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Why slug a postman
It all begins when a postman is slugged while collecting letters from a pillar box outside Miss Flavia Melrose's boarding house at 36 Chester Grove. The attacker makes off with letters posted from the house.
The boarding house, which Miss Melrose attempts to keep disciplined and upscale, has an eclectic assortment of residents, both men and women. She hires a new secretary/housekeeper, Ann Smith, whose estranged aunt, Adria Blenkarne, is one of the residents. Ann tries to fit in, but has trouble with the uppity staff, headed by butler Vincent Dyall and cook Emily Bagster.
Ann brings canned tins of salmon to Mrs. Bagster for dinner. One tin is clearly bad, rusted and swelled up. Ann directs it be discarded. There is a mixup, and it finds its way into the meal. Several residents come down with food poisoning. Frail Adria Blenkarne succumbs, despite attempts to save her by the resident doctor, Martin Jones.
Miss Melrose, blaming Ann for disobedience, fires her. Ann leaves the house and moves in her friend Bettine Willoughby. Bettine helps her obtain a job at the lingerie counter at the local Blue Chain store.
Chief Inspector Gidleigh investigates, and finds arsenic in Adria's body. Then Miss Melrose is found dead in her locked bathroom. Ann teams up with Dr. Jones to try to find the culprit and establish her innocence. RM
The boarding house, which Miss Melrose attempts to keep disciplined and upscale, has an eclectic assortment of residents, both men and women. She hires a new secretary/housekeeper, Ann Smith, whose estranged aunt, Adria Blenkarne, is one of the residents. Ann tries to fit in, but has trouble with the uppity staff, headed by butler Vincent Dyall and cook Emily Bagster.
Ann brings canned tins of salmon to Mrs. Bagster for dinner. One tin is clearly bad, rusted and swelled up. Ann directs it be discarded. There is a mixup, and it finds its way into the meal. Several residents come down with food poisoning. Frail Adria Blenkarne succumbs, despite attempts to save her by the resident doctor, Martin Jones.
Miss Melrose, blaming Ann for disobedience, fires her. Ann leaves the house and moves in her friend Bettine Willoughby. Bettine helps her obtain a job at the lingerie counter at the local Blue Chain store.
Chief Inspector Gidleigh investigates, and finds arsenic in Adria's body. Then Miss Melrose is found dead in her locked bathroom. Ann teams up with Dr. Jones to try to find the culprit and establish her innocence. RM
218 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1950
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About the author
Seldon Truss
70 books1 follower(Leslie Seldon Truss)
UK (1892 - 1990)
aka George Selmark
UK (1892 - 1990)
aka George Selmark
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
December 5, 2014
A short novel but one that quickly gets underway and can be quite un-nerving at times. This is part of the Insp. Gidleigh series but unlike other stories in this series Horace the reporter is not featured. In many ways by not feature Horace it increased the tension and suspicion of all the characters.
Tight story, and contains some sly humor as well.
Tight story, and contains some sly humor as well.
November 7, 2023
Major characters:
Miss Flavia Melrose, owner of the 36 Chester Grove boarding house
Ann Smith, her newly hired secretary/housekeeper
Vincent Dyall, the butler
Mrs. Emily Bagster, the cook
Minnie Smithers, the maid
Emerald Cheese, scullery maid
The boarders:
Miss Adria Blenkarne, Ann's estranged aunt
Miss Fiona McPherson
Mrs. Dampier
Dr. Martin Jones
Sir James Arbour
Lady Blandish-Smyth
Countess Beatrice d'Armande
and...
Bettine Willoughby, Ann's roommate
Mr. Murdoch, Adria Blenkarnes's attorney
Chief Inspector Gidleigh
Locale: London
Synopsis: It all begins when a postman is slugged while collecting letters from a pillar box outside Miss Flavia Melrose's boarding house at 36 Chester Grove. The attacker makes off with letters having been posted from the house.
The boarding house, which Miss Melrose attempts to keep disciplined and upscale, has an eclectic assortment of residents, both men and women. She hires a new secretary/housekeeper, Ann Smith, whose estranged aunt, Adria Blenkarne, is one of the residents. Ann tries to fit in, but has trouble with the uppity staff, headed by butler Vincent Dyall and cook Emily Bagster.
Ann brings canned tins of salmon to Mrs. Bagster for dinner. One tin is clearly bad, rusted and swelled up. Ann directs it be discarded. There is a mixup, and it finds its way into the meal. Several residents come down with food poisoning. Frail Adria Blenkarne succumbs, despite attempts to save her by the resident doctor, Martin Jones.
Miss Melrose, blaming Ann for disobedience, fires her. Ann leaves the house and moves in her friend Bettine Willoughby. Bettine helps her obtain a job at the lingerie counter at the local Blue Chain store.
Chief Inspector Gidleigh investigates, and finds arsenic in Adria's body. Then Miss Melrose is found dead in her locked bathroom. Ann teams up with Dr. Jones to try to find the culprit and establish her innocence.
Review: This is a lot of fun. We start right off with the postman getting slugged in the first paragraph, but that plot line is then left until the very end. The action occurs in a dysfunctional rooming house ruled by the authoritarian Miss Melrose.
Some of the boarders are given names but we never hear anything of them. Miss Fiona McPherson, Mrs. Dampier, and Lady Blandish-Smyth are just filler.
There is a teasing love interest throughout the story between Ann Smith and (sometimes) Dr. Jones and (sometimes) Sir James Arbour.
Chief Inspector Gidleigh also appears in Draw the Blinds, and perhaps other titles.
For additional reviews indexed by author, please visit The Mystillery Blog and try The Mystillery Reading Challenges!
Miss Flavia Melrose, owner of the 36 Chester Grove boarding house
Ann Smith, her newly hired secretary/housekeeper
Vincent Dyall, the butler
Mrs. Emily Bagster, the cook
Minnie Smithers, the maid
Emerald Cheese, scullery maid
The boarders:
Miss Adria Blenkarne, Ann's estranged aunt
Miss Fiona McPherson
Mrs. Dampier
Dr. Martin Jones
Sir James Arbour
Lady Blandish-Smyth
Countess Beatrice d'Armande
and...
Bettine Willoughby, Ann's roommate
Mr. Murdoch, Adria Blenkarnes's attorney
Chief Inspector Gidleigh
Locale: London
Synopsis: It all begins when a postman is slugged while collecting letters from a pillar box outside Miss Flavia Melrose's boarding house at 36 Chester Grove. The attacker makes off with letters having been posted from the house.
The boarding house, which Miss Melrose attempts to keep disciplined and upscale, has an eclectic assortment of residents, both men and women. She hires a new secretary/housekeeper, Ann Smith, whose estranged aunt, Adria Blenkarne, is one of the residents. Ann tries to fit in, but has trouble with the uppity staff, headed by butler Vincent Dyall and cook Emily Bagster.
Ann brings canned tins of salmon to Mrs. Bagster for dinner. One tin is clearly bad, rusted and swelled up. Ann directs it be discarded. There is a mixup, and it finds its way into the meal. Several residents come down with food poisoning. Frail Adria Blenkarne succumbs, despite attempts to save her by the resident doctor, Martin Jones.
Miss Melrose, blaming Ann for disobedience, fires her. Ann leaves the house and moves in her friend Bettine Willoughby. Bettine helps her obtain a job at the lingerie counter at the local Blue Chain store.
Chief Inspector Gidleigh investigates, and finds arsenic in Adria's body. Then Miss Melrose is found dead in her locked bathroom. Ann teams up with Dr. Jones to try to find the culprit and establish her innocence.
Review: This is a lot of fun. We start right off with the postman getting slugged in the first paragraph, but that plot line is then left until the very end. The action occurs in a dysfunctional rooming house ruled by the authoritarian Miss Melrose.
Some of the boarders are given names but we never hear anything of them. Miss Fiona McPherson, Mrs. Dampier, and Lady Blandish-Smyth are just filler.
There is a teasing love interest throughout the story between Ann Smith and (sometimes) Dr. Jones and (sometimes) Sir James Arbour.
Chief Inspector Gidleigh also appears in Draw the Blinds, and perhaps other titles.
For additional reviews indexed by author, please visit The Mystillery Blog and try The Mystillery Reading Challenges!
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews