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Hildegarde Withers #5
The Puzzle of the Silver Persian
Crusty schoolteacher / sleuth Hildegarde Withers can't escape mysterious deaths even on a trans-Atlantic crossing on an ocean liner. En route to England she spends part of her time (when not feeling queasy) sizing up her fellow passengers. Her intuition helps when passengers and crew start dropping over the side, or just dropping, period.
240 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1934
246 people are currently reading
215 people want to read
About the author
Stuart Palmer
91 books31 followersPseudonyms Theodore Orchards, Jay Stewart
Stuart Palmer (1905–1968) was an American author of mysteries. Born in Baraboo, Wisconsin, Palmer worked a number of odd jobs—including apple picking, journalism, and copywriting—before publishing his first novel, the crime drama Ace of Jades, in 1931. It was with his second novel, however, that he established his writing career: The Penguin Pool Murder introduced Hildegarde Withers, a schoolmarm who, on a field trip to the New York Aquarium, discovers a dead body in the pool. Withers was an immensely popular character, and went on to star in thirteen more novels, including Miss Withers Regrets (1947) and Nipped in the Bud (1951). A master of intricate plotting, Palmer found success writing for Hollywood, where several of his books, including The Penguin Pool Murder, were filmed by RKO Pictures Inc.
Stuart Palmer (1905–1968) was an American author of mysteries. Born in Baraboo, Wisconsin, Palmer worked a number of odd jobs—including apple picking, journalism, and copywriting—before publishing his first novel, the crime drama Ace of Jades, in 1931. It was with his second novel, however, that he established his writing career: The Penguin Pool Murder introduced Hildegarde Withers, a schoolmarm who, on a field trip to the New York Aquarium, discovers a dead body in the pool. Withers was an immensely popular character, and went on to star in thirteen more novels, including Miss Withers Regrets (1947) and Nipped in the Bud (1951). A master of intricate plotting, Palmer found success writing for Hollywood, where several of his books, including The Penguin Pool Murder, were filmed by RKO Pictures Inc.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
March 15, 2020
3.5*
This 5th book in the Hildegarde Withers series takes Miss Withers across the Atlantic to England in order to rest & recuperate from her previous adventure in Catalina. Of course, instead of resting, she gets involved in a mysterious disappearance on the voyage and a series of murders once in England.
The mystery is very good - I kept changing my mind about who I thought had done it. Miss Withers wasn't quite her usual acerbic self (though that is explained in the denouement) and I missed Oscar Piper, the NYC police inspector she usually pesters & helps but the Scotland Yard sergeant was a pleasant replacement. Inspector Cannon was a cop who rose through the ranks like Piper but Sgt. John Secker was one of the "new-fangled" officers who had gone to university. The 1930s must have been when these officers were first becoming common & certainly there are many of them in detective books! Secker & Cannon reminded me of Patricia Wentworth's Frank Abbot & Chief Inspector Lamb.
This 5th book in the Hildegarde Withers series takes Miss Withers across the Atlantic to England in order to rest & recuperate from her previous adventure in Catalina. Of course, instead of resting, she gets involved in a mysterious disappearance on the voyage and a series of murders once in England.
The mystery is very good - I kept changing my mind about who I thought had done it. Miss Withers wasn't quite her usual acerbic self (though that is explained in the denouement) and I missed Oscar Piper, the NYC police inspector she usually pesters & helps but the Scotland Yard sergeant was a pleasant replacement. Inspector Cannon was a cop who rose through the ranks like Piper but Sgt. John Secker was one of the "new-fangled" officers who had gone to university. The 1930s must have been when these officers were first becoming common & certainly there are many of them in detective books! Secker & Cannon reminded me of Patricia Wentworth's Frank Abbot & Chief Inspector Lamb.
July 18, 2019
Miss Withers needs recovery time after her trip to Catalina where she bore some responsibility in identifying the guilty. So what happens after she boards a ship to England? Someone disappears from the railing. Did she go into the water voluntarily? Was she pushed/pulled in?
