Behold a Fair Woman

Mordecai Tremaine #7

by Francis Duncan

Amateur sleuth Mordecai Tremaine is back in another classic mystery from the author of Murder for Christmas.

Mordecai Tremaine's hobby of choice - crime detection - has left him in need of a holiday. A break away from that gruesome business of murder will be just the ticket, and the picturesque island of Moulin d'Or seems to be just the destination.

Amid the sunshine and the sea air, Mordecai falls in with a band of fellow holidaymakers and tries to forget that such a thing as foul play exists. He should have been wiser, of course, because before too long villainy rears its head and a dead body is discovered.

With a killer stalking the sand dunes, it falls to Mordecai to piece together the truth about just who has smuggled murder on to the island idyll....

Genres: Mystery, British Literature, Audiobook, Cozy, Historical Mystery, Fiction, 20th Century

Audible Audio

First published January 1, 1954

About the author

Francis Duncan is the pseudonym for William Walter Frank Underhill, who was born in 1914. He lived virtually all his life in Bristol and was a 'scholarship boy' boarder at Queen Elizabeth's Hospital school. Due to family circumstances he was unable to go to university and started work in the Housing Department of Bristol City Council. Writing was always important to him and very early on he published articles in newspapers and magazines. His first detective story was published in 1936. In 1938 he married Sylvia Henly. Although a conscientious objector, he served in the Royal Army Medical Corps in World War II, landing in France shortly after D-Day. After the war he trained as a teacher and spent the rest of his life in education, first as a primary school teacher and then as a lecturer in a college of further education. In the 1950s he studied for an external economics degree from London University. No mean feat with a family to support; his daughter, Kathryn, was born in 1943 and his son, Derek, in 1949. Throughout much of this time he continued to write detective fiction from 'sheer inner necessity', but also to supplement a modest income. He enjoyed foreign travel, particularly to France, and took up golf on retirement. He died of a heart attack shortly after celebrating his fiftieth wedding anniversary in 1988.

List of published short stories:

* Enter Trigger Gallante [Trigger Gallante], (na) Detective Weekly Oct 23 1937
* Getting On in the World: Back-Yard Floriculturists, (ar) The Saturday Evening Post Apr 5 1930
* The Girl with the Million Pound Secret [Trigger Gallante], (na) Detective Weekly Jan 15 1938
* The House of the Lost Men, (na) Detective Weekly Jan 9 1937
* Househunting for Luck, (ss) Gloucester Journal Feb 8 1936
* The Man Who Shrugged [Trigger Gallante], (ss) Detective Weekly Feb 19 1938
* The Mystery of the House Nobody Owned [Trigger Gallante], (ss) Detective Weekly Jan 29 1938
* The Riddle of the Cheshire Cheese [Trigger Gallante], (ss) Detective Weekly Feb 26 1938
* The Secret of the Tramp Ship [Trigger Gallante], (ss) Detective Weekly Feb 12 1938

Reviews

[Yun · Rating 3 out of 5]

Behold a Fair Woman is the fifth and last book of the Mordecai Tremaine series. In this one, Mordecai is taking a much needed holiday away from crime when murder strikes, and he has no choice but to get involved and help out.

Like the others in this cozy mystery series, this book's plot unfolds slowly. In fact, the murder doesn't occur until about half way through book after we have met all the potential suspects. What follows is the slow and steady reveal of clues and of secrets, which everyone seems to have aplenty. It culminates in the big reveal which wraps everything up with comforting satisfaction.

This isn't the most exciting murder mystery series out there, but there's something charming and relaxing about it. Even though the books are about murder, they're a fun and light read, which perfectly suits my mood at the moment.

[Ivonne Rovira · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amateur sleuth Mordecai Tremaine may take a holiday, but murder never does. Tremaine visits friends on the island of Moulin d’Or in the English Channel. There, the new owner of a hotel assembles an odd assortment of guests; it’s no spoiler to say that one of that group will end up dead and that no one is who he appears to be.

This seventh entry in the series is the most ambivalent about justice and what that would mean. I loved it so much! Here’s to hoping that Poisoned Pen Press brings more of Francis Duncan’s fabulous novels back into print!

[Damaskcat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mordecai Tremaine has taken up an invitation from friends to spend a holiday with them on the island of Moulin D'Or. He wants a break from criminology and hopes to have a relaxing time - walking, talking to his friends, seeing the sights of the idyllic island and learning about tomato cultivation. But he ought to have known better as murder happens even in the best regulated societies and Moulin D'Or is no exception.

Fortunately Mordecai's fame has gone before him and his help is welcomed by the investigating police so he finds himself playing an active part in tracking down the murderer. While it is well written and I liked the background this book didn't hold my attention as much as other books featuring Mordecai Tremaine. It is however still worth reading and I did enjoy it.

