Grab Bag: A Collection of Stories

by Charlotte MacLeod

They're all ready to pop out of this potpourri of perilous predicaments from the Queen of the Whimsical Whodunit. Featuring all her favorite sleuths - Max Bittersohn and Sarah Kelling, Professor Peter Shandy, August Fox - and the eccentric enclaves of New England's cities and countryside, these short stories are packed with wacky, wonderful humor and good old-fashioned suspense.

There's murder in a massage parlor, dreadful doings at a British dinner party, larceny for sale at a general store, sinister schemes at Balaclava College, and merry mayhem from Boston to Maine - in this grab bag of fun-filled mysteries, which includes five never-before-published tales of murder most foul.

Contents:
• Homecoming (Sarah Kelling and Max Bittersohn)
• Monique
• Rest You Merry (Peter Shandy)
• Fifty Acres of Prime Seaweed
• It Was an Awful Shame
• The Mysterious Affair of the Beaird-Wynnington Dirigible Airship (Augustus Fox)
• A Snatch in Time
• Clean Slate
• The Felonious Courtship of Miles Peabody
• Force of Habit
• Better a Cat
• Lady Patterly’s Lover
• Journey for Lady G.
• Assignment: Marriage
• More Like Martine
• The Dastardly Dilemma of the Vicious Vaudevillian (Augustus Fox)

Genres: Mystery, Short Stories, Fiction, Cozy, Cozy Mystery

231 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1987

About the author

Naturalized US Citizen

Also wrote as Alisa Craig

Charlotte MacLeod, born in New Brunswick, Canada, and a naturalized U.S. citizen, was the multi-award-winning author of over thirty acclaimed novels. Her series featuring detective Professor Peter Shandy, America's homegrown Hercule Poirot, delivers "generous dollops of...warmth, wit, and whimsy" (San Francisco Sunday Examiner and Chronicle). But fully a dozen novels star her popular husband-and-wife team of Sarah Kelling and Max Bittersohn. And her native Canada provides a backdrop for the amusing Grub-and-Stakers cozies written under the pseudonym Alisa Craig and the almost-police procedurals starring Madoc Rhys, RCMP. A cofounder and past president of the American Crime Writers League, she also edited the bestselling anthologies Mistletoe Mysteries and Christmas Stalkings.

Reviews

[Zain · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Very Good Bag of Books.

These stories are full of characters that are starring in many of the author’s books.

Augustus Fox has quite a bit of stories about his character, and he is definitely a star.

All of the stories are amazing except one which I think is too long for the book about short stories.

All in all, beautiful writing.

Four fantastic stars. ✨✨✨✨

[Tam May · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

I'd heard quite a bit about Charlotte MacLeod so I wanted to try out one of her books. Her style is definitely much quirkier than most of the classic mystery writers I've read so far and I did appreciate her humor. However, this is where my problem was. I like my mysteries to be primarily focused on solving the mystery. Many of these stories seemed more like humor pieces with some mystery thrown in rather than mysteries with some humor thrown in. I also almost didn't go on reading the book past the first story in the collection because that story was so over-the-top pulp fictionish (you know the kind - stereotyped evil Asian villain trapping the hero with some ingenuous death trap, the hero getting out of it, the villain yelling, "curses! I'll get you yet!") But I did make it past that first story and the others I enjoyed much more. I liked MacLeod's little writerly intro at the beginning of each story but again, it seemed like she was more concerned with sounding witty than she was about giving readers some background to the story other than to say what magazine it had been published in and what year.

I'm hoping that her full-length mystery novels are going to be much more to my taste. I would still recommend this book for it's high entertainment value.

[Eden · Rating 3 out of 5]

2023 bk 19. I was disappointed that there were not more Peter or Helen Shandy tales in this book - or Janet and Rhys Madoc. The mysteries were fun and I particularly enjoyed the two stories that Charlotte MacLeod dreamed about, wrote and published. Most of the other stories were okay, but I didn't feel truly engaged with most of the other characters.

[Selah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Usually short story collections, even those written by a single author, are uneven, with a few great stories, and a few clunkers. Not so with this collection. There wasn't a single bad story in the lot!

[Whistler's Mom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Getting past the hat....

