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Albert Campion #short stories
Mr Campion: Criminologist
NO MARGIN FOR ERROR...
Campion had to be right the first time in the cases of--
An old schoolmate who died a natural death--and was murdered six months later
A gangster's rival who was shot in the back---through two concrete walls
An elderly countess who thought she was working for charity--and found herself smuggling stolen gems
A vain old actor who was pronounced dead in the evening--and turned up hale and hearty the next day!
You'll meet them all--some alive, some dead, and some in between--in this collection of disagreeable people and incredible events.
Contents: “The case of the late Pig” and the Short stories: — “The case of the white elephant” — “The case of the man with the sack” — “The border-line case” — “The case of the widow” — “The case of the pro and the con” — “The case of the old man in the window”
Campion had to be right the first time in the cases of--
An old schoolmate who died a natural death--and was murdered six months later
A gangster's rival who was shot in the back---through two concrete walls
An elderly countess who thought she was working for charity--and found herself smuggling stolen gems
A vain old actor who was pronounced dead in the evening--and turned up hale and hearty the next day!
You'll meet them all--some alive, some dead, and some in between--in this collection of disagreeable people and incredible events.
Contents: “The case of the late Pig” and the Short stories: — “The case of the white elephant” — “The case of the man with the sack” — “The border-line case” — “The case of the widow” — “The case of the pro and the con” — “The case of the old man in the window”
192 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1937
12 people are currently reading
237 people want to read
About the author
Margery Allingham
254 books608 followersAka Maxwell March.
Margery Louise Allingham was born in Ealing, London in 1904 to a family of writers. Her father, Herbert John Allingham, was editor of The Christian Globe and The New London Journal, while her mother wrote stories for women's magazines as Emmie Allingham. Margery's aunt, Maud Hughes, also ran a magazine. Margery earned her first fee at the age of eight, for a story printed in her aunt's magazine.
Soon after Margery's birth, the family left London for Essex. She returned to London in 1920 to attend the Regent Street Polytechnic (now the University of Westminster), and met her future husband, Philip Youngman Carter. They married in 1928. He was her collaborator and designed the cover jackets for many of her books.
Margery's breakthrough came 1929 with the publication of her second novel, The Crime at Black Dudley . The novel introduced Albert Campion, although only as a minor character. After pressure from her American publishers, Margery brought Campion back for Mystery Mile and continued to use Campion as a character throughout her career.
After a battle with breast cancer, Margery died in 1966. Her husband finished her last novel, A Cargo of Eagles at her request, and published it in 1968.
Also wrote as: Maxwell March
Margery Louise Allingham was born in Ealing, London in 1904 to a family of writers. Her father, Herbert John Allingham, was editor of The Christian Globe and The New London Journal, while her mother wrote stories for women's magazines as Emmie Allingham. Margery's aunt, Maud Hughes, also ran a magazine. Margery earned her first fee at the age of eight, for a story printed in her aunt's magazine.
Soon after Margery's birth, the family left London for Essex. She returned to London in 1920 to attend the Regent Street Polytechnic (now the University of Westminster), and met her future husband, Philip Youngman Carter. They married in 1928. He was her collaborator and designed the cover jackets for many of her books.
Margery's breakthrough came 1929 with the publication of her second novel, The Crime at Black Dudley . The novel introduced Albert Campion, although only as a minor character. After pressure from her American publishers, Margery brought Campion back for Mystery Mile and continued to use Campion as a character throughout her career.
After a battle with breast cancer, Margery died in 1966. Her husband finished her last novel, A Cargo of Eagles at her request, and published it in 1968.
Also wrote as: Maxwell March
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
March 19, 2022
A collection of short stories featuring Albert Campion. They were okay but I like the full length mysteries better. Probably they would be more enjoyable if read one at a time in between other things.
June 25, 2020
Actually 2.5*
ENGLISH: Six short stories from Mr. Campion's casebook. Campion is unusually interested in girls; unfortunately, girls are usually uninterested in him. The best story, to my taste, is "The Case of the Widow." The worst, "The border-line case."