If you like classic detective fiction with a combination of professional and amateur detectives then this book and this series is worth trying. The books do not need to be read in order and all can be read as standalone novels.

[Barb in Maryland · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded up to 4 because I love the main character.

This one was almost too convoluted--I wasn't sure that the author would be able to tie all the threads together. Indeed, I had to read the ending twice to make sure I had all the clues and plot lines accounted for.

Moredcai Tremaine is taking a much needed break from his 'hobby' of crime detection by visiting friends on one of the Channel Islands. While there he becomes involved with several local residents and with the owner and his guests at a local hotel. As the story develops all manner of connections are hinted at between the people at the hotel and the locals--with people lying to Morecai about meetings he had seen, conversations he had overheard and so on.
The murder doesn't occur until well into the book and it serves to ratchet the tensions even higher, as a goodly number of people become suspects. It takes some clever sleuthing by the local police and some pointed questions from Morecai before we get to our dramatic finale.
(On a personal note--I really wanted a wrap-up epilogue, but the author left it up to our own imaginations to plot the future of the survivors.)

This was the last book that features Morecai Tremaine. I'm going to miss him--steel-trap mind, romantic sentimentality and all. Yes, I can (and will) reread the 5 books he stars in, but I'm greedy--I want more, and sadly that's not possible.

[Trina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Finished with the last re-published book by this author who wrote from the 1930s to 1950s. Overall I enjoyed them even if this one wasn't as good as some of the others.

[Yibbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an interesting little mystery, rather obvious at times, but still interesting. Mordecai decides to vacation on a remote tomato growing coast. While not a resident at the local hotel, he gets himself caught up in the mysteries of every resident there, from the maid to the owner.
You’re never quite sure about any of the characters. Maybe, that fair lady is simply a little shy or is she secretive? Is that gallant young gentleman simply heartbroken, or is he treacherous? Could those quiet retired boarders be as sinister as they look or are they simply scared? Even the murdered man has is a mystery to be solved.
There were one or two curse words. Other than that it was a clean story.

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

So very sad that this is the last one of this series - what a great bunch of books! I loved them!

[Dawn Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great series; I am really sad that it is over. I highly recommend these!!

[Fiona MacDonald · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Behold now, I know that thou art a fair woman to look upon."

I am completely entranced by Mordecai Tremaine, he is kind, intelligent and has a wonderful way of words. He is also extremely funny which is the icing on the cake. My first forage into his exploits brought me out the other side excited for more of his work and sad that his seasoned crime cracker was only present in 5 books.
As Hercule Poirot has tried but failed to do many times, this book starts with Mordecai putting what he hopes is a pause on his detection work, and taking a much needed relaxing holiday with his close friends Mark and Janet on the peaceful island of Moulin d'Or. As Mordecai begins to settle into a peaceful routine of sitting by the sea, people watching and leisurely strolling along the beach, he makes friends with a group of like-minded holiday makers who are after fun and rest. Mordecai however, should not have counted on a peaceful holiday, because someone is about to be murdered, and it will take all his wits to discover the culprit before he himself is next in line...
Francis Duncan writes with such a fresh and modern style to his work that I was temporarily surpised he was not a modern writer (until I did some research of course!), he appears light years ahead of some other vintage crime writers operating a a similar time. The plot twist is excellent too!

[John Frankham · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another worthwhile whodunnit in the series, from 1954. Slightly gruesome, rather ploddingly written, with rather heavy-handed humour, this puzzle, based in one of the Channel Islands (without it being specified) is nevertheless well-constructed, with a wide range of characters, relationships, mysteries, and adventures. Well-worth reading.

The GR blurb:

'Amateur sleuth Mordecai Tremaine is back in another classic mystery from the author of Murder for Christmas.
Mordecai Tremaine’s hobby of choice – crime detection – has left him in need of a holiday. A break away from that gruesome business of murder will be just the ticket, and the picturesque island of Moulin d’Or seems to be just the destination.
Amid the sunshine and the sea air, Mordecai falls in with a band of fellow holidaymakers and tries to forget that such a thing as foul play exists. He should have been wiser, of course, because before too long villainy rears its head and a dead body is discovered.

With a killer stalking the sand dunes, it falls to Mordecai to piece together the truth about just who has smuggled murder on to the island idyll…'

[Pamela Mclaren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mordecai Tremaine, whose hobby seems to be sleuthing, finds himself helping out the police during a vacation to the island of Moulin d'Or. But it isn't what he was thinking of when he was taking in the island's charms and meeting the guests and owner of the local hotel.

This book is the reprint of a mystery written in 1954 by Francis Duncan, who himself became a mystery for the publishers. Who was Duncan and why was it so hard to find out anything about him.?
No answers were forthcoming until one of the reprints was published and discovered by the son of William Underhill, who wrote under the name of Francis Duncan.

And so the mystery of the author is solved and we can enjoy Underhill's talent at creating a clever and interesting story of individuals who are all hiding secrets. The pace of the story is terrific, as is the dialogue and the solution is well played. Thoroughly enjoyed this story from start to finish and am looking forward to discovering other Duncan tales.

[Bev · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mordecai Tremaine, whose hobby is amateur detecting under the guise of people watching, decides that he needs a little break from bodies he seems to stumble over. His friends Mark and Janet Belmore had invited him to come stay with them at their cottage on the quiet little island of Moulin d'Or. Nothing much ever happens there on the sun-warmed beaches. Well...until Mordecai shows up.

He makes the acquaintance of other holiday-seekers--those in cottages near the Belmores as well as those staying at the island's Rohane Hotel. What seems at first to be a nice group of young people (well--younger than Mordecai, anyway, who describes himself as elderly) soon prove to be otherwise. There are tensions running underneath the surface and Mordecai's curiosity is aroused by the interactions between hotel owner Hedley Latinam, his sister Ruth, and their guests, Nicola Paston, Geoffrey Bendall, Ivan Holt, Major Ayres, and Mrs. Burres. Every sentence seems to have a double-meaning, but he's got his work cut out to discover what those meanings are. And, although cottage-dwellers Alan and Valerie Creed claim not to know the Latinams, Mordecai chances to see a furtive meeting between Alan and Hedley. The only one who seems well out of it (besides the Belmores) is Ralph Exenley.

Ralph is another neighbor of the Belmores and Mordecai gets on well with the tomato grower. He takes great interest in Ralph's gardening methods and the amateur detective finds it soothing to have a place where he can just talk about things (while he thinks over what he's observed in his people-watching). But his interest in Ralph's tomato production leads him to the discovery of yet another body. Ralph has an interesting water tank set-up to keep his plants watered and one morning Mordecai asks if he may climb the ladder and check things out. When he does, he discovers Hedley Latinam floating in the tank.

Ralph knows of Mordecai's reputation as an amateur sleuth and mentions him to Inspector Colinet when he arrives to investigate the case. Soon Mordecai and the Inspector are discovering motives aplenty. And added to the mix is an escaped prisoner who has vowed revenge on the man whose testimony helped put him behind bars. The prisoner has made a beeline for the island...could that have anything to do with Latinam's death? And why do people keep milling about the old, abandoned mill...and then pretending that they weren't really interested in it?

So...I started at the end of the series. Maybe not the best idea, but at least it doesn't spoil the plot for earlier ones, Generally speaking, I like Duncan's way with characters. Mordecai Tremaine is charming. I love that he secretly loves to read romantic, sentimental stories. He's a people person; genuinely interested in the people around him and his romantic soul would love to see them all happy. But his curiosity also makes him wonder what they're really up to. I have to say, though, he's not much of a detective. He stumbles into things. He overhears conversations. He just happens to be in the right place at the right time to see certain people together. He just happens to hear an odd sound late one night. And that's another thing...lots of coincidences and "just happens." The local church lesson "just happens" to be the very one that will explain a certain phrase to Mordecai just in time for him to figure out a key piece to the puzzle. It's all rather contrived and the wrap-up falls a bit short.

On the whole, pluses in characterization and the setting balance out the minuses in plot and detection.

First posted on my blog My Reader's Block.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am grateful that the publisher is reissuing Duncan's books, but this is the weakest of the four I've read so far. Amateur sleuth Mordecai Tremaine is vacationing with friends on what seems to be a Channel island, and becomes friendly with some of the people staying at the small local hotel, as well as with some of the people living locally. When he finds the body of the hotel owner, the police are on the spot. Fortunately, Tremaine's reputation has gone before him, and he's welcomed to their investigations. The two sets of young lovers and the other characters are not as well-developed as one might expect, nor are some of the other characters. There is a surprise of sorts at the end, but this isn't the first rate work that Duncan usually produces.

[Jeanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Don't let the long time it took me to read it fool you-- this was a good book. I just managed to mislay it! (Found it under the bed.). Anyway, this is the fourth book by Duncan that I have read and I did enjoy it a great deal. Classic mysteries are more my thing, and he does a great job of creating interesting characters. I don't find them to be particularly dated at all and am so glad they have been reprinted. If you are a Dame Agatha fan, give Duncan a try.

[Kristina · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5 / 5 stars

[ShanDizzy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! Did not see that ending!

[Jane · Rating 2 out of 5]

What utter rot!!! So saccharine and heavy handy. Francis Duncan’s best mystery achievement was keeping his own identity a secret - not much was known about the author until 2015 when his daughter came forward and revealed it was a pseudonym used by her father, William Underhill. (All I can think of is Fletch: “Put It on the Underhill’s tab!”)
The novel was just plain clumsy. You don’t get to know the characters at all, everything is told in no uncertain terms through the perspective of amateur sleuth Mordecai Tremaine, who proves to be a terrible detective! Every juicy tidbit that gets dangled before him he seems to just be baffled. He pushes his pince nez further up his nose, his only interesting character trait apparently, one that completely disarms any potential suspects around, but not to the point that they actually confide anything significant to him nor does he make any successful attempts to gain their confidence. It’s exasperating! Any journalist or sleuth worth their salt would follow up on the dozens of leads hurled his way but he just watches them land at his feet and steps right over them to continue on his way. I mean suspect after suspect practically throws themselves in his path and gets to the verge of letting something slip only to stumble off in embarrassed silence. It’s almost laughable in a terrible B or C list spoof thriller vein but in a way that’s not ironic - it’s not in on its own joke because it’s trying desperately to be serious! It just makes it all the more sad. There’s so many sub plots but nothing actually happens until the last 100 pages or so and even then all the action unravels at a breakneck pace in the last 25-30 pages.
Beyond limp characters, the writing is just bad. Overly wordy sentences, passive action, weak verbs. No idea how these books are getting republished after all these years with such a flimsy plot and so little to recommend. Very disappointing!

[Kristen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short, relaxing, and a good palate cleanser after a couple heavier books.

[Ann · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very generic post-war mystery, set in what seems to be one of the Channel Islands. This is one of those books where the tension is maintained by the hero overhearing one mysterious conversation after another, encountering people at strange hours and in places where they have no business being, and eliciting the most extraordinary confidences from quasi-strangers after the skimpiest of acquaintance. The series hero, Mordecai Tremaine, elderly amateur sleuth with a secret hankering for sentimental love stories, is spending some time as a house guest near Moulin d'Or. He soon strikes up acquaintances with a local tomato grower, a mysterious but devoted couple, and a group of vacation-makers at the almost deserted Rohane hotel, whose owner, Hedley Latinam, is just a bit too cheery and jovial. Vague tensions abound among all these folks, and when Latinam is found floating in the tomato grower's water tank, there is no shortage of suspects.

Fast read, but not particularly interesting. The book does not have much of a sense of space or time - it's all centered around Mordecai Tremaine and his daily walks and chats with the cast of characters.

[Elliott · Rating 4 out of 5]

very gentle cozy mystery series, written many years ago. the main character enjoys reading romance stories and is quite sentimental about young love. he also solves mysteries everywhere he goes, which the police actually encourage. in this one I guessed "whodunnit" early on, but I didn't put all of the pieces together.

[Ashley Rock · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author’s story (1914-1988) is more interesting than the book itself- these books have been reprinted and not much was known about the author until his daughter came forward in 2014. Also, I didn’t know anything about this book when picking it up at the library- easy but slow read and quickly realized it is one of a series. Main character reminded me of Monk.

[Hello · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fair murder mystery plot. Good twists. Just felt like it was missing something. Barely got myself into the third chapter. Feel like a movie could do this better justice but they'd have to bring in whatever it's missing.

[Cindy Ladensack · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this author; the mystery, characters, and setting were splendid. I thought it was setting up kinda like a Scooby Doo episode to begin with—a creepy, run-down hotel and an abandoned mill—but the plot went in a different and very satisfying direction.

[Mandy Burkhart · Rating 3 out of 5]

I 100% pulled this book off the shelf at the library because of it's interesting size and beautifully illustrated cover. The actual story was alright, I really enjoyed the "About the Author" section at the end, a tiny little micromystery in and of itself.

[Andréa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked Murder for Christmas better.

[Sarah "Kat"]

I loved the first one by this author but this one just didn’t captivate me enough to continue. Didn’t care for the characters, felt like there was a fair amount of repetition on the author’s part in describing people and things. Stopped at page 104.

[Mary Corso · Rating 4 out of 5]

not sure if I approve

I am not sure if I approve of the ending of this novel. The story was typical for Francis Duncan and very similar in style to Agatha Christie in a lot of ways. A good mystery.

[Sandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unless someone republishes the last two Mordecai Tremaine books, this is my last visit with the amateur detective. By now his name is known and he is welcomed by the police. An interesting plot with a twist or two at the end. I will miss his pince-nez and romantic stories.

[Sally · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Interesting with lots of red herrings but it just didn’t do it for me. Worth reading to see how writing style has changed over the years.

[Neal Obermeyer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book incredibly charming and I loved the confidence of the writing style, but it was such a chore to trudge through this.