I was vaguely aware of this author, but never tempted to try her books. Publicity photos always show her in a big, old-fashioned hat, with a huge, deranged smile. And the blurb mentions her white gloves and her tea parties and her "cosy" New England mysteries. And she was called "The American Agatha Christie." Sounds like the cat might solve the mystery (what there is of it) with a muffin recipe thrown in. No thanks.

Also, I prefer pre-WWII mysteries. 1950's in a pinch and I'll go a bit later for someone outstanding like Ross Macdonald. MacLeod's two famous series (Peter Shandy and Sarah Kelling/Max Bittersohn) were written in the 1980's, much too recent for me.

But I love short stories and so few are available. I enjoyed her anthology "Mistletoe Mysteries". Bought it for the Edward Hoch story, but stayed for MacLeod's witty comments and the charming story featuring Sarah Kelling, newly married and struggling to meet upper-crust Bostonian standards for Christmas decorations and gifts. So I took a flyer.

I discovered that "cosy" (whatever the hell that is) applies to MacLeod's work as much as it does to Christies' stuff, which is not at all. The two women had something in common. Both were shrewd businesswomen who hid their lives as professional (i.e. in it for the money) writers behind a screen of "I'm just a sweet little old lady who happens to write a book occasionally. Sales figures? Goodness, I don't worry my poor head about such things! Have some more tea?"

Charlotte MacLeod was a successful advertising executive who knew the value of creating an image. By positioning herself as the "Queen of Cosy Mysteries" she attracted a loyal following. Then she could write what she wanted to, including some very earthy characters and lots of bile and venom, usually in unexpected places. She was also a talented humor writer and the finding of bodies is almost always good for a chuckle and sometimes for a belly laugh.

The shrewd businesswoman shows in this collection of stories written in the 1960's. The fan who requested a book of short stories may have existed, but MacLeod knew that some people (like me) will buy a book of stories and be sufficiently impressed (as I was) to become a fan. Plus (as Christie knew) collecting stories sold to magazines in the past was a way of making her work pay twice. Ka-ching, ka-ching.

Several of these stories introduce her series characters. In the first, sophisticated international detective Max Bittersohn falls into a trap that involves him in every stereotype known to lovers of old mysteries - the dramatic Russian aristocrat, the slithery Chinese master criminal, and Lightfingers, the genial thief who'll steal the gold out of your teeth or the silver bullet out of your hip. It's hysterical.

So is "It Was an Awful Shame" in which Sarah and Max do NOT appear. But MacLeod was so charmed with the Comrades of the Convivial Codfish that she later expanded it into a book-length mystery featuring the husband and wife team. Similarly, "Rest You Merry" later became the first book in MacLeod's Peter Shandy series. Like using left-overs to create another meal. Throw in a body and a few feuds and Bob's-your-uncle.

MacLeod's writing talent had a wide scope. Several stories center around stereotypical New Englanders and the antics they get up to. Although Canadian-born, she spent most of her life in Boston, then retired to Maine. She loved New Englanders and it shows.

But she was steeped in traditional English mysteries and she could "write British" convincingly. "Lady Patterly's Lover" is a fine story with a lovely twist. "Assignment: Marriage" features an ambitious female Scotland Yard detective who's willing to risk her life to further her career. It reads like P.D. James at her best.

"Journey for Lady G" shows the plight of cash-strapped English aristocrats as elderly siblings struggle to maintain their stately pile. It's a tragedy when families are forced to part with precious heirlooms in order to live, but a tragedy for whom? It's one of the most satisfactory story endings I've ever encountered.

Best of all, "The Mysterious Affair of the Beaird-Wynnington Dirigible Airship" is a send-up of all those tales (beloved of Conan Doyle and his peers) where vital state papers go missing. Perhaps if the highly-rank government official didn't bring the damned things to his country house where he's entertaining a job lot of strangers (all of whom look good for being involved in international dirty-dealings) the problem would be avoided. But, as Christie said, if you remove all improbable situations, no mysteries would ever be written.

Didn't care for the last entry, but loved the others. I've started on the Peter Shandy series and acquired the first four in the Kelling/Bittersohn books. They don't read like books written in the 1980's. By the time MacLeod produced those books, she was retirement age and (as older writers tend to do) she "wrote old." While the stories are not specifically set in the 1950's, they feel like it.

The writing is fine, the characters are interesting, and the humor is delightful. What more do you need?

