

[Alan (the Lone Librarian rides again) Teder · Rating 4 out of 5]

Something Crooked This Way Comes
Review of the Penzler Publishers American Mystery Classics eBook (October 1, 2019) of the Harper and Brothers hardcover original (1938)

We shall have to take our choice. On the one hand we have a somewhat preposterous suicide; but on the other hand, unfortunately, we have a more than somewhat impossible murder. Will someone kindly oblige me with an idea?

The Crooked Hinge is from towards the middle of the pack of Carr's Dr. Gideon Fell mysteries. I had randomly picked it up as a Kindle Deal of the Day and it isn't necessary to read the books in order. It is also listed quite high at #4 in a ranking of the top "locked rooms / impossible crimes" novels. Carr is often considered the top writer of those scenarios. They usually involve a solution which is by necessity extremely elaborate and not very realistic, but as long as you are willing to go along, they can be very entertaining.

This one is par for the course. It takes a sort of Return of Martin Guerre scenario where there are two claimants to a baronetcy. One of them has already established themself in the position when another claimant appears, they have a lawyer and a supposed proof of their claim. Then one of the claimants dies, perhaps by suicide or was it an impossible murder? The man was observed standing outside with no one else seen nearby when he dies. The supposed "proof" also disappears. Somehow an automaton in the attic is involved, which seemingly moves unaided. Then a maid disappears. Then there appears to be a tie-in to a murder from a year ago which had previously been thought to be solved. Then there is apparent witchcraft involved. A mid-section epigraph is used to set the scene for the latter:

Car, au fond, c’est cela le Satanisme, se disait-il; la question agitée depuis que le monde existe, des visions extérieures, est subsidiare, quand on y songe; le Démon n’a pas besoin de s’exhiber sous des traits humains ou bestiaux afin d’attester sa présence; il suffit, pour qu’il s’affirme, qu’il élise domicile en des âmes qu’il exulcère et incite à d’inexplicables crimes. - excerpt from Là-Bas (1895) by Joris-Karl Huysmans.

You will think that there can't possibly be a solution to all this. Dr. Gideon Fell is of course on hand to explain it. In the end, the culprit also provides a complete confession which contains reveal after reveal, twist upon twist.


The front cover of the original 1938 Harper and Brothers hardcover. Image sourced from Goodreads.

Trivia and Links
This book is in the Public Domain and there are various online sources where it is available to read such as at archive.org

John Dickson Carr (1906-1977) is one of the 99 authors listed in The Book of Forgotten Authors (2017) by Christopher Fowler. He is No. 20 in the alphabetical listing which you can see towards the bottom of my review here.

This edition of The Crooked Hinge is part of the Otto Penzler American Mystery Classics series (2018-ongoing). There is a related Goodreads Listopia here with 57 books listed as of mid April 2024. There are currently 71 titles listed at the Mysterious Press online bookshop. The official website for the series at Penzler Publishers seems to show only the most recent and upcoming titles.

John Dickson Carr took the inspiration for Dr. Gideon Fell's appearance from that of author G.K. Chesterton (1874-1936), writer of the Father Brown mysteries and other works.

Photograph of G.K. Chesterton. Image sourced from Wikipedia.
The source of the name Dr. Fell is apparently from the apocryphal epigram:

I do not like thee, Doctor Fell,
The reason why – I cannot tell;
But this I know, and know full well,
I do not like thee, Doctor Fell.

[John · Rating 2 out of 5]

I never thought the day would come that I'd have to report finding a Carr novel poor, but it's happened. Every now and then he wrote one that wasn't up to his usual astonishingly high standard -- I remember The Arabian Nights Murder (1936) as being a bit tiresome and mediocre -- but this is the first I've read that I'd describe as bad.

It's one of a bunch of novels that seem inspired by the Tichborne Claimant case -- others include Josephine Tey's Brat Farrar (1949) and Robin Maugham's The Link: A Victorian Mystery (1969). In this instance it soon becomes evident that the claimant is in fact genuine; when the usurper is murdered the obvious question arises: what motive could anyone have had to put him out of the way? Gideon Fell, visiting the area in connection with a different case, is called in . . .

Cue some spooky scenes with an ancient automaton, some twaddle about covens, and an appallingly contrived howdunnit. There are some good observations before that, which raises my rating from 1 to 1.5 stars. I cannot imagine why this was chosen for a sort of "best mysteries" library when there are so many far better Carr/Dickson novels out there, but a big advantage of this edition comes in the form of the intro, "notes for the curious" and checklist of JDC's/CD's works, all three items done by Robert E. Briney; they raise the novel, in this edition alone, from a 1.5 to a 3.

[Jaksen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A classic whodunnit mystery from the golden age of mysteries, or so I am told. By one 0f the BIG ones, John Dickson Carr, who I'd never read, and so...

Finally read one, and according to experts who know, one of the best, but for my money, one of the most convoluted and twisted plots I've ever come across. Multiple characters, who at first, I couldn't tell one from another. (Yeah, but eventually I did...)

And in this one, fairly short book, set in the rural countryside of England:

A man comes to claim his inheritance after 'being away' for years; the man who, according to the first man is an imposter! Then we have two lawyers; one obese but brilliant detective, Dr. Fell; a couple of police investigators; several women, including one who was murdered a year ago; a tutor, or teacher; a couple of servants including a girl who likes apples; and a random guy just there for moral support, I guess, and then add in...

Witchcraft and Satanism; the Titanic (yes, that Titanic!); a mechanical automaton from the 18th century up in the attic; and one big creepy house with creaky staircases and hidden doors, and with a layout which is tremendously significant to who did what to whom and how and when...

Lay on a mysterious murder with no reasonable, rational explanation. A knife in a hedge. A half-eaten apple on a stairstep. An automaton which seems to move on its own. Witchcraft - did I already mention that? And lots of people looking out of windows and all seeing something a little bit differently. There's also 'thumbograph books' which were all the rage at the time, I guess. There are so many elements in this book! OMG it goes on and on...

You can get breathless reading this book. Put in a good supply of snacks and something to drink if you're game for this one. People rush here and there - it's another of those 'let's run around books' and I've read a few of those. People don't amble; they don't take a walk; they rarely drive anywhere. They run from here to there and...

I am tired just from writing this. A fair read, yet a bewildering one.

Three stars.

[Nam Do · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lại thêm một vụ án bất khả thi khác phải nhờ đến tiến sỹ Fell ra tay giải đáp. Lần này nạn nhân bị chết bên hồ với nhứng vết thương chí mạng ở cổ như dao rạch. Nhưng cảnh sát không xác định được hung khí, các nhân chứng cũng không chắc chắn về diễn biến tử vong. Rồi sau khi án mạng xảy ra lâu đài còn hé lộ nhiều bí ẩn quái dị đậm chất Gothic như lễ tếdị giáo, con người máy kì lạ biết chuyển động...

Diễn biến nhanh và gay cấn, lôi cuốn hơn ''Người Rỗng'' với một đoạn kết rất bất ngờ. Carr quả không hổ danh là ''bậc thầy của những tội ác bất khả thi'' cũng như taì đánh lạc hướng người đọc.
Chấm 8/10

[Jigar Brahmbhatt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the setup and the plot-idea. This one is easily the most readable Carr after The Hollow Man.

[Ben Loory · Rating 3 out of 5]

really enjoyed this-- seriously ingenious with all kinds of layers and reflections, lots of twists and turns and even some really frightening moments. ashamed to say i didn't see the final reveal coming, even though i totally knew the kind of thing to be looking for. I THOUGHT IT WAS A KILLER MONKEY! but i was wrong and am now forever saddled with the shame of having been looking for a killer monkey.

i also have the feeling that this entire book will have faded from memory within a week and a half or so, leaving only a vague sense of two starness... much like carr's The Burning Court, which i read last year and also really enjoyed and gave four stars to and now can't remember a single page of, except a vague memory of a woman's reflected image...

BUT CHECK OUT THAT GREAT PURPLE COVER!!

[Bill Purkayastha · Rating 2 out of 5]

I must say this book was a terrible disappointment.

I don't necessarily mind bad crime/detection stories. I however strongly mind stories that cheat. And, as a detective story writer myself, I have trained myself to look for throwaway clues - seemingly minor things that are actually significant - and this book has them in plenty. They all point to one, inevitable, killer...and that killer is "unmasked" in the last but one chapter, with all the throwaway clues being cited to prove that particular person's guilt. And the book could, should, have stopped there.

But it did not. It went on for one more chapter in which it introduced a hitherto never mentioned and extremely significant point, something that changes everything including the identity of the killer...and makes those throwaway clues irrelevant. If this isn't cheating, what is?

This is the first Carr book I've read. Let me see how the others measure up.

[Janet · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fun at the beginning, but becomes overly convoluted and unfair to the reader. Leaves out important details and observations throughout, which is intensely annoying. Dr. Gideon Fell is one of the worst fictional detectives I have ever run across - does nothing but hem and haw and never explains anything. The premise was interesting, and probably would have been a pretty good short story, but stretching it into a full-length book produced far too many contortions of plot and character. If this had been a modern mystery, I would have given it a single star - as a product of its time I'll be generous. I see from other reviewers that this is considered one of Carr's worst efforts, but I'm not sure if I'll give him another chance.

