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Maggie Byrnes #1
Murder in the Telephone Exchange
First published in 1948, when it was the best-selling mystery of the year in the author’s native Australia, Murder in the Telephone Exchange stars feisty young operator Maggie Byrnes. When one of her more unpopular colleagues is murdered — her head bashed in with a "buttinsky,” a piece of equipment used to listen in on phone calls — Maggie resolves to turn sleuth. Some of her coworkers are acting strangely, and Maggie is convinced she has a better chance of figuring out who is responsible for the killing than the rather stolid police team assigned to the case, who seem to think she herself might have had something to do with it. But then one of her friends is murdered too, and it looks like Maggie might be next. Narrated with verve and wit, this is a whodunit in the tradition of Dorothy L. Sayers, by turns entertaining and suspenseful, and building to a gripping climax.
Hardcover
First published January 1, 1948
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168 people want to read
About the author
June Wright
9 books5 followersJune Wright (1919-2012) was the Australian author of six detective stories (plus one posthumously published), the last three featuring Mother Paul. Born in Melbourne, where most of her books are set, she had begun her writing career by winning a competition run by a London publisher. This ensured the publication of her first book, Murder in the Telephone Exchange in 1948. She herself had been working in a telephone exchange for four years. She was the mother of six children. Her last novel was published in 1966. She then retired from writing to help her husband with his business.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 48 reviews
December 27, 2015
There’s a wealth of experience underpinning this novel, and that sets it on very firm foundations.
June Wright showed a talent for writing at a very young age; she worked for a while as a telephonist at the Central Telephone Exchange in Melbourne; and she wrote this, a first novel, when she was a young mother at home with her first baby. It was a critical and a commercial success, as were subsequent books, but in time they fell out of print.
I’m so glad that a smart new reprint caught my eye just in time for Australian Reading Month.
The story is told retrospectively by telephonist Maggie Byrnes, who is clearly struggling to come to terms with the crimes that happened at her workplace, and all of their consequences:
‘This is John’s idea, not mine. It will bear my reluctant signature and is a record of my impressions of the various incidents which occurred during the heat-wave of last February, but the inspiration is John’s. I think his suggestion sprang from the desire to give me something to do besides count the days for my stay in this shameful place to end.’
Late one night, after an evening shift, Maggie and her colleague and close friend, Mac, find a body in the rest room. Their monitor, Sarah Crompton, had been murdered. She was a manipulative and meddlesome woman, and there was no lack of suspects.
Maggie had seen someone pass Crompton a note earlier that day, and she has seen that the note profoundly disturbed her, but she hadn’t seen who had passed that note and she didn’t know what it had said or where it had gone. She was sure that she had seen something else too, something significant, but she couldn’t remember what it was.
The atmosphere at the telephone exchange changed, of course it did, and Maggie saw many signs that the murderer was not far away. Keys were not where they were supposed to be, someone was interfering with staff lockers; and certain of her colleagues seemed more than a little distracted.
It seemed though that the motive for the murder lay in the past: letters from twenty years earlier, when Crompton was a young telephonist, indicated that she had been involved in a scandal and that there would be lasting resentments.
The police were working hard on the case, but Maggie was aware that they didn’t have all of the facts. There were things that her friends had told her that they weren’t telling the police. And so she decided to do some investigating herself, with the help of her colleague and sometime romantic interest, Clark.
I liked Maggie. She was confident, she was opinionated, she was professional, she was loyal to her friends, and those friends knew that they could count on her to be honest and straightforward with them.
I hoped that she would find the answers that she was looking for, but I feared that she would run into trouble.
She found that the police were keeping a close eye on her. And that maybe the murderer was too.
There would be two more deaths.
June Wright constructed a very good story of suspense; she doesn’t play entirely fair, withholding significant information from the reader and playing fast and loose with police procedure, but it works well enough.
It works because the time and place, the people and relationships are so very well drawn. As she tells her story June Wright illuminates the lives of the telephonists, the work that they do and the lives that they lead. She brings the telephone exchange to life, and she uses her knowledge of the telephonists’ work, of the hierarchy of the telephone exchange, and of the procedures that they must follow to excellent effect as she tells her story.
The social history is every bit as interesting as the mystery.
It works because the characterisation is right, the narrative voice is right, and the atmosphere is pitch perfect.
I was particularly taken with Maggie’s landlady; and with the skill of the telephonists as they worked their boards and dealt with their callers.
I worked out who the murderer must be; and why the spirited Maggie Byrnes who set out to solve the mystery became the troubled woman who set down her account of events; but still I wanted to follow the story to the end, to learn all of the details and to learn exactly how events played out.
The pace had been steady – and there were times when the book could have easily stood a little more editing – but the ending was wonderfully dramatic.
June Wright showed a talent for writing at a very young age; she worked for a while as a telephonist at the Central Telephone Exchange in Melbourne; and she wrote this, a first novel, when she was a young mother at home with her first baby. It was a critical and a commercial success, as were subsequent books, but in time they fell out of print.
I’m so glad that a smart new reprint caught my eye just in time for Australian Reading Month.
