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Black Heath Classic Crime #5
The Bells at Old Bailey
“When will you pay me, say the bells of Old Bailey…”
Nothing much ever happens in the sleepy village of Long Greeting. Until, that is, five people commit suicide within the space of nine weeks. Is this the tragic result of blackmail or the work of a ruthless and daring murderer? When Bertha Tidy is found strangled at the beauty parlour she runs in the nearby cathedral town of Ravenchuch, it becomes clear that something very sinister indeed is afoot in this quiet corner of rural England, and the police will have to act fast to prevent further tragedy…
Originally published in 1947, this is a classic murder mystery from the golden age of detection.
Nothing much ever happens in the sleepy village of Long Greeting. Until, that is, five people commit suicide within the space of nine weeks. Is this the tragic result of blackmail or the work of a ruthless and daring murderer? When Bertha Tidy is found strangled at the beauty parlour she runs in the nearby cathedral town of Ravenchuch, it becomes clear that something very sinister indeed is afoot in this quiet corner of rural England, and the police will have to act fast to prevent further tragedy…
Originally published in 1947, this is a classic murder mystery from the golden age of detection.
246 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1947
About the author
Dorothy Bowers
12 books7 followersDorothy Violet Bowers (1902-1948) was born in Leominster. Bowers graduated from the Society of Oxford Home-Students (now St Anne’s College) with a third-class honours degree in Modern History. Temporary jobs teaching history and English did not inspire her, and she turned to writing.
Between 1938 and 1941, Bowers published four Inspector Pardoe novels in rapid succession. The outbreak of war brought Bowers to London, where she worked in the European News Service of the BBC. Her final book, The Bells at Old Bailey, was published in 1947. Never of robust health, Bowers contracted tuberculosis during this period and eventually succumbed to the disease in August 1948. She died knowing that she had been inducted into the prestigious Detection Club, the only writer selected for membership in 1948.
Between 1938 and 1941, Bowers published four Inspector Pardoe novels in rapid succession. The outbreak of war brought Bowers to London, where she worked in the European News Service of the BBC. Her final book, The Bells at Old Bailey, was published in 1947. Never of robust health, Bowers contracted tuberculosis during this period and eventually succumbed to the disease in August 1948. She died knowing that she had been inducted into the prestigious Detection Club, the only writer selected for membership in 1948.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
December 22, 2019
For such a small village, Long Greeting seems to run to a lot of suicides. Five deaths in a very short period--none of them questioned by the authorities for what they seemed to be, the unfortunate taking of one's own life. But after the fifth death and the receipt of some very unpleasant anonymous letters, Miss Bertha Tidy decides to go to the police and voice a concern about the validity of the inquests' findings.
Unknown to her, Scotland Yard has already taken an interest in the form of Detective-Inspector Raikes. He and local Superintendent Lecky listen seriously to her concerns and start investigation in earnest, but they soon have a very definite murder on their hands--that of Miss Tidy. Further investigation reveals a web of blackmail, greed, hatred, and buried secrets, all providing numerous motives for Miss Tidy's death. Yes, there are plenty of suspects, but very little evidence to point out the guilty party. The detectives will have to dig up some of those old secrets before they will have enough to make their case.
One item I noticed that reflects only indirectly on the crime is that Dorothy Bowers had a great deal to say about women and how they operate in the world. She appears to represent the standard lines of "women aren't logical;" "women are such gossips;" "women will spread things they only think are true or might be..." This is indicated by a number of the quotes I gleaned and have listed below.
This was an enjoyable vintage mystery. I enjoyed the village setting and the characters that Bowers created for us. I will say that even if I had recognized the clue mentioned in the spoiler above for what it was, I don't see how I could have known the motive behind the murder. There is a very slender hint given, but I don't feel about it as I do with many good plots--where once the mystery is wrapped up, I say "Oh yes--so that's what that meant." If the motive had been more clearly indicated, I would give this a full four stars...as it is ★★★ and 3/4.
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting review content. Thank you.
Unknown to her, Scotland Yard has already taken an interest in the form of Detective-Inspector Raikes. He and local Superintendent Lecky listen seriously to her concerns and start investigation in earnest, but they soon have a very definite murder on their hands--that of Miss Tidy. Further investigation reveals a web of blackmail, greed, hatred, and buried secrets, all providing numerous motives for Miss Tidy's death. Yes, there are plenty of suspects, but very little evidence to point out the guilty party. The detectives will have to dig up some of those old secrets before they will have enough to make their case.
One item I noticed that reflects only indirectly on the crime is that Dorothy Bowers had a great deal to say about women and how they operate in the world. She appears to represent the standard lines of "women aren't logical;" "women are such gossips;" "women will spread things they only think are true or might be..." This is indicated by a number of the quotes I gleaned and have listed below.
This was an enjoyable vintage mystery. I enjoyed the village setting and the characters that Bowers created for us. I will say that even if I had recognized the clue mentioned in the spoiler above for what it was, I don't see how I could have known the motive behind the murder. There is a very slender hint given, but I don't feel about it as I do with many good plots--where once the mystery is wrapped up, I say "Oh yes--so that's what that meant." If the motive had been more clearly indicated, I would give this a full four stars...as it is ★★★ and 3/4.
