Murder Under the Sun: Classic Mysteries for Summer

by Cecily Gayford (Editor), Nicholas Blake, Anthony Berkeley

From beneath the beach umbrella, all might seem idyllic - children playing, sunbathers relaxing, ice slowly melting in a cocktail glass. But look a little closer, and all is not as it seems ... In these 10 classic crime stories of midsummer murder and madness, the mercury is climbing - and so is the body count. Prepare to spend this summer holiday with some shady characters (in sunny places) and immerse yourself in tales of mystery and depravity at home and abroad. Just remember - there might be nothing new under the sun ... but murder is the most ancient art of all.

Genres: Short Stories, Crime, Mystery, Summer, Fiction

266 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 9, 2024

Reviews

[Jennifer (not getting notifications) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Alicia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read quite a few of these edited collections now-all winter ones as it happens-and they've all been a bit ho hum, mainly because I don't think there's much satisfaction to be had with the majority of short crime fiction. This book was an exception. Almost half of this collection is taken up with one story: A lift into Colmar by Ellis Peters. With plenty of time to develop and build tension, this story becomes a real page turner towards the end of its 115 pages. Worth the price of the book alone!

[ece · Rating 3 out of 5]

good fun! would've liked to finish it during summer but oh well, it was a nice selection of stories.

[Valentina · Rating 3 out of 5]

different short stories, which are perfect for vacations or traveling

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

As is usual with anthologies like this, the standard of the stories is variable.

The best, however, are very good. Conan Doyle's The Brazilian Cat was my favourite, closely followed by the longest entry, A Lift into Colmar by Ellis Peters. I also thought the last story, Edmund Crispin's The Undraped Torso was a clever little gem.

Recommended.

[Andree · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have a couple of these collections and this one is not a favourite. I did like the Doyle and the Crispin, and a couple of the others are pretty good. Part of my issues is that one of them is over 100 pages, which isn't really what I want in this kind of collection and disrupts the flow. I like these collections because I can read a story before bed, even if I only have a few minutes. Kind of defeats the purpose when one is basically novella length. i mean, I often forget these types of short stories, but probably a bad sign that I set this aside for a month and picked up another collection in the interim.

[Joy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I agree with the other reviewers who note that these stories are all over the place, and oddly, a number of the aren’t about the beach or the summer heat…. But I bought this book in London/Richmond, at one of Anthony Horowitz’s favorite bookstores, so I really wanted to finish it.

I skipped the Simon Brett story on principle — the first sentence confirms my previous belief that the guy is just anti-woman. I really liked the Arthur Conan Doyle one, The Brazilian Cat—but it’s a great example of how very loosely linked to the summer heat and sun these stories were.

[FilmGirlGail · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not really worth it. Firstly there’s no brief introduction to each story ie - who the author is, why the stories have been included etc.

Some of the stories okay, some just not good, my favourite was the Arthur Conan Doyle but they vary from 5 pages to 120 pages so feels a bit uneven. I ended up skipping the longest one after about 15 pages. I’m not keeping the book and am taking it to a second hand book shop.

[Nien · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kind of predictable, not nearly enough murders actually under sun

[Francine Chu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy to read with some great stories and introductions to some authors from the golden age of crime fiction.

[Keziah Abbotts · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable, some quite funny, a light read. None of the stories massively stood out to me, and I agree with a previous review that not enough of them actually happened under the sun hehe.

[Giovanni Alexandrov · Rating 3 out of 5]

All in all the book was entertaining and some of the short stories were good. Some felt a bit similar to others and were just nothing new. I loved „The Brazilian Cat“ though!

[Susan Abbey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mixture of mini stories, some more enjoyable than others.

[Debbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rather dated but some good yarns amongst them.

[Kidlitter · Rating 3 out of 5]

All the stories are rather slight but quite good for all that - I will pass along to the library book sale table where someone will be sure to snatch it up.

[Olena · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the stories in the book was far too long - felt like reading a novella. Not the best story either.

[Beachcomber · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent collection of largely vintage murder mysteries.

[Ceebee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Collection of 9 summer themed mystery/crime short stories. Rating: 3.5 (rounded up).

The Long Shot - Nicholas Blake
Double Bluff - Anthony Berkeley
The Girls in Villa Costas - Simon Brett
Cold Blood - Michael Innes
The Brazilian Cat - Arthur Conan Doyle
Birthday Gifts - G.D.H & M. Cole
A Lift Into Colmar - Ellis Peters
The Knife - Gladys Marshall
The Undraped Torso - Edmund Crispin

[Samantha (A Dream of Books) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fabulous collection of classic crime stories set during the summer season. Edited by Cecily Gayford, it includes stories by some of the foremost writers of crime fiction’s golden age.

My favourite story in the collection was The Brazilian Cat by Arthur Conan Doyle. It features a down on his luck young man, who goes to stay with his cousin at Greylands Court, in the hope of borrowing money from him. The story was menacing and macabre. Laced with tension and suspense, it was brilliantly executed. For me, it was definitely the standout story in the book.

I was familiar with quite a few of the other lesser known authors from reading the British Library Crime Classics series. Double Bluff by Anthony Berkeley was an ingenious whodunnit with detective Roger Sheringham. The case hinges on circumstantial evidence with Sheringham determined to clear a young man accused of murder. There was also an engaging short entitled Birthday Gifts by G.D.H and M. Cole which I loved.

A Lift into Colmar by Ellis Peters is set in sunny France and The Girls in Villa Costas by Simon Brett takes place in Corfu. These locations provide the perfect contrast to murder amidst the holiday fun.

There were a couple of stories that I thought were a little weaker but overall this was a fantastic collection which definitely needs to be on any crime lovers summer reading list.

[Julia Harding · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are a couple of stand-out stories here, particularly A Lift Into Colmar.