[Bev · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another great "impossible" crime by the master. I keep reading Carr not only because I enjoy watching a master illusionist at work, but also because I'm just sure he'll have to repeat a trick. So far, he's left me wanting--every time he comes up with a different method and, like a good magician, he displays the whole trick right before your eyes and you never see the workings. Great stuff! Three and a half stars

[Lobstergirl · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one of those creaky, old-fashioned Brit mysteries featuring Satanism, spinsters, a Golden Hag, automatons, amputees, imposters and false claimants, fright masks, Thumbographs, and escapes from the Titanic. Even so, I can't recommend it unreservedly. I have a feeling Carr might be the poor man's Wilkie Collins. What I can recommend unreservedly is the terrific purple cover art.

[Greg · Rating 4 out of 5]

BOOK 110 - Mid-20th Century North American Crime Readathon - Round 3
Reminiscent of the famous Tichborne case that rocked England and Ausralia in the 1870s, this novel reconstructs many of the most astounding facts of that case, using the Titanic/America as a substitute
for the wreck of the ship bound for Autralia. The story has been done many times, and I think Carr's "Croooked Hinge" is the best take-off of the subject.
HOOK = 3 stars: "At a window overlooking a garden in Kent, Brian Page sat amid a clutter of new books at the writing-table, and found a strong distaste for work." Later on page one, "Finally, there had been today the mysterious running to and fro of Page's friend Nathaniel Burrows, the solicitor of Maidstone." Brian recognizes that something exciting is happening in Mallingford village. Neither he nor the reader gets a glimpse of the issue for several pages.
PACE = 4: As far as word count, in general, a mystery should have 80,000 to 120 thousand words. "The Crooked Hinge" has about 181, 675, or 50% more than is allowable by publishers today. In other words, this work would be considered unpublishable today. Yet, not a word is wasted. Carr and his 'impossible crime' novels are one of a kind.
PLOT=4: John Farnleigh is comfortably established, with his wife Molly, on a massive family estate. A man shows up (for the sake of confusion, he's called Patrick Gore) and Gore states he is the real John Farnleigh and that as young boys, they had traded places during the sinking of the Titanic. Then, an impossible crime is commited: the man called John Farleigh is murdered as he stands near an outdoor pool/fountain. His throat brutally slashed, but there is no one nearby, and the coroner rules it could not have been suicide. Thus far, an impossibile crime. Then, things get even better: automaton's are introduced and there is an ancient one in the estate attic that's been there for several hundred years. This gets creepy: the automaton might be coming to life every now and then for a murder. Throw in Satanist cults and you have one of the creepiest murder mysteries I've ever read. I'd give this plot 5 stars, but it's been done before, so 4 stars seems right.
CHARACTERS/PEOPLE=5: The automotron, supposedly not functional, grabs a young maid and she blacks out. And the automotron shows up in the dead of night, in random fields with no possible explanations. Brian Page is a writer, Nathaniel Burrows the family lawyer. John Farnleigh may or may not be a fake, but he's been faking it (if so) for about 20 years. Farnleigh, as a young man, had charmed one to many maid and bar lasses, and had been shipped off to America with his tutor. Patrick Gore claims he is the real Farnleigh. An entire town is mesmerized by Gore appearing and staking his claim. Then the murder, the Satanists and the mysterious moving automaton has everyone in the town on edge. A superb cast.
ATMOSPHERE=5: I'll just quote a single line from this novel: "The word was 'heathenish.' Carr brilliant ups the tension, page by page. And the scene on the sinking Titanic, where the secret to the entire mystery lies, is sensational.
SUMMARY: This is a brilliant, impossible crime creepfest. Best read on the next October 31st: you won't be disappointed. My overall rating is 4.2.
"The Blind Barber" - 1934 - 2.4
"Blind Man's Hood" - 1940 - 3.4
"The Crooked Hinge" - 1938 - 4.2
John Dickson Car author average rating - 3.32

[Sharon Barrow Wilfong · Rating 4 out of 5]

I believe this is my first John Dickson Carr. I've learned to trust publications that focus on mysteries from the first half of the 20th century. They won't have gratuitous violence, language or sex. Maybe because of bad old censorship, but these poor authors had to rely exclusively on story line and character development.

At first I wasn't really sure who the hero was going to be, assuming there was a hero. Dr. Gideon Fell doesn't come into it until much later. Perhaps if I had started with the first of the series, I'd have been clear about who the detective was going to be. It did become apparent after a while.

The plot is original in many respects: It is the 1930s. The Local Squire, Sir Dudley Fairleigh has died. His younger brother, John, is the next in line but has been gone since he crossed the Atlantic on the Titanic in 1912. A year previously, it turns out he did, in fact survive the crossing and comes to claim his title. He married Molly, the little girl who was sweet on him in his youth, and has been living quietly ever since.

Then another man, a Patrick Gore, arrives on the scene. He claims to also have traveled on the Titanic and also survived. In fact, Gore claims that he is the real John Fairleigh, and the current Fairleigh is an imposter. He is really Patrick Gore and they switched identities when they met on that ill fated crossing.

So. Who is telling the truth? The answer is not so straight forward and there are many surprises and unexpected twists. I really had no idea who was what and when a main character is unexpectedly murdered, the reader is even more lost.

This is an unusual detective story because it not only has a murder to be solved, but is creepy. One of the characters practices witchcraft and may have discovered the secret to a 18th century mechanical doll called the Hag, that is stored in the closet. Is this Hag somehow responsible for the murder?

It certainly scared a maid to the point of death.

The ending is completely a surprise, coming out of left field, but then again so do many turns and twists. However, I must admit the whole story is logically put together, although I think the author is sometimes guilty of drawing it out longer than it needed to be by inserting extra little twists and turns here and there. It reminded me of the old Dickens' serials.

Anyway, I'm glad to find a new author to enjoy.

[QHuong(BookSpy) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hmmm... cuốn này... theo mình, hay bằng với quyển Người Rỗng, có những điểm hay hơn và cũng có điểm kém hơn. Với cuốn này, mình thấy thủ thuật của hung thủ dễ hình dung hơn nên cảm thấy nó chắc chắn hơn, tuy nhiên cách gây án thành công được hay không lại phụ thuộc nhiều vào đặc điểm ngoại hình, và không hiểu sao, dù mình thấy cách gây án dễ hiểu nhưng cảm giác như nó vẫn lỏng lẻo, mặc dù kiểm tra mọi chi tiết thì đều khớp nhau. Đáng tiếc là thủ phạm đã không bị bắt lại, kịp thời trốn thoát khỏi vòng vây pháp luật, nhưng điều đó đáng ngạc nhiên là không ảnh hưởng đến trải nghiệm của mình khi đọc cuốn này. Nhưng có một điểm nữa mà mình vẫn thấy khó hiểu, đó là sự liên quan giữa vụ án John Farnleigh và vụ Victoria Daly - đến tận cuối truyện rồi, biết rõ tường tận rồi, vậy thực ra có hay không có liên quan với nhau?

Về nhân vật thì ông tiến sĩ Fell mang một nhân cách khác hẳn so với ông Fell cáu bẳn, dễ mất bình tĩnh trong Người Rỗng. Ông Fell trong truyện này sao mà thi vị thế, người ta hỏi gì thì ông ấy cũng phải ngân nga một câu thơ trước đã rồi mới thong thả vào vấn đề chính. Rõ là kì quặc. Ông có vẻ lơ đãng, dường như không quan tâm đến bất cứ tiểu tiết gì (đánh lừa người khác thôi). Các nhân vật còn lại không có nhiều ấn tượng với mình, ngoại trừ thanh tra Elliot có vẻ là một anh thanh tra giàu kinh nghiệm, có tiềm năng phát triển sự nghiệp sau này. Không hiểu sao là lần này mình hơi có ác cảm với nhân vật Brian Page (mình không rõ anh chàng này có mối quan hệ thế nào với các nhân vật khác, ngoại trừ là bạn thân của luật sư Burrows). Anh ta không có điểm xấu gì để mình ghét cả, nhưng cái cách anh ta tham gia vào vụ án cứ làm mình khó chịu, và cả việc anh ta có vẻ si tình cô Madeline cảm giác cứ vô duyên thế nào ấy, mà cô Madeline này quá mạnh dạn và thẳng thắn so với Brian nên lại càng làm nổi bật sự "vô dụng" của anh ta.

Nhân vật mình yêu thích nhất chính là nạn nhân John Farnleigh, người bị mất trí nhớ và phải chịu một cái chết đau đớn và kinh hoàng. Thực sự thì khi mà biết John Farnleigh có cảm giác thế nào khi sắp biết sự thật về bản thân mình, mình rất thông cảm cho anh ta. Mất trí nhớ giống như mất đi hẳn một phần của những kí ức đã tạo nên con người mình, và John gần như là luôn phải vật vã với những câu hỏi, dò dẫm trong bóng tối để tìm hiểu về bản thân, sống hàng bao nhiêu năm trong thắc mắc liệu mình có phải là người đó không. Cái chết đến với Farnleigh có thể bất ngờ, có thể là cố ý giết người, có thể đau đớn, nhưng cũng là một sự giải thoát trong tinh thần, chấm dứt nỗi đau khổ của Farnleigh.

Không khí bao trùm cuốn sách này rất là đen tối và u ám, mang hơi hướng một điền trang biệt lập và mọi bí mật của nó cùng các nghi phạm chỉ bị giới hạn trong ngôi nhà đó. Sau đó có những đề cập đến siêu nhiên và phù thủy, rồi con người máy kinh dị (sao cứ làm mình nhớ đến búp bê Annabelle) càng làm tăng cái tính ma mị, kì bí - hơi có phong cách Gothic rợn người. Đặc biệt là tác giả đã trải dài không khí này từ đầu đến cuối truyện, đoạn nào cũng gợi lên cái cảm giác rùng mình, biệt lập đó (ngoại trừ phân đoạn tòa án), nuôi được cái nỗi sợ của người đọc đến tận trang cuối cùng.