Then when in London, everyone from the Captain's Table receives black-bordered notes in the girl's hand. Most are hand delivered - pushed under the door. How can this be? Death threats and several people are killed.
Is Rosemary still alive? An option I considered for a while but discarded. I didn't figure it. Unless Miss Withers did it. She was the last to see her by the railing.
Then when in London, everyone from the Captain's Table receives black-bordered notes in the girl's hand. Most are hand delivered - pushed under the door. How can this be? Death threats and several people are killed.
Is Rosemary still alive? An option I considered for a while but discarded. I didn't figure it. Unless Miss Withers did it. She was the last to see her by the railing.
January 15, 2013
In The Puzzle of the Silver Persian, Stuart Palmer takes the indomitable Hildegarde Withers--schoolteacher and amateur sleuth--on a vacation to England via the S. S. American Diplomat. She's hoping to get away from crime for a while and recover from her last adventure--a rather ghastly one for her in which she was instrumental in sending a couple to the gallows. But before the passengers go ashore in England one young woman has disappeared, suicide or thrown overboard?, and the suspect in her disappearance is dead from cyanide. The police seem willing to believe that the bartender killed the girl and then himself, but Miss Withers isn't so sure. And when threatening notes begin showing up and more deaths follow, it would seem that she was right to be doubtful. It isn't until she visits the Cornwall castle home of two of her fellow passengers and understands the clue left by Tobermory, the silver Persian cat in question, that the puzzle is finally unraveled.
Miss Withers is a bit out of her element in this one. She suffers from sea sickness which throws her off her balance--and then, of course, in England she doesn't have the trust in her abilities that she enjoys from Detective Piper back home. But the Scotland Yard men soon learn that Hildegarde knows her stuff and can, as she says, smell murder, and it doesn't take her too long to find her sea legs on board ship and get her bearings in England. The humor generally found in Palmer's work is very much in evidence--I particularly like the way he works the titular feline into the story (without making things too cutesy) and he also introduces a rather depressed robin by the name of Dicon. Both will be very important to the solving of the mystery. There are plenty of clues for the observant reader to pick up in this rather fine vintage mystery. Three and a half stars.
This was first posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting. Thanks.
Miss Withers is a bit out of her element in this one. She suffers from sea sickness which throws her off her balance--and then, of course, in England she doesn't have the trust in her abilities that she enjoys from Detective Piper back home. But the Scotland Yard men soon learn that Hildegarde knows her stuff and can, as she says, smell murder, and it doesn't take her too long to find her sea legs on board ship and get her bearings in England. The humor generally found in Palmer's work is very much in evidence--I particularly like the way he works the titular feline into the story (without making things too cutesy) and he also introduces a rather depressed robin by the name of Dicon. Both will be very important to the solving of the mystery. There are plenty of clues for the observant reader to pick up in this rather fine vintage mystery. Three and a half stars.
This was first posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting. Thanks.
June 13, 2017
For my full review click on the link below:
https://crossexaminingcrime.wordpress...
https://crossexaminingcrime.wordpress...
September 16, 2017
SPANISH: Interesante novela policíaca, aunque debo decir que el gato del título desempeña un papel bastante secundario. Fui capaz de detectar quién era la persona que había cometido los crímenes antes que la señorita Hildegarde Withers. Aunque eso normalmente le habría quitado interés a la obra, el autor casi consiguió engañarme, moviéndome a descartar a esa persona justo antes del final, pero después de todo resultó que yo sí había acertado :-)
ENGLISH: Interesting mystery novel, although I must say that the cat in the title has just a rather secondary role. I was able to detect who was the murderer before Miss Hildegarde Withers. Although this usually would have destroyed my interest, the author almost managed to deceive me, by moving me to discard that person just before the end, but after all it turned out that I had been right :-)
ENGLISH: Interesting mystery novel, although I must say that the cat in the title has just a rather secondary role. I was able to detect who was the murderer before Miss Hildegarde Withers. Although this usually would have destroyed my interest, the author almost managed to deceive me, by moving me to discard that person just before the end, but after all it turned out that I had been right :-)
March 21, 2022
A bit of a stretch
The way Hildegarde solved it was a bit of a stretch. She also wandered aimlessly for quite some time. She is turning into a Mrs Fletcher too. If I saw her out somewhere I would leave because I wouldn’t want the dead body to be mine.
The way Hildegarde solved it was a bit of a stretch. She also wandered aimlessly for quite some time. She is turning into a Mrs Fletcher too. If I saw her out somewhere I would leave because I wouldn’t want the dead body to be mine.
May 23, 2021
3.5 stars
November 12, 2013
The mystery may not have been the best, but it's an enjoyable read, full of interesting historical tidbits from when the easiest and most economical way to visit Britain from the US was by ship. And an extra star for the Silver Persian himself, who plays an important role in the story. Which was the whole reason I picked up the book in the first place. Mystery with a cat? I'm there! :)
September 8, 2024
This book is part of a long running series written in the early part of the 20th century. It is dated, but it is a good mystery.
Miss Hildegarde Withers is a school teacher from New England and she has been involved with the New York Police Department in investigating crimes. Interestingly, she is often described as having a “horse face” and being very homely. But, she is an intelligent woman who is a talented puzzle solver.
Now she is taking a vacation and sailing to England on a small ocean liner. The number of passengers is such that people meet nearly everyone on the ship. For the first part of the voyage Ms Withers is confined to her cabin because of sea sickness.
When she finally feels well enough to join people she finds that there are some personal issues between a couple of the passengers. There is drama.
When a young woman disappears from the ship a full investigation begins. When they arrive in London, Scotland Yard becomes involved. Miss Wither’s ideas are ignored. She is a mere woman and an American at that. But, she is not deterred.
There are many characters and the reader is slowly given enough information to get to know them. The characters are strong personalities. Some of them are not particularly likable but all of them are interesting.
This is a well written book. The author had a successful career and this series was made into several films.
I enjoyed the mystery. It was a slow starter for me, but it did get moving and action was quick and decisive.
Miss Hildegarde Withers is a school teacher from New England and she has been involved with the New York Police Department in investigating crimes. Interestingly, she is often described as having a “horse face” and being very homely. But, she is an intelligent woman who is a talented puzzle solver.
Now she is taking a vacation and sailing to England on a small ocean liner. The number of passengers is such that people meet nearly everyone on the ship. For the first part of the voyage Ms Withers is confined to her cabin because of sea sickness.
When she finally feels well enough to join people she finds that there are some personal issues between a couple of the passengers. There is drama.
When a young woman disappears from the ship a full investigation begins. When they arrive in London, Scotland Yard becomes involved. Miss Wither’s ideas are ignored. She is a mere woman and an American at that. But, she is not deterred.
There are many characters and the reader is slowly given enough information to get to know them. The characters are strong personalities. Some of them are not particularly likable but all of them are interesting.
This is a well written book. The author had a successful career and this series was made into several films.
I enjoyed the mystery. It was a slow starter for me, but it did get moving and action was quick and decisive.
December 19, 2024
Well. I have to write an odd sort of review.
This turns out to be a wonky, weird DNF variant for me…in that about 16 pages were missing, near the end of this Mystery. Specifically - the fates sure can be cruel - the bulk of the explanation for all the murders. This is a worse case scenario - so I’m just saying: if you find an old Dell Mystery copy, like I did, make sure it has pages 221 to 236 in it, or you’ll wind up knowing WHO the killer is, and not much else! It’s difficult to say whether those pages were ever there in the first place…because, much earlier in the book, about 16 pages occurred twice! That said, there was a crease of sorts, where page 220 jumped to page 237. So I’m just leaving a Public Service Announcement about this because, I don’t really know if all copies of the red Dell paperback from way back when suffer this problem.
I was very happy with this book, until I discovered the jam I was in (I wish a section had been missing from near the beginning, so I could have bailed early)! In a way, this ends up being a one-star experience, but for now I’ll credit what I got to read with 3 stars.
This turns out to be a wonky, weird DNF variant for me…in that about 16 pages were missing, near the end of this Mystery. Specifically - the fates sure can be cruel - the bulk of the explanation for all the murders. This is a worse case scenario - so I’m just saying: if you find an old Dell Mystery copy, like I did, make sure it has pages 221 to 236 in it, or you’ll wind up knowing WHO the killer is, and not much else! It’s difficult to say whether those pages were ever there in the first place…because, much earlier in the book, about 16 pages occurred twice! That said, there was a crease of sorts, where page 220 jumped to page 237. So I’m just leaving a Public Service Announcement about this because, I don’t really know if all copies of the red Dell paperback from way back when suffer this problem.
I was very happy with this book, until I discovered the jam I was in (I wish a section had been missing from near the beginning, so I could have bailed early)! In a way, this ends up being a one-star experience, but for now I’ll credit what I got to read with 3 stars.
September 14, 2019
2019 bk 291. Hildegarde Withers, schoolteacher, puzzle solver, sleuth. One of the American 1930's classic detective characters makes a new appearance thanks to Rue Morgue Vintage Press and is a reminder about what was good and what was not so good in the mysteries of the era. In this book, Hildegarde is taking a leave of absence from teaching and traveling to Europe that to a reward given at the end of the prior book. On the ship, she encounters a fellow travelers, some of whom are not at all nice. When a girl goes overboard after a humiliating prank, the question is was it murder? suicide? accident? Others of Miss Withers fellow travelers begin to die, seemingly at the hands of the victim. Can she help Scotland Yard solve the puzzle? Will they let her? Frankly, I enjoy Hildegarde Withers and this is a re-read from about 20 years ago. There is something about this characters that comes back and tugs at my memory requiring me to track down copies every so often for another read.
January 29, 2022
Another little gem from Stuart Palmer. A polished, sparkling and wittily told tale of murder and revenge. Starting out during an Atlantic crossing and stopping off in London for a bit before moving on to an ancient castle jutting out of the sea off the coast of Cornwall, this yarn with a fairly high body count has Hildegarde Withers involved in a hugely enjoyable mystery.
It's not always easy for writers to marry comedy (not least the strand that runs throughout the story involving a rather malicious Persian cat and a pessimistic robin) with grimmer moments but Palmer had a real gift for it. I found the mystery solid enough, even if I did cotton on to the killer very early, and the ending saw me reading the last page with a satisfied grin.
It's not always easy for writers to marry comedy (not least the strand that runs throughout the story involving a rather malicious Persian cat and a pessimistic robin) with grimmer moments but Palmer had a real gift for it. I found the mystery solid enough, even if I did cotton on to the killer very early, and the ending saw me reading the last page with a satisfied grin.
July 10, 2019
This Book was much better than I thought. I have seen some old movies made from these books and found them very interesting. Hildegarde is off on a cruise to London, she is very seasick on the trip and misses the interaction between the people assigned to her table, and that is too bad. Of course someone is murdered. Soon other members of the table start receiving hate letters bordered in black.
Hildegarde tries her best to find out who is the murderer. I thought I knew, but in the end, Hildegarde and I both are surprised. The only difference is she figures it out and I did not. Good Book
Hildegarde tries her best to find out who is the murderer. I thought I knew, but in the end, Hildegarde and I both are surprised. The only difference is she figures it out and I did not. Good Book
January 10, 2021
I love Hildegarde Withers as a character. She's sharp-witted and sharp-tongued, but still retains a deep sense of the human foibles and human strengths of the other characters in the stories.
The Puzzle of the Silver Persian starts very well and the characters develop, the red-herrings are set up and knocked down. I have to admit, I was disappointed with the finish, which I thought played out-of-charachter.
Still, I'll be reading another Miss Withers mystery before long. Love 'em
The Puzzle of the Silver Persian starts very well and the characters develop, the red-herrings are set up and knocked down. I have to admit, I was disappointed with the finish, which I thought played out-of-charachter.
Still, I'll be reading another Miss Withers mystery before long. Love 'em
June 13, 2022
Three and a half stars: Crusty schoolteacher / sleuth Hildegarde Withers can't escape mysterious deaths even on a trans-Atlantic crossing on an ocean liner. En route to England she spends part of her time (when not feeling queasy) sizing up her fellow passengers. Her intuition helps when passengers and crew start dropping over the side, or just dropping. A satisfying entry in the series, but not the best (see "Penguin Pool Murder" or "Murder on the Blackboard.")
October 30, 2019
An oldie but still keeps you up!
I watched the film version of a different Hildegarde Withers story years ago on the late, late show. It was made in the 30's and was a great story,with Hildys friend/fiance Oscar the Detective always one step behind her. I didn't know until now that they were characters in a novel!!! I can't wait to see/read more!!!
I watched the film version of a different Hildegarde Withers story years ago on the late, late show. It was made in the 30's and was a great story,with Hildys friend/fiance Oscar the Detective always one step behind her. I didn't know until now that they were characters in a novel!!! I can't wait to see/read more!!!
December 19, 2019
Typical for its time (the 1930s), amusing if you like old-time whodunits. The characters are cardboard, the murder is (surprise!) a secret psychopath, Hildegarde Withers' meddling is welcomed with open arms by the professional police, and the middle-aged spinster (my God! She's in her forties) takes five or ten pages to unravel the motives and actions of everyone at the end.
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March 21, 2020Smart cat goes cruising , helping solve a complicated series of nasty murders.
Hildegarde Withers sails from the US to England with assorted shipmates who are lined up for unplanned danger, while Persian Toby washes his silver paws. Many twists and turns.
Hildegarde Withers sails from the US to England with assorted shipmates who are lined up for unplanned danger, while Persian Toby washes his silver paws. Many twists and turns.
June 25, 2017
A fun mystery set on a boat.
That's all I got for this one.
That's all I got for this one.
July 3, 2018
I Book- $1.99. 3.5 stars Miss Withers helps solve mysteries with many twists and turns
September 17, 2019
Enjoyable
This had quite a few twists and was fun to read. I really liked the characters . I definitely would recommend this book! 😀
This had quite a few twists and was fun to read. I really liked the characters . I definitely would recommend this book! 😀
June 28, 2020
I really did enjoy this Hildegarde Withers book. The mystery itself was quite good and the book overall really enjoyable. Can't wait to read the others in the series - I've just seen the films.
April 1, 2022
Entertaining mystery with some clever plot twists. Looking forward to another in the series.
December 16, 2022
Está bien pero algunas cosas son muy rebuscadas.
August 12, 2024
This book kind of sucks. Its age shows. Children are caned joyfully and a woman divorcing her husband is totally demonized and the heroine almost lets the murderer off Scot-free?? Crazy time.
September 15, 2025
Solution Seemed A Stretch
I’ve enjoyed the previous books in the series, but this one seemed to have a stretch in the “who done it” how and why.
I’ve enjoyed the previous books in the series, but this one seemed to have a stretch in the “who done it” how and why.
July 5, 2025
The old lady and the sea.
This is the fifth of Stuart Palmer's mysteries featuring Miss Hildegarde Withers, spinster school teacher from New York City. The last one took Miss Withers to Catalina Island off California, where she has to solve a murder. Exhausted from finding a missing body and hunting down the murderer, the "elderly" (40ish!) Miss Withers is ordered to take a vacation to recover from her first vacation. Thus, we find her aboard the "American Diplomat", a small liner headed for London.
Sea-sickness almost knocks out the normally indomitable Hildegarde, but she finds her sea legs just in time to discover that a beautiful American heiress is causing lots of drama. A rejected lover learns a shocking secret about her and tells everyone on the ship. That night, the distraught girl disappears. Did she commit suicide by jumping overboard or was she pushed? Miss Withers is convinced that Rosemary Fraser was murdered. All she has to do is convince Scotland Yard.
It's 1934 and Europe is no longer a playground for wealthy Americans. But even during the Great Depression some Yanks cross the pond to see all the things they've read about. Miss Withers wants to explore London, but she's determined to find the young woman's murderer.
Scotland Yard Inspector Cannon is incensed at a civilian (and an American female, at that!) daring to interfere in police business, but when recent passengers from the Diplomat start being killed, he has to take notice. And when Rosemary resurfaces, even the English have trouble keeping stiff upper lips.
There's a fine cast of characters in this one. The Honorable Emily is a hoot. She's a descendant of one of the oldest families in England, but she's positively democratic compared to her haughty Persian cat Tobermory. Like his mistress, Toby is aristocratic, but tough. He even takes on the ship's cat and comes out on top. The weak link in this family group is the Honorable Emily's nephew, a fun-loving bachelor who must squeeze money out of his aunt for his social life.
Rosemary Fraser was traveling with her friend Candida and the relationship between the two young women is puzzling. Candida has been friend/nursemaid to the younger girl for years and yet she positively blossoms after Rosemary's death. Could there have been a rivalry all along?
The obnoxious young man who humiliated Rosemary isn't popular, but no one expects him to end up at the bottom of an elevator (sorry, "lift") shaft. The Hammonds are a young married couple torn apart by his attentions to Rosemary Fraser. Even Rosemary's death doesn't bring about a reconciliation. If they split, what happens to their horrible son Gerald?
On the ship's staff, the jovial doctor is a favorite with the passengers, but his failure to lock up dangerous chemicals comes back to haunt him. The steward/bartender Peter Noel is a man with an eye to the main chance. Being a rich woman's husband strikes him as an easy life. And the ship's matron isn't above performing illegal favors - for a price, of course.
Palmer was a shrewd observer of society, as a really good mystery writer must be. He shows the upheaval as Scotland Yard's Old Guard (schooled on the streets) deals with the Young Turks (educated at Oxford.) And the skirmishes between the Americans and the crusty old magistrate is hysterical. "Craps", indeed! We go to the Honorable Emily's castle in Cornwall and see the ancient portcullis used (unexpectedly.) Guess why the castle's builders put it on an island?
The identity of the murderer took me by surprise, but the clues are there. As a salute to the English tradition, there are enough red herrings to fill the North Sea and even Miss Withers was fooled a few times. I can see why Palmer's books were so popular and I'm happy that e-publishing has brought them back to life.
Warning: More than any series I know, this one benefits from being read in order.
This is the fifth of Stuart Palmer's mysteries featuring Miss Hildegarde Withers, spinster school teacher from New York City. The last one took Miss Withers to Catalina Island off California, where she has to solve a murder. Exhausted from finding a missing body and hunting down the murderer, the "elderly" (40ish!) Miss Withers is ordered to take a vacation to recover from her first vacation. Thus, we find her aboard the "American Diplomat", a small liner headed for London.
Sea-sickness almost knocks out the normally indomitable Hildegarde, but she finds her sea legs just in time to discover that a beautiful American heiress is causing lots of drama. A rejected lover learns a shocking secret about her and tells everyone on the ship. That night, the distraught girl disappears. Did she commit suicide by jumping overboard or was she pushed? Miss Withers is convinced that Rosemary Fraser was murdered. All she has to do is convince Scotland Yard.
It's 1934 and Europe is no longer a playground for wealthy Americans. But even during the Great Depression some Yanks cross the pond to see all the things they've read about. Miss Withers wants to explore London, but she's determined to find the young woman's murderer.
Scotland Yard Inspector Cannon is incensed at a civilian (and an American female, at that!) daring to interfere in police business, but when recent passengers from the Diplomat start being killed, he has to take notice. And when Rosemary resurfaces, even the English have trouble keeping stiff upper lips.
There's a fine cast of characters in this one. The Honorable Emily is a hoot. She's a descendant of one of the oldest families in England, but she's positively democratic compared to her haughty Persian cat Tobermory. Like his mistress, Toby is aristocratic, but tough. He even takes on the ship's cat and comes out on top. The weak link in this family group is the Honorable Emily's nephew, a fun-loving bachelor who must squeeze money out of his aunt for his social life.
Rosemary Fraser was traveling with her friend Candida and the relationship between the two young women is puzzling. Candida has been friend/nursemaid to the younger girl for years and yet she positively blossoms after Rosemary's death. Could there have been a rivalry all along?
The obnoxious young man who humiliated Rosemary isn't popular, but no one expects him to end up at the bottom of an elevator (sorry, "lift") shaft. The Hammonds are a young married couple torn apart by his attentions to Rosemary Fraser. Even Rosemary's death doesn't bring about a reconciliation. If they split, what happens to their horrible son Gerald?
On the ship's staff, the jovial doctor is a favorite with the passengers, but his failure to lock up dangerous chemicals comes back to haunt him. The steward/bartender Peter Noel is a man with an eye to the main chance. Being a rich woman's husband strikes him as an easy life. And the ship's matron isn't above performing illegal favors - for a price, of course.
Palmer was a shrewd observer of society, as a really good mystery writer must be. He shows the upheaval as Scotland Yard's Old Guard (schooled on the streets) deals with the Young Turks (educated at Oxford.) And the skirmishes between the Americans and the crusty old magistrate is hysterical. "Craps", indeed! We go to the Honorable Emily's castle in Cornwall and see the ancient portcullis used (unexpectedly.) Guess why the castle's builders put it on an island?
The identity of the murderer took me by surprise, but the clues are there. As a salute to the English tradition, there are enough red herrings to fill the North Sea and even Miss Withers was fooled a few times. I can see why Palmer's books were so popular and I'm happy that e-publishing has brought them back to life.
Warning: More than any series I know, this one benefits from being read in order.
July 22, 2013
This is the first book I've read in this series and, while I think it would have been nice to know more history on Hildegarde Withers, it wasn't absolutely necessary to understand the whole story.
Miss Withers is not enjoying her reward from the last case, a trip overseas. But she is having major seasickness and misses the excitement on board. A well-known heiress is on board and one of her tablemates plays a rather cruel trick on her. She had disappeared into a closet, supposedly with a married man, and he gifts her with a reminder of her embarrassment.
Later that night, Miss Withers is on deck, sees the girl, and when she turns around, the heiress is gone. Off the boat in the middle of the sea. But was it suicide? Or murder? The English police assume the former. There's nothing to suggest murder and it's just easier to close the case. But then the barman dies. And the rest of the people at the table that night start getting threats that arrive in black-edged (funereal) envelopes.
There's another murder before Miss Withers can figure out the solution. But she does.
An interesting story and I'm definitely interested in following more of the series.
Miss Withers is not enjoying her reward from the last case, a trip overseas. But she is having major seasickness and misses the excitement on board. A well-known heiress is on board and one of her tablemates plays a rather cruel trick on her. She had disappeared into a closet, supposedly with a married man, and he gifts her with a reminder of her embarrassment.
Later that night, Miss Withers is on deck, sees the girl, and when she turns around, the heiress is gone. Off the boat in the middle of the sea. But was it suicide? Or murder? The English police assume the former. There's nothing to suggest murder and it's just easier to close the case. But then the barman dies. And the rest of the people at the table that night start getting threats that arrive in black-edged (funereal) envelopes.
There's another murder before Miss Withers can figure out the solution. But she does.
An interesting story and I'm definitely interested in following more of the series.
January 18, 2014
Beautiful young Rosemary thinks she's disgraced herself forever on her trip to England on the American Diplomat. There's nothing to do about it but jump into the cold ocean. Or--is there? Some of the people she feels humiliated her die suddenly. Was Rosemary really murdered? Were some of the deaths accidental? And why are excerpts from Rosemary's diary showing up in anonymous letters? Miss Hildegarde Withers was too seasick to pay much attention to what happened on shipboard, but once the crowd hits London, she's in there detecting with Scotland Yard. Not the best of this series, perhaps.
January 10, 2014
great mystery
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews