Reading the Detectives discussion

Amazingly, it's now time to nominate for our November 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 would like to nominate Somebody at the Door by Raymond Postgate

One bleak Friday evening in January, 1942, Councillor Henry Grayling boards an overcrowded train with £120 in cash wages to be paid out the next day to the workers of Barrow and Furness Chemistry and Drugs Company. When Councillor Grayling finally finds the only available seat in a third-class carriage, he realises to his annoyance that he will be sharing it with