Cuối cùng thì mình cần phải chỉ ra nhược điểm duy nhất mà mình không hài lòng tí nào, đó là lối dịch lạm dụng nhiều phương ngữ địa phương làm mình rất khó chịu, khiến câu cú không được trau chuốt và dịch bị thiếu tự nhiên, ảnh hưởng đến trải nghiệm đọc của mình.

[shanghao · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall a 3-star read but an extra for the ingenuous reveal by the magician(s) at the end of the show. I had some niggles with the caricaturish portrayal of characters and several minor points on style, but I loved the book's way of tackling the question of morality and jurisdiction, as well as the atmospheric reenactment of the old English county and its sprawling, romantic estates.

This is the first book I've read by John Dickson Carr and I find the hook for his mystery device is not so much on whodunnit as to the tricks and technicalities of 'impossibilities' and it's got heavier layering (or a thicker wool over the eyes if you will) of clues as compared to Agatha Christie's or ACD's works. Interesting historical references were also included here that made you wish authors nowadays would spend more time into quality research for their books like their yesteryear counterparts. This is 'merely' a mystery pulp but you could see how the relevant research weaved into the story made for a richer reading experience.

I didn't take to Dr Fell as much as I did to, say, Poirot, who's hilarious, or to a lesser extent Sherlock, who's complex. But as I've mentioned, the strengths of this story aren't its characters, but the multiple innuendoes that served as morsels for thought and in turn invited the readers to provide their two pennies after the author laid down his, I suppose, through the events and actions that unfolded in his work.

The title is one such example, although in the story it was spoken of in the literal context only. However, I felt it brilliantly connected with all the major aspects of the book: the innocuous clue, the pivotal event, the trick, and last but not least the question as to how you would define a crooked hinge in the metaphorical sense; is there such a thing as a 'straight' hinge or person? And for that matter, incidents - they aren't always simply 'positive' or 'negative'. What then of a 'moderate' murderer? Could crime be justifiable? It's all a delicious mix of gray lines that the author threw at the readers for each to find their own interpretation and consequently satisfaction. In our own eyes and the people who love us, our actions might be justifiable, but our crooked hinges might be noticed only by a different perspective as only a neutral observer might have. Should we have such people in our lives, our kinks might be nurtured into something wonderful, or if not pruned to harmlessness. Or sometimes, circumstances might amplify these kinks into something really crooked, or turn someone crooked real straight (although this might not absolve them still).

But maybe crookedness exist in all of us, however small; and we can't all be straight too, or it'd make for a boring pattern. Sometimes we just take crooked photos by accident or intentionally for 'angles'. There's the straighten tool in photo editors. Sometimes we too go out of line for one reason or another; if you think you need some straightening, start noticing those editors around you, let them work their magic and return the favour if you could.

[Nhi Nguyễn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mình không thực sự thích cuốn này lắm, cứ có cảm giác câu chuyện kém hấp dẫn thế nào ấy… Khi đọc tóm tắt truyện, có nói về Quỷ Đạo, về cái chết của nạn nhân gây nhiều nghi hoặc giữa bốn bề không người, mình đã mong chờ được đọc một cuốn tiểu thuyết trinh thám cổ điển mang màu sắc ảo diệu, kỳ bí, có nhiều chi tiết liên quan đến ma quỷ, phép thuật,… nhưng cuối cùng vẫn có được lời giải thích hợp lý cho những chuyện đã xảy ra. Tuy nhiên, những gì mình mong chờ thì truyện có lẽ chỉ mang đến được tầm 40% - 50% thôi, đọc chưa đã lắm, và cũng không lôi cuốn bằng hai cuốn trước đó của John Dickson Carr mà mình đọc là “Người Rỗng” và “Vụ Án Viên Nhộng Xanh”. Mình không thấy được vẻ đẹp trong suy luận và những cú twists hết hồn, hoặc kiểu liên kết những phát hiện lại với nhau để tìm ra hung thủ.

Cuối cùng thì vụ án cũng được giải, nhưng lời giải lại là do hung thủ viết thư để lại sau khi đã cao chạy xa bay… Đã thế hung thủ trong vụ này lại còn viết nhiều đoạn tự nhận mình lên kế hoạch chưa tới, lòi ra sơ hở nên tiến sĩ Fell mới biết được. Mình thì lại thích kiểu hung thủ cực kỳ tinh vi, có tính toán gần như hoàn hảo, sau đó phải nhờ bác Fell suy luận dữ lắm mới ra được đáp án cơ. So với hai cuốn mình đề cập ở trên thì cuốn này mình đọc chậm hơn hẳn, mặc dù số trang không nhiều bằng.