ESPAÑOL: Seis cuentos cortos del libro de casos del Sr. Campion. Campion está inusualmente interesado en las chicas; desgraciadamente, las chicas no están usualmente interesadas en él. El mejor cuento, para mi gusto, es "El caso de la viuda". El peor, "El caso límite".
ENGLISH: Six short stories from Mr. Campion's casebook. Campion is unusually interested in girls; unfortunately, girls are usually uninterested in him. The best story, to my taste, is "The Case of the Widow." The worst, "The border-line case."
ESPAÑOL: Seis cuentos cortos del libro de casos del Sr. Campion. Campion está inusualmente interesado en las chicas; desgraciadamente, las chicas no están usualmente interesadas en él. El mejor cuento, para mi gusto, es "El caso de la viuda". El peor, "El caso límite".
March 31, 2020
This collection includes six short stories and one novella. But the novella is "The Late Pig," which makes it a must-read. Campion learns that the boy who made his prep school experience a misery has died suddenly, and on a whim he goes to the funeral. Months later, he's invited to help the police find out who murdered an obnoxious man, and when he views the body--yes, it's the same man he saw buried months ago. The stories are much anthologized and present few surprises, but are always pleasant to read.
May 30, 2016
This is the 2nd collection of Allingham's short stories I've read this year and both were excellent. In this collection, every story features her favourite sleuth, Albert Campion, a gentleman who likes to get involved with interesting cases. Each story is presented as an entry in Campion's casebook and as you see with one of them, the casebook is written by the author, Margery Allingham, sort of presented as Campion's secretary. This book features 7 of Campion's cases and for the most part, they also include his friend, Scotland Yard inspector, Stanilaus Oates. I enjoyed how Allingham presented the cases, I liked her writing style and I like Campion, somewhat like Dorothy Sayer's, Peter Wimsey, a confident, wealthy gentleman, who likes mysteries. The stories show how quickly he grasps the facts and how he is able to solve each case, each of which was interesting and different. I've read a few of the Campion books now and find that I'm enjoying them more and more. (4 stars)
May 5, 2016
read some time in 1993
October 10, 2019
This is a collection of short stories about Albert Campion, as well as the novella The Case Of The Late Pig, which is also published on its own. I believe this collection was published for an American audience and the reason I sought it out specifically is because it is presented as Campion's casebook and each story comes with a little bio/introduction written by him, which are unique to this edition.
However, these notes are so brief that they don't really add anything - they only make sense in retrospect anyway. But I was keen to read anything that comes from Campion, since out of the entire series only one story was written from his perspective. In fact, that story is included in this edition - The Case Of The Late Pig - but I'm not going to review it since I have already reviewed it as a stand-alone novel. Needless to say that it's great fun.
The most notable story in this collection otherwise is The Border-Line Case, the only other story I am currently aware of that isn't written in 3rd person. Bizarrely this one is from the perspective of Margery Allingham herself! At least, that's the assumption. At the start of this book there is a note stating that Allingham is Campion's personal secretary in charge of 'chronicling his activities' and in the short story in question, Campion calls the narrator 'Margery'. It's a really fun idea because it makes Campion feel like a real man if the author can say that she hangs out with him.
Anyway, as for the six short stories in this collection, they're all very good. The main attraction is how different each one is. It really shows the breadth of types of story that Campion can fit into easily. They're not even all mysteries, and Campion's involvement varies from passerby and 'armchair detective' to meddler and actively hired on a case. Some of them are puzzles and some of them are dust-ups with criminals (actually most of them seem to end with Campion getting attacked) some where the mystery is the forefront of the story and some where it's more just a series of crimes.
My only issue is that most of the stories rely a lot on coincidence - as in Campion happens to observe a vital clue at the start that doesn't become relevant until the end. I realise this is how most mysteries work, but in a novel that's fine whereas when you pare the story back to its basics, it feels less convincing or too convenient. It also draws too much attention to the relevant clues, because if seemingly unconnected events share a story that's only a handful of pages long, you know that they are all the same case really. Basically I feel like some of these stories could have been made into novels (especially the final one) and it's sad to see them practically sitting here in note form. And where the idea isn't big enough to string into a novel, it still feels a little pointless. Here is a mystery. Isn't it mysterious. Ah, but, here is the solution. Done. They are well written and clever stories though, and there is obviously an audience for mystery short stories - that's how the genre started out - so I guess it's all perfectly fine. I just wish I could spend more time with Campion and a short story has very little time for depth of character or character development, which is what I enjoy most about fiction.
