Alwynne’s Comments (group member since Oct 28, 2020)

Alwynne’s comments from the Reading the Detectives group.

Against expectations I hugely enjoyed K. J. Charles's standalone mystery All of Us Murderers, she's known for her M/M romantic fiction and there's a strand within this but it's not overpowering - unless the odd sex scene weirds you out. The mystery itself is very much in the creaky, old-dark-house vein with sinister relatives gathering in hope of a handout. Charles builds extensively on her knowledge/love of gothic fiction and her main character is very much the kind of 'chap' you might find in a P. G. Wodehouse novel. She's fan of writers like Heyer and Pratchett too, but I haven't read them so can't say how much she's influenced by their work. It had a satisfyingly positive ending too.

Link to my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

If anyone else is having problems adding their actual reviews directly to their feed - so only showing up as 'has read' then can access/find the review via your 'read' shelf. If you then comment on it can add the review to your feed that way!

I finished the first in a hugely-popular series of adventures/mysteries set in 1770s Japan Shōtarō Ikenami's The Samurai Detectives An intriguing variation on Sherlock Holmes style crime, after a shaky start found this fascinating and entertaining.

Link to my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂ wrote: "Alwynne wrote: "I finished Japanese author Akira Otani's The Night of Baba Yaga which recently won a CWA dagger for crime fiction in translation. Hard-boiled yakuza narrative meets..."

It was Carol, sort of Sara Paretsky meets James Ellroy meets hard-boiled crime manga. But it is pretty brutal in places so be warned!

I finished Japanese author Akira Otani's The Night of Baba Yaga which recently won a CWA dagger for crime fiction in translation. Hard-boiled yakuza narrative meets understated queer love story.

Link to my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

This is one of my favourites in the series. I really admired the way that Sayers interweaves the murder investigation with reflections on the aftermath of WW1. As well as her commentary on the "old guard" who effectively sent the younger men off to war.

Did anyone else wonder if George Fentiman was partly inspired by Septimus in Mrs Dalloway? There were a number of similarities between them, including the state of their marriages/relationships with their wives.

I finished a murder mystery set in a fictional Oxford college Rachael Davis-Featherstone's Oxford Blood technically YA but decent, fairly compelling read.

Link to my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Sandy wrote: "Alwynne wrote: "I finished a novella from 1982 newly translated into English Suspicion from Japanese author Seichō Matsumoto. Through the coverage of one woman's arrest and trial f..."

I really like his work. I haven't tried any Maigret but sounds as if I should. I have an ARC of Simenon's The Cat but not sure how similar the style is to his Maigret novels.

I finished a novella from 1982 newly translated into English Suspicion from Japanese author Seichō Matsumoto. Through the coverage of one woman's arrest and trial for murder, Matsumoto examines the role of the media and media bias and its impact on the justice system. It starts out slow and detached but then the tension rapidly mounts.

Link to my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I finished the first in a projected series by Robert Holtom A Queer Case set in London in the 1920s and featuring a gay amateur sleuth. Likely to appeal to fans of writers like Nicola Upson and Jacqueline Winspear. Lots of social commentary/historical detail but the writing can be a little clunky in places.

Link to my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I finished Hannah Deitch's Killer Potential literary crime with a twist, likely to appeal to fans of books like Gone Girl, The Girl on the Train and/or Scrap Didn't quite work for me but still enjoyable.

Link to my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I finished a classic crime novel Murder at Mt. Fuji by prolific, award-winning Japanese author Shizuko Natsuki, sometimes referred to as the Agatha Christie of Japan. It's about to be reissued for English-language audiences. Thought it was interesting as an exploration of toxic masculinity and an investment in reputation/public appearance in 1980s Japan but disappointing overall.

Link to my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Frances wrote: "Alwynne wrote: "*I first read these in my teens because the local librarian recommended them after I'd made my way through all the Jeeves and Wooster books.
."
What a clever librarian to make that ..."

I wish I had too, mine were really lovely, used to put books aside for me that they thought I'd like, possibly because I spent so much time there!

Judy wrote: "Interesting discussion! I've just looked up how old Ian Carmichael and Edward Petherbridge were when they started playing Wimsey. They were both in their early 50s. But of course Carmichael was pla..."

Thanks for the link Judy, I agree with the person who commented about the harlequin scenes in 'Murder Must Advertise' they really don't do Carmichael any favours. I'm not sure that I agree with Edwards that Carmichael is just Woosterish. I think part of that is the persona Wimsey adopts to divert people from his detective work. In a number of the adaptations Carmichael's Wimsey shifts between the hapless, posh - plays it up when undercover in the ad agency in Murder Must Advertise for instance - and more considered as when he's with Parker or Bunter or others he considers his peers or fellow detectives.

Fascinating that Petherbridge was roughly the same age, he seems younger somehow. Wimsey was born in 1890, I think, so should be late 30s upwards in most of the books. I'm also not sure I'd compare him to Astaire. Astaire has a lot more charm - and can also goof around - but he's also a huge favourite of mine particularly the 1930s movies with Ginger Rogers, although also love Band Wagon. Although I think I saw somewhere that Sayers may have been influenced by Astaire in her later Wimsey outings.

Jackie wrote: "Interesting post, Alwynne! I plan to read the rest of the series and re-reads are also very likely, so may be looking at more audio version options."

That's great Jackie although I'm biased because I love this series, read it umpteen times!

Judy wrote: "l wondered if there was a version read by Ian Carmichael - that one must cost extra on Spotify. I can't really justify buying it as I'm mainly reading it on Kindle, but I bet he's brilliant. I thin..."

He's my favourite too, Wimsey's supposed to be a cross between Bertie Wooster* and Holmes and Carmichael's performance really nails that. I watched them all including the Petherbridge ones during lockdown and thought Petherbridge was too stiff. But I agree Carmichael is a lot older than the character on the page - really shows in the action scenes in 'Clouds of Witness' but I assumed that was why they skipped the novels featuring Wimsey and Vane, so that he wasn't expected to be a particularly romantic figure.

*I first read these in my teens because the local librarian recommended them after I'd made my way through all the Jeeves and Wooster books.

I like this one a lot more than Whose Body? but I still feel that it's an example of Sayers feeling her way about the character. Wimsey's more man of action, less analytical in this one than in later instalments. The approach suggests the influence of the 'ripping yarns' that were still fairly popular. I much prefer later novels particularly Strong Poison and The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club. Bellona Club is probably my favourite I think it deals particularly well with the lingering aftereffects of the war. I'd love to know if Sayers read Mrs Dalloway though, there are definite resemblances between Septimus in that and George Fentiman in Bellona, as well as the predicaments of their respective wives.

I finished a vintage Japanese crime novel by Tetsuya Akuyawa The Black Swan Mystery a gripping blend of puzzle-style mystery and surprisingly sensitive social commentary - particularly good on the lingering aftermath of war, gender and 1950s Japan, would love to read more in this ongoing detective series.

Link to my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I finished Marisha Pessl's Darkly This is technically for a YA readership but should have a broader appeal. It centres on a crime linked to long-dead artist/board game designer Louisiana Veda, and has a gothic, Christie-like flavour. Lots of twists and turns and pleasing details - and bizarre character names. Read this in one sitting and enjoyed it immensely.

Link to my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I finished a novel by up-and-coming, Japanese writer Uketsu Strange Pictures A bestseller in Japan, I thought it was an intriguing, entertaining variation on a standard murder mystery. For anyone not a fan of horror don't be put off by the labelling of this one, it's essentially a conventional, not-too-graphic, puzzle-style crime novel with the odd creepy scene.

Link to my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...