The story is told retrospectively by telephonist Maggie Byrnes, who is clearly struggling to come to terms with the crimes that happened at her workplace, and all of their consequences:
‘This is John’s idea, not mine. It will bear my reluctant signature and is a record of my impressions of the various incidents which occurred during the heat-wave of last February, but the inspiration is John’s. I think his suggestion sprang from the desire to give me something to do besides count the days for my stay in this shameful place to end.’
Late one night, after an evening shift, Maggie and her colleague and close friend, Mac, find a body in the rest room. Their monitor, Sarah Crompton, had been murdered. She was a manipulative and meddlesome woman, and there was no lack of suspects.
Maggie had seen someone pass Crompton a note earlier that day, and she has seen that the note profoundly disturbed her, but she hadn’t seen who had passed that note and she didn’t know what it had said or where it had gone. She was sure that she had seen something else too, something significant, but she couldn’t remember what it was.
The atmosphere at the telephone exchange changed, of course it did, and Maggie saw many signs that the murderer was not far away. Keys were not where they were supposed to be, someone was interfering with staff lockers; and certain of her colleagues seemed more than a little distracted.
It seemed though that the motive for the murder lay in the past: letters from twenty years earlier, when Crompton was a young telephonist, indicated that she had been involved in a scandal and that there would be lasting resentments.
The police were working hard on the case, but Maggie was aware that they didn’t have all of the facts. There were things that her friends had told her that they weren’t telling the police. And so she decided to do some investigating herself, with the help of her colleague and sometime romantic interest, Clark.
I liked Maggie. She was confident, she was opinionated, she was professional, she was loyal to her friends, and those friends knew that they could count on her to be honest and straightforward with them.
I hoped that she would find the answers that she was looking for, but I feared that she would run into trouble.
She found that the police were keeping a close eye on her. And that maybe the murderer was too.
There would be two more deaths.
June Wright constructed a very good story of suspense; she doesn’t play entirely fair, withholding significant information from the reader and playing fast and loose with police procedure, but it works well enough.
It works because the time and place, the people and relationships are so very well drawn. As she tells her story June Wright illuminates the lives of the telephonists, the work that they do and the lives that they lead. She brings the telephone exchange to life, and she uses her knowledge of the telephonists’ work, of the hierarchy of the telephone exchange, and of the procedures that they must follow to excellent effect as she tells her story.
The social history is every bit as interesting as the mystery.
It works because the characterisation is right, the narrative voice is right, and the atmosphere is pitch perfect.
I was particularly taken with Maggie’s landlady; and with the skill of the telephonists as they worked their boards and dealt with their callers.
I worked out who the murderer must be; and why the spirited Maggie Byrnes who set out to solve the mystery became the troubled woman who set down her account of events; but still I wanted to follow the story to the end, to learn all of the details and to learn exactly how events played out.
The pace had been steady – and there were times when the book could have easily stood a little more editing – but the ending was wonderfully dramatic.
May 10, 2021
Since When Did "Feisty" Become Synonymous with Disrespectful and Rude?
I don't understand how this book has such glowing reviews - mostly on Goodreads. While it starts out fun and interesting (though in need of a strong editor), by the middle it became a slog, and once I finally hit the end it was both too much and not enough.
While she was somewhat insufferable to start, by the end of the novel I loathed Maggie. Both as a character and a protagonist. The last four chapters or so were a borderline hate read. I kept trudging along because I wanted to find out what happened to the final victim, one of the few characters I liked.
I really enjoyed the era and location, and would love to read more set in either the 40s/50s or Australia. Though I'm not sure being set in Australia added much to the story beyond weather and scenery filler, in the end. Though ... there is at least one clue that's dependent on weather. It also does make me want to research things like boarding house living, and early telephone technology.
My biggest two issues are: 1) this book is too long. Easily fifty pages too long. The author (and, by extension) Maggie spend a large portion of the novel repeating herself. Sometimes two or three times, in order to catch characters up with the plot. Which is annoying as a reader, because I already know what's happened. Summarize, for God's sake. I can't decide of Wright forgot, didn't trust her readers to follow, or just needed a bigger word count. But sweet mother of God!
2) Maggie herself becomes incredibly hard to give a sh*t about by the third act. I wanted to keep curse words out of this review, but that's the frankest way I can say it. I didn't give a d*mn about her in the end. She's so certain that she's so clever, more-so than the police, her best-friend, than everyone. She treats people whom she should respect - bare minimum - like dirt. Calls her own mother by her first name through the entire book. Calls her father "old man". Talks shit about her boss, looks down on fellow coworkers, and is even wildly jealous of her best-friend at times. There were so many rude, unnecessary uses of "Shut up!" in the first few chapters, I almost quit reading. She's not a nice person, yet she thinks she's better than everyone around her, and they should be so impressed by her wit and charm. She's a bratty little b*tch who thinks she's a grown woman.
And of course, when it all shakes out and the culprit is revealed, Maggie suddenly just knew and of course she no longer likes the person, even though she's been fawning over them for most of the f*cking book. While there are quite a few interesting twists and characters I like (Mac, Patterson, Dan, Matherson, Charlotte) the reveal of the murderer was no surprise. Said character was constantly thrust into scenes they shouldn't have been in, if Wright was attempting to be subtle about it. And there were at least two events I can think of where they were obviously guilty.
I will say there was two surprises, I anticipated one character being pregnant, and they were not. I did not noodle out the killer's exact motivations until the end. I assumed it was - at least impart - due to an affair, but it was not.
Sorry this review is so messy, I'm just rather annoyed that I wasted ten hours on this. Also, unless you want to be severely let down, don't read the beginning history until you've finished. While the history behind the publication is interesting, I think it vastly oversells the finished product. They even try to put it in the same class as Agatha Christie, which it is not.
Lastly, I know a previous reviewer said there was a "low-key" lesbian in this book, which I just did not see. I do wonder if this is a case of changing times and seeing what one wants to see, because if I was looking for LGBT books and got a low-key lesbian non-plot, I'd be p*ssed that someone wasted my time.
Update, 5/9/2021: Having just read Murder on the Orient Express for the first time, in about four hours, I can assure you this is nothing like Agatha Christie. Nothing. Christie knows how to get to a damn point. The writing is crisp, effective, and entertaining. With very little fiddle-faddle to get in the way. I'd call it lean, in the sense that everything matters without being overwrought. This is not Agatha Christie at all.
I don't understand how this book has such glowing reviews - mostly on Goodreads. While it starts out fun and interesting (though in need of a strong editor), by the middle it became a slog, and once I finally hit the end it was both too much and not enough.
While she was somewhat insufferable to start, by the end of the novel I loathed Maggie. Both as a character and a protagonist. The last four chapters or so were a borderline hate read. I kept trudging along because I wanted to find out what happened to the final victim, one of the few characters I liked.
I really enjoyed the era and location, and would love to read more set in either the 40s/50s or Australia. Though I'm not sure being set in Australia added much to the story beyond weather and scenery filler, in the end. Though ... there is at least one clue that's dependent on weather. It also does make me want to research things like boarding house living, and early telephone technology.
My biggest two issues are: 1) this book is too long. Easily fifty pages too long. The author (and, by extension) Maggie spend a large portion of the novel repeating herself. Sometimes two or three times, in order to catch characters up with the plot. Which is annoying as a reader, because I already know what's happened. Summarize, for God's sake. I can't decide of Wright forgot, didn't trust her readers to follow, or just needed a bigger word count. But sweet mother of God!
2) Maggie herself becomes incredibly hard to give a sh*t about by the third act. I wanted to keep curse words out of this review, but that's the frankest way I can say it. I didn't give a d*mn about her in the end. She's so certain that she's so clever, more-so than the police, her best-friend, than everyone. She treats people whom she should respect - bare minimum - like dirt. Calls her own mother by her first name through the entire book. Calls her father "old man". Talks shit about her boss, looks down on fellow coworkers, and is even wildly jealous of her best-friend at times. There were so many rude, unnecessary uses of "Shut up!" in the first few chapters, I almost quit reading. She's not a nice person, yet she thinks she's better than everyone around her, and they should be so impressed by her wit and charm. She's a bratty little b*tch who thinks she's a grown woman.
And of course, when it all shakes out and the culprit is revealed, Maggie suddenly just knew and of course she no longer likes the person, even though she's been fawning over them for most of the f*cking book. While there are quite a few interesting twists and characters I like (Mac, Patterson, Dan, Matherson, Charlotte) the reveal of the murderer was no surprise. Said character was constantly thrust into scenes they shouldn't have been in, if Wright was attempting to be subtle about it. And there were at least two events I can think of where they were obviously guilty.
I will say there was two surprises, I anticipated one character being pregnant, and they were not. I did not noodle out the killer's exact motivations until the end. I assumed it was - at least impart - due to an affair, but it was not.
Sorry this review is so messy, I'm just rather annoyed that I wasted ten hours on this. Also, unless you want to be severely let down, don't read the beginning history until you've finished. While the history behind the publication is interesting, I think it vastly oversells the finished product. They even try to put it in the same class as Agatha Christie, which it is not.
Lastly, I know a previous reviewer said there was a "low-key" lesbian in this book, which I just did not see. I do wonder if this is a case of changing times and seeing what one wants to see, because if I was looking for LGBT books and got a low-key lesbian non-plot, I'd be p*ssed that someone wasted my time.
Update, 5/9/2021: Having just read Murder on the Orient Express for the first time, in about four hours, I can assure you this is nothing like Agatha Christie. Nothing. Christie knows how to get to a damn point. The writing is crisp, effective, and entertaining. With very little fiddle-faddle to get in the way. I'd call it lean, in the sense that everything matters without being overwrought. This is not Agatha Christie at all.
September 7, 2020
Murder in the Telephone Exchange is an Australian historical crime mystery. One night one of Maggie Byrnes colleague was murdered. At first, Maggie Byrnes was suspect number one until the death of her best friend. Not trusting law enforcement officer sign to the case Maggie Byrnes decided to investigate the deaths herself. The readers of Murder in the Telephone Exchange will continue to follow Maggie Byrnes to find out what happens.
Murder in the Telephone Exchange was the first book I had read of June Wright. I enjoyed reading Murder in the Telephone Exchange. I engaged with the plot of this book from the first page. I like June Wright writing style that allows me to laugh with what the characters. I love June Wright portrayal of her characters and the way they intertwine with each other throughout this book. I like the way June Wright describes her settings of Murder in the Telephone Exchange that allowed me to imagine working at the Sydney telephone exchange in 1948.
The readers of Murder in the Telephone Exchange will learn about the role of a switchboard operator. Also, The readers of Murder in the Telephone Exchange will learn about living in Sydney during the 1940s.
I recommend this book.
Murder in the Telephone Exchange was the first book I had read of June Wright. I enjoyed reading Murder in the Telephone Exchange. I engaged with the plot of this book from the first page. I like June Wright writing style that allows me to laugh with what the characters. I love June Wright portrayal of her characters and the way they intertwine with each other throughout this book. I like the way June Wright describes her settings of Murder in the Telephone Exchange that allowed me to imagine working at the Sydney telephone exchange in 1948.
The readers of Murder in the Telephone Exchange will learn about the role of a switchboard operator. Also, The readers of Murder in the Telephone Exchange will learn about living in Sydney during the 1940s.
I recommend this book.
May 2, 2014
Before any rumours get started, when I read MURDER IN THE TELEPHONE EXCHANGE many years ago, it wasn't quite as far back as 1948! No idea where that copy sadly disappeared to, but the book was one of those Golden Era, mostly by female author's books that got me started on a life long love of Crime Fiction. Particularly if it has a very strong sense of place and time.
Which is something you really get from MURDER IN THE TELEPHONE EXCHANGE. For a start June Wright had worked in a telephone exchange herself, so she knew the "mechanics" of how the systems worked; and she obviously was a keen observer of her fellow workers, as she has been able to put together some excellent characterisations in this book. Given this was also her debut novel it's remarkably competent on a number of levels.
Of course, it is one of those Golden Era novels which means it's considerably more wordy and mannered than books written these days. There's also quite a strong sense of 1940's sensibility - with young working women seemingly focused on catching a husband, and much whispering behind hands about any "spinster's" in the group. What's less expected is an illicit love affair. Not that that sort of thing never went on, but it was quite surprising to come across even the suggestion of such in a book of this era. But there's a lot about this book that feels real and seems quite brave for the time. Of course that's combined with touches of the technicalities of how those exchanges worked which, for this reader, was actually quite interesting, as was the whole idea of so much work based facilities - canteens, sleeping facilities and so on. (Even in my early working days we were down to the twice daily tea lady only!)
The saddest part of the republishing of MURDER IN THE TELEPHONE EXCHANGE really has to be how long it's taken. June Wright's books deserve a considerably wider audience and really should be part of the whole Golden Era consideration. It's always amazed this reader just how much local crime fiction has been written, over such a long period of time and how much of it has slipped from notice - particularly, it seems, that of many of our female writers.
Dark Passage / Verse Chorus Press are republishing a range of June Wright's books - starting out with MURDER IN THE TELEPHONE EXCHANGE, followed, also in 2014 by a previously unpublished book DUCK SEASON DEATH. From there her remaining five Mother Paul books are scheduled to appear over the next two years. Hopefully this is the beginning of a resurgence of interest in both June Wright's writing, and in many of our other Golden Era writers who have slipped from the radar.
http://www.austcrimefiction.org/revie...
Which is something you really get from MURDER IN THE TELEPHONE EXCHANGE. For a start June Wright had worked in a telephone exchange herself, so she knew the "mechanics" of how the systems worked; and she obviously was a keen observer of her fellow workers, as she has been able to put together some excellent characterisations in this book. Given this was also her debut novel it's remarkably competent on a number of levels.
Of course, it is one of those Golden Era novels which means it's considerably more wordy and mannered than books written these days. There's also quite a strong sense of 1940's sensibility - with young working women seemingly focused on catching a husband, and much whispering behind hands about any "spinster's" in the group. What's less expected is an illicit love affair. Not that that sort of thing never went on, but it was quite surprising to come across even the suggestion of such in a book of this era. But there's a lot about this book that feels real and seems quite brave for the time. Of course that's combined with touches of the technicalities of how those exchanges worked which, for this reader, was actually quite interesting, as was the whole idea of so much work based facilities - canteens, sleeping facilities and so on. (Even in my early working days we were down to the twice daily tea lady only!)
The saddest part of the republishing of MURDER IN THE TELEPHONE EXCHANGE really has to be how long it's taken. June Wright's books deserve a considerably wider audience and really should be part of the whole Golden Era consideration. It's always amazed this reader just how much local crime fiction has been written, over such a long period of time and how much of it has slipped from notice - particularly, it seems, that of many of our female writers.
Dark Passage / Verse Chorus Press are republishing a range of June Wright's books - starting out with MURDER IN THE TELEPHONE EXCHANGE, followed, also in 2014 by a previously unpublished book DUCK SEASON DEATH. From there her remaining five Mother Paul books are scheduled to appear over the next two years. Hopefully this is the beginning of a resurgence of interest in both June Wright's writing, and in many of our other Golden Era writers who have slipped from the radar.
http://www.austcrimefiction.org/revie...
October 4, 2021
This was the darkest mystery story I've ever read. I had to force myself to finish reading it. While I liked some aspects of it, the darkness and dystopic feel for the main character's work environment was soul sucking and so it was difficult to like. I felt like I was reading yucky tasting medicine. You know it's good for you, but it tastes lousy going down. I am glad I finished it though. The first thing I didn't like was that you knew that the main character was either in jail or in a mental hosptital when the book began so the story was essentially told in a flashback format and you had to wait until the last chapter to finally learn in which place the main character ended up. I felt that left the reader with a bad vibe from the get-go.
June 17, 2015
If, like me, all you know about this book before reading it is that it supposedly outsold Agatha Christie in Australia the year it was published, let me present you with the theory that this phenomenon owed way more to the novelty of the setting than the quality of the writing. Agatha Christie she ain't. But this setting - a 1940s Melbourne telephone exchange - really does carry it surprisingly far, as does the satisfyingly brassy protagonist, and it's a fun and totally serviceable mediocre murder mystery.
January 27, 2018
I know that June Wright’s books are going to have some reprints, so I decided to see if there were any in the library and this one was there. Probably her most popular one, as well as her first book. If you are a fan of hers keep your eye out for them.
Back to the review:
The writing is contemporary in feel - “breezy” would be a good way of putting it. The beginning and last 100 pages were quite absorbing but the middle was muddled by enormous amounts of dialogue and not enough discovery. I was sad that she had not seemed to have had help of an editor as her work could have lasted in the popular sphere a bit longer if the storyline was enlarged and the chit chat was cut away. I did scan a bit through these sections. Interesting enough though, the story contained mostly women, and women who were working and independent so that was a nice change of pace. While many would want to be married it didn’t seem that that was the one and only way. Was nice to see this in a story of this time, where the romance angle was prevalent.
One of the strong points of Wright’s writing was how visceral and real the environment felt. You really had a working understanding of the exchange, the clothing, the landscape, the places and people. She did well at making you feel you were there in the story.
Great characters, and interestingly enough, I found that I felt cheated by the murderer and reasons. Though at the time the reason would probably have been topical, now it feels like it is a bit strained.
Another interesting part of the story was that it took place during winter time in Australia, and the deadly heat was talked about all the time. Now that I know people currently in Australia, I get to hear about the horrible winter heat in much the same manner.
Back to the review:
The writing is contemporary in feel - “breezy” would be a good way of putting it. The beginning and last 100 pages were quite absorbing but the middle was muddled by enormous amounts of dialogue and not enough discovery. I was sad that she had not seemed to have had help of an editor as her work could have lasted in the popular sphere a bit longer if the storyline was enlarged and the chit chat was cut away. I did scan a bit through these sections. Interesting enough though, the story contained mostly women, and women who were working and independent so that was a nice change of pace. While many would want to be married it didn’t seem that that was the one and only way. Was nice to see this in a story of this time, where the romance angle was prevalent.
One of the strong points of Wright’s writing was how visceral and real the environment felt. You really had a working understanding of the exchange, the clothing, the landscape, the places and people. She did well at making you feel you were there in the story.
Great characters, and interestingly enough, I found that I felt cheated by the murderer and reasons. Though at the time the reason would probably have been topical, now it feels like it is a bit strained.
Another interesting part of the story was that it took place during winter time in Australia, and the deadly heat was talked about all the time. Now that I know people currently in Australia, I get to hear about the horrible winter heat in much the same manner.
September 11, 2021
When browsing mysteries I discovered this mystery by June Wright and was instantly reminded of the captivating drama titled "Cable Girls" that I watched last year on Netflix, set in Madrid in the 1920s sharing the story of 4 women working at The National Telephone Company. As I was reading the mystery I visualized the architecture of the building used for "Cable Girls" as the exterior and interior were quite exquisite.
I would encourage every reader to enjoy the "Preface" to learn more about June Wright and I also found it rewarding to read the "Preface" again after enjoying the mystery. It came as no surprise that the author was once a telephonist at the Central Telephone Exchange in Melbourne. The intricate details that added the most intrigue were not only the mechanics of the operations but clearly understanding and conveying the "dance" of alternating shift schedules from daytime to nighttime as well as the individual that was designated to cover so coworkers could take their breaks to how the different personalities of women working together are reflected in how they respond to one another.
The author's favorite detective novel was written by Dorothy L. Sayers so it is also no surprise that June Wright's first crime novel reflects the same writing style. There were a few times that I felt the mystery could have been shorter as I didn't need sleuth Maggie Byrnes to repeat the history of her "findings to date" when only a little tidbit of information was added. But it also became easy to gloss over as it was simply part of the author's portrayal of the character with this repetitive aspect of mulling things over to be part of Maggie's investigative technique to solve the various questions that would lead her to the answers needed for means, motive, and opportunity. After all, it was the author's first detective novel and therefore Maggie's first time as an amateur sleuth.
I would encourage every reader to enjoy the "Preface" to learn more about June Wright and I also found it rewarding to read the "Preface" again after enjoying the mystery. It came as no surprise that the author was once a telephonist at the Central Telephone Exchange in Melbourne. The intricate details that added the most intrigue were not only the mechanics of the operations but clearly understanding and conveying the "dance" of alternating shift schedules from daytime to nighttime as well as the individual that was designated to cover so coworkers could take their breaks to how the different personalities of women working together are reflected in how they respond to one another.
The author's favorite detective novel was written by Dorothy L. Sayers so it is also no surprise that June Wright's first crime novel reflects the same writing style. There were a few times that I felt the mystery could have been shorter as I didn't need sleuth Maggie Byrnes to repeat the history of her "findings to date" when only a little tidbit of information was added. But it also became easy to gloss over as it was simply part of the author's portrayal of the character with this repetitive aspect of mulling things over to be part of Maggie's investigative technique to solve the various questions that would lead her to the answers needed for means, motive, and opportunity. After all, it was the author's first detective novel and therefore Maggie's first time as an amateur sleuth.
July 1, 2019
Suffers from "first novel syndrome," i.e. way overly complex. But I enjoyed the writing and will read the next one.
January 8, 2020
This has a great plot but was clumsy - maybe due to the time it was written or the difference in vocabulary, cultural norms, etc.
There was a lot about the operation of the phone system, but some of the terms were a bit difficult to determine what she was referring to.
I am never happy when a character reveals their thoughts, and then repeats them to others as well. Maybe editing has changed over the years as well.
I borrowed a copy from the public library.
There was a lot about the operation of the phone system, but some of the terms were a bit difficult to determine what she was referring to.
I am never happy when a character reveals their thoughts, and then repeats them to others as well. Maybe editing has changed over the years as well.
I borrowed a copy from the public library.
April 7, 2019
For my full review click on the link below:
https://crossexaminingcrime.wordpress...
https://crossexaminingcrime.wordpress...
September 8, 2019
MURDER IN THE TELEPHONE EXCHANGE, June Wright, 1948
Set in Australia during the 1940's, Maggie Byrnes is a telephonist (what we would today call a telephone operator). The murder takes place in the telephone exchange building, with the entire cast of suspects centered in that building--sort of the traditional manor-house mystery set in a business atmosphere. The author was a telephonist earlier in her life, so I guess you could say she wrote what she knew. There is perhaps more information about the system behind routing phone calls than a reader might want to know, but I found it interesting and different than what I had seen in movies and TV shows. The novel is very long, and not an easy read, but it held my interest throughout. Red herrings are scattered quite freely, as we look at first one, then another of Maggie's co-workers with suspicion, with several of them, including Maggie's best friend, acting a bit strange. Maggie herself is a bit hard to like, as she seems rather critical at times, and not very sympathetic. The policeman in charge of the case warns her to tell all she knows so as not to put herself in danger, but even when she finally sees the wisdom of his words, she still goes ahead and investigates by herself. I really enjoyed the character of Maggie's mother, but the other characters could have been fleshed out a bit better. Only a few of them stood out from the crowd, and a couple of times I had trouble remembering just who a character was. All in all though, a well-plotted, well-written mystery.
Set in Australia during the 1940's, Maggie Byrnes is a telephonist (what we would today call a telephone operator). The murder takes place in the telephone exchange building, with the entire cast of suspects centered in that building--sort of the traditional manor-house mystery set in a business atmosphere. The author was a telephonist earlier in her life, so I guess you could say she wrote what she knew. There is perhaps more information about the system behind routing phone calls than a reader might want to know, but I found it interesting and different than what I had seen in movies and TV shows. The novel is very long, and not an easy read, but it held my interest throughout. Red herrings are scattered quite freely, as we look at first one, then another of Maggie's co-workers with suspicion, with several of them, including Maggie's best friend, acting a bit strange. Maggie herself is a bit hard to like, as she seems rather critical at times, and not very sympathetic. The policeman in charge of the case warns her to tell all she knows so as not to put herself in danger, but even when she finally sees the wisdom of his words, she still goes ahead and investigates by herself. I really enjoyed the character of Maggie's mother, but the other characters could have been fleshed out a bit better. Only a few of them stood out from the crowd, and a couple of times I had trouble remembering just who a character was. All in all though, a well-plotted, well-written mystery.
July 15, 2017
I added this to my LGBT shelf, but
I've been wanting to read this for a few years now, but I've just never gotten around to it. Since Netflix's Cable Girls was such an utter disappointment, I thought I'd fill the drama-at-a-telephone-company hole in my heart. Needless to say, this was a delightful mystery. It's not quite up there with Dame Agatha Christie (who is?), but I agree it's very Dorothy Sayers-ish. Despite it being written in 1948, it actually feels like a more modern story. The narrator, Maggie, is very pushy and something downright rude, but I found that that made her more likeable. Think Nancy Drew-come-Veronica Mars, only a twentysomething Aussie.
There were some interesting swings to the mystery, as well as some surprising red herrings, though I can't say that the mystery was necessarily that complex. I had my inklings as to who the murderer was the whole time, but I would have never guessed the motive.
I believe Wright was a pretty popular Aussie writer in her day (and surprisingly, she only just died in 2012!), and I would be interested to read more of her works.
I've been wanting to read this for a few years now, but I've just never gotten around to it. Since Netflix's Cable Girls was such an utter disappointment, I thought I'd fill the drama-at-a-telephone-company hole in my heart. Needless to say, this was a delightful mystery. It's not quite up there with Dame Agatha Christie (who is?), but I agree it's very Dorothy Sayers-ish. Despite it being written in 1948, it actually feels like a more modern story. The narrator, Maggie, is very pushy and something downright rude, but I found that that made her more likeable. Think Nancy Drew-come-Veronica Mars, only a twentysomething Aussie.
There were some interesting swings to the mystery, as well as some surprising red herrings, though I can't say that the mystery was necessarily that complex. I had my inklings as to who the murderer was the whole time, but I would have never guessed the motive.
I believe Wright was a pretty popular Aussie writer in her day (and surprisingly, she only just died in 2012!), and I would be interested to read more of her works.
June 5, 2018
This is a slow moving yet good murder mystery. The murder occurs in a Melbourne Central telephone exchange (in Victoria, Australia) in which young operator Maggie Byrnes works. It provides a good picture of what working in such a place was like in the mid 1940’s. When one of her more unpopular colleagues is murdered, Maggie decides to turn sleuth though the investigating police include her in much of their work. She witholds information from them making things more difficult for them and they know it. She is considered a possible suspect and things become more complicated when one of her friends is murdered too.
June 11, 2018
This was a really interesting murder mystery, written in the late 1940s and set in an Australian telephone exchange.
When Maggie finds one of her unpopular colleagues with her head smashed in, she finds herself drawn into the mystery - not just because she was the person who found the body, but because she's not sure that the police are on the right track. But soon the danger is increasing and someone else turns up dead.
I loved the setting, I liked Maggie, I though the mystery was clever and tense and packed with suspense. I've never read anything by June Wright before, but I would happily read more from her. And I really want to read more books set in exchanges now!
When Maggie finds one of her unpopular colleagues with her head smashed in, she finds herself drawn into the mystery - not just because she was the person who found the body, but because she's not sure that the police are on the right track. But soon the danger is increasing and someone else turns up dead.
I loved the setting, I liked Maggie, I though the mystery was clever and tense and packed with suspense. I've never read anything by June Wright before, but I would happily read more from her. And I really want to read more books set in exchanges now!
January 7, 2022
Eieieieie.....This was a great book trucking right along, good characters, plot roars right along....loved the setting of '50's Australia, then bam, Maggie starts explaining....and explaining....and explaining. Dear God, the last major chunck, she never shuts up and little happens but her talking.....and the plot completely sags. I finally had to cut to the chase, move into power skimming and ah, finally, the crisis and solving of the crime, whew!!!. It's the only reason I didn't give it 4 stars. Will I try to find the next one? Yes, I think so. So much of this one was fun, that I can only hope.........
June 28, 2024
I can't give this more than two, maybe 2.5 stars. I did enjoy the first 35% or so; it was interesting to learn the details about a telephone operator's work 70 years ago. My problem aside from the old "book within a book" trope was the foreshadowing, which wasn't just clunky--it rattled and banged, of the "if only I had/hadn't done/said this or that" kind and there was far too much of it, along with the constant repetition and talketty-talk from the first murder on. The main character, a girl in her twenties, turns into a bustling, nosy Marplesque figure sans knitting, triumphant that she knows all, and the constant recaps got on my nerves.
As for the final "reveals"--spare me. No wonder she ended up where she did, the wonder is they let her go home at all.
As for the final "reveals"--spare me. No wonder she ended up where she did, the wonder is they let her go home at all.
January 10, 2025
2.25 stars
Originally reviewed on The StoryGraph
Started promising, continued tediously, and the solution to the mystery felt very deus-ex-machina. I have a love/hate relationship with Maggie, the narrator - loved her voice and sass, hated her arrogance and self-centered-ness. Girlie wakes up in the 1940s talking much like we do today (seriously, did someone modernize the dialogue?) but also she just decided to play police detective and the actual police aren’t really bothered by her; in fact, they play into her assistance. Weird read, could’ve definitely used more editing to whittle down the length
Originally reviewed on The StoryGraph
Started promising, continued tediously, and the solution to the mystery felt very deus-ex-machina. I have a love/hate relationship with Maggie, the narrator - loved her voice and sass, hated her arrogance and self-centered-ness. Girlie wakes up in the 1940s talking much like we do today (seriously, did someone modernize the dialogue?) but also she just decided to play police detective and the actual police aren’t really bothered by her; in fact, they play into her assistance. Weird read, could’ve definitely used more editing to whittle down the length
December 1, 2020
This was a novel that I came across a reference to when I recently read a book about Melbourne and the literature that reflects it. I was pleased to find a copy of it in a local library. Written in 1948 I can see why this would have been a popular mystery novel at the time of its publication as it is written for a time and a place. While I found the descriptions of the locations and settings entertaining, I struggled with the writing style. I felt at times the plot became overly complicated and that Maggie was just too bold and brassy for my liking.
August 30, 2018
I picked up this book at a senior center exchange. Not being familiar with June Wright, but loving period writing I thought this looked promising. I am always ready for a great mystery. Despite lots of verbiage and slow reading in the middle, I enjoyed this murder mystery. I was not totally surprised "who dun it" as I picked the culprit when first introduced. However, the red herrings made the story interesting.
August 26, 2021
Honestly, it was too long, Maggie a little too convinced of her own rightness, and I figured out all the major plot twists in advance. But! I really like the way Wright sets her mysteries in these communities of women and even though there were at times too many details, the setting of the telephone exchange was really interesting. And not all of the deaths were entirely expected (just the culprit).
July 6, 2021
This book was given to me by a former colleague. It is a badly antiquated tale that holds no appeal for the modern reader. It may have been a sensation in its day, but today it just comes across as confusing, convoluted and over long. I definitely got my wires crossed trying to take it all in and was glad to hang up on this one forever. Consign this to the dustbin of history, not recommended.
June 10, 2021
Clever and pacy with an annoying interfering young woman who never gives up or does anything sensible. I liked her. Love the subtle glimpses of Melbourne as a city post WWII. Much better than I thought at the start.
July 6, 2025
Not bad for a first book. The setting was excellent, the characters all right, the mystery mediocre but serviceable. About 50 pages longer than it needed to be for the story to work. I'm wondering what later books by this author were like and will be picking up more of her works to find out.
July 20, 2017
I really enjoyed this book. I enjoyed June's 1st person style of writing. Each page had a twist.
December 31, 2019
A slow start, but a great finish.
February 17, 2021
An interesting mystery with details of the telephone exchange in Australia. It is kind of funny how the characters are disdainful of basketball.
May 7, 2022
The intricate details of working on a telephone exchange are amazing!
November 18, 2015
There are a few hints in the story about the time frame of this novel. It is set in Melbourne very definitely after World War One and very likely after World War Two, about the time of publication. The initial murder victim, Sarah Compton, is described as middle aged, and has been working at the telephone exchange since 1917. Many people have cause to hate her: she is greedy, grasping, and not above using people's secrets for blackmail.
The setting is the manual telephone exchange in Melbourne where Compton works as a monitor or supervisor. Hundreds of people, mainly girls and women, work here in shifts. The twenty four hour exchange controls telephone traffic in Melbourne and between Melbourne and the country side and other Australian cities. All connections are facilitated by a telephonist, written dockets are kept detailing time and length of calls as well as numbers. The system means that each phone call leaves an extensive paper trail. Despite frantic activity at some parts of the day, the telephonists also have the opportunity to listen in on calls, and in rural towns switchboard operators are often the source of the latest news and gossip.
I am just old enough to remember the time when not everyone had a telephone line to their house, when households shared 'party' lines, when you rang the operator requesting a number rather than dialing it yourself. At peak times there could be extensive delays in connecting calls, and even then there was a three minute limit on the length of the call.
The Melbourne exchange was huge, employing hundreds, and so this means there are a large number of suspects for Compton's brutal murder. Maggie Byrnes sees herself as a bit of a sleuth, but she is young, and not much of a judge of character. With a misguided sense of loyalty she withholds information from the investigating police with the result that another of the telephonists dies, and then another. Maggie herself is attacked as the police close in on their main suspect.
Despite a lot of muddying of the waters I managed to select the right candidate for murderer early on, but really wasn't sure of the motive. In the long run I thought the motive was a bit far fetched.
An interesting novel which I thought needed a bit of editing in the last half. I thought the denouement was rather long winded and some of the final reasons given could have been released as clues earlier on. Not bad for a debut novel though.
May 30, 2015
This is not a particularly brilliant murder mystery.
I am reminded of Josephine Tey's Inspector Grant, bedridden and reading books in The Daughter of Time: "The Case of the Missing Tin-opener, by John James Mark, had three errors of procedure in the first two pages, and had at least provided Grant with a pleasant five minutes while he composed an imaginary letter to its author." There is no way any police force would act the way that Wright's police do, not even in Melbourne in the 1940s.
And Wright doesn't play fair. All the way through the book the protagonist is aware that she has seen something important, and she just can't remember it. She has, of course, seen the murderer with the murder weapon. But I went back to check when she finally remembers what it is that she's seen - and Wright hadn't mentioned what the murderer was holding! These is no way that we readers could have solved the case because we didn't see what the protagonist did!
But what this is book is a wonderful piece of social history, and for that alone it's worth the read. Wright's inspiration, Dorothy L. Sayers, could justifiably have complained that Wright didn't obey the rules of the Detection Club, but her description of 1940s Melbourne, of the telephone exchange, and of the world of single working girls living in boarding houses is fascinating. This book gets four stars for taking me into that world.
I am reminded of Josephine Tey's Inspector Grant, bedridden and reading books in The Daughter of Time: "The Case of the Missing Tin-opener, by John James Mark, had three errors of procedure in the first two pages, and had at least provided Grant with a pleasant five minutes while he composed an imaginary letter to its author." There is no way any police force would act the way that Wright's police do, not even in Melbourne in the 1940s.
And Wright doesn't play fair. All the way through the book the protagonist is aware that she has seen something important, and she just can't remember it. She has, of course, seen the murderer with the murder weapon. But I went back to check when she finally remembers what it is that she's seen - and Wright hadn't mentioned what the murderer was holding! These is no way that we readers could have solved the case because we didn't see what the protagonist did!
But what this is book is a wonderful piece of social history, and for that alone it's worth the read. Wright's inspiration, Dorothy L. Sayers, could justifiably have complained that Wright didn't obey the rules of the Detection Club, but her description of 1940s Melbourne, of the telephone exchange, and of the world of single working girls living in boarding houses is fascinating. This book gets four stars for taking me into that world.
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