The Dying of the Light

by Michael Dibdin

An alternative cover for this ISBN can be found here

The usual country house murder with the usual cast of characters? The colonel, the playboy, the clergyman are all here - and the usual murderer. Dorothy and Rosemary need only follow the clues and the culprit will be unmasked. But things are not what they seem at Eventide Lodge.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Crime, British Literature, 20th Century, Mystery Thriller

151 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1993

About the author

Michael Dibdin was born in 1947. He went to school in Northern Ireland, and later to Sussex University and the University of Alberta in Canada. He lived in Seattle. After completing his first novel, The Last Sherlock Holmes Story, in 1978, he spent four years in Italy teaching English at the University of Perugia. His second novel, A Rich Full Death, was published in 1986. It was followed by Ratking in 1988, which won the Gold Dagger Award for the Best Crime Novel of the year and introduced us to his Italian detective - Inspector Aurelio Zen.

Dibdin was married three times, most recently to the novelist K. K. Beck. His death in 2007 followed a short illness.

Series:
* Aurelio Zen

Reviews

[Jennifer (JC-S) · Rating 3 out of 5]

‘Nothing is more usual, after all, for the principal suspect to become the next victim.’

The scene appears to be an ordinary country house hotel, inhabited by the usual cast of characters, including the Colonel, the playboy, the clergyman, a rich invalid and, of course, the usual murderer. Rosemary Travis and her friend Dorothy Davenport need only find the clues to unmask the murderer’s identity.

Except that, of course, nothing is as it seems at the Eventide Lodge which isn’t even an ordinary country house hotel. No, Eventide Lodge is a truly awful nursing home run by William Anderson and his sister Letitia and dreadful things seem to be happening to the small number of geriatric residents living there.

Why did Hilary Bryant die, and what happened to George Channing? Is another resident involved, or could it be the proprietors?

When Dorothy herself dies, the night before she is due to leave Eventide Lodge for terminal cancer treatment in hospital, Rosemary may have a mystery on her hands. Or perhaps not: Dorothy may have killed herself. Or, if not, who did and why?

‘There is no room for sloppy guesswork or vulgar sensationalism.’

In fewer than 200 pages, Michael Dibdin creates a mystery which I found more interesting for the descriptions of Eventide Lodge and the ways in which the characters interact than for the solution itself. It’s a quick read and an enjoyable one despite its bleak black aspects: any place remotely like Eventide Lodge needs its own Rosemary Travis.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

[John Hayhurst · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh. Took 100 pages for me to have an interest in this book. The book was 151 pages.

[Aaron · Rating 2 out of 5]

The gimmick is strong with this one. It is also a miserable and uninteresting gimmick.

[Barbara · Rating 2 out of 5]

Strange little mystery. Quick read but odd.

[Amazin'A · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very different from the Aurelio Zen series, which is where I first encountered Dibdin (and which I also enjoy). An accomplished, pleasurable take-off on English murder mysteries that must have been extremely fun to write as well as fun to read. Not a mere parody, however; it has its own elegant and even touching tale to tell about the friendship of two old ladies who, trapped in an old folks' home run by an alcoholic sadist and his psychotic sister, make the best of their predicament.

[Kay Robart · Rating 1 out of 5]

This macabre novel is about two old ladies in a nursing home who create a fantasy that the abuse the old people are suffering is part of a baroque mystery plot. The novel seems to depend solely on its shock value to succeed. I could not finish it.

See my complete review here:

http://whatmeread.wordpress.com/tag/t...

[Harriet Leeck · Rating 1 out of 5]

I must admit I found it couldn t decide itself whether it was a comedy of manners or social commentary
on society s callousness in treating the Elderly
and also I found it rather depressing I must admit

[Barbara · Rating 2 out of 5]

This parody of a mystery set in a nursing home in England just misses the mark for me. Too convoluted to follow well. An interesting idea not well executed.

[Annette Boehm · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the way the book started, but as I read on I felt disoriented. At the end, things all fell into place, and the story itself is interesting, even moving. However, some of the characters feel like flat parodies of what could have been there. The cruelty also feels gratuitous. The mystery happens in the world of a care home for old people, - not the kind of setting for escapist reading, really.

[Kathie Wilkinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book that really makes you question what is happening. As you begin this short novel, one thinks it's a "traditional" British country house mystery, and within a few pages you think, "Wait a minute, what's going on?" The play on the British country house mystery and the changing perspectives of who was murdered, who might be murdered, who was the murderer, makes this novel unique to me as reader, and lover of British mysteries.

[Susan H. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not sure what to think of this, although I'm a great Aurelio Zen fan. It is both one of the saddest and funniest books I've read this year. The setting is a run-down facility for seniors managed by two of the nastiest caretakers you would care to meet. That said, the dialogue is bitingly funny and sometimes, so is the plot. It is sort of a novella and you can polish it off in an afternoon and make your own call.

[Edward Olson · Rating 5 out of 5]

well written, witty, and original

Tightly plotted and well written - I read this without reading any reviews or jacket copy beforehand. I recommend approaching it the same way if you can.

[Adam · Rating 2 out of 5]

On the surface, competently written. But also ugly and tedious.

[Allison · Rating 3 out of 5]

too many characters, but a decent mystery when I could follow it.

[Jack Tracy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Clever and very funny.

[Ann Goodwin · Rating 3 out of 5]

A strange quirky black comedy set in a care home, with several Ms Marples. Fun but slight. Not as good as I remembered

[Selin Cerav · Rating 2 out of 5]

There were too many twistw at the end of the book, I felt like that I was manipulated by the author.

[Misha Herwin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A clever and enjoyable murder mystery that make use of the classical tropes of classic Agatha Christie novels.

[Ivana · Rating 4 out of 5]

From utter confusion, through anger and frustration, to the point where I want to make friends with Rosemary. Hot damn, I'm not a fan of murder mysteries, but this was satisfying to finish.

[Tekken · Rating 3 out of 5]

Igati sümpaatne austusavaldus Christie'le, aga lõpuks jäi ikka midagi puudu. Dibdin oskas ka paremini kirjutada. Äkki oleks sama lugu paroodiana nats uljamalt välja kukkunud?

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

"One of England's most acclaimed younger mystery writers, the creator of Detective Aurelio Zen, gives us a brilliant and haunting variation on the classic drawing-room murder novel. The setting is Eventide Lodge, where the guests have gathered for tea. Colonel Weatherby is reading by the fire. Mrs. Hargreave III is whiling away her time at patience. And Miss Rosemary Travis and her friend, Dorothy, are wondering which of their housemates will be the next to die.

"For even as Michael Dibdin's elderly sleuths debate clues and motives, it becomes clear that Eventide Lodge is not a genteel country inn but a place of ghastly cruelties and humiliations. A place where the logic of murder is . . .almost comforting. At once affectionate homage and audacious satire, The Dying of the Light will delight any aficionado of Patricia Highsmith, Peter Dickinson, or Ruth Rendell."
~~back cover

A very odd book. It took a good way into it before the plot solidified for me -- it was difficult to tell what was real and what was the imagination of Rosemary and Dorothy. For at least half the book, I thought it was all a game they played to keep the realities of old age and Dorthy's medical condition at bay.

Without spoiling it for you, it wasn't. Once that became clear, it was rather a poor imitation of Miss Marple.

[Donald · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful surprise! Quick read too! To quote the back, "gives us a brilliant and haunting variation on the classic drawing-room murder novel." Indeed it does! An old folks home, run by an abusive brother and sister team, is slowly losing residents to death. Is it natural, or is it murder? Two intrepid older ladies try to find out - old school detective style! And a soccer obsessed detective tries to keep up with them! It's a fun who-done-it with great characters and fun plot twists, especially at the end. I really liked the way the plot unrolled for the detective as his mind recalled soccer games of his youth. And the character Anderson is a hoot! I'm so glad I took a chance on this - it's a winner!

[LJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

THE DYING OF THE LIGHT – VG
Michael Dibdin – Stand alone
The guests have settled for tea at Eventide Lodge. However, it soon becomes clear that this is not a genteel country inn, but something else altogether.

This is my first book by Dibden, and it’s a haunting variation of the classic drawing-room murder. There are twists and turns all along the way, and a wonderful protagonist in Rosemary Travis.

[amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book overall gets a C -, which i'm quite upset about. The C comes from the average of the beginning part (A) and the end (F). The minus is because I was so excited to start reading it and i thought it was going to be awesome and then it just petered out and the end was nothing compared to the beginning, which is dissapointing.

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brilliant book with an unusual story and also one that tugs at the heart, contains mysteries, and is a thoughtful statement on those living in homes for the elderly and what they may endure silently. And how they deal with it. Fascinating. If you like offbeat literary stories, you might like this book. I did!

[Steven D · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun to read, so small it's almost a novella. Not a deep piece of work to be honest but still interesting in it's own way. I like the charactrizations, but they are a little obvious. I'm not sure if that was intentional or otherwise.

[False · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was lucky enough to read this in it's first American edition, via the library. Since I don't write what the book is "about," I'll just say it gives you pause--making your think about old age and how we shuffle off our senior population, and the value of the mind...while you still have one.

[Carolyn (in SC) C234D · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can only vaguely remember the story, as I didn't write much down about it, only that it was an English mystery which isn't quite as it seems. I marked it an 8 out of 10, which translates for me to about 3.5 stars.

[Sally · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book started out as a story about a terrible nursing home in England. It is actually a clever satire of the mystery genre. Dibdin must have had fun writing this. The proprietors of the nursing home are incredibly evil and greedy.

[D · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this one on the plane. An elegant mystery (And I'm definitely not a huge mystery fan; no patience for it).