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

MacLeod includes some short stories featuring her series characters, but there are also some parodies, some short-shorts, and some stories ("Monique," for example) that are atypical of her style. There are also some with a supernatural touch. The stories are fairly slight, but charming for all that.

[Lea · Rating 4 out of 5]

These stories were first published in mystery magazines in the 1960s. Each one was a great diversion, many with a humorous slant. Although I will most likely not remember many of the stories, the impression that the author really got a lot of enjoyment out of writing each of them will stay with me.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun collection of short stories

Mixed in this collection are new faces and some familiar faces from MacLeod's repertoire. The stories are typically funny and offbeat. Except for the typos, the collection is very enjoyable. Great reading if you haven't got time for a whole book at a sitting.

[Pat Beard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very uneven collection of stories by one of my favorite writers. I generally enjoy Macleod's offbeat whimsy, particularly when I'm in that kind of mood, but some of these stories were just too absurd.

[Scott Drake · Rating 1 out of 5]

Barf Bag might be a better collection title. I read a handful of stories and each was worse than the last. One of those books that sounds interesting at first, but not only doesn't deliver, but doesn't even try to.

Pass!

[Margaret · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite of these short stories was the short story that was expanded into a book The Convivial Codfish. Many of the best lines appear in both, but the endings are so different as to be almost opposites.
Two plots came to the author in dreams, and several have an O Henry-esque twist.

[Alison Shanahan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful Read

If you enjoy short stories and mysteries, then this is the book for you. Every character is believable, each situation unique. What a shame Charlotte MacLeod is not around to write more intriguing stories.

[ShanDizzy · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn't finish this, too uninteresting. I'll stick with her full-length stories.

[Robyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Early Bird Book Deal | A mixed bag. | Title fits, some are ok while others are pretty boring. Short story collections always run that risk.

[Ellen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Abandoned halfway because they were just so awful.

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an older British author so the style of writing is old fashioned. The mysteries are quick reads and fairly interesting, this is a good book to read if you want to see if you like this author.

[Sandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite a variety with lots of emphasis on humor. The author's quick introduction to each story is a treat.

[Jim Higgins · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Cindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a nice collection of short stories, some detective stories, some not, some murders, and various other crimes. I like Max Bittersohn and Sarah Kelling, so stories featuring them are always great. I also like Peter Shandy, and he's here too. But there are several other short stories, some light-hearted and some a little more serious. This is a great collection.

[Maria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Most of these stories are somewhat frivolous as are her books, but somehow these seemed even more so. I particularly liked More Like Martine, Journey for Lady G, Better a Cat, and Clean Slate, but some of the others like The Mysterious Affair . . ., Homecoming, and Monique were a little too much over the top for me.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a collection of short stories published in various magazines, mostly in the mid-to-late 1960s. They include two Max Bittersohn ones, a Peter Shandy one (the story from which the novel Rest You Merry came), a couple Augustus Fox stories, and several others unrelated to her various series. All interesting, some hilarious, some just fun, truly a "grab bag"!
April 2023 Rereading

[Karen Plummer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection of short stories includes a Peter Shandy story (the original version of his introduction) and a couple stories featuring Sarah Kelling and Max Bittersohn. While most are mysteries, there are aspects of science fiction (time travel) and creepy thriller elements along with MacLeod's trademark humor. Very enjoyable.

[Mark]

I've decided not to rate short story collections, because inevitable it is a mixed bag. If you like MacLeod's mildly humorous mysteries you'll probably enjoy the collection. I laughed at the first tale but none of the rest really stood out.

[Maggie · Rating 5 out of 5]

My Library offered this re-collecting of her lively, cozy, funny stories for my enjoyment and boy oh boy - I sure did enjoy them.

You may have forgotten the Charlotte MacLeod charm. Try her again! Cute as all get-out! Will buck you up!!!!

[Roxann · Rating 3 out of 5]

An older book, but a nice assortment of short stories.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love her stories and this collection of short stories has, so far, been a fun read.

[Amelia in PDX · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a shame that she died without really completing any of her series...

This gives you an idea of some of her writing in each series,=.

[Judy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Seventeen short stories from the writer often called "America's Agatha Christie". Unfortunately, I found that the quality of the stories varied greatly--some I enjoyed much more than others.

[TJ · Rating 2 out of 5]

One or two stories where really good. The rest were ok. But a good read