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting review content. Thank you.
January 29, 2023
This book, like all 5 of Dorothy Bowers' novels, suffers from an abundance of ugly covers. I was lucky enough to snag a 2nd reprint of the first edition from my local bookstore which has a much nicer cover but isn't in the GR database.
I became fascinated by this very mysterious writer after the latest Shedunnit podcast episode and grabbed this copy of her last novel. I thoroughly enjoyed it and found the writing, the characters and the plot to be quite sophisticated. I guessed the murderer at about three quarters of the way but couldn’t be sure to the very end. I completely agree with the podcast that Dorothy’s strength is characterisation but the plot was pretty tight too.
I agree about the novel having an “edge”, too. There’s a sharpness there but I wouldn’t call it un-cosy, or gritty. Thinking about the cosy factor while reading The Bells, I was reminded of Agatha Christie’s Sad Cypress - I think on the cosiness scale they would sit next to each other. It's a more realistic portrayal of the fall out from a murder in a community than your average Golden Age mystery, or even a modern cosy.
One of the most enjoyable aspects for me what the sheer number of contemporary (this book was published in 1948) pop culture and literary references that are sprinkled throughout. I googled a fair few while reading.
Not much is known about Dorothy Bowers' personal life (or even what she looked like), she never married and there's no evidence left of her having had any romantic relationships, except for her having left her house in her will to her lodger... There are several scenes in this book between married couples that are romantic in a mundane, ordinary way that made me sure that Dorothy was no stranger to romantic relationships. Again, they were written in a very natural way, not coy, not soppy, not over the top, just a couple of sentences but very expressive.
I'm on a mission to read the other 4 of her books now.
I became fascinated by this very mysterious writer after the latest Shedunnit podcast episode and grabbed this copy of her last novel. I thoroughly enjoyed it and found the writing, the characters and the plot to be quite sophisticated. I guessed the murderer at about three quarters of the way but couldn’t be sure to the very end. I completely agree with the podcast that Dorothy’s strength is characterisation but the plot was pretty tight too.
I agree about the novel having an “edge”, too. There’s a sharpness there but I wouldn’t call it un-cosy, or gritty. Thinking about the cosy factor while reading The Bells, I was reminded of Agatha Christie’s Sad Cypress - I think on the cosiness scale they would sit next to each other. It's a more realistic portrayal of the fall out from a murder in a community than your average Golden Age mystery, or even a modern cosy.
One of the most enjoyable aspects for me what the sheer number of contemporary (this book was published in 1948) pop culture and literary references that are sprinkled throughout. I googled a fair few while reading.
Not much is known about Dorothy Bowers' personal life (or even what she looked like), she never married and there's no evidence left of her having had any romantic relationships, except for her having left her house in her will to her lodger... There are several scenes in this book between married couples that are romantic in a mundane, ordinary way that made me sure that Dorothy was no stranger to romantic relationships. Again, they were written in a very natural way, not coy, not soppy, not over the top, just a couple of sentences but very expressive.
I'm on a mission to read the other 4 of her books now.
January 31, 2015
Moves at a very slow pace but with an interesting depiction of the complexities of life in small-town England immediately after the second world war. I could have done without the regular asides about just how silly women are, though. Like this one: "Whatever those two children might have done, feminine criticism would have inferred the worst. Women were made that way." Read it if you have a taste for vintage crime novels of a rather old-fashioned sort.
May 16, 2020
I enjoyed this English small town mystery, which seemed in many ways a classic British mystery, ala Miss Marple. It was perhaps more complex, with a multitude of point-of-view characters that needed some tracking. I like complex stories, so this was a plus for me rather than a detraction. The book was published in 1947, so few are likely to know of it. I found it on my shelf when I was culling my book collection, and decided to read it before passing it on. I'm glad I did. The book came from a used book sale, most likely, from the Larchmont Public Library in New York, and I have no idea how it came to be on my shelf. The story involves the disliked owner of a hat shop/beauty spa/tea shop business, neighbors and employees, whose stories all relate to a series of suicides followed by murders of the shop owner and one of her employees. As the detective looks into the crimes the stories of each of many characters is revealed, and all come together in a satisfactory ending. It is a good book and likely I would have read more by this writer. A fun device was the beginning of each chapter with a line from an old nursery rhyme, which ultimately figures in the story. It is a good and entertaining book, however, not a great book, and therefore I am giving it three stars, and I recommend it for lovers of Agatha Christie.
January 30, 2020
A rash of suicides, anonymous letters, a queer setup at the Minerva, blackmail and then more deaths. Another mystery from Bowers' pen continues on with oppressive atmosphere and insidious overtones on how blackmail can play havoc on so many lives. This reminds me a bit of Christianna Brand, with the relationship of the Minerva girls like the young women in Death in High Heels. Raikes and Lecky's discussions and theorising get tedious at times but the last few chapters were fast-paced and gripping enough.
