Reading the Detectives discussion

It's time to nominate for our October 2020 group read!

Please nominate mystery/detective books written in/set in the GA period, or a little earlier or later.

As usual, just one nomination per group member. Also, only one book by any individual writer can be nominated per month.

I will nominate:

Death at Wentwater Court

The first Daisy Dalrymple mystery.

No stranger to sprawling country estates, well-heeled Daisy Dalrymple is breaking new ground at Wentwater Court to cover a story for Town & Country magazine. But her interview gives way to interrogation when suave Lord Stephen Astwick meets a chilly end on the tranquil skating pond.

With evidence that his death was anything but accidental, Daisy joins forces with Scotland Yard so the culprit can't slip through their fingers like the unfortunate Astwick slipped through the ice ...

Yikes, my iPad murdered my comment! I’d like to nominate Bats in the Belfry by Lorac.

I’ll try again to post the blurb,

Bruce Attleton dazzled London’s literary scene with his first two novels but his early promise did not bear fruit. His wife Sybilla is a glittering actress, unforgiving of Bruce’s failure, and the couple lead separate lives in their house at Regent’s Park. When Bruce is called away on a sudden trip to Paris, he vanishes completely until his suitcase and passport are found in a sinister artist’s studio, the Belfry, in a crumbling house in Notting Hill. Inspector Macdonald must uncover Bruce’s secrets, and find out the identity of his mysterious blackmailer. This intricate mystery from a classic writer is set in a superbly evoked London of the 1930s.

Sorry if too soon for another Lorac - thought it would fit the season!

Two great nominations already. Daisy Dalrymple is a very popular series - I have read a few of them and remember the first one quite well, so was surprised to see that it's 10 years since I read it!

I also think another Lorac would be fun and Bats in the Belfry certainly sounds like a good title for Halloween...

The cover definitely helps! Even the British Library Crime Classics reissue has a good, creepy one: .

Haha! We always said "bats in the belfry" meant someone was crazy. I'd never thought of it as a Halloween/gothic type of thing.

I have read the first 20 Daisy Dalrymple. First one , like Judy a long time ago. I see there are 3 more books left, so should get back to those.

I would like to nominate The Widening Stain :

For the staff of the library at the center of The Widening Stain, it’s easy enough to dismiss the death of a woman who fell from a rolling ladder as nothing more than an unfortunate accident. It’s more difficult, however, to explain away the strangled corpse of a man found inside a locked room, surrounded by rare and obscure erotica. And that’s not all—a valuable manuscript has vanished from the stacks, which means that both a killer and a thief are loose in the facility’s hallowed halls. It’s up to chief cataloger Gilda Gorham to solve the crimes but, unless she’s careful, the next death in the library might just be her own...


A humorous and literary Golden Age mystery, The Widening Stain is adorned with as many playful limericks as it is with bibliographic details. The book, which offers a satirical glimpse of academic life at an institution strongly resembling Cornell University, is one of the most beloved bibliomysteries (mysteries involving books) of all time.

Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Haha! We always said "bats in the belfry" meant someone was crazy. I'd never thought of it as a Halloween/gothic type of thing."

Lol! Well, I guess just the spooky vibe of the story, and the cover made me think of Halloween! I’m kind of a wimp, that’s about as scary as I get for Halloween...

Tara wrote: "I would like to nominate The Widening Stain :

For the staff of the library at the center of The Widening Stain, it’s easy enough to dismiss t..."

Ooh, that sounds fun! How’d I miss that one? On to the TBR pile, thanks Tara!

I'd like to nominate The Blue Diamond
by Annie Haynes. It was free for Kindles quite recently.

The Widening Stain is not on kindle in the UK yet. It will be mid-month - but very expensive at over £12. Looks fun, but will have to see who the publisher is - is it expensive where you are, Tara?

Susan wrote: "The Widening Stain is not on kindle in the UK yet. It will be mid-month - but very expensive at over £12. Looks fun, but will have to see who the publisher is - is it expensive where you are, Tara?"

It's not that bad for me - should be around NZ$14- but still more than I would want to pay. & sadly most of the op (charity shops) in my little town have stopped carrying the shabby old books I love. :(

The Widening Stain sounds great, with an unusual setting! But yes, rather expensive - I just had a quick look at Abe Books and Alibris and there don't seem to be any second-hand copies around cheaply in the UK at the moment either. It has also been published under the author's real name, Morris Bishop.

Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂ wrote: "I'd like to nominate The Blue Diamond
by Annie Haynes. It was free for Kindles quite recently."

Ooh, I'd like to read more by Annie Haynes, great nomination, Carol. I see this one is a standalone - there are several very cheap editions on Kindle, starting from 49p and also some Haynes omnibus editions around.

This is part of the Goodreads blurb:
Jim Gregory, under-gardener at Hargreave Manor, finds something unexpected when climbing Lover’s Oak but won’t say what. Instead he’s all ears regarding the legendary ‘Luck of the Hargreaves’ diamonds, destined for the future bride of Sir Arthur, the new squire.

Sir Arthur himself then discovers a beautiful stranger, lost in the woods near the manor. She cannot recall a thing—not even her name. She is given shelter and Mary Marston, a private nurse, recognizes her—and abruptly goes missing. Nurse Marston must still be in the house, it is initially agreed—but if so, where?

Nominations so far:

Susan: Death at Wentwater Court by Carola Dunn

Susan in NC: Bats in the Belfry by E.C.R. Lorac

Tara: The Widening Stain by W. Bolingbroke Johnson

Carol: The Blue Diamond by Annie Haynes

Susan wrote: "The Widening Stain is not on kindle in the UK yet. It will be mid-month - but very expensive at over £12. Looks fun, but will have to see who the publisher is - is it expensive where you are, Tara?"

Not expensive as in "dear" at "only" $9.50 for the Kindle. It is a new release on August 4, 2020.

Judy wrote: "Ooh, I'd like to read more by Annie Haynes, great nomination, Carol. I see this one is a standalone - there are several very cheap editions on Kindle, starting from 49p and also some Haynes omnibus editions around."

Only 99 cents in the US now. I've picked it up!

And thanks for mentioning this author. She is an opportunity to get some really early titles!

Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Judy wrote: "Ooh, I'd like to read more by Annie Haynes, great nomination, Carol. I see this one is a standalone - there are several very cheap editions on Kindle, starting from 49p and also some H..."

$1.49 Canadian for The Blue Diamond. Right in my price range..... ha, ha!

Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Susan wrote: "The Widening Stain is not on kindle in the UK yet. It will be mid-month - but very expensive at over £12. Looks fun, but will have to see who the publisher is - is it expensive where ..."

TBH, I recently got a copy as part of a subscription I get from The Mysterious Bookshop, so I did not look at Kindle pricing. Maybe it will go down by October? If not, I understand if people don't want to pay that much to read it.

Ah, I wanted to nominate Annie Haynes too, as I recently got some for free/99p. ;) Hope not all your nominations are spooky! :O

Any more nominations? The poll will go up at the weekend, so there are still a few days to nominate!

I nominate Suicide Excepted by Cyril Hare

Inspector Mallett's stay at the country house hotel of Pendlebury Old Hall has been a letdown, room, food and service, and he longs for it to end. His last trial is to listen when a boorish old man, whose family once owned the house, joins his table. The next day the man is dead and Mallett finds himself investigating the suspicious 'suicide'.

It´s 1.99p on kindle.

Thanks, Michaela. Another of interest. It will be hard choosing this time.

I agree it will be hard to choose - I really like Cyril Hare from those of his I've read up to now.

Nominations so far:

Susan: Death at Wentwater Court by Carola Dunn

Susan in NC: Bats in the Belfry by E.C.R. Lorac

Tara: The Widening Stain by W. Bolingbroke Johnson

Carol: The Blue Diamond by Annie Haynes

Michaela: Suicide Excepted by Cyril Hare

The Mystery of the Hidden Room by Marion Harvey, published in 1922. A locked room mystery.

Looks like it is free in US on kindle.

Jan C wrote: "The Mystery of the Hidden Room by Marion Harvey, published in 1922. A locked room mystery.

Looks like it is free in US on kindle."

Thank you Jan, looks great, described as "A classic mystery/detective story in the Sherlock Holmes tradition."

There seem to be lots of free or cheap editions - it's free on Project Gutenberg and I found a 99p edition on Kindle in the UK.

Some tempting choices. Love Cyril Hare and the Lorac looks good. Well, they all do. I agree with the fact we've had some good, cheap/free classic crime on offer lately as well.

Nominations so far:

Susan: Death at Wentwater Court by Carola Dunn

Susan in NC: Bats in the Belfry by E.C.R. Lorac

Tara: The Widening Stain by W. Bolingbroke Johnson

Carol: The Blue Diamond by Annie Haynes

Michaela: Suicide Excepted by Cyril Hare

Jan: The Mystery of the Hidden Room by Marion Harvey

The poll is now open - we have 6 great choices, so please vote for your preferred read!

https://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/2...

And the winner is... Bats in the Belfry by E.C.R. Lorac, which will be our October group read.

Full results:

Bats in the Belfry (Robert MacDonald #13) 9 votes, 33.3%
Suicide Excepted 6 votes, 22.2%
The Mystery of the Hidden Room 4 votes, 14.8%
The Blue Diamond 4 votes, 14.8%
Death at Wentwater Court (Daisy Dalrymple, #1) 3 votes, 11.1%
The Widening Stain 1 vote, 3.7%

Thanks, Judy!

I hope whoever proposed The Widening Stain does not get discouraged! If one I really wanted to read hadn't been already on the list, and if The Widening Stain had been more available and affordable (which it may be soon), I would have voted for it.

Abigail wrote: "I hope whoever proposed The Widening Stain does not get discouraged! If one I really wanted to read hadn't been already on the list, and if The Widening Stain had been more available and affordable..."

I am a bit discouraged Abigail, but hopefully one of these days a nomination of mine will win :) I was so excited to read it, I didn't consider the availability and pricing, but I'll have to keep that in mind next time.

I've fallen for that pitfall as well, when I nominated Jocelyn Davies's A Treasury Alarm, and I've given up nominating Michael Innes novels. Hang in there!

Success! I found my copy of Bats.

Sorry to hear you are feeling a bit discouraged, Tara and Abigail - I know a lot of people do appreciate the nominations for ideas about what to read , including books which don't win, and hopefully, as you say, the price of The Widening Stain may soon come down!

Jan C wrote: "Success! I found my copy of Bats."

Good to hear, Jan.

It is difficult. I recently wanted to nominate a book I had really loved, only to realise it was not available on kindle and so I decided against it. Unfortunately, you do have to think of cost/availability with group reads. However, if you want to read something that is difficult to get, then perhaps suggest a buddy and see whether anyone else is interested? That's a great way to share enthusiasm for a particular book, or author.

No worries, Judy! I very often enjoy reading whatever wins--as with Fell Murder, which introduced so many of is to Lorac and led us to vote for Bats! Part of the pleasure of group reads is discovery. And nothing but sloth keeps me from rereading all of Michael Innes.

I doubt it's sloth, just that other books want your attention first

Just because a book doesn't win doesn't mean people won't pick it up. Especially if they come across it at the library or a second-hand shop/sale. Or, if you notice it coming on kindle you can always nominate it again.

I enjoy seeing all the books nominated as it often introduces me to new authors.

Abigail wrote: "I've fallen for that pitfall as well, when I nominated Jocelyn Davies's A Treasury Alarm, and I've given up nominating Michael Innes novels. Hang in there!"

I have read 4 Michael Innes books with this group, so there is always a chance it will be chosen

Tracey wrote: "I enjoy seeing all the books nominated as it often introduces me to new authors."

Me, too! Someone nominated Death in Captivity, and as I was adding it to the Want to Reads, several titles in the “readers also liked” Book covers off to the right caught my eye, and that’s where I found Lorac’s Fire in the Thatch: A Devon Mystery, which I read for a challenge. Then I nominated another of her titles here, but it wasn’t chosen because it was not widely available yet. But now I’m hooked, waiting for more reissues, and have gotten my sisters hooked too - one told me, “thank your online book coven for bringing Lorac to my notice!”😉

Jill wrote: "Abigail wrote: "I've fallen for that pitfall as well, when I nominated Jocelyn Davies's A Treasury Alarm, and I've given up nominating Michael Innes novels. Hang in there!"

I have read 4 Michael I..."

I am bummed, my library, for some reason, doesn’t have any of his titles! I don’t know why, I’ve had pretty good luck there otherwise, but they are currently switching over to a new catalogue system.

Susan in NC wrote: "Jill wrote: "Abigail wrote: "I've fallen for that pitfall as well, when I nominated Jocelyn Davies's A Treasury Alarm, and I've given up nominating Michael Innes novels. Hang in there!"

I have rea..."

Some libraries like to receive suggestions of authors their patrons like and want to read.

Jan C wrote: "Susan in NC wrote: "Jill wrote: "Abigail wrote: "I've fallen for that pitfall as well, when I nominated Jocelyn Davies's A Treasury Alarm, and I've given up nominating Michael Innes novels. Hang in..."

I’m anxious to see how our library’s new system works, it sounds like it’s supposed to make it easier to request new books. I hope so, it goes online tomorrow. 🤞🏽