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Bodies from the Library #2
Bodies from the Library 2: Forgotten Stories of Mystery and Suspense by the Queens of Crime and other Masters of Golden Age Detection
Bodies from the Library
Bodies from the Library 3
Bodies from the Library 4
_________________________________
This anthology of rare stories of crime and suspense brings together 15 tales from the Golden Age of Detective Fiction for the first time in book form, including a newly discovered Gervase Fen novella by Edmund Crispin that has never previously been published.
With the Golden Age of detective fiction shining ever more brightly thanks to the recent reappearance of many forgotten crime novels, Bodies from the Library offers a rare opportunity to read lost stories from the first half of the twentieth century by some of the genre’s most accomplished writers.
This second volume is a showcase for popular figures of the Golden Age, in stories that even their most ardent fans will not be aware of. It includes uncollected and unpublished stories by acclaimed queens and kings of crime fiction, from Helen Simpson, Ethel Lina White, E. C. R. Lorac, Christianna Brand, Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers, to S. S. Van Dine, Jonathan Latimer, Clayton Rawson, Cyril Alington and Antony and Peter Shaffer (writing as Peter Antony).
This book also features two highly readable radio scripts by Margery Allingham (involving Jack the Ripper) and John Rhode, plus two full-length novellas – one from a rare magazine by Q Patrick, the other an unpublished Gervase Fen mystery by Edmund Crispin, written at the height of his career. It concludes with another remarkable discovery: ‘The Locked Room’ by Dorothy L. Sayers, a never-before-published case for Lord Peter Wimsey!
Selected and introduced by Tony Medawar, who also provides fascinating pen portraits of each author, Bodies in the Library 2 is an indispensable collection for any bookshelf.
Bodies from the Library 3
Bodies from the Library 4
_________________________________
This anthology of rare stories of crime and suspense brings together 15 tales from the Golden Age of Detective Fiction for the first time in book form, including a newly discovered Gervase Fen novella by Edmund Crispin that has never previously been published.
With the Golden Age of detective fiction shining ever more brightly thanks to the recent reappearance of many forgotten crime novels, Bodies from the Library offers a rare opportunity to read lost stories from the first half of the twentieth century by some of the genre’s most accomplished writers.
This second volume is a showcase for popular figures of the Golden Age, in stories that even their most ardent fans will not be aware of. It includes uncollected and unpublished stories by acclaimed queens and kings of crime fiction, from Helen Simpson, Ethel Lina White, E. C. R. Lorac, Christianna Brand, Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers, to S. S. Van Dine, Jonathan Latimer, Clayton Rawson, Cyril Alington and Antony and Peter Shaffer (writing as Peter Antony).
This book also features two highly readable radio scripts by Margery Allingham (involving Jack the Ripper) and John Rhode, plus two full-length novellas – one from a rare magazine by Q Patrick, the other an unpublished Gervase Fen mystery by Edmund Crispin, written at the height of his career. It concludes with another remarkable discovery: ‘The Locked Room’ by Dorothy L. Sayers, a never-before-published case for Lord Peter Wimsey!
Selected and introduced by Tony Medawar, who also provides fascinating pen portraits of each author, Bodies in the Library 2 is an indispensable collection for any bookshelf.
388 pages, Hardcover
First published July 11, 2019
64 people are currently reading
282 people want to read
About the author
Agatha Christie
5,795 books74.9k followersAgatha Christie also wrote romance novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott, and was occasionally published under the name Agatha Christie Mallowan.
Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, DBE (née Miller) was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around fictional detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. She also wrote the world's longest-running play, the murder mystery The Mousetrap, which has been performed in the West End of London since 1952. A writer during the "Golden Age of Detective Fiction", Christie has been called the "Queen of Crime". She also wrote six novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott. In 1971, she was made a Dame (DBE) by Queen Elizabeth II for her contributions to literature. Guinness World Records lists Christie as the best-selling fiction writer of all time, her novels having sold more than two billion copies.
This best-selling author of all time wrote 66 crime novels and story collections, fourteen plays, and six novels under a pseudonym in romance. Her books sold more than a billion copies in the English language and a billion in translation. According to Index Translationum, people translated her works into 103 languages at least, the most for an individual author. Of the most enduring figures in crime literature, she created Hercule Poirot and Miss Jane Marple. She atuhored The Mousetrap, the longest-running play in the history of modern theater.
Associated Names:
Agata Christie
Agata Kristi
Агата Кристи (Russian)
Агата Крісті (Ukrainian)
Αγκάθα Κρίστι (Greek)
アガサ クリスティ (Japanese)
阿嘉莎·克莉絲蒂 (Chinese)
Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, DBE (née Miller) was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around fictional detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. She also wrote the world's longest-running play, the murder mystery The Mousetrap, which has been performed in the West End of London since 1952. A writer during the "Golden Age of Detective Fiction", Christie has been called the "Queen of Crime". She also wrote six novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott. In 1971, she was made a Dame (DBE) by Queen Elizabeth II for her contributions to literature. Guinness World Records lists Christie as the best-selling fiction writer of all time, her novels having sold more than two billion copies.
This best-selling author of all time wrote 66 crime novels and story collections, fourteen plays, and six novels under a pseudonym in romance. Her books sold more than a billion copies in the English language and a billion in translation. According to Index Translationum, people translated her works into 103 languages at least, the most for an individual author. Of the most enduring figures in crime literature, she created Hercule Poirot and Miss Jane Marple. She atuhored The Mousetrap, the longest-running play in the history of modern theater.
Associated Names:
Agata Christie
Agata Kristi
Агата Кристи (Russian)
Агата Крісті (Ukrainian)
Αγκάθα Κρίστι (Greek)
アガサ クリスティ (Japanese)
阿嘉莎·克莉絲蒂 (Chinese)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews
October 17, 2020
EXCERPT: The murderer killed apparently at random, anyone, any time, any place. The quick incapacitating stab in the back, the body turned over and stabbed and stabbed and stabbed again. A plastic sheet would be thrown down, which had protected the killer from the spurting blood; and for the rest, no sign left, ever, no clue left for a police force stretched to its limit, on the edge of desperation. And every crank in the country ringing up, writing in, with their crackpot theories. (No Face by Christiana Brand)
ABOUT BODIES FROM THE LIBRARY 2: This anthology of rare stories of crime and suspense brings together 15 tales from the Golden Age of Detective Fiction for the first time in book form, including a newly discovered Gervase Fen novella by Edmund Crispin that has never previously been published.
With the Golden Age of detective fiction shining ever more brightly thanks to the recent reappearance of many forgotten crime novels, Bodies from the Library offers a rare opportunity to read lost stories from the first half of the twentieth century by some of the genre’s most accomplished writers.
This second volume is a showcase for popular figures of the Golden Age, in stories that even their most ardent fans will not be aware of. It includes uncollected and unpublished stories by acclaimed queens and kings of crime fiction, from Helen Simpson, Ethel Lina White, E. C. R. Lorac, Christianna Brand, Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers, to S. S. Van Dine, Jonathan Latimer, Clayton Rawson, Cyril Alington and Antony and Peter Shaffer (writing as Peter Antony).
This book also features two highly readable radio scripts by Margery Allingham (involving Jack the Ripper) and John Rhode, plus two full-length novellas – one from a rare magazine by Q Patrick, the other an unpublished Gervase Fen mystery by Edmund Crispin, written at the height of his career. It concludes with another remarkable discovery: ‘The Locked Room’ by Dorothy L. Sayers, a never-before-published case for Lord Peter Wimsey!
MY THOUGHTS: I have a strong affection for Golden Age Detective and mystery fiction, and I enjoyed the majority of these novellas and short stories. My very favourites - I couldn't pick between The Locked Room by Dorothy L. Sayers featuring Lord Peter Wimsey, and one of the shortest, A Joke's a Joke by Jonathan Latimer.
My one and only criticism of this collection is that the pen portraits of the authors is sometimes longer than the story!
Strongly recommended for all Golden Age aficionado.
⭐⭐⭐.8
THE EDITOR: Tony Medawar is a detective fiction expert and researcher with a penchant for tracking down rare stories. His other collections of previously uncollected stories include WHILE THE LIGHT LASTS (Agatha Christie), THE AVENGING CHANCE (Anthony Berkeley), THE SPOTTED CAT (Christianna Brand), A SPOT OF FOLLY (Ruth Rendell) and THE ISLAND OF COFFINS (John Dickson Carr). (Amazon)
DISCLOSURE: I listened to the audiobook of Bodies From the Library, collated by Tony Medawar, narrated by Philip Bretherton and published by Harper Collins via Overdrive. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.
For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my profile page on Goodreads.com or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com
This review and others are also published on Twitter, Instagram and my webpage https://sandysbookaday.wordpress.com/...
ABOUT BODIES FROM THE LIBRARY 2: This anthology of rare stories of crime and suspense brings together 15 tales from the Golden Age of Detective Fiction for the first time in book form, including a newly discovered Gervase Fen novella by Edmund Crispin that has never previously been published.
With the Golden Age of detective fiction shining ever more brightly thanks to the recent reappearance of many forgotten crime novels, Bodies from the Library offers a rare opportunity to read lost stories from the first half of the twentieth century by some of the genre’s most accomplished writers.
This second volume is a showcase for popular figures of the Golden Age, in stories that even their most ardent fans will not be aware of. It includes uncollected and unpublished stories by acclaimed queens and kings of crime fiction, from Helen Simpson, Ethel Lina White, E. C. R. Lorac, Christianna Brand, Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers, to S. S. Van Dine, Jonathan Latimer, Clayton Rawson, Cyril Alington and Antony and Peter Shaffer (writing as Peter Antony).
This book also features two highly readable radio scripts by Margery Allingham (involving Jack the Ripper) and John Rhode, plus two full-length novellas – one from a rare magazine by Q Patrick, the other an unpublished Gervase Fen mystery by Edmund Crispin, written at the height of his career. It concludes with another remarkable discovery: ‘The Locked Room’ by Dorothy L. Sayers, a never-before-published case for Lord Peter Wimsey!
MY THOUGHTS: I have a strong affection for Golden Age Detective and mystery fiction, and I enjoyed the majority of these novellas and short stories. My very favourites - I couldn't pick between The Locked Room by Dorothy L. Sayers featuring Lord Peter Wimsey, and one of the shortest, A Joke's a Joke by Jonathan Latimer.
My one and only criticism of this collection is that the pen portraits of the authors is sometimes longer than the story!
Strongly recommended for all Golden Age aficionado.
⭐⭐⭐.8
THE EDITOR: Tony Medawar is a detective fiction expert and researcher with a penchant for tracking down rare stories. His other collections of previously uncollected stories include WHILE THE LIGHT LASTS (Agatha Christie), THE AVENGING CHANCE (Anthony Berkeley), THE SPOTTED CAT (Christianna Brand), A SPOT OF FOLLY (Ruth Rendell) and THE ISLAND OF COFFINS (John Dickson Carr). (Amazon)
DISCLOSURE: I listened to the audiobook of Bodies From the Library, collated by Tony Medawar, narrated by Philip Bretherton and published by Harper Collins via Overdrive. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.
For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my profile page on Goodreads.com or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com
This review and others are also published on Twitter, Instagram and my webpage https://sandysbookaday.wordpress.com/...
September 7, 2019
A case of the finest vintage...