Nhưng tựu trung lại thì mình cũng đọc hết được cuốn này, sách cũng có tính giải trí, nên du di cho 3 sao ^^ Cũng phải công nhận bác Carr viết toàn bộ lời giải cho vụ án ở cuối cuốn sách thông qua lá thư hung thủ để lại, thế cũng tiện cho mình, sau này có quên đáp án là gì thì cứ giở bức thư đó ra mà đọc :D

[William · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Crooked Hinge has often been considered one of Carr's great works, though in a recent poll in the Golden Age of Detection facebook group (where all the cool kids are), it didn't rank in the top 10. Still, I approached it knowing I was probably in for a quality read.

I had read 3 Carrs to date: Death Watch, which I found slow and unfair; Hag's Nook, which I found a bit more readable but predictable; and It Walks By Night, also fairly readable and very clever in parts.

Crooked Hinge is easily the best paced of the Carrs thus far. It hooks the reader early on with a really interesting set-up well before there's even a hint of murder and doesn't really let up. Many GAD books seem like they would make awful movies, but for Crooked Hinge, I could see someone making a real corker of it.

As for the solution, it is ingenious and hangs together well, but there were key aspects of it that I didn't find particularly fair. Solidly worthy of four stars and probably a volume I'm going to keep, but I expect Carr will top this at some point in my reading of him.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maybe one could do a psychological test to see if there's a difference between people who prefer Carr's Dr. Fell or his other main detective Sir Henry Merrivale (I'm with HM, if that proves anything). But this is definitely for those in the Dr. Fell camp, as Fell tries to figure out why the wrong man was murdered. Sir John Farnsworth, after a varied earlier career, has settled down with a wealthy wife to be an ornament to the landed gentry, when a claimant calling himself Patrick Gore appears, with proof, he says, that he's the real John Farnsworth. The man who tutored the real boy appears, and has an early fingerprint which he can compare with the prints of both men. There are mutterings of witchcraft in the neighborhood, which is what brings Scotland Yard's Elliot and Fell to investigate. Oh, and there are spooky doings before Carr reveals the culprit!

[William · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three stars, I guess, but maybe another half star because it is pretty readable.

As other readers have pointed out, this is a complex plot and utterly "un-guessable." There are so many twists and turns that it is hard to keep on track, or recall other seemingly minor details mentioned earlier which become important later on.

The plot is ingenious, for sure, but there are too many themes: who is the real John Farnleigh, Satanism, 19th century deceptive automatons, and probably more. I would have enjoyed this more if the plot had stayed on the question of determining which Lord Farnleigh was the authentic one.

As usual, Gideon Fell plays a somewhat understated role. None of the characters are especially well-developed. Still, this was at least sort of fun, and worth reading if one is curious about the history of the mystery novel.

[Sergio · Rating 5 out of 5]

Uno dei più bei gialli di JDC: è davvero eccitante leggere questo autore nella consapevole certezza che la spiegazione finale mi lascerà senza fiato!

[Elusive · Rating 3 out of 5]

Will the real John Farnleigh please stand up? Such is the premise of 'The Crooked Hinge'. A vast inheritance awaits John Farnleigh but another claimant who goes by the name Patrick Gore claims to be the rightful heir. A death further complicates the matter of discovering who the imposter is.

A test comprising questions, followed by a fingerprint comparison to solve this identity conundrum sounded simple enough. However, other factors created doubt and questions such as the sudden death, largely unhelpful witnesses and so forth. Furthermore, the two Farnleighs were convincing.

The circumstances surrounding the crime were intriguing, with a slight supernatural bend to it. The crime seemingly couldn't have been a homicide as it seemingly couldn't have been carried out. The pool of suspects and each person's possible motive heightened the suspense.

Farnleigh's backstory and the mystery of the crooked hinge were interesting, as was Dr. Fell and Inspector Elliot gathering information which led them to the answer. My only gripes were:

- Certain things were a tad far-fetched.
- The perpetrator was deemed one of the most cunning murderers in Dr. Fell's experience yet this person admitted to committing several (foolish) mistakes.

Overall, 'The Crooked Hinge' presented a puzzling murder mystery that was enjoyable save the supernatural element that felt out of place and could've been incorporated better or left out altogether.

[Bob Mackey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Decided to jump into another Carr novel as my first book of 2026—mostly thanks to the film Wake Up Dead Man—and, as usual, he doesn't disappoint. This one is apparently the fourth-best locked room mystery ever written, at least according to a notable list, and while that seems a little high, the Crooked Hinge deploys some tricks I haven't seen in about 15 years of reading this subgenre. In particular, Carr goes for a very late rug pull that seems like it should completely wreck the novel, but this audacious move leads to a final chapter where he expertly sorts everything out in a way I never imagined. I'm really not sold on his Gideon Fell character—he feels like an undercooked Nero Wolfe—but without a doubt, Carr is the master of mystery plot mechanics.