January 29, 2019
An excellent final book by this underrated author. I took longer than usual to read it, as I did not want my acquaintance with Dorothy Bowers to end.
Although CI Pardoe and DS Salt are dropped in favour of the more glamorous DI Raikes, this by no means diminishes the quality of the investigation of two murders and a series of suicides. The writing is excellent and the characters are finely-delineated. There is none of the purple prose which tended to intrude in the earliest novels, and plenty of tart comments, often, surprisingly, at the expense of women, although the men are not spared entirely. Two authors feature, and I wonder if the slightly sardonic portrayals of a "mystery" and of a "literary" writer were drawn from life.
There are well-placed red herring and some subtle misdirection. I admit to being fooled right to the end-a somewhat unusual occurrence.
This is a must-read.
Highly recommended.
4.5 stars.
Although CI Pardoe and DS Salt are dropped in favour of the more glamorous DI Raikes, this by no means diminishes the quality of the investigation of two murders and a series of suicides. The writing is excellent and the characters are finely-delineated. There is none of the purple prose which tended to intrude in the earliest novels, and plenty of tart comments, often, surprisingly, at the expense of women, although the men are not spared entirely. Two authors feature, and I wonder if the slightly sardonic portrayals of a "mystery" and of a "literary" writer were drawn from life.
There are well-placed red herring and some subtle misdirection. I admit to being fooled right to the end-a somewhat unusual occurrence.
This is a must-read.
Highly recommended.
4.5 stars.
February 11, 2023
I have to give a 5-star review to a book which kept me reading until 1 o'clock in the morning!
The story is set partly in a cathedral town where the streets are so old and narrow that the upper stories of houses nearly touch each other. They are occupied by crabby old ladies and their employees, a group of young 'shop-girls'. Other parts of the story are set in a village with some equally crabby inhabitants.
There have already been several unexplained deaths as the story begins, and when the characters start openly bumping each other off the story speeds up.
The story is set partly in a cathedral town where the streets are so old and narrow that the upper stories of houses nearly touch each other. They are occupied by crabby old ladies and their employees, a group of young 'shop-girls'. Other parts of the story are set in a village with some equally crabby inhabitants.
There have already been several unexplained deaths as the story begins, and when the characters start openly bumping each other off the story speeds up.
April 15, 2025
A good, solid, entertaining Whodunnit from a forgotten writer.
Bertha Tidy is found strangled in her business premises: a cafe-hatshop-beauty parlour. There are a range unpleasant suspects and the uncovering of many secrets. The murder follows five recent suicides in the town and the subsequent investigation incorporates all of these as well as Tidy's murder.
It's good fun and interesting in a Midsomer Murders kind of way. Recommended.
Bertha Tidy is found strangled in her business premises: a cafe-hatshop-beauty parlour. There are a range unpleasant suspects and the uncovering of many secrets. The murder follows five recent suicides in the town and the subsequent investigation incorporates all of these as well as Tidy's murder.
It's good fun and interesting in a Midsomer Murders kind of way. Recommended.
January 29, 2025
An enjoyable read by an author who, in my opinion, didn’t write to the familiar formula of “golden age” detective fiction. The characters were not the cosy figures of many novels, I was especially struck by the rub between the Scotland Yard Inspector and the Ravenchurch superintendent. Usually in such novels the local police are pleased to pass cases to Scotland Yard, not so in this case! A refreshingly different novel, very enjoyable.
April 24, 2018
The best book by this autor.
January 26, 2016
This was an excellent read! Many red herrings, very convincing ones too that make you uncertain when you think you have it all figured out. The village of Ravenchurch was a typical English village and it's Superintendent Lecky was loath to think any of 'his' people could do such terrible things. But in reality Ravenchurch became a pool of hateful, mean people!
Delicious secrets, blackmail, nymphomania (yes, in a 1947 book!) greed, hatred and murder. Two of the quirky characters were Mrs. Weaver the bookshop owner and Miss Beaton the mystery novelist, my favorite character of course!
Delicious secrets, blackmail, nymphomania (yes, in a 1947 book!) greed, hatred and murder. Two of the quirky characters were Mrs. Weaver the bookshop owner and Miss Beaton the mystery novelist, my favorite character of course!
May 29, 2013
Miss Bertha Tidy owns a successful millinery, hairdressing salon and tea room, but the recent outbreak of suicides locally has her uneasy. She finally decides to go to the police with some anonymous letters she's received, telling them that the suicides are really cleverly disguised murders. Although the police suspect her of having written the letters herself, they're forced to reconsider when she's found obviously murdered.
November 4, 2019
Found this rather tricky to read. But that is probably more my failing than the author’s.
February 11, 2012
A good mystery that has plenty of suspects and plays fair with the readers, well worth the read.
Want to Read
April 17, 2019Synopsis: Miss Tidy decided to call Scotland Yard after the fifth death in Long Greeting, but only because her own security was imperilled.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews