English Mysteries Club discussion

Crooked house by Agatha Christie

Corridors of Death



Battered to death with a piece of abstract sculpture titled ‘Reconciliation,’ Whitehall departmental head Sir Nicholas Clark is claimed by his colleagues to have been a fine and respected public servant cut off in his prime. Bewildered by the labyrinthine bureaucracy of Whitehall, Scotland Yard’s Superintendent Jim Milton recognizes a potential ally in Clark’s young Private Secretary, Robert Amiss.

Milton soon learns from Amiss how Whitehall works: that it can be Machiavellian and potentially homicidal, that Sir Nicholas was obnoxious and widely loathed, that he had spent the weeks before his murder upsetting and antagonizing family and associates, and that his last morning on earth had been spent gleefully observing the success of his plan to embarrass his minister and his department publicly. And they still need to discover who wielded the blunt instrument.

This is the first of Ruth Dudley Edwards’ witty, iconoclastic but warm-hearted satires about the British Establishment.

A Man Lay Dead by Ngaio Marsh

HHer Royal Spyness by Rys Bowen....sounds good, takes place in 30's London. Enough with the Agatha Christies, let's get more variety in the authors, maybe there is a rule about one book per year for an author's books

The Harper's Quine: A Gil Cunningham Murder Mystery by Pat McIntosh
This meticulously researched historical mystery is the debut of a medieval Scottish investigator.

Jean-Luke wrote: "Katie wrote: "A Man Lay Dead by Ngaio Marsh"

A Man Lay Dead was the Book of the Month for March 2013. Feel free to nominate something else. We also read Enter a Murderer in March 2014."

How about Death of a Fool (published in England as Off with his Head)? We could use a bit of folk magic in our reading!

Death and the Oxford Box by Veronica Stallwood

The Silkworm by Robert Galbraith

I just read The Silkworm. Great book. I second the nomination.

The Silkworm. Yes indeed.

The Silkworm will be hard to get from libraries (mine has 202 holds for 89 copies), but I see no way out of reading it sometime this year. It might take more than a month, though.

I bought it at Costco.

I enjoyed the first book (which I read before knowing J K Rowling was the author) and so would like to try the next one.

Kay wrote: "I bought it at Costco."

I am trying not to buy any more books until I have gotten through at least a quarter of the huge pile of books I've bought in the last year or two and haven't gotten to yet.

I always make that same pledge, Everyman, and never keep it...

Susan wrote: "I always make that same pledge, Everyman, and never keep it..."

Me too. But I try! I don't smoke or drink, so I suppose I'm entitled to one addiction, and buying books is apparently it.

Same here - and it is a pretty harmless vice.

Better than harmless - it helps support one of the most precious foundation stones of the world economy, & some of the nicest workers.

Nicely put Carol.

Everyman wrote:

I am trying not to buy any more books until I have gotten through at least a quarter of the huge pile of books I've bought in the last year or two and haven't gotten to yet.

I'm in the same boat as Everyman. I really can't justify buying any more books till I've made a dent in the tower next to my bed. & the 14 pages of unread titles on my Kobo! I have the Marsh but the only one available at my library is The Silkworm - but it has a long list of reserves. Shame as the Harper's Quine one sounded really good!

Susan, have you read Corridors of Death? (or anyone else) On p 1 alone are several sentences 60+ words long - like a Henry James imitation - but the plot etc. do sound interesting. I'm wondering if you found the style became less labyrinthine once the book got going. Not that I have anything against HJ on his own patch; but mystery is not it.

I have read Corridors of Death Carol, but some time ago now. The author wrote a whole series of books set in British institutions, so I thought they fit the style we are looking for. However, I suspect The Silkworm will win the day and that will prompt me to get around to reading it.

Thanks, Susan - always good to discover another author.

Carol wrote: "Better than harmless - it helps support one of the most precious foundation stones of the world economy, & some of the nicest workers."

hear hear!

I would like to nominate The Silkworm too - I have it on audio already!

I would like to nominate Green For Danger by Christianna Brand.

Christianna Brand - thats a name from the past! Must see if my library still carries any of her books.

The poll was linked to on message 23 guys. Think its closed now. :)