I’ve read lots of collections of vintage short mystery stories over the last few years, as publishers have responded to what seems to be a growing appetite for the style of the Golden Age authors. I’m always struck by how many of the major novelists of the period excelled in this format too, while it would appear that there were many other authors who more or less specialised in short stories. This collection of fifteen stories includes some of the biggest names of all, like Sayers and Christie, some of the authors who are currently being resurrected for a modern audience, like ECR Lorac and John Rhode, and some whose names were unfamiliar to me, though they’re probably well known to real vintage crime aficionados, like Helen Simpson or C.A. Alington.
Described as ‘forgotten’, the stories are previously uncollected and in several cases unpublished, so even those who have read quite widely in this genre will find some real treats here. There are two novellas – a previously unpublished one from Edmund Crispin starring Gervase Fen, and one from a writing duo I hadn’t come across before, who styled themselves Q. Patrick. Dorothy L. Sayers fans will be thrilled by the inclusion of a never-before-published Lord Peter Wimsey story, and Margery Allingham fans will enjoy her script for a radio play. Tony Medawar provides brief but informative literary bios of each of the authors, which throw up some interesting factlets, such as that “Peter Antony” was actually an alias used by the famous play- and screen-writing brothers, Peter and Anthony Shaffer.
This is one of the best mixed anthologies I’ve come across. There is the usual variation in quality, of course, but I gave 11 of the stories either four or five stars and found only a couple of them disappointing. And the five which got the full five stars are all great – they alone make the book a real treat. Here’s a flavour of them:
No Face by Christianna Brand – A psychic claims to be receiving messages from a bloody serial killer, known only as No Face. Is the psychic a fake? But if so, how does he seem to know where the murderer will strike next? This is excellent – it has a real atmosphere of creepy dread that is as much horror as crime, The characterisation of the psychic is very well done and there’s a delicious twist in the tail.
Exit Before Midnight by Q. Patrick – A group of eight people are trapped on the fortieth floor of an office building on New Year’s Eve as a murderer picks them off one by one. Carol is the central character and to add to her woes two of the men are vying for her attention. But could one of them be the murderer? Oh, and did I forget to mention? The lights have fused and they only have a limited supply of matches...This is novella length, with great plotting and real tension, while Carol’s dilemma adds a light element of romance to lift the tone. Loved it, and will be hoping to find more from this duo.
Room to Let by Margery Allingham – This is a radio script, so is given to us purely as dialogue with a few stage directions. It’s a first-class mash-up of a The Lodger-type story and a locked room mystery. Following a fire at a private asylum, a mysterious stranger rents a room from Mrs Musgrave, a crippled lady in a wheelchair. The stranger gradually gains control over her, her daughter, Molly, and their faithful maid, Alice. But... could he possibly be Jack the Ripper?? It culminates with a corpse in a locked room. The framing device is of the story being told years later at a dinner of detectives, whose spirit of competitiveness to solve the mystery gives a humorous edge to the start and end. Well plotted and highly entertaining.
The Adventure of the Dorset Squire by C.A. Alington – This short short story is a sort of country house farce and very funny. There’s no real crime but lots of screaming and confusion – great fun!
The Locked Room by Dorothy L. Sayers – Previously unpublished, it dates to the period before Harriet Vane began to infest the Lord Peter Wimsey books, allowing Peter the freedom for a nice bit of flirtation with a fellow guest at a country house party, Betty Carlyle. When the host apparently kills himself, Betty is unconvinced – she suspects the host’s wife murdered him. This becomes a problem some months later, when the wife decides to marry Betty’s cousin. So she appeals to Lord Peter to uncover the truth. Well plotted, the writing is up to her usual high standard, and the flirtation gives it a lot of fun. Yes, even although I’m normally an un-fan of Sayers, this one got under my guard!
If you’re already a vintage crime fan, then this is one to grab; and if you’re new to the genre, then you’ll find this a very enjoyable way to introduce yourself to some of the greats. Highly recommended!
NB This book was provided for review by the publisher, Collins Crime Club.
www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com
I’ve read lots of collections of vintage short mystery stories over the last few years, as publishers have responded to what seems to be a growing appetite for the style of the Golden Age authors. I’m always struck by how many of the major novelists of the period excelled in this format too, while it would appear that there were many other authors who more or less specialised in short stories. This collection of fifteen stories includes some of the biggest names of all, like Sayers and Christie, some of the authors who are currently being resurrected for a modern audience, like ECR Lorac and John Rhode, and some whose names were unfamiliar to me, though they’re probably well known to real vintage crime aficionados, like Helen Simpson or C.A. Alington.
Described as ‘forgotten’, the stories are previously uncollected and in several cases unpublished, so even those who have read quite widely in this genre will find some real treats here. There are two novellas – a previously unpublished one from Edmund Crispin starring Gervase Fen, and one from a writing duo I hadn’t come across before, who styled themselves Q. Patrick. Dorothy L. Sayers fans will be thrilled by the inclusion of a never-before-published Lord Peter Wimsey story, and Margery Allingham fans will enjoy her script for a radio play. Tony Medawar provides brief but informative literary bios of each of the authors, which throw up some interesting factlets, such as that “Peter Antony” was actually an alias used by the famous play- and screen-writing brothers, Peter and Anthony Shaffer.
This is one of the best mixed anthologies I’ve come across. There is the usual variation in quality, of course, but I gave 11 of the stories either four or five stars and found only a couple of them disappointing. And the five which got the full five stars are all great – they alone make the book a real treat. Here’s a flavour of them:
No Face by Christianna Brand – A psychic claims to be receiving messages from a bloody serial killer, known only as No Face. Is the psychic a fake? But if so, how does he seem to know where the murderer will strike next? This is excellent – it has a real atmosphere of creepy dread that is as much horror as crime, The characterisation of the psychic is very well done and there’s a delicious twist in the tail.
Exit Before Midnight by Q. Patrick – A group of eight people are trapped on the fortieth floor of an office building on New Year’s Eve as a murderer picks them off one by one. Carol is the central character and to add to her woes two of the men are vying for her attention. But could one of them be the murderer? Oh, and did I forget to mention? The lights have fused and they only have a limited supply of matches...This is novella length, with great plotting and real tension, while Carol’s dilemma adds a light element of romance to lift the tone. Loved it, and will be hoping to find more from this duo.
Room to Let by Margery Allingham – This is a radio script, so is given to us purely as dialogue with a few stage directions. It’s a first-class mash-up of a The Lodger-type story and a locked room mystery. Following a fire at a private asylum, a mysterious stranger rents a room from Mrs Musgrave, a crippled lady in a wheelchair. The stranger gradually gains control over her, her daughter, Molly, and their faithful maid, Alice. But... could he possibly be Jack the Ripper?? It culminates with a corpse in a locked room. The framing device is of the story being told years later at a dinner of detectives, whose spirit of competitiveness to solve the mystery gives a humorous edge to the start and end. Well plotted and highly entertaining.
The Adventure of the Dorset Squire by C.A. Alington – This short short story is a sort of country house farce and very funny. There’s no real crime but lots of screaming and confusion – great fun!
The Locked Room by Dorothy L. Sayers – Previously unpublished, it dates to the period before Harriet Vane began to infest the Lord Peter Wimsey books, allowing Peter the freedom for a nice bit of flirtation with a fellow guest at a country house party, Betty Carlyle. When the host apparently kills himself, Betty is unconvinced – she suspects the host’s wife murdered him. This becomes a problem some months later, when the wife decides to marry Betty’s cousin. So she appeals to Lord Peter to uncover the truth. Well plotted, the writing is up to her usual high standard, and the flirtation gives it a lot of fun. Yes, even although I’m normally an un-fan of Sayers, this one got under my guard!
If you’re already a vintage crime fan, then this is one to grab; and if you’re new to the genre, then you’ll find this a very enjoyable way to introduce yourself to some of the greats. Highly recommended!
NB This book was provided for review by the publisher, Collins Crime Club.
www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com
August 11, 2019
Another excellent collection. Full review at classicmystery.blog
January 24, 2020
This is the second collection of obscure short stories by famous Golden Age crime writers edited by Tony Medawar. It would be too easy to approach an anthology of this kind in a cynical way: Since none of these writings have ever been reprinted (there are also some which are published here for the first time) and their first appearance was sometimes in rather obscure periodicals they cannot be very good, or can they? As it turns out some are surprisingly excellent, others fall more into the category of moderately interesting oddity.
No Face by Christianna Brand – This is a terrific little serial killer tale about a psychic who believes he is in contact with a serial murderer. He claims that he can foretell the identity of the killer’s next victim, but the police do not believe him. When he takes on a female assistant and plans to use her to become famous the consequences turn out to be unexpected. Written like a frantic fever dream this is a very effective piece of suspense.
Before And After by Peter Anthony – Peter Anthony was the pen name of brothers Anthony and Peter Shaffer who later both became renowned playwrights. Peter was the author of the play Amadeus adapted into an Oscar winning movie by Milos Forman while Anthony concentrated on writing mystery plays such as Sleuth (filmed with Laurence Olivier and Michael Caine) and adapting several of Agatha Christie’s works for screen. Early in their career they collaborated on a series of mystery novels featuring amateur sleuth Mr. Verity. The short story included here reads like a send-up of classic whodunits, especially since we eventually find out that Mr. Verity’s solution to the murder case is entirely wrong. Unfortunately this story didn’t really work for me. It’s not funny enough to work as a parody and lacks suspense for a crime tale.
Hotel Evidence by Helen Simpson – This story can only very generously be classified as crime fiction. It’s about a divorcing couple which is basically as dull as it sounds.
Exit Before Midnight by Q. Patrick – This is the longest piece in this collection, almost a novella. It’s also the best. A group of people is trapped on an upper floor of a high-rise on New Year’s Eve. They are members of the same corporation preparing a merger with another firm and someone has threatened to kill them all to avoid the merger. Now this maniac has blocked all exits and has begun to decimate the party. This is a great closed-circle mystery in the best tradition of And Then There Were None and further reminder that Q. Patrick or Patrick Quentin or whatever moniker you prefer remains one of the most underrated practitioners of the classic whodunit.
Room To Let by Margery Allingham – A radio play by Allingham which is also a locked-room mystery albeit not a very good one, the solution seems weak and rushed.
A Joke’s A Joke by Jonathan Latimer – A rare short story by Latimer. Utterly unremarkable. Really a bit of a joke in itself, because it’s badly thought out and not even particularly well-written.
The Man Who Knew by Agatha Christie – This was already included in Christie expert John Curran’s book “Agatha Christie’s Murder In the Making.” It’s not really up to the Queen Of Crime’s usual high standards and only one for the completists.
The Almost Perfect Murder Case by S. S. Van Dine – Van Dine’s work has been out of fashion for a long time, but if you are in a nostalgic mood it should still be possible to appreciate the exploits of his insufferably smug detective Philo Vance. Even though the story is predictable it has the advantage that Philo Vance can really be better enjoyed in small doses.
The House Of Darkness by Edmund Crispin – Crispin is a bit of a cult author but personally I could never really get excited about his work. Similarly to Michael Innes his books are too silly for me to be taken seriously and too long-winded to be effective pieces of suspense. The House Of Darkness reads like a John Dickson Carr tale with all of Carrs flaws, overly melodramatic language and inappropriate humour, present, while his virtues such as strong atmosphere, concise plotting and a surprising ending remain absent.
Chance Is A Great Thing by E.C.R. Lorac – Perhaps the most forgettable entry in this collection.
The Mental Broadcast by Clayton Rawson – The story of a successful magic trick by an author who was a capable illusionist himself. Again not really a crime story, and of probably little interest to the average reader.
White Cap by Ethel Lina White – White became famous for her novel “A Lady Vanishes” or more precisely because of Alfred Hitchcock’s movie adaptation of it. This is a neat little mystery that tells a gripping tale in a very short space.
Sixpennyworth by John Rhode – A short stage play, most likely written for an amateur theatre group, entertaining but let down by a weak ending.
The Adventure Of The Dorset Squire by C. A. Alington – An author I was entirely unfamiliar with and another story which is not really a mystery more like a darkly humorous tale of misfortune befalling the members of a house party.
The Locked Room by Dorothy L. Sayers – Lord Peter Wimsey Sayers’ brilliant or annoying (depending on where you stand) amateur detective solves a locked-room mystery.
Like every anthology this has its high and lows, but the winners here are strong enough to outshine the less remarkable efforts.
No Face by Christianna Brand – This is a terrific little serial killer tale about a psychic who believes he is in contact with a serial murderer. He claims that he can foretell the identity of the killer’s next victim, but the police do not believe him. When he takes on a female assistant and plans to use her to become famous the consequences turn out to be unexpected. Written like a frantic fever dream this is a very effective piece of suspense.
Before And After by Peter Anthony – Peter Anthony was the pen name of brothers Anthony and Peter Shaffer who later both became renowned playwrights. Peter was the author of the play Amadeus adapted into an Oscar winning movie by Milos Forman while Anthony concentrated on writing mystery plays such as Sleuth (filmed with Laurence Olivier and Michael Caine) and adapting several of Agatha Christie’s works for screen. Early in their career they collaborated on a series of mystery novels featuring amateur sleuth Mr. Verity. The short story included here reads like a send-up of classic whodunits, especially since we eventually find out that Mr. Verity’s solution to the murder case is entirely wrong. Unfortunately this story didn’t really work for me. It’s not funny enough to work as a parody and lacks suspense for a crime tale.
Hotel Evidence by Helen Simpson – This story can only very generously be classified as crime fiction. It’s about a divorcing couple which is basically as dull as it sounds.
Exit Before Midnight by Q. Patrick – This is the longest piece in this collection, almost a novella. It’s also the best. A group of people is trapped on an upper floor of a high-rise on New Year’s Eve. They are members of the same corporation preparing a merger with another firm and someone has threatened to kill them all to avoid the merger. Now this maniac has blocked all exits and has begun to decimate the party. This is a great closed-circle mystery in the best tradition of And Then There Were None and further reminder that Q. Patrick or Patrick Quentin or whatever moniker you prefer remains one of the most underrated practitioners of the classic whodunit.
Room To Let by Margery Allingham – A radio play by Allingham which is also a locked-room mystery albeit not a very good one, the solution seems weak and rushed.
A Joke’s A Joke by Jonathan Latimer – A rare short story by Latimer. Utterly unremarkable. Really a bit of a joke in itself, because it’s badly thought out and not even particularly well-written.
The Man Who Knew by Agatha Christie – This was already included in Christie expert John Curran’s book “Agatha Christie’s Murder In the Making.” It’s not really up to the Queen Of Crime’s usual high standards and only one for the completists.
The Almost Perfect Murder Case by S. S. Van Dine – Van Dine’s work has been out of fashion for a long time, but if you are in a nostalgic mood it should still be possible to appreciate the exploits of his insufferably smug detective Philo Vance. Even though the story is predictable it has the advantage that Philo Vance can really be better enjoyed in small doses.
The House Of Darkness by Edmund Crispin – Crispin is a bit of a cult author but personally I could never really get excited about his work. Similarly to Michael Innes his books are too silly for me to be taken seriously and too long-winded to be effective pieces of suspense. The House Of Darkness reads like a John Dickson Carr tale with all of Carrs flaws, overly melodramatic language and inappropriate humour, present, while his virtues such as strong atmosphere, concise plotting and a surprising ending remain absent.
Chance Is A Great Thing by E.C.R. Lorac – Perhaps the most forgettable entry in this collection.
The Mental Broadcast by Clayton Rawson – The story of a successful magic trick by an author who was a capable illusionist himself. Again not really a crime story, and of probably little interest to the average reader.
White Cap by Ethel Lina White – White became famous for her novel “A Lady Vanishes” or more precisely because of Alfred Hitchcock’s movie adaptation of it. This is a neat little mystery that tells a gripping tale in a very short space.
Sixpennyworth by John Rhode – A short stage play, most likely written for an amateur theatre group, entertaining but let down by a weak ending.
The Adventure Of The Dorset Squire by C. A. Alington – An author I was entirely unfamiliar with and another story which is not really a mystery more like a darkly humorous tale of misfortune befalling the members of a house party.
The Locked Room by Dorothy L. Sayers – Lord Peter Wimsey Sayers’ brilliant or annoying (depending on where you stand) amateur detective solves a locked-room mystery.
Like every anthology this has its high and lows, but the winners here are strong enough to outshine the less remarkable efforts.
March 4, 2022
Very rare for me to give 4* to a compilation but this is worth it an rarer still a note to read again.
January 13, 2022
It's always a delight to read anthologies with Golden Age stories that haven't been recycled in various collections before. Medawar introduces us to "lost" selections from big names like Christianna Brand, Margery Allingham, Dorothy L. Sayers, and Agatha Christie as well as names that are well-known to GAD fans, but perhaps not so well-known to casual mystery lovers. Names like John Rhode, Edmund Crispin, E. C. R. Lorac, Q. Patrick, Ethel Lina White, Clayton Rawson, and Peter Antony. Though some are a little more prominent these days thanks to reprint editions from the British Library Crime Classics and the like.
Overall, this is another solid collection--though there are three stories which are definitely not mysteries and have no whiff of mayhem. They are fine stories, but just don't seem to fit the bill. Of the bona fide mysteries, my favorites are Q. Patrick's "Exit Before Midnight," "Room to Let" by Allingham, "The Locked Room" by Sayers, Crispin's "The Hours of Darkness," and "White Cap" by White. A new Sayers is an absolute treat and each of these authors provide solid mysteries with good clues and finales. ★★★ and 3/4
"No Face" ~Christianna Brand: a psychic with his eye to the main chance insists he really does have the Gift when it comes to identifying a particularly nasty serial killer. But will his need for recognition be his undoing?
"Before & After" ~Peter Antony: Mr. Verity, an amateur dabble in detective insists that a before and after photo of the victim provides the proof needed to arrest the killer of an old lady--but does it prove what he thinks it does?
"Hotel Evidence" ~Helen Simpson: Henry Brodribb's wife decides she wants a divorce, so she talks Henry into providing evidence for a no mess court case. But he's such a nice guy, he has difficulty getting the evidence as desired. [No clue why this is in a collection of "Mystery & Suspense"--no mystery, no suspense.]
"Exit Before Midnight" ~Q. Patrick: New Year's Eve at the soon-to-be-defunct Leland & Rowley Process Company. The shareholders are taking a vote that will--if all goes as expected--result in a merger with the Pan-American Dye Company. The shareholders will be richer and few of the staff will be out of jobs. And somebody has decided that means a few people need to die. A group of seven is trapped in the upper floors of a skyscraper (no elevator, phone lines cut, and the door to the stairs jammed shut) and the murderer gets to work. Best story of the bunch so far. Very nicely plotted with lots of red herrings to keep the reader guessing.
"Room to Let" ~Margery Allingham: Rumor has it that one of the inmates escaped a deadly fire at a local insane asylum. Soon after, a mysterious Dr. Charles take a room in Mrs. Musgrave's house. When he moved in, so did fear...and, is it possible?, Jack the Ripper. There is a death...but the who and how is a surprise. From a radio play.
"A Joke's a Joke" ~Jonathan Latimer: Barnes loved to play practical jokes and no one was safe from his nasty sense of humor. But eventually he plays one too many pranks....
"The Man Who Knew" ~Agatha Christie: Derek Lawson sense danger in his flat...and danger stalking him. When it looks like he's been framed for his uncle's murder, he knows just who to suspect....
"The Almost Perfect Murder Case" ~S. S. Van Dine: Philo Vance recounts a tale of the near-perfect murder of Wilhelm Beckert which takes place in Chile. It all hinges on a neat little linguistic clue...
"The Hours of Darkness" ~Edmund Crispin: Involves murder on Christmas Eve during a game of hide & seek during a country house party. There's also a past criminal case...are the two connected? I'm curious about one thing...if the doctor has proclaimed the death to be from strangulation, how on earth did the victim gasp out those last words to someone other than her murderer?
"Chance Is a Great Thing" ~E. C. R. Lorac: Peggy Tiler's aged aunt has a heart condition. Peggy is worried about her and doesn't want to leave her alone. But she also wants to get married. Auntie's neighbors tell her not to miss out on her big chance...they"re happy to keep an eye on Auntie. But then Auntie dies...
"The Mental Broadcast" ~Clayton Rawson: The Great Merlini and a card trick. [That's it. Really. No mystery, no mayhem.]
"White Cap" ~Ethel Lina White: There's a big shake-up going on at the Peninsular Dye Stuffs company. Miss Ratcliffe has recently taken control and is cutting out the dead wood from the staff. Tess is one who winds up on the chopping block and says a few rather unfortunate things to and about Miss Ratcliffe....and then Miss Ratcliffe winds up dead. Tess looks like the prime suspect, but she is saved by an unexpected confirmation of her alibi. [I have to say--as soon as Tess said that she had these little blackouts when stressed, I knew that she was going to be framed. I just knew it. Also, what was up with dye companies in the Golden Age--two murderous escapades in one collection!]
"Sixpennyworth" ~John Rhode: A play that may have been written for an amateur production. Set in a pub during WWII. The pub conveniently has all sorts of sharp weapons on display and, naturally, the lights all go out and one of the customers winds up stabbed to death. He was a particularly nasty fellow, but who among the customers had sufficient reason to kill him?
"The Adventure of the Dorset Squire" ~C. A. Alington: One more non-mystery. Mild mayhem of the "lots happening, but nothing that we can really call a mystery" variety. The lights go out (another theme of the collection) and there is much blood, a flood of water from a bath tap, dog attacks, and a man in an embarrassing situation with another man's wife. Two characters think they may have murdered burglars, but they would be mistaken.
"The Locked Room" ~Dorothy L. Sayers: Oh the bliss of having a new Lord Peter Wimsey story that was actually, completely written by Dorothy L. Sayers! It could be complete drivel and I wouldn't care. It's not drivel--though I am a bit surprised at Peter's carrying on with another man's fiancee. It's played as harmless fun and they both know it's not leading anywhere...but it still seems a bit like poaching. As the title suggests--this is a locked room mystery. I got the big clue that all was not quite how it seemed but missed a couple of pointers on how it was accomplished.
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting portions of review. Thanks.
