Murdering Ministers

Oliver Swithin #2

by Alan Beechey

"Filled with clever repartee, memorable characters, and an ending as satisfying as it is unexpected."—Booklist

What holy terror spiked the sacraments with strychnine?

When a teenage girl disappears from a north London suburb a few days before Christmas, Detective Sergeant Effie Strongitharm puts would-be cult leader and reputed exorcist Nigel Tapster on her list of people to be questioned.

But when Effie witnesses Tapster's agonizing death during a church service, she needs to ask a different What holy terror spiked the sacraments with strychnine?

With her mentor Detective Superintendent Mallard battling forced retirement, Effie turns to children's book writer Oliver Swithin to help her in a double quest—to bring the girl home and the murderer to justice in time for Christmas.

But is there a connection between the cases? And what does any of this have to do with a Scotland Yard Commissioner's personal hygiene, a six-year-old Hell's Angel, a guide to beastly behavior featuring Finsbury the Ferret, a touch of Shakespeare, and the return of the mysterious, virtually invisible Underwood Tooth?

Genres: Mystery, Fiction

295 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 1, 1999

About the author

Alan Beechey was born in England and grew up in London. He moved to Manhattan in his twenties and now lives with his three sons and his rescue mutt, Leila, in Rye, New York. This Private Plot is Alan Beechey’s third mystery featuring children’s book author and amateur sleuth Oliver Swithin and his girlfriend, Scotland Yard detective Effie Strongitharm.

Reviews

[Karla Huebner]

A mystery in which the young author of unexpectedly popular children's books--featuring a nasty ferret--finds himself (and his roommate, a photographer notorious for his "portraits of female celebrities and society dames at the point of orgasm") at a church service when the newest deacon drops dead. While there were bits here and there that didn't really appeal to me, overall this had a fair amount to recommend it, and at times was pretty funny. Note: the author makes clear that it's a mystery with a religious setting, not a religious book, with religious characters who are ordinary people, neither saints nor fools. I think he managed that pretty well.

[Dogsandbooks]

Funny, sarcastic, witty, very enjoyable after a slow start.

[Kate · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Oliver Swithin, creator of the notorious 'Finsbury the Ferret' series of children's books, has been commissioned to write a satirical article on modern religious practices from the point of view of his atheist ferret character. With Christmas approaching, Oliver and his friend, photographer Ben Motley, attend an evening service at a dowdy United Diaconalist church in a north London suburb, chosen by the publisher to represent the English 'low church' tradition.

"Oliver is surprised to discover that the minister of the church is an old school friend, the Reverend Paul Piltdown. Piltdown soon confides to them that the recent arrival in the congregation of lay preacher Nigel Tapster, whose influence over the young people threatens to create a separate cult, has the church members up in arms.

"Wondering if Tapster is a better subject for his article, Oliver visits the lay preacher later that week, only to discover that at the previous day's meeting Tapster was surprisingly voted onto the diaconate of the church, replacing long-serving deacon Cedric Potiphar.

"But the following Su8nday, as Communion wine is passed out, Tapster takes a drink, falls convulsing to the floor, and dies. Having passed the glass to Tapster, Piltdown becomes the main suspect in his poisoning. Both Oliver and his new girlfriend, Detective Sergeant Effie Strongitharm, strongly feel that Piltdown has been wrongly accused and that they must find out who in the congregation had the best motive for revenge."
~~front flap

I had a hard time getting into this book. In the beginning, nothing seemed to make much sense except the humor. It got better as it went along, but not better enough to make me want to repeat the experience with the preceding book An Embarrassment of Corpses.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oliver Swithin is the author of a series of children's books about a fiendish ferret who torments a small family of railway mice. Although the books are wildly popular Oliver's profits are caught up in a court case so he remains a somewhat impoverished young man who lives simply in a house with a group of housemates who are also friends. The light of his life is a Scotland Yard detective Effy Strongitharm, a quick young woman with wild hair. Effy was his uncle Mallard's subordinate and met Oliver through a previous case.

Oliver is writing a story about his ferret and it's association with a fundamentalist church and becomes involved with the murder of a new deacon who doesn't survive to enjoy his new post. The story is magnificent as Beechey brings to life the group of individuals that belong to the church with such humor and wit that I read the book slowly so I could savor every bit of it. I had read this book before and I have been looking in vain for the next in the series on a regular basis. I am sure I will read it again on future Christmases because it was such a joy. The story takes place during the Christmas holiday time so it is a great read for this time of year.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many people at the small London church thought Nigel Tapster was a dangerous influence, but nonetheless he was elected as a deacon. When he dies in the middle of a communion service, it seems like an impossible crime. No-one could have poisoned the wine. But the person closest to him was the minister, who had quarreled with Nigel just a few days ago. Fortunately, children's book writer Oliver Swithin was an old friend of the minister's and determines to clear his name, with the assistance of his policewoman girlfriend and his uncle, a Scotland Yard bigwig.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another fun outing with Oliver Swithin and his policewoman girlfriend Effie Strongitharm (obviously the author has had a grand time with the character names). This time Oliver is in a small village doing research for an article to be written from the point of view of one of the characters in his "Railway Mice" series--one Finsbury the Ferret (not a nice character...actually a little on the raunchy side). Of course, murder is bound to happen, and Oliver just has to get involved.

Again, a fun outing! I love the characters (odd as they are) and the stories are very amusing.

[Anne]

Never heard of this author

But the nook is fast paced with good characters and a good storyline. Oliver is supposed to be writing an article about a church. The pastor turns out to be one of hos former school mates. He gets to know the church leaders and one of them, a controversial member, is murdered. Oliver and his police officer girlfriend become involved in solving the crime. Very enjoyable.

[George · Rating 4 out of 5]

Has a basic mystery plot involving a murder and a runaway teen, but is filled with humor and colorful characters making it a fun read. Building on a serious plot line involving an writer researching a story involving a more fundamentalist Christian religious group becomes filled with subplots, colorful characters, and humor.

[Jane · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed this one a lot, despite the original jolt that the Scotland Yard sergeant has the same surname as some of the dwarf members of the Watch in Terry Pratchett's Discworld - Strongitharm. Once I got past that, the characters got me. The plot is all too believable, but I won't spoil.

I will find & read volume 1 in this series, & hope Beechy writes more!

[Gabi Coatsworth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good fun with some laugh-out-loud moments as our hero, Oliver Swithin, applies himself to helping his girlfriend Effie solve an unusual crime in north London. As usual, the author's erudition and humor make this an entertaining read.

[Harry Addington · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun read with quirky characters.

[Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A witty fun read

[Carolyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

A number of characters to get to know, but some interesting twists to the two mysteries.