But if you are a big fan of short stories, these are definitely recommended.
I will point out however that this edition has some bad typographical errors in it. I started reading The Case Of The Late Pig and came across a paragraph that has been half deleted and part of the previous paragraph replicated. Since I own two other books with this novella in, I was able to check and this error is unique to THIS edition. It worries me how many other bad mistakes may be lurking in the text. Interestingly, there are other changes from the standard (British?) text - a few words here and there are different, some possibly correcting previous typos, others adding new ones, weirdly the word 'Fowl' has been replaced with 'Pheasant' in a pub name and (understandably) the N-word has been replaced with 'slave'. In the end I didn't bother reading the whole text of The Case Of The Late Pig and read it in the stand-alone edition instead, which I trust a little more.
Also the specific edition of this book that I have (paperback 1963 Macfadden) has the weirdest cover - it appears to be a perturbed young woman (in 60s dress?) superimposed over water with seagulls flying around her. This has no connection to any of the stories in this book. In fact, at a glance I would assume this was the cover to The Birds by Daphne Du Maurier, which I think is also a short story collection... so did they put the wrong picture on the cover of this book?
However, these notes are so brief that they don't really add anything - they only make sense in retrospect anyway. But I was keen to read anything that comes from Campion, since out of the entire series only one story was written from his perspective. In fact, that story is included in this edition - The Case Of The Late Pig - but I'm not going to review it since I have already reviewed it as a stand-alone novel. Needless to say that it's great fun.
The most notable story in this collection otherwise is The Border-Line Case, the only other story I am currently aware of that isn't written in 3rd person. Bizarrely this one is from the perspective of Margery Allingham herself! At least, that's the assumption. At the start of this book there is a note stating that Allingham is Campion's personal secretary in charge of 'chronicling his activities' and in the short story in question, Campion calls the narrator 'Margery'. It's a really fun idea because it makes Campion feel like a real man if the author can say that she hangs out with him.
Anyway, as for the six short stories in this collection, they're all very good. The main attraction is how different each one is. It really shows the breadth of types of story that Campion can fit into easily. They're not even all mysteries, and Campion's involvement varies from passerby and 'armchair detective' to meddler and actively hired on a case. Some of them are puzzles and some of them are dust-ups with criminals (actually most of them seem to end with Campion getting attacked) some where the mystery is the forefront of the story and some where it's more just a series of crimes.
My only issue is that most of the stories rely a lot on coincidence - as in Campion happens to observe a vital clue at the start that doesn't become relevant until the end. I realise this is how most mysteries work, but in a novel that's fine whereas when you pare the story back to its basics, it feels less convincing or too convenient. It also draws too much attention to the relevant clues, because if seemingly unconnected events share a story that's only a handful of pages long, you know that they are all the same case really. Basically I feel like some of these stories could have been made into novels (especially the final one) and it's sad to see them practically sitting here in note form. And where the idea isn't big enough to string into a novel, it still feels a little pointless. Here is a mystery. Isn't it mysterious. Ah, but, here is the solution. Done. They are well written and clever stories though, and there is obviously an audience for mystery short stories - that's how the genre started out - so I guess it's all perfectly fine. I just wish I could spend more time with Campion and a short story has very little time for depth of character or character development, which is what I enjoy most about fiction.
But if you are a big fan of short stories, these are definitely recommended.
I will point out however that this edition has some bad typographical errors in it. I started reading The Case Of The Late Pig and came across a paragraph that has been half deleted and part of the previous paragraph replicated. Since I own two other books with this novella in, I was able to check and this error is unique to THIS edition. It worries me how many other bad mistakes may be lurking in the text. Interestingly, there are other changes from the standard (British?) text - a few words here and there are different, some possibly correcting previous typos, others adding new ones, weirdly the word 'Fowl' has been replaced with 'Pheasant' in a pub name and (understandably) the N-word has been replaced with 'slave'. In the end I didn't bother reading the whole text of The Case Of The Late Pig and read it in the stand-alone edition instead, which I trust a little more.
Also the specific edition of this book that I have (paperback 1963 Macfadden) has the weirdest cover - it appears to be a perturbed young woman (in 60s dress?) superimposed over water with seagulls flying around her. This has no connection to any of the stories in this book. In fact, at a glance I would assume this was the cover to The Birds by Daphne Du Maurier, which I think is also a short story collection... so did they put the wrong picture on the cover of this book?
January 4, 2015
I really dislike the first story in this collection, which is actually a short novel. But all the other stories in this collection are REALLY good. The first story is The Case of the Late Pig, and it's one of those ones where Campion is just inhumanly rude to Lugg; I couldn't finish it.
The stories in this collection are not chronological, but each one starts with the year "the crime happened" and lists the major characters involved.
As with the short stories Dorothy Sayers wrote about Lord Peter Wimsey, these short stories gave Allingham a chance to try some different writing styles; this winter I've been re reading all the Campions and I had already developed a respect for Allingham's abilities as a writer, and this collection intensified that respect. She's really good, and creates interesting characters and plots. Sometimes the plots verge on the silly, especially when she is writing about Simister and the Master Criminal (snore). But overall, the stories are very good.
The stories in this collection are not chronological, but each one starts with the year "the crime happened" and lists the major characters involved.
As with the short stories Dorothy Sayers wrote about Lord Peter Wimsey, these short stories gave Allingham a chance to try some different writing styles; this winter I've been re reading all the Campions and I had already developed a respect for Allingham's abilities as a writer, and this collection intensified that respect. She's really good, and creates interesting characters and plots. Sometimes the plots verge on the silly, especially when she is writing about Simister and the Master Criminal (snore). But overall, the stories are very good.
March 5, 2013
Short stories (tho' The Late Pig is shown elsewhere as a book).
Fascinating--The Border-Line Case (short short). Allingham has herself in the story, along with Albert Campion. But a girl is named Josephine, with a description that sounds a lot like J. Tey. Altho' the latter is a pen name, they're publishing books at the same time, same place. Margery seems to be having fun in a throw-away story.
Fascinating--The Border-Line Case (short short). Allingham has herself in the story, along with Albert Campion. But a girl is named Josephine, with a description that sounds a lot like J. Tey. Altho' the latter is a pen name, they're publishing books at the same time, same place. Margery seems to be having fun in a throw-away story.
October 6, 2008
Contains several short stories. The longest is the first one, The Case of the Late Pig. The first ones in the book are better than the later ones, maybe because they are longer.
January 12, 2009
This collection of short stories from the 1930s has it all - an aristocratic sleuth and his more than unusual gentleman's gentleman, solving beautifully-written and well-constructed mysteries.
June 1, 2014
7 short stories featuring 7 cases from the files of Alfred Campion which show various features of his crime solving capabilities. Cases occur during the 1930's. Each is a good mystery.
April 1, 2018
Delightful short story mysteries featuring Albert Campion. Just the thing for a sick day.
September 19, 2024
(FYI I tend to only review one book per series, unless I want to change my scoring by 0.50 or more of a star. -- I tend not to read reviews until after I read a book, so I go in with an open mind.)
I'm finally going through my physical tv, film etc. tie in library owned book list, to add more older basic reviews. If I liked a book enough to keep then they are at the least a 3 star.
I'm only adding one book per author and I'm not going to re-read every book to be more accurate, not when I have 1000s of new to me authors to try (I can't say no to free books....)
First time read the author's work?: Yes
Will you be reading more?: Yes
Would you recommend?: Yes
------------
How I rate Stars: 5* = I loved (must read all I can find by the author)
4* = I really enjoyed (got to read all the series and try other books by the author).
3* = I enjoyed (I will continue to read the series)
or
3* = Good book just not my thing (I realised I don't like the genre or picked up a kids book to review in error.)
All of the above scores means I would recommend them!
-
2* = it was okay (I might give the next book in the series a try, to see if that was better IMHO.)
1* = Disliked
Note: adding these basic 'reviews' after finding out that some people see the stars differently than I do - hoping this clarifies how I feel about the book. :-)
I'm finally going through my physical tv, film etc. tie in library owned book list, to add more older basic reviews. If I liked a book enough to keep then they are at the least a 3 star.
I'm only adding one book per author and I'm not going to re-read every book to be more accurate, not when I have 1000s of new to me authors to try (I can't say no to free books....)
First time read the author's work?: Yes
Will you be reading more?: Yes
Would you recommend?: Yes
------------
How I rate Stars: 5* = I loved (must read all I can find by the author)
4* = I really enjoyed (got to read all the series and try other books by the author).
3* = I enjoyed (I will continue to read the series)
or
3* = Good book just not my thing (I realised I don't like the genre or picked up a kids book to review in error.)
All of the above scores means I would recommend them!
-
2* = it was okay (I might give the next book in the series a try, to see if that was better IMHO.)
1* = Disliked
Note: adding these basic 'reviews' after finding out that some people see the stars differently than I do - hoping this clarifies how I feel about the book. :-)
August 21, 2024
This book includes a novella "The Case of the Late Pig" and six short stories, all of which feature Albert Campion and his solving of various mysteries. He mostly works for friends or friends of friends in trouble. Campion is very observant and sees beyond the surface of events. He sometimes gets into trouble with the bad guys but manages to get out eventually.
I think it is helpful to have read the novels first because the short stories don't help the reader to get to know Campion in any depth. Knowing him and his character from the novels makes the solving of the mysteries in the short stories more interesting. However, it is not necessary to read anything before this book. Allingham gives enough information to make the stories believeable.
I think it is helpful to have read the novels first because the short stories don't help the reader to get to know Campion in any depth. Knowing him and his character from the novels makes the solving of the mysteries in the short stories more interesting. However, it is not necessary to read anything before this book. Allingham gives enough information to make the stories believeable.
September 26, 2024
I was pleased to finally find a copy of this book as it's the first collection of short stories, published only in the United States in 1937. Though I have read all of the stories in other publications I really wanted this particular book as it has personal notes from Campion's Casebook at the beginning of each story, which makes the character seem real. Also Margery Allingham herself is in "The Border-Line Case" story, along with Campion and Chief D.I. Stanislaus Oates.
December 24, 2021
A collection of stories - one novella and six short stories. Golden Age mysteries. Light and enjoyable.
Novella: The Case of the Late Pig
The stories:
1. The Case of the White Elephant
2. The Case of the Man with the Sack
3. The Border-Line Case
4. The Case of the Widow
5. The Case of the Pro and the Con
6. The Case of the Old Man in the Window
Novella: The Case of the Late Pig
The stories:
1. The Case of the White Elephant
2. The Case of the Man with the Sack
3. The Border-Line Case
4. The Case of the Widow
5. The Case of the Pro and the Con
6. The Case of the Old Man in the Window
August 14, 2022
This book consists of one novella and six short stories. All are mysteries, which vary considerably in degree of intrigue, and not all are about murders. In fact I was more intrigued by the stories which concerned con games than the murders.
The physical context of these cases (as the author designates them) is somewhat dated. For example, in one story there is no phone service, not even a landline is available. That said, any of them could still happen today since they deal with human emotions and motivations (pride, greed, love, revenge) which have not changed in thousands of years!
These stories are not so funny or complicated as “Pearls Before Swine” but still this book increased my respect for the author. I intend to read more of her.
Note:
I read this collection in an ancient hardcover library book but recent editions are available in both paperback and on kindle. That alone should tell you how well imagined and well written they are.
The physical context of these cases (as the author designates them) is somewhat dated. For example, in one story there is no phone service, not even a landline is available. That said, any of them could still happen today since they deal with human emotions and motivations (pride, greed, love, revenge) which have not changed in thousands of years!
These stories are not so funny or complicated as “Pearls Before Swine” but still this book increased my respect for the author. I intend to read more of her.
Note:
I read this collection in an ancient hardcover library book but recent editions are available in both paperback and on kindle. That alone should tell you how well imagined and well written they are.
February 25, 2018
some good short mysteries
March 30, 2023
Very obvious murder mysteries, but I love these books for the atmosphere.
October 21, 2024
Most of the stories in this book were previously published, so I had already read all but two of them. I skipped the others and just read the two that were new to me. Those were very enjoyable.
April 19, 2020
Shrug. Entertaining short stories, some of which I had read before in other collections, but in general I think Campion is a character better suited to novels. Taking stock, I do believe I’m ready for a break from Allingham.
February 10, 2022
Albert ages gracefully.
I'm reading this series in order, but I couldn't resist skipping ahead for this book of stories that was published in 1937. Albert Campion is no longer the fey, irritating young man from "Crime at Black Dudley." His creator has allowed him to age and the result is a major improvement. He's now in his late thirties, which was middle-aged in pre-WWII days. Now he's serving as a substitute uncle to young ladies who are in love and in a quandary.
There are six long stories in this book, NOT seven as the introduction claims. In the original publications, these six stories were combined with "The Case of the Late Pig." That's now a separate Kindle book, so you get a bit less for your money, but it's still a good deal.
There are no sinister international gangs in these stories and no criminal masterminds, just good old fashioned crime for the sake of personal gain. Two stories involve jewel thefts, understandable since our Albert moves in high society. Rich women love expensive jewelry and so do burglars.
Several involve con artists. Con men are criminals who have the ability to present themselves as honest people. With this useful talent, the good con man simply relieves people of their property without violence and (sometimes) with very little risk to himself. Like Willie Sutton (who robbed banks because that's where the money is) con men prefer wealthy "clients" because they have more to steal.
In only one story does Albert go slumming and that's at the request of a friend. Scotland Yard Superintendent Stanislaus Oates has a peculiar relationship with the talented private detective. The blunt, acerbic Oates is a sensible man who takes help anywhere he can get it. He and Campion work together happily, but the older man never fails to get in some sly digs at his young friend. In these stories, Oates takes on the role usually filled by Campion's servant Lugg - that of making sure that young Albert doesn't get "above himself."
Allingham was a fine writer and handled shorter fiction as adroitly as novels. I suspect these stories first appeared in magazines, then were collected into a book-length publication. Writers then (even very popular ones) didn't make a lot of money and getting paid twice for the same work must have been a welcome windfall. I'm happy that Allingham left a number of stories featuring her entertaining detective and I'm looking forward to reading more of them.
I'm reading this series in order, but I couldn't resist skipping ahead for this book of stories that was published in 1937. Albert Campion is no longer the fey, irritating young man from "Crime at Black Dudley." His creator has allowed him to age and the result is a major improvement. He's now in his late thirties, which was middle-aged in pre-WWII days. Now he's serving as a substitute uncle to young ladies who are in love and in a quandary.
There are six long stories in this book, NOT seven as the introduction claims. In the original publications, these six stories were combined with "The Case of the Late Pig." That's now a separate Kindle book, so you get a bit less for your money, but it's still a good deal.
There are no sinister international gangs in these stories and no criminal masterminds, just good old fashioned crime for the sake of personal gain. Two stories involve jewel thefts, understandable since our Albert moves in high society. Rich women love expensive jewelry and so do burglars.
Several involve con artists. Con men are criminals who have the ability to present themselves as honest people. With this useful talent, the good con man simply relieves people of their property without violence and (sometimes) with very little risk to himself. Like Willie Sutton (who robbed banks because that's where the money is) con men prefer wealthy "clients" because they have more to steal.
In only one story does Albert go slumming and that's at the request of a friend. Scotland Yard Superintendent Stanislaus Oates has a peculiar relationship with the talented private detective. The blunt, acerbic Oates is a sensible man who takes help anywhere he can get it. He and Campion work together happily, but the older man never fails to get in some sly digs at his young friend. In these stories, Oates takes on the role usually filled by Campion's servant Lugg - that of making sure that young Albert doesn't get "above himself."
Allingham was a fine writer and handled shorter fiction as adroitly as novels. I suspect these stories first appeared in magazines, then were collected into a book-length publication. Writers then (even very popular ones) didn't make a lot of money and getting paid twice for the same work must have been a welcome windfall. I'm happy that Allingham left a number of stories featuring her entertaining detective and I'm looking forward to reading more of them.
September 14, 2009
Enjoyable crime fiction
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