Overall, this is another solid collection--though there are three stories which are definitely not mysteries and have no whiff of mayhem. They are fine stories, but just don't seem to fit the bill. Of the bona fide mysteries, my favorites are Q. Patrick's "Exit Before Midnight," "Room to Let" by Allingham, "The Locked Room" by Sayers, Crispin's "The Hours of Darkness," and "White Cap" by White. A new Sayers is an absolute treat and each of these authors provide solid mysteries with good clues and finales. ★★★ and 3/4
"No Face" ~Christianna Brand: a psychic with his eye to the main chance insists he really does have the Gift when it comes to identifying a particularly nasty serial killer. But will his need for recognition be his undoing?
"Before & After" ~Peter Antony: Mr. Verity, an amateur dabble in detective insists that a before and after photo of the victim provides the proof needed to arrest the killer of an old lady--but does it prove what he thinks it does?
"Hotel Evidence" ~Helen Simpson: Henry Brodribb's wife decides she wants a divorce, so she talks Henry into providing evidence for a no mess court case. But he's such a nice guy, he has difficulty getting the evidence as desired. [No clue why this is in a collection of "Mystery & Suspense"--no mystery, no suspense.]
"Exit Before Midnight" ~Q. Patrick: New Year's Eve at the soon-to-be-defunct Leland & Rowley Process Company. The shareholders are taking a vote that will--if all goes as expected--result in a merger with the Pan-American Dye Company. The shareholders will be richer and few of the staff will be out of jobs. And somebody has decided that means a few people need to die. A group of seven is trapped in the upper floors of a skyscraper (no elevator, phone lines cut, and the door to the stairs jammed shut) and the murderer gets to work. Best story of the bunch so far. Very nicely plotted with lots of red herrings to keep the reader guessing.
"Room to Let" ~Margery Allingham: Rumor has it that one of the inmates escaped a deadly fire at a local insane asylum. Soon after, a mysterious Dr. Charles take a room in Mrs. Musgrave's house. When he moved in, so did fear...and, is it possible?, Jack the Ripper. There is a death...but the who and how is a surprise. From a radio play.
"A Joke's a Joke" ~Jonathan Latimer: Barnes loved to play practical jokes and no one was safe from his nasty sense of humor. But eventually he plays one too many pranks....
"The Man Who Knew" ~Agatha Christie: Derek Lawson sense danger in his flat...and danger stalking him. When it looks like he's been framed for his uncle's murder, he knows just who to suspect....
"The Almost Perfect Murder Case" ~S. S. Van Dine: Philo Vance recounts a tale of the near-perfect murder of Wilhelm Beckert which takes place in Chile. It all hinges on a neat little linguistic clue...
"The Hours of Darkness" ~Edmund Crispin: Involves murder on Christmas Eve during a game of hide & seek during a country house party. There's also a past criminal case...are the two connected? I'm curious about one thing...if the doctor has proclaimed the death to be from strangulation, how on earth did the victim gasp out those last words to someone other than her murderer?
"Chance Is a Great Thing" ~E. C. R. Lorac: Peggy Tiler's aged aunt has a heart condition. Peggy is worried about her and doesn't want to leave her alone. But she also wants to get married. Auntie's neighbors tell her not to miss out on her big chance...they"re happy to keep an eye on Auntie. But then Auntie dies...
"The Mental Broadcast" ~Clayton Rawson: The Great Merlini and a card trick. [That's it. Really. No mystery, no mayhem.]
"White Cap" ~Ethel Lina White: There's a big shake-up going on at the Peninsular Dye Stuffs company. Miss Ratcliffe has recently taken control and is cutting out the dead wood from the staff. Tess is one who winds up on the chopping block and says a few rather unfortunate things to and about Miss Ratcliffe....and then Miss Ratcliffe winds up dead. Tess looks like the prime suspect, but she is saved by an unexpected confirmation of her alibi. [I have to say--as soon as Tess said that she had these little blackouts when stressed, I knew that she was going to be framed. I just knew it. Also, what was up with dye companies in the Golden Age--two murderous escapades in one collection!]
"Sixpennyworth" ~John Rhode: A play that may have been written for an amateur production. Set in a pub during WWII. The pub conveniently has all sorts of sharp weapons on display and, naturally, the lights all go out and one of the customers winds up stabbed to death. He was a particularly nasty fellow, but who among the customers had sufficient reason to kill him?
"The Adventure of the Dorset Squire" ~C. A. Alington: One more non-mystery. Mild mayhem of the "lots happening, but nothing that we can really call a mystery" variety. The lights go out (another theme of the collection) and there is much blood, a flood of water from a bath tap, dog attacks, and a man in an embarrassing situation with another man's wife. Two characters think they may have murdered burglars, but they would be mistaken.
"The Locked Room" ~Dorothy L. Sayers: Oh the bliss of having a new Lord Peter Wimsey story that was actually, completely written by Dorothy L. Sayers! It could be complete drivel and I wouldn't care. It's not drivel--though I am a bit surprised at Peter's carrying on with another man's fiancee. It's played as harmless fun and they both know it's not leading anywhere...but it still seems a bit like poaching. As the title suggests--this is a locked room mystery. I got the big clue that all was not quite how it seemed but missed a couple of pointers on how it was accomplished.
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting portions of review. Thanks.
August 10, 2019
For my full review click on the link below:
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April 19, 2021
On the whole a very enjoyable read. I particularly enjoyed the works by Dorothy L Sayers and Edmund Crispin. Why the stories by Helen Simpson and Clayton Rawson were included I have no idea. They just did not fit with the remit at all.
August 10, 2020
This volume is even better than the first volume. All the entries was good. C A Alington’s story is more a humorous story than a detective,story. But apparently he also wrote real detective stories. He impressed me so that I must try and find them. It was nice to have unknown stories by favorite authors like Patrick Quentin, Christianna Brand, Edmund Crispin, Ethel Lina White and Agatha Christie. I always enjoyed the short stories of Dorothy Sayers more than her long novels. Her story here proves my point.
May 8, 2021
A really solid collection of short stories! Actually, there are two that are long enough to be novellas, and authors range from some that I was unfamiliar with, to long-time favorites. But virtually all of the stories are "new" in the sense that they are not much anthologized. I understand that there's a volume one and a volume three out, but haven't been able to find them, unfortunately. If you get a chance to read this--and you're a fan of, or curious about, Golden Age writers--snap it up. A short but interesting biography of each author follows each story.
November 29, 2022
Christianna Brand and Ethel Lina White steal the show once more! In part because there were a lot of very sexist stories this time, but still.
September 15, 2020
I really enjoyed this collection! There was a full novella included, and a previously unpublished Lord Peter Winslet story. I’m so happy that these are being published, because it introduces me to authors that o either didn’t know at all, or whose names I knew without having read any of their work. I already have volume 3 ready to go, and it seems a fourth is in the works. I also highly recommend the audio version of this. Phillip Bretherton is an excellent narrator.
September 6, 2020
Enjoyable
July 31, 2020
This is the second in a series of obscure crime stories from the Golden Age (the first part of the 20th century) edited by Tony Medawar, who also provides a brief bio about each of the contributing authors. There are 15 in total, a couple of which are novella length, written by such writers as Agatha Christie, Dorothy L Sayers, Margery Allingham, John Rhode, Edmund Crispin, etc.
This is a very uneven anthology. The quality of stories varies widely. It's probably no coincidence that the two that most worked for me were the novellas. I think crime - unlike, for example, horror - works better in a longer form. Part of this is to do with tone, part of it relates to the author's misdirection in layering clues and pacing, which is more natural in a novella or novel format. Whilst I enjoyed reading it, I'd say it generally wouldn't appeal to the casual reader, it's more recommended for those whose tastes are suited to detective stories from the golden age. Not bad.
This is a very uneven anthology. The quality of stories varies widely. It's probably no coincidence that the two that most worked for me were the novellas. I think crime - unlike, for example, horror - works better in a longer form. Part of this is to do with tone, part of it relates to the author's misdirection in layering clues and pacing, which is more natural in a novella or novel format. Whilst I enjoyed reading it, I'd say it generally wouldn't appeal to the casual reader, it's more recommended for those whose tastes are suited to detective stories from the golden age. Not bad.
October 10, 2019
This is a fun collection of short stories from the golden age of detective fiction, some of them published here for the first time. They mostly weren’t amazing--stories are usually obscure or unknown for a reason--but many were a delightful little break from the stricter realism of modern fiction. The closing story by Dorothy Sayers was the biggest highlight. Dorothy Sayers IS amazing.
January 13, 2020
Another highly recommendable selection of stories, plays and novellas with excellent editorial notes. One or two slightly weak entries are balanced out by the great "finds".
A must-read for lovers of classic crime fiction.
My only quibble with the two selections I have read is that they are quite pricey, even in digital versions.
A must-read for lovers of classic crime fiction.
My only quibble with the two selections I have read is that they are quite pricey, even in digital versions.
January 3, 2020
Library 2
Once again, I am so happy that these stories have been made available. I can never get enough of this genre and time, especially stories that have never before seen the light of day. Please do this again!
Once again, I am so happy that these stories have been made available. I can never get enough of this genre and time, especially stories that have never before seen the light of day. Please do this again!
February 26, 2020
If you are a fan of the Golden Age of Detective Fiction this is a great book. Not only do you get nifty short stories many of which have not been seen since the Golden Age but also bios on all the writers and their stories/books. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and read it all in one night.
December 16, 2019
Rating between 3 and 3.5
August 16, 2021
Il giallo è un genere molto duttile, che si adatta ad una vasta gamma di intenti, stili e idee, risultando così multiforme e adatto ai più disparati gusti. Spesso però ci si dimentica che un contributo fondamentale all'evoluzione e alla diffusione di questa narrativa è stato dato non solo dalla forma del romanzo ma anche e soprattutto dai racconti che i più celebri autori e autrici hanno composto nella loro carriera. La forma breve permette di concentrare le azioni, di focalizzarsi interamente sull'enigma ponendo in secondo piano aspetti secondari superflui, accentuando i processi deduttivi che devono essere alla base della risoluzione dei vari eventi criminosi. Il grande successo riscontrato dal mystery nella Golden Age, inoltre, assieme alla popolarità delle riviste e dei giornali quali mezzi per farsi conoscere come letterati, seguendo la strada percorsa all'inizio da grandi romanzieri quali Dickens e Stevenson, ha spinto molti autori ad avvalersi della forma del racconto per mettere in luce tutto il loro estro e la loro ingegnosità nel creare trame intricate e circoscritte in poche pagine. Bisogna tra l'altro ricordare che l'origine del giallo risiede proprio nel racconto, che i primi grandi archetipi hanno lunghezza esigua: dall'iniziatore Poe, fino a Doyle e Chesterton, fondamentali nello sviluppo di una narrativa focalizzata sull'indagine su dei crimini e sulla loro risoluzione attraverso rigidi processi logici.
Dunque il racconto, specie nell'ambito del giallo, ha goduto sin dall'inizio di grande attrattiva, sia per la sua struttura sintetica, rappresentando una sfida per gli autori per stupire il lettore attraverso una trama molto più sorvegliata e calibrata del romanzo, sia per la loro più rapida leggibilità, che facilitava la lettura da parte di un pubblico più vasto.
Tutti i grandi del genere si sono confrontati con tale tipologia, creando talvolta delle vere e proprie perle che non hanno nulla da invidiare ai loro più riusciti romanzi: da Agatha Christie a Carr, da Queen a Rawson.
Tony Medawar, grande studioso del genere nonché scopritore di storie sconosciute e mai pubblicate, ha avuto l'idea di ridare risalto a questa tipologia narrativa, ricercando nei vecchi archivi e in riviste rarissime racconti o radiodrammi dei più grandi nomi del mystery, pubblicandoli in audaci e fantastiche raccolte che prendono il nome da una famosa conferenza annuale sul giallo, "Bodies from the Library".
Dopo aver letto il primo volume, in cui spiccavano soprattutto i racconti di Blake, Milne e Brand, ho acquistato e letteralmente divorato la seconda raccolta che, tra le tante gemme, contiene alcune novelette molto interessanti di Quentin Patrick, di Edmund Crispin e di Dorothy L. Sayers.
"Bodies from the Library 2" è una grande raccolta, in cui oltre alla varietà tematica (da gialli veri e propri, a storie con tinte thriller e semplici divertissement con enigmi) si riscontra un'alta qualità di selezione. Mentre nel primo volume vi erano molte storie non molto convincenti o discrete, qui il livello si fa molto più alto, con trame ingegnose ed enigmi molto astuti.
I racconti presenti nell'antologia sono:
NO FACE (CHRISTIANNA BRAND): 5 STELLE
La città è terrorizzata da una serie di macabri e cruenti omicidi commessi da un killer che si fa chiamare No Face. Nessun legame tra le vittime, nessun indizio che possa far risalire al colpevole. Solo sangue, tanto sangue: No Face pugnala le sue vittime, e poi ancora, e ancora...
Assieme alla brama di morte, si accompagnano telefonate di scherno alla polizia. Il sovrintendente Tomm sembra trovare la pista giusta quando un chiaroveggente del luogo, Joseph Hawke, sembra sapere fin troppe cose sul killer. Poteri medianici? Oppure...
Racconto fantastico, un thriller travestito da giallo con tinte grottesche. Brand si conferma una scrittrice di primo livello, con il suo stile peculiare in cui la descrizione vaga dei personaggi e la messa a fuoco dei punti di oscurità nelle vicende conferiscono alla narrazione un tono malsano, aumentano la tensione e fanno sprofondare il lettore nel vortice caotico della paura. Si riscontrano una grande atmosfera e un uso sapiente delle tecniche narrative e di dialoghi in cui le reticenze inquietano più della realtà. Il finale forse non stupisce troppo, ma ha un tono cupo e orrido eccezionale, degno di un Poe.
BEFORE AND AFTER (PETER ANTHONY): 4 STELLE
L'ispettore Swallow è incaricato di indagare sulla strana morte di Mrs Carmichael, ricca donna invalida uccisa la sera prima tramite un ago da maglia conficcatole nella tempia. Mr Verity, gargantuesco ed esuberante detective dilettante che ha in passato collaborato con la polizia, si trova nella zona e l'ispettore Ramble di Scotland Yard esorta il suo collega ad avvalersi dell'aiuto del suo bizzarro amico. Il caso presenta sin da subito molte difficoltà: tutti avrebbero guadagnato una consistente cifra alla morte della vittima, eppure tutti hanno un alibi di ferro per l'ora del delitto. Se ciò non fosse abbastanza, un'infermiera è stata per tutta la notte a sorvegliare la porta della camera di Mrs. Carmichael, da cui non è entrato o uscito nessuno. Insomma, Mr. Verity deve vedersela con un'altra camera chiusa. Come è stato commesso l'omicidio? E da chi? Attraverso alcuni indizi, come il tonico della vittima e una strana foto apparsa sui giornali del mattino seguente, Mr. Verity giungerà alla verità. Peccato però che la soluzione che ha dedotto sia completamente sbagliata...
Bellissima parodia, in cui si mescolano temi classici (delitto in camera chiusa), ironia e tratti macchiettistici. Mr. Verity assomiglia molto al dr. Fell, soprattutto nel fisico e nella sua passione per la classicità, ma per la sua capacità di irritare il prossimo con il suo egotismo, la sua abilità nel rendere più complesse le vicende, interpretando in maniera sbagliata gli indizi, si accosta maggiormente ad uno dei personaggi parodizzati da Leo Bruce. Il racconto infatti, posteriore al primo romanzo dell'autore, "The Woman in the Wardrobe" (altra ingegnosa parodia-camera chiusa, che viene qui esplicitamente citata), riprende molti stilemi del divertente "Un caso per tre detective". "Before and After" presenta dunque una narrazione divertente, con un twist finale molto ironico, con cui l'autore dissacra la figura solenne e infallibile dell'investigatore dilettante della narrativa gialla.
P.S. Questo è l'unico racconto in cui compare Mr. Verity.
HOTEL EVIDENCE (HELEN SIMPSON): 2 STELLE
Cissie Brodribb vuole divorziare da suo marito Henry perché incompatibili, ma le leggi inglesi non le consentono di farlo se non dispone di prove sul suo adulterio. Dunque decidono di ideare un piano per ottenerlo, pur essendo Henry riluttante. Ci riusciranno?
Racconto non giallo, incentrato tutto su questioni coniugali, con un twist finale neanche troppo sorprendente. Più un racconto di carattere che altro. Deludente.
EXIT BEFORE MIDNIGHT (PATRICK QUENTIN): 5 STELLE
Carol Thorne è la segretaria di Mr Rowley, capo della ditta di vernici Leland and Rowley Process Company. Durante una pausa, nel giorno di San Silvestro, va dalla parrucchiera per poi ritornare sul posto di lavoro, al quarantesimo piano di un enorme grattacielo di New York. Durante quel pomeriggio si sta tenendo difatti una riunione tra i vari azionisti, i quali devono votare la decisione di fondere l'azienda con la grande compagnia della Pan-American Dye, rappresentata dal signor Druten. Gli affari della Leland and Rowley ultimamente erano andati piuttosto male, Leland, perito chimico e co-proprietario dell'azienda, era morto l'estate scorsa, peggiorando la già precaria condizione economica. Per questa ragione Mr Rowley, seppur riluttante, ha accettato la proposta della ditta più grande.
Ritornando in ufficio, Carol scopre che qualcuno ha inserito un foglio che prima non c'era nella sua macchina da scrivere: si tratta di un memorandum anonimo rivolto a tutti i maggiori azionisti dell'azienda, che minaccia la morte entro la mezzanotte, in caso venisse raggiunta la maggioranza nella votazione a favore della fusione, dei vari interessati alla trattativa. Mentre la riunione è in corso, Carol consegna la nota a Peter Howe, nipote di Mr Rowley e vicedirettore, che, dopo aver mandato via gli azionisti minori, rivela ai restanti il contenuto della lettera. Il gruppo è intimorito, ma pensa si tratti di uno scherzo. Intanto indugiano sul posto discutendo della faccenda. Ma indugiare, in alcuni casi, può uccidere.
Mr Whitfield, avvocato della compagnia, asserisce che per lui si tratta di una seria minaccia e, proprio mentre sta per giustificare le sue preoccupazioni, la luce dell'ufficio salta via. Pensando che si sia fuso qualche fusibile, tutti si recano nell'ufficio di Peter, collegato ad un'altra linea elettrica. Peccato che alla conta manca una persona: Mr Whitfield. Ritornano nell'ufficio di Rowley e lo trovano steso a terra, pugnalato al cuore.
Il timore iniziale diviene certezza: c'è in giro un assassino spietato, pronto a tutto pur di vendicarsi delle trattative.
Terrorizzato, il gruppo cerca di scappare dal palazzo, ma ogni tentativo per contattare il mondo esterno risulta vano: i cavi del telefono sono stati deliberatamente recisi, l'ascensore non è più in funzione e la sola altra uscita, la scala anti-incendio, è stata bloccata dall'esterno attraverso dei cunei. Il destino a volte è beffardo: sono isolati completamente nel cuore della caotica e sovraffollata New York, imprigionati con un assassino diabolico senza poter contare sull'aiuto delle leggi civili. Un inizio del nuovo anno da restarci secchi, come scopriranno alcuni di loro.
"Exit Before Midnight" è un racconto lungo affascinante, inquietante, claustrofobico e adrenalinico. Il tema centrale, un gruppo isolato di persone tra cui si cela un killer spietato, è tradizionalissimo, ed è ripreso da "Dieci piccoli indiani" di Agatha Christie, e, in particolar modo, da "L'ospite invisibile" di Bristow e Manning, con cui si può assimilare per alcuni elementi contenutistici e strutturali: dapprima l'ambientazione urbana, in un edificio moderno; poi il gruppo di persone che si conoscono e lavorano assieme e non sono perfetti sconosciuti come nel capolavoro di Christie; infine la dinamica gialla che non si spinge al completo sterminio del gruppo, ma prevede una conclusione anticipata, con uno dei personaggi che funge da detective e scopre la verità attraverso un piccolo dettaglio.
Gli autori, rifacendosi a leitmotiv ben noti nel genere, riescono a costruire una trama accattivante, impregnata di tensione, paura, sospetto e morte. L'atmosfera soffocante, che accentua la suspence e conferisce grande dinamismo e interesse alla vicenda, è resa ancor più torbida dell'ambientazione in una grande metropoli: il senso di chiusura nella "trappola" del grattacielo si acuisce in contrapposizione con l'enorme confusione e la mondanità della realtà immediatamente esterna. Inoltre l'uso delle pagine del calendario quale firma dell'assassino sulle proprie vittime conferisce ai delitti un alone macabro e grottesco che restringe ancor di più gli spazi e innalza vertiginosamente la soglia del pericolo.
Il restringimento continuo della scena, che si fa sempre più asfissiante, è reso possibile anche grazie al buio che piomba successivamente sulla comitiva, segnale di morte imminente, con cui la storia viene alimentata di nuovi timori e inquietudini. All'interno di questo incubo, Quentin aggiunge anche una storia d'amore, riprendendo sul finale il motivo classico della "woman in jeopardy".
"Exit Before Midnight" è quindi un grande racconto, con un'atmosfera plumbea e minacciosa e una grande caratterizzazione dei personaggi.
ROOM TO LET (MARGERY ALLINGHAM): 4 STELLE
All'annuale riunione del November Club, si riuniscono i migliori investigatori del mondo per discutere dei vari casi e delle varie indagini a cui hanno partecipato. In quest'ultimo evento l'ospite d'onore è il signor Minter, il quale racconta un omicidio irrisolto su cui aveva indagato in qualità di poliziotto: anni prima, a casa di Mrs Musgrave, anziana signora invalida assistita dalla nipote Molly, era giunto per prendere possesso di una camera in affitto un certo Dr. Charles. Le due donne erano state costrette a prendere un pensionante per via delle loro basse entrate. Una scelta che si rivelerà nefasta: l'ospite si comporta in maniera strana, sorveglia le padrone, apre le lettere altrui e proibisce a chiunque di entrare nella casa. Mrs Musgrave sopporta stoicamente tutto ciò in quanto egli le aveva pagato in anticipo i tre mesi del soggiorno, ma la situazione arriva al punto di non ritorno e decide di cacciare il suo inquilino. Mentre hanno un acceso diverbio, il dottore va in camera per prendere delle mappe che vuole far vedere alla padrona, ma subito dopo si odono degli spari al piano di sopra. Il dr Charles è stato ucciso nella sua camera chiusa dall'interno e della pistola non c'è nessuna traccia. Chi è stato? Come ha fatto? E soprattutto che collegamento c'è tra la vittima e la serie di omicidi commessi dal noto Jack lo Squartatore?
Radiodramma molto atmosferico, costruito sapientemente su toni scuri e su un senso crescente di ansia. La soluzione è molto buona e, sebbene la camera chiusa sia la rielaborazione e la fusione di due espedienti molto usati, risulta gradevole proprio per la particolare variazione, la quale risulta credibile e giustificata.
P.S. Questo radiodramma fu trasmesso da BBC Light Programme l'11 novembre 1947 e fu poi pubblicato nella rivista della Margery Allingham Society e in edizione limitata sia in Inghilterra che in America.
A JOKE'S A JOKE (JONATHAN LATIMER): 3 STELLE
Barnes è quell'amico che conosciamo tutti, che dedica tutto il suo impegno a progettare scherzi agli altri, anche molto pesanti. Non sembra rendersi conto delle emozioni altrui, delle conseguenze che provoca. Ma si sa, lo scherzo è bello quando dura poco...
Racconto strano, non proprio giallo. Divertente, ma nulla di che, anche il finale è abbastanza prevedibile.
P.S. Questo è l'unico racconto di Jonathan Latimer di cui si è a conoscenza.
THE MAN WHO KNEW (AGATHA CHRISTIE): 3 STELLE
Derek Lawson, dopo una serata a teatro con alcuni amici, rientra nel suo appartamento con l'impalpabile certezza di essere in pericolo. Perlustra le camere, ma non c'è nessuno. Passando al setaccio di nuovo ogni ambiente si accorge di un particolare stonato: uno dei cassetti della scrivania è aperto e dentro c'è un revolver che ha appena sparato. E presto scoprirà che il suo ricco zio è stato assassinato proprio quel giorno. È certo che sia quella la pistola usata nel crimine, come è sicuro che qualcuno stia cercando di incastrarlo.
Racconto molto breve, dall'inizio molto cupo e teso, ma che assume poi un andamento da thriller, senza tante pretese. La soluzione arriva senza che il lettore possa anticiparla e ha una struttura piuttosto comune. Agatha Christie ha scritto sicuramente di meglio.
THE ALMOST PERFECT MURDER CASE (S.S. VAN DINE): 3 STELLE
Philo Vance discute con il procuratore distrettuale Markham sul delitto perfetto e racconta di un caso che era destinato a divenirlo se non fosse stato per un dettaglio casuale, il quale ha mandato a monte il piano di un diabolico assassino: nel febbraio nel 1909, in Cile, il Consolato tedesco era stato dato alle fiamme e tra le macerie fu rinvenuto il corpo carbonizzato di uno degli impiegati, il signor Wilhelm Beckert. L'assassinio era già previsto, dato che da due anni arrivavano lettere minatorie contro i tedeschi per via di una faida accaduta tra i "gringos" e i cileni del luogo. Il caso sembra semplice, in quanto il tuttofare del Consolato, Tapia, era svanito nel nulla. Ma attraverso un errore linguistico, si scopre un'altra macabra verità...
Racconto carino, ma che presenta un enigma scontato, anche se non doveva esserlo all'epoca in cui fu scritto, il 1929. Il caso risulta abbastanza asettico, essendo narrato in modo essenziale, mettendo unicamente in risalto indizi e conseguenti indagini. Il fulcro della vicenda, di carattere linguistico, viene svelato durante la soluzione e dunque il lettore può intuire ma non provare le sue deduzioni (c'è la violazione di una delle sue regole, ma gliela lasciamo passare nel racconto). Insomma, gradevole ma non memorabile.
Dunque il racconto, specie nell'ambito del giallo, ha goduto sin dall'inizio di grande attrattiva, sia per la sua struttura sintetica, rappresentando una sfida per gli autori per stupire il lettore attraverso una trama molto più sorvegliata e calibrata del romanzo, sia per la loro più rapida leggibilità, che facilitava la lettura da parte di un pubblico più vasto.
Tutti i grandi del genere si sono confrontati con tale tipologia, creando talvolta delle vere e proprie perle che non hanno nulla da invidiare ai loro più riusciti romanzi: da Agatha Christie a Carr, da Queen a Rawson.
Tony Medawar, grande studioso del genere nonché scopritore di storie sconosciute e mai pubblicate, ha avuto l'idea di ridare risalto a questa tipologia narrativa, ricercando nei vecchi archivi e in riviste rarissime racconti o radiodrammi dei più grandi nomi del mystery, pubblicandoli in audaci e fantastiche raccolte che prendono il nome da una famosa conferenza annuale sul giallo, "Bodies from the Library".
Dopo aver letto il primo volume, in cui spiccavano soprattutto i racconti di Blake, Milne e Brand, ho acquistato e letteralmente divorato la seconda raccolta che, tra le tante gemme, contiene alcune novelette molto interessanti di Quentin Patrick, di Edmund Crispin e di Dorothy L. Sayers.
"Bodies from the Library 2" è una grande raccolta, in cui oltre alla varietà tematica (da gialli veri e propri, a storie con tinte thriller e semplici divertissement con enigmi) si riscontra un'alta qualità di selezione. Mentre nel primo volume vi erano molte storie non molto convincenti o discrete, qui il livello si fa molto più alto, con trame ingegnose ed enigmi molto astuti.
I racconti presenti nell'antologia sono:
NO FACE (CHRISTIANNA BRAND): 5 STELLE
La città è terrorizzata da una serie di macabri e cruenti omicidi commessi da un killer che si fa chiamare No Face. Nessun legame tra le vittime, nessun indizio che possa far risalire al colpevole. Solo sangue, tanto sangue: No Face pugnala le sue vittime, e poi ancora, e ancora...
Assieme alla brama di morte, si accompagnano telefonate di scherno alla polizia. Il sovrintendente Tomm sembra trovare la pista giusta quando un chiaroveggente del luogo, Joseph Hawke, sembra sapere fin troppe cose sul killer. Poteri medianici? Oppure...
Racconto fantastico, un thriller travestito da giallo con tinte grottesche. Brand si conferma una scrittrice di primo livello, con il suo stile peculiare in cui la descrizione vaga dei personaggi e la messa a fuoco dei punti di oscurità nelle vicende conferiscono alla narrazione un tono malsano, aumentano la tensione e fanno sprofondare il lettore nel vortice caotico della paura. Si riscontrano una grande atmosfera e un uso sapiente delle tecniche narrative e di dialoghi in cui le reticenze inquietano più della realtà. Il finale forse non stupisce troppo, ma ha un tono cupo e orrido eccezionale, degno di un Poe.
BEFORE AND AFTER (PETER ANTHONY): 4 STELLE
L'ispettore Swallow è incaricato di indagare sulla strana morte di Mrs Carmichael, ricca donna invalida uccisa la sera prima tramite un ago da maglia conficcatole nella tempia. Mr Verity, gargantuesco ed esuberante detective dilettante che ha in passato collaborato con la polizia, si trova nella zona e l'ispettore Ramble di Scotland Yard esorta il suo collega ad avvalersi dell'aiuto del suo bizzarro amico. Il caso presenta sin da subito molte difficoltà: tutti avrebbero guadagnato una consistente cifra alla morte della vittima, eppure tutti hanno un alibi di ferro per l'ora del delitto. Se ciò non fosse abbastanza, un'infermiera è stata per tutta la notte a sorvegliare la porta della camera di Mrs. Carmichael, da cui non è entrato o uscito nessuno. Insomma, Mr. Verity deve vedersela con un'altra camera chiusa. Come è stato commesso l'omicidio? E da chi? Attraverso alcuni indizi, come il tonico della vittima e una strana foto apparsa sui giornali del mattino seguente, Mr. Verity giungerà alla verità. Peccato però che la soluzione che ha dedotto sia completamente sbagliata...
Bellissima parodia, in cui si mescolano temi classici (delitto in camera chiusa), ironia e tratti macchiettistici. Mr. Verity assomiglia molto al dr. Fell, soprattutto nel fisico e nella sua passione per la classicità, ma per la sua capacità di irritare il prossimo con il suo egotismo, la sua abilità nel rendere più complesse le vicende, interpretando in maniera sbagliata gli indizi, si accosta maggiormente ad uno dei personaggi parodizzati da Leo Bruce. Il racconto infatti, posteriore al primo romanzo dell'autore, "The Woman in the Wardrobe" (altra ingegnosa parodia-camera chiusa, che viene qui esplicitamente citata), riprende molti stilemi del divertente "Un caso per tre detective". "Before and After" presenta dunque una narrazione divertente, con un twist finale molto ironico, con cui l'autore dissacra la figura solenne e infallibile dell'investigatore dilettante della narrativa gialla.
P.S. Questo è l'unico racconto in cui compare Mr. Verity.
HOTEL EVIDENCE (HELEN SIMPSON): 2 STELLE
Cissie Brodribb vuole divorziare da suo marito Henry perché incompatibili, ma le leggi inglesi non le consentono di farlo se non dispone di prove sul suo adulterio. Dunque decidono di ideare un piano per ottenerlo, pur essendo Henry riluttante. Ci riusciranno?
Racconto non giallo, incentrato tutto su questioni coniugali, con un twist finale neanche troppo sorprendente. Più un racconto di carattere che altro. Deludente.
EXIT BEFORE MIDNIGHT (PATRICK QUENTIN): 5 STELLE
Carol Thorne è la segretaria di Mr Rowley, capo della ditta di vernici Leland and Rowley Process Company. Durante una pausa, nel giorno di San Silvestro, va dalla parrucchiera per poi ritornare sul posto di lavoro, al quarantesimo piano di un enorme grattacielo di New York. Durante quel pomeriggio si sta tenendo difatti una riunione tra i vari azionisti, i quali devono votare la decisione di fondere l'azienda con la grande compagnia della Pan-American Dye, rappresentata dal signor Druten. Gli affari della Leland and Rowley ultimamente erano andati piuttosto male, Leland, perito chimico e co-proprietario dell'azienda, era morto l'estate scorsa, peggiorando la già precaria condizione economica. Per questa ragione Mr Rowley, seppur riluttante, ha accettato la proposta della ditta più grande.
Ritornando in ufficio, Carol scopre che qualcuno ha inserito un foglio che prima non c'era nella sua macchina da scrivere: si tratta di un memorandum anonimo rivolto a tutti i maggiori azionisti dell'azienda, che minaccia la morte entro la mezzanotte, in caso venisse raggiunta la maggioranza nella votazione a favore della fusione, dei vari interessati alla trattativa. Mentre la riunione è in corso, Carol consegna la nota a Peter Howe, nipote di Mr Rowley e vicedirettore, che, dopo aver mandato via gli azionisti minori, rivela ai restanti il contenuto della lettera. Il gruppo è intimorito, ma pensa si tratti di uno scherzo. Intanto indugiano sul posto discutendo della faccenda. Ma indugiare, in alcuni casi, può uccidere.
Mr Whitfield, avvocato della compagnia, asserisce che per lui si tratta di una seria minaccia e, proprio mentre sta per giustificare le sue preoccupazioni, la luce dell'ufficio salta via. Pensando che si sia fuso qualche fusibile, tutti si recano nell'ufficio di Peter, collegato ad un'altra linea elettrica. Peccato che alla conta manca una persona: Mr Whitfield. Ritornano nell'ufficio di Rowley e lo trovano steso a terra, pugnalato al cuore.
Il timore iniziale diviene certezza: c'è in giro un assassino spietato, pronto a tutto pur di vendicarsi delle trattative.
Terrorizzato, il gruppo cerca di scappare dal palazzo, ma ogni tentativo per contattare il mondo esterno risulta vano: i cavi del telefono sono stati deliberatamente recisi, l'ascensore non è più in funzione e la sola altra uscita, la scala anti-incendio, è stata bloccata dall'esterno attraverso dei cunei. Il destino a volte è beffardo: sono isolati completamente nel cuore della caotica e sovraffollata New York, imprigionati con un assassino diabolico senza poter contare sull'aiuto delle leggi civili. Un inizio del nuovo anno da restarci secchi, come scopriranno alcuni di loro.
"Exit Before Midnight" è un racconto lungo affascinante, inquietante, claustrofobico e adrenalinico. Il tema centrale, un gruppo isolato di persone tra cui si cela un killer spietato, è tradizionalissimo, ed è ripreso da "Dieci piccoli indiani" di Agatha Christie, e, in particolar modo, da "L'ospite invisibile" di Bristow e Manning, con cui si può assimilare per alcuni elementi contenutistici e strutturali: dapprima l'ambientazione urbana, in un edificio moderno; poi il gruppo di persone che si conoscono e lavorano assieme e non sono perfetti sconosciuti come nel capolavoro di Christie; infine la dinamica gialla che non si spinge al completo sterminio del gruppo, ma prevede una conclusione anticipata, con uno dei personaggi che funge da detective e scopre la verità attraverso un piccolo dettaglio.
Gli autori, rifacendosi a leitmotiv ben noti nel genere, riescono a costruire una trama accattivante, impregnata di tensione, paura, sospetto e morte. L'atmosfera soffocante, che accentua la suspence e conferisce grande dinamismo e interesse alla vicenda, è resa ancor più torbida dell'ambientazione in una grande metropoli: il senso di chiusura nella "trappola" del grattacielo si acuisce in contrapposizione con l'enorme confusione e la mondanità della realtà immediatamente esterna. Inoltre l'uso delle pagine del calendario quale firma dell'assassino sulle proprie vittime conferisce ai delitti un alone macabro e grottesco che restringe ancor di più gli spazi e innalza vertiginosamente la soglia del pericolo.
Il restringimento continuo della scena, che si fa sempre più asfissiante, è reso possibile anche grazie al buio che piomba successivamente sulla comitiva, segnale di morte imminente, con cui la storia viene alimentata di nuovi timori e inquietudini. All'interno di questo incubo, Quentin aggiunge anche una storia d'amore, riprendendo sul finale il motivo classico della "woman in jeopardy".
"Exit Before Midnight" è quindi un grande racconto, con un'atmosfera plumbea e minacciosa e una grande caratterizzazione dei personaggi.
ROOM TO LET (MARGERY ALLINGHAM): 4 STELLE
All'annuale riunione del November Club, si riuniscono i migliori investigatori del mondo per discutere dei vari casi e delle varie indagini a cui hanno partecipato. In quest'ultimo evento l'ospite d'onore è il signor Minter, il quale racconta un omicidio irrisolto su cui aveva indagato in qualità di poliziotto: anni prima, a casa di Mrs Musgrave, anziana signora invalida assistita dalla nipote Molly, era giunto per prendere possesso di una camera in affitto un certo Dr. Charles. Le due donne erano state costrette a prendere un pensionante per via delle loro basse entrate. Una scelta che si rivelerà nefasta: l'ospite si comporta in maniera strana, sorveglia le padrone, apre le lettere altrui e proibisce a chiunque di entrare nella casa. Mrs Musgrave sopporta stoicamente tutto ciò in quanto egli le aveva pagato in anticipo i tre mesi del soggiorno, ma la situazione arriva al punto di non ritorno e decide di cacciare il suo inquilino. Mentre hanno un acceso diverbio, il dottore va in camera per prendere delle mappe che vuole far vedere alla padrona, ma subito dopo si odono degli spari al piano di sopra. Il dr Charles è stato ucciso nella sua camera chiusa dall'interno e della pistola non c'è nessuna traccia. Chi è stato? Come ha fatto? E soprattutto che collegamento c'è tra la vittima e la serie di omicidi commessi dal noto Jack lo Squartatore?
Radiodramma molto atmosferico, costruito sapientemente su toni scuri e su un senso crescente di ansia. La soluzione è molto buona e, sebbene la camera chiusa sia la rielaborazione e la fusione di due espedienti molto usati, risulta gradevole proprio per la particolare variazione, la quale risulta credibile e giustificata.
P.S. Questo radiodramma fu trasmesso da BBC Light Programme l'11 novembre 1947 e fu poi pubblicato nella rivista della Margery Allingham Society e in edizione limitata sia in Inghilterra che in America.
A JOKE'S A JOKE (JONATHAN LATIMER): 3 STELLE
Barnes è quell'amico che conosciamo tutti, che dedica tutto il suo impegno a progettare scherzi agli altri, anche molto pesanti. Non sembra rendersi conto delle emozioni altrui, delle conseguenze che provoca. Ma si sa, lo scherzo è bello quando dura poco...
Racconto strano, non proprio giallo. Divertente, ma nulla di che, anche il finale è abbastanza prevedibile.
P.S. Questo è l'unico racconto di Jonathan Latimer di cui si è a conoscenza.
THE MAN WHO KNEW (AGATHA CHRISTIE): 3 STELLE
Derek Lawson, dopo una serata a teatro con alcuni amici, rientra nel suo appartamento con l'impalpabile certezza di essere in pericolo. Perlustra le camere, ma non c'è nessuno. Passando al setaccio di nuovo ogni ambiente si accorge di un particolare stonato: uno dei cassetti della scrivania è aperto e dentro c'è un revolver che ha appena sparato. E presto scoprirà che il suo ricco zio è stato assassinato proprio quel giorno. È certo che sia quella la pistola usata nel crimine, come è sicuro che qualcuno stia cercando di incastrarlo.
Racconto molto breve, dall'inizio molto cupo e teso, ma che assume poi un andamento da thriller, senza tante pretese. La soluzione arriva senza che il lettore possa anticiparla e ha una struttura piuttosto comune. Agatha Christie ha scritto sicuramente di meglio.
THE ALMOST PERFECT MURDER CASE (S.S. VAN DINE): 3 STELLE
Philo Vance discute con il procuratore distrettuale Markham sul delitto perfetto e racconta di un caso che era destinato a divenirlo se non fosse stato per un dettaglio casuale, il quale ha mandato a monte il piano di un diabolico assassino: nel febbraio nel 1909, in Cile, il Consolato tedesco era stato dato alle fiamme e tra le macerie fu rinvenuto il corpo carbonizzato di uno degli impiegati, il signor Wilhelm Beckert. L'assassinio era già previsto, dato che da due anni arrivavano lettere minatorie contro i tedeschi per via di una faida accaduta tra i "gringos" e i cileni del luogo. Il caso sembra semplice, in quanto il tuttofare del Consolato, Tapia, era svanito nel nulla. Ma attraverso un errore linguistico, si scopre un'altra macabra verità...
Racconto carino, ma che presenta un enigma scontato, anche se non doveva esserlo all'epoca in cui fu scritto, il 1929. Il caso risulta abbastanza asettico, essendo narrato in modo essenziale, mettendo unicamente in risalto indizi e conseguenti indagini. Il fulcro della vicenda, di carattere linguistico, viene svelato durante la soluzione e dunque il lettore può intuire ma non provare le sue deduzioni (c'è la violazione di una delle sue regole, ma gliela lasciamo passare nel racconto). Insomma, gradevole ma non memorabile.
August 13, 2024
An excellent collection.
May 14, 2023
No Face by Christianna Brand
A psychic, Mr. Jospeh Hawk, is certain he knows the identity of a serial killer. Yes, he often fakes many of his tricks but he might have some skill. But his assistant Delphine (sp?) is in danger. Would he prefer that she be hurt in order to fulfill his predictions? Or hers?
Three stars
Before & After by Peter Antony
An old woman dies. Mr. Verity, an amateur detective, believes it is her husband and the nurse. Inspector Sparrow thinks there might be more to it. And a little bit of honest police work might just prove him correct. So why let Mr. Verity direct that they be picked up? Well, in real life, if someone is around so many bodies, usually someone gets suspicious...
Four stars - mostly because finally someone is suspicious of the detective
Hotel Evidence by Helen Simpson
Henry Broadrib (sp?) is startled that his wife, Sissy, wants a divorce. He is loathe to acquiesce as it means that he will have to paint himself in a bad light. But he give in and willingly accepts a hot water bottle when she passes it on to him. But it might be harder than they both think as Henry is so very likable that no one wants to report against him.
Three and a half stars - amusing but not really a mystery story nor is there any suspense
Exit Before Midnight by Q. Patrick
Carol Thorne (sp?) is working overtime right now to help with a merger. Her job ends at midnight so she's splashing out with a nice hairdo before she has to go back to work, helping the shareholders close the merger. When she returns, there is a threat of murder that has been left in her typewriter in the form of a memorandum.
Four and a half stars - as one of the longer stories, it is better developed. It gives us better character development and allows for a nice build up of suspense.
A Joke's a Joke by Jonathan Latimer
A young man, Barnes, likes to play pranks on people. His latest is to introduce his own wife, Mary Lou, to his particular favorite to play pranks on. But it doesn't quite turn out like Barnes thinks it will.
Three and a half stars - not a mystery but a fun little story
The Man Who Knew by Agatha Christie
A man is home but he knows something is wrong. Then he sees the word on his theater pamphlet, "Don't go home." A gun found in his apartment, his uncle murdered... there is just a chance that he can turn this night around.
The Almost Perfect Murder Case by S. S. Van Dine
Philo Vance is telling stories about some of his more famous cases. In this one, he mentions that even the most perfectly planned crimes may go off the rails for the most ridiculous of reasons. In this story, someone decides to verify a translation and suddenly, the teeth of a dead body might not be as identifiable as originally thought.
Three stars - serviceable
The Hours of Darkness by Edmund Crispin
The book opens on Christmas Eve. There is a game of hide and seek afoot. But rather than using it for making love to their partners, a murderer uses the time for other pursuits. Gervase Fen is nearby to connect this case to an earlier one, one in which a brother and sister
Three stars - at least this one is a mystery but a little convoluted
Chance Is a Great Thing by E. C. R. Lorac
Poor Peggy is ready to get married but her only relation, her aunt, is doing so poorly she's afraid to leave her. Her neighbors encourage her to get married and go on her honeymoon; they'll keep an eye on her. But then auntie dies...
Four stars - for as short as it is, you get a clear picture of the characters
The Mental Broadcast by Clayton Rawson
The Great Merlini is trying to come up with a new card trick. Our narrator is not impressed.
Two and a half stars
White Cap by Ethel Lina White
Tess is trying to calm herself down. She has been taken in by a man who was a swindler and her work is uncertain. At work, Miss Ratcliffe is basically taking over the company and she has Tess in her sights. Of course, Ratcliffe is the one who ends up dead.
Three and a half stars
The Adventure of the Dorset Squire by C. A. Alington
The lights go out but then a lot of stuff happens, but, while some of it is comedic, none of it is a murder nor a suspense story.
Two stars
The Locked Room by Dorothy L. Sayers
Lord Peter is at a house party where he meets a young woman named Betty. She is engaged but she and Lord Peter spend their time with some light flirting (maybe a little more). Her good mood is ruined when her uncle comes home proclaiming that he is ruined. He yells at Betty and his wife and declares that he will commit suicide. Lord Peter is skeptical. Usually people who commit suicide don't declare it so baldly. But, the next morning, the man is dead. Luckily, Lord Peter knows exactly what happened.
Three stars
A psychic, Mr. Jospeh Hawk, is certain he knows the identity of a serial killer. Yes, he often fakes many of his tricks but he might have some skill. But his assistant Delphine (sp?) is in danger. Would he prefer that she be hurt in order to fulfill his predictions? Or hers?
Three stars
Before & After by Peter Antony
An old woman dies. Mr. Verity, an amateur detective, believes it is her husband and the nurse. Inspector Sparrow thinks there might be more to it. And a little bit of honest police work might just prove him correct. So why let Mr. Verity direct that they be picked up? Well, in real life, if someone is around so many bodies, usually someone gets suspicious...
Four stars - mostly because finally someone is suspicious of the detective
Hotel Evidence by Helen Simpson
Henry Broadrib (sp?) is startled that his wife, Sissy, wants a divorce. He is loathe to acquiesce as it means that he will have to paint himself in a bad light. But he give in and willingly accepts a hot water bottle when she passes it on to him. But it might be harder than they both think as Henry is so very likable that no one wants to report against him.
Three and a half stars - amusing but not really a mystery story nor is there any suspense
Exit Before Midnight by Q. Patrick
Carol Thorne (sp?) is working overtime right now to help with a merger. Her job ends at midnight so she's splashing out with a nice hairdo before she has to go back to work, helping the shareholders close the merger. When she returns, there is a threat of murder that has been left in her typewriter in the form of a memorandum.
Four and a half stars - as one of the longer stories, it is better developed. It gives us better character development and allows for a nice build up of suspense.
A Joke's a Joke by Jonathan Latimer
A young man, Barnes, likes to play pranks on people. His latest is to introduce his own wife, Mary Lou, to his particular favorite to play pranks on. But it doesn't quite turn out like Barnes thinks it will.
Three and a half stars - not a mystery but a fun little story
The Man Who Knew by Agatha Christie
A man is home but he knows something is wrong. Then he sees the word on his theater pamphlet, "Don't go home." A gun found in his apartment, his uncle murdered... there is just a chance that he can turn this night around.
The Almost Perfect Murder Case by S. S. Van Dine
Philo Vance is telling stories about some of his more famous cases. In this one, he mentions that even the most perfectly planned crimes may go off the rails for the most ridiculous of reasons. In this story, someone decides to verify a translation and suddenly, the teeth of a dead body might not be as identifiable as originally thought.
Three stars - serviceable
The Hours of Darkness by Edmund Crispin
The book opens on Christmas Eve. There is a game of hide and seek afoot. But rather than using it for making love to their partners, a murderer uses the time for other pursuits. Gervase Fen is nearby to connect this case to an earlier one, one in which a brother and sister
Three stars - at least this one is a mystery but a little convoluted
Chance Is a Great Thing by E. C. R. Lorac
Poor Peggy is ready to get married but her only relation, her aunt, is doing so poorly she's afraid to leave her. Her neighbors encourage her to get married and go on her honeymoon; they'll keep an eye on her. But then auntie dies...
Four stars - for as short as it is, you get a clear picture of the characters
The Mental Broadcast by Clayton Rawson
The Great Merlini is trying to come up with a new card trick. Our narrator is not impressed.
Two and a half stars
White Cap by Ethel Lina White
Tess is trying to calm herself down. She has been taken in by a man who was a swindler and her work is uncertain. At work, Miss Ratcliffe is basically taking over the company and she has Tess in her sights. Of course, Ratcliffe is the one who ends up dead.
Three and a half stars
The Adventure of the Dorset Squire by C. A. Alington
The lights go out but then a lot of stuff happens, but, while some of it is comedic, none of it is a murder nor a suspense story.
Two stars
The Locked Room by Dorothy L. Sayers
Lord Peter is at a house party where he meets a young woman named Betty. She is engaged but she and Lord Peter spend their time with some light flirting (maybe a little more). Her good mood is ruined when her uncle comes home proclaiming that he is ruined. He yells at Betty and his wife and declares that he will commit suicide. Lord Peter is skeptical. Usually people who commit suicide don't declare it so baldly. But, the next morning, the man is dead. Luckily, Lord Peter knows exactly what happened.
Three stars
November 19, 2024
I think this book has really made me come to the realisation that this type of 'whodunnit' crime is really not for me. I struggle with the stories where it could literally be any one of them and I sometimes feel it's pot luck if you guess correctly. It's usually always the person least likely, who seems most genuine or innocent, or someone who was barely even present during the whole thing? Also I feel there were a couple of stories here that didn't seem to even present a crime!? I listened to it on audio and found it super difficult to keep focussed during all the stories and zoned out for a fair few of them, hence the low ratings. Maybe that's where I missed the crimes in some of them? I don't know, I wasn't too fussed about it enough to re-listen to be honest. If you're into crime and whodunnits then I'm sure you will love this. I'm just more of a thriller/fantasy gal I guess.
1. No face - 3 out of 5
2. Before and After - 2 out of 5
3. Hotel Evidence - 1 out of 5
4. Exit Before Midnight - 4 out of 5
5. A Joke's a Joke - 2 out of 5
6. The Man Who Knew - 2 out of 5
7. The Almost Perfect Murder Case - 2 out of 5
8. The Hours of Darkness - 2 out of 5
9. Chance Is a Great Thing - 2 out of 5
10. The Mental Broadcast - 3 out of 5
11. White Cap - 4 out of 5
12. The Adventure of the Dorset Squire - 1 out of 5
13. The Locked Room - I'll be honest I haven't finished this one as another book became available and I knew I'd enjoy that more than this book thus far. Feels a bit annoying that I'm literally only half an hour from the end, but honestly, the next book I have to listen to is 22 hours long so I really need to get on it! Every minute counts at this rate as there's a long waiting list after me so I will only have 3 weeks! Wish me luck.
1. No face - 3 out of 5
2. Before and After - 2 out of 5
3. Hotel Evidence - 1 out of 5
4. Exit Before Midnight - 4 out of 5
5. A Joke's a Joke - 2 out of 5
6. The Man Who Knew - 2 out of 5
7. The Almost Perfect Murder Case - 2 out of 5
8. The Hours of Darkness - 2 out of 5
9. Chance Is a Great Thing - 2 out of 5
10. The Mental Broadcast - 3 out of 5
11. White Cap - 4 out of 5
12. The Adventure of the Dorset Squire - 1 out of 5
13. The Locked Room - I'll be honest I haven't finished this one as another book became available and I knew I'd enjoy that more than this book thus far. Feels a bit annoying that I'm literally only half an hour from the end, but honestly, the next book I have to listen to is 22 hours long so I really need to get on it! Every minute counts at this rate as there's a long waiting list after me so I will only have 3 weeks! Wish me luck.
September 10, 2024
Not quite as strong as the first anthology (which I rated 5*), understandably, but still very good. Just a couple of the longer stories made it more than worth the price of admission, and there were a couple of short stories from Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers that I'd not read before. The Christie I would probably have got to but the Sayers one was previously unpublished. A little Peter Wimsey treat! (Although I don't know why he was kissing a betrothed girl...)
My absolute favourite was Exit Before Midnight by Q Patrick, a writing duo, which was a really good novella-length story about a group of businesspeople trying to close a merger on New Year's Eve and get trapped in a New York City skyscraper (called the Moderna, incidentally) by a murderer targeting three of them. They have to try to outwit the culprit. Lots of sleuthing and atmosphere. The Hours of Darkness by Edmund Crispin was also pretty long and very good.
Honourable mention to No Face by Christianna Brand and Room to Let by Margery Allingham, which were hauntingly creepy. And there was a story by Peter Shaffer of Amadeus fame and his brother writing under the joint pseudonym Peter Antony, a solid locked room mystery. Hotel Evidence by Helen Simpson and The Adventure of the Dorset Squire by C.A. Alington provided some light entertainment.
The other stories/plays were pretty much forgettable but nothing that I disliked. Hopefully the rest of the anthologies will stick to about this level of quality - I'm definitely going to read more!
My absolute favourite was Exit Before Midnight by Q Patrick, a writing duo, which was a really good novella-length story about a group of businesspeople trying to close a merger on New Year's Eve and get trapped in a New York City skyscraper (called the Moderna, incidentally) by a murderer targeting three of them. They have to try to outwit the culprit. Lots of sleuthing and atmosphere. The Hours of Darkness by Edmund Crispin was also pretty long and very good.
Honourable mention to No Face by Christianna Brand and Room to Let by Margery Allingham, which were hauntingly creepy. And there was a story by Peter Shaffer of Amadeus fame and his brother writing under the joint pseudonym Peter Antony, a solid locked room mystery. Hotel Evidence by Helen Simpson and The Adventure of the Dorset Squire by C.A. Alington provided some light entertainment.
The other stories/plays were pretty much forgettable but nothing that I disliked. Hopefully the rest of the anthologies will stick to about this level of quality - I'm definitely going to read more!
December 31, 2020
Another great anthology of books from the golden age of mystery writers.
There are two standout stories in this book for me, Exit Before Midnight and The Adventure of the Dorset Squire. Both are brilliant for very different reasons, suspense and tension in one and pure slapstick hilarity in the other.
Yet more authors to get to know and Philip Bretherton does a brilliant job with all the voices. His voice just takes me straight to that time period, great stuff.
There are two standout stories in this book for me, Exit Before Midnight and The Adventure of the Dorset Squire. Both are brilliant for very different reasons, suspense and tension in one and pure slapstick hilarity in the other.
Yet more authors to get to know and Philip Bretherton does a brilliant job with all the voices. His voice just takes me straight to that time period, great stuff.
June 13, 2022
Another collection of early20th-century mystery short stories. Some of the stories were interesting and some bogged me down because I could quite understand what was being said and/or discussed. However it ended with a Dorothy Sayers' Lord Peter Wimsey story of his solving the death of the owner of a large mansion where a number of over night guests have been invited for a weekend. I've enjoyed the Wimsey novels and short stories over the last 40 years so this was a treat.
November 30, 2022
One of my more favorite of these Bodies from the Library collections. One particularly good story in this collection is Exit before Midnight by Q Patrick. Reminding me a little of Die Hard, board members settling a company merger are trapped in a skyscraper on New Year's Eve when someone starts murdering them one by one. An anonymous letter states this will happen before midnight when the merger is final. Points for originality since this was published in like 1937 or so.
Recommended.
Recommended.
February 21, 2022
A highly enjoyable collection of short stories, novellas and even a radio play script, from the Golden Age of detection period. Highlights included a radio play from Marjory Allingham, an Edmund Crispin novella set at Oxford during Christmas, and the first publishing of a Dorothy L Sayers short story.
October 31, 2023
A fascinating read.The majority of the stories I have never read before so that was a pleasant surprise.I don't think there was one poor story,they are all hugely interesting in their own different ways.We are all so lucky to be able to read these rare ( or extremely rare!! ) crime stories.....love it!
November 24, 2019
The stories are”forgotten” because they mostly deserve to be. A majority of the top authors are represented but these stories are not their finest hours. I very much wanted to enjoy this collection but was disappointed.
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