It feels like Carr faded into obscurity thanks to how much he relied on sensationalism, but all these years later, the subject matter he leaned towards makes his novels all the more entertaining. This one features witchcraft, satanic cults, and centuries-old creepy automatons. Book critics of the past might have seen his fixations as cheap and lurid, but these choices definitely gives his books an edge other Golden Age writers just don't have.

[Nat · Rating 3 out of 5]

Carr loves to have our main character be some random guy who contributes nothing to the plot. I don't know where he's finding all these carbon copy men but they do nothing the whole time and somehow at the end manage to land a woman who's too hot for them.

Anyway. There's a lot in this one that's pretty contrived. The sinking of the Titanic features as a plot point? One of those freaky Victorian automatons shows up? The resolution is thoroughly unguessable but I kind of enjoyed it anyway. The bait and switch of the original "fake" reveal that Molly did it alone, swapped out for the real solution where the real John actually did it was pretty neatly done.

Probably not Carr's best work but the concept is solid and the cast is interesting enough to keep the story moving. Not spectacular - but not bad.

[Leslie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5*

Well, I didn't see the solution to this mystery coming at all!

[Tommy Hekma · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very fun mystery that kept me guessing! I love this style of book - the classic setting and grand reveal are always a great payoff!

[Lisa Kucharski · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two people claim to be the heir of a large estate. However the one who is currently occupying the position ends up getting killed in the most mysterious way. It also seems that people are entranced by past ghosts and a past murder of a woman in the area.

This is one crazy entwined murder mystery. I’m not even going to try and go into the plot here as it seemed to rely on both what happened and the personalities of the people it involved. Would not call this exactly fair play either, but a very strange and interesting read all the same.

[Alberto Avanzi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sontuoso
Questo non è solo un romanzo giallo, è un grandissimo romanzo d’avventura e un bellissimo romanzo psicologico. Carr rispetto allo scrittore di gialli medio è indubbiamente una spanna sopra per qualità di scrittura, ma questo romanzo spicca anche rispetto agli altri romanzi dello stesso autore. Finora, solo il “Terrore che mormora” era arrivato a questi livelli.
La soluzione è di altissima qualità, incredibilmente originale e al tempo stesso consistente. Purtroppo c’è anche qui una piccola sbavatura sulla soluzione, simile a quella riscontrata nel “Terrore che mormora” (e nelle “penne di pavone”), che impedisce al romanzo di toccare la perfezione. E sarebbe stata evitabilissima senza aiutare eccessivamente il lettore. Poi spiego nei commenti… A ogni modo sbavatura più che perdonata (un SI pieno, non certo un NI) rispetto alla bellezza della trama, alla caratterizzazione dei personaggi, alla mancanza di punti morti o lenti, all’originalità e potenza della soluzione (mentre come detto altre volte “Vedova rossa” e “Occhio di Giuda” hanno una soluzione “perfetta” anche se non coinvolgenti nel complesso della storia come questo e come "Terrore che mormora")
Il romanzo me lo sono gustato sapendo poco o niente della trama, e credo questo sia il modo migliore per godere di un giallo (saltando anche l’introduzione di Boncompagni, che ho letto a libro finito, e la quarta di copertina), per cui accenno solo la situazione iniziale: John Farnleigh, il figlio secondogenito di un signorotto di campagna inglese, ragazzo un po’ vivace e poco incline a seguire le regole, viene spedito in America insieme al suo precettore Kenneth Murray. I due viaggiano a bordo del Titanic, e si salvano entrambi dal naufragio, ma le loro vite si dividono finché, decenni dopo, John a causa della morte prima del padre e poi del fratello maggiore, eredita la proprietà e torna in Inghilterra, dove sposa Molly, che era solo una bambina quando lui partì. Sembra andare tutto bene quando si presenta alla dimora dei Farnleigh un tizio, Patrick Gore, che sostiene di essere il vero John Farnleigh, con il quale aveva effettuato uno scambio di persona, sul tipo del “principe e il povero”, durante il viaggio a bordo del Titanic. Viene quindi richiamato l’uomo che potrebbe dirimere la questione, Murray. E viene commesso un omicidio (non camera chiusa, ma sempre “delitto impossibile”)… E’ solo lo spunto per una storia carica di tensione e ricca di colpi di scena, con un Gideon Fell in gran forma che non fa rimpiangere H.M. ai fans di questo personaggio.
Il tema della sostituzione di persona, trattato spesso goffamente dai giallisti, anche grandi come Agatha Christie, qui è invece reso verosimile, con indizi che ora spingono verso un’identificazione e ora verso un’altra. E gli altri temi che tocca il romanzo, che qui non menziono per non guastare la sorpresa, sono di autentico interesse e narrati con ottimo ritmo e tensione, senza mai annoiare. Da non perdere assolutamente per chi ama il giallo.

[TheRavenking · Rating 2 out of 5]

Zwei Männer geben sich als Sir John Farnleigh aus, auf den ein reiches Baronen-Erbe wartet. Sie beschuldigen sich gegenseitig der Hochstaplerei. Nur einer kann den echten Sir John identifizieren: Kennet Murray, sein ehemaliger Hauslehrer. Murray ist in Gefahr, doch als im Farnleigh-Garten ein Mord geschieht, ist nicht Murray das Opfer.

Neben Der verschlossene Raum ist Die Tür im Schott wohl John Dickson Carrs berühmtester Roman und erzählt ebenfalls die Geschichte eines unmöglichen Verbrechens, welches sich allerdings diesmal unter freiem Himmel und nicht in einem hermetisch abgeriegelten Raum ereignet.

Von Anfang an erzeugt Carr eine wunderbar dichte Atmosphäre, wirft den Leser gleich in die Mitte des Geschehens und gibt ihm ein, zwar auf den ersten Blick etwas abgedroschenes aber durchaus faszinierendes Rätsel auf. Die Figuren sind interessant, charismatisch mysteriös. In den ersten Kapiteln des Buches zeigt sich der Meister des locked room mystery in absoluter Hochform.

Schien das Werk zunächst noch den Lobeshymnen von Kritikern und Lesern gerecht zu werden, wurde meine Euphorie doch nach und nach gedämpft. Der Mittelteil verlor sich, wie oft bei Carr, etwas in Nebensächlichkeiten und es wurden so viele neue Merkwürdigkeiten eingeführt, dass man sich wundert, wie die Sache noch zu einem logischen Abschluss finden soll. Die Antwort: Gar nicht.

Wir bekommen nicht eine, sondern gleich zwei verschiedene Auflösungen präsentiert und es fällt mir schwer zu entscheiden, welche der beiden lausiger ist. Vollkommen an den Haaren herbeigezogen, unglaubwürdig und nicht einmal sonderlich einfallsreich sind die Erklärungen, die Gideon Fell bzw. der Täter selbst in einem Brief dem Leser hier zumuten. Klar, von einem klassischen Whodunit erwartet man keinen besonders hohen Grad an Realismus, aber Die Tür im Schott überschreitet bereits die Grenzen zur Dämlichkeit.

Als Fair-Play-Kriminalroman ist Die Tür im Schott weitgehend unbrauchbar, zumal Carr dem Leser wichtige Informationen vorenthält, die es unmöglich machen, den Fall allein an Hand der vorhandenen Beweise und Indizien zu lösen. Kaum zu glauben, dass er von einer Expertenriege in die Top 10 der Romane über unmögliche Verbrechen gewählt wurde. Fasst man das Ganze jedoch als etwas skurrilen Gruselroman auf, kann man durchaus seinen Spaß mit dem Buch haben. Also, ein Meisterwerk wie Der verschlossene Raum sollte man definitiv nicht erwarten!

[Deborah · Rating 3 out of 5]

All in all a pretty good mystery! At the end one will say “Of course!”

[Colin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A reread of this 1938 Gideon Fell mystery, and a fine way to end the year.

Yet another twist on the tale of the Tichborne Claimant, and a far more enjoyable one than Josephine Tey's horsey Brat Farrar, in this reader's opinion anyway. It's that old yarn about a man arriving on the scene and insisting that he rather than the current incumbent is the rightful heir to a fortune.

This is a solid hook on which to hang a story but what elevates it and essentially conquers its more familiar aspects is the skill of John Dickson Carr. Not only is a seemingly impossible crime placed at the heart of it all, but there's enmity stretching back to a tragic confrontation on the Titanic on the night she went down stirred into the mix along with the presence of a sinister 17th century automaton, not to mention hints of witchcraft and black magic. As such, we have a characteristically heady mix from Carr, an author capable of conjuring up creepiness from the careful placement of even the most innocuous phrases.

I think the book has slipped a little in the opinion of some critics in recent years, but it still ought to be counted among the top five of his works, jockeying for position next to Till Death Do Us Part, The Problem of the Green Capsule, She Died a Lady and He Who Whispers.

[David Dunlap · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sir John Farleigh receives news that there is a claimant to his name and his estate -- and an allegation that he is an imposter, having switched identities with the real John Fairleigh when both young men were passengers on the Titanic. The police are summoned, along with local writer Brian Page (a friend of the attorney to the Farleigh family), Dr. Gideon Fell, and the Fairleigh family tutor, Kennet Murray. Murray claims to have definitive proof of the identity of the true Fairleigh heir: fingerprints that he took of the boy before the fateful transatlantic crossing. While Murray is in another room, examining the prints and comparing them with ones he has taken from the two men, one of the 'John Farleighs' is slain, in a murder that at first is seen as a suicide. Investigators abound in this tale, which includes a sinister automaton, elements of magic nd witchcraft, and an open case of murder from the previous year. -- Ho-hum, say I. The characters are somewhat interesting, the situation genuinely puzzling, but somehow this all did not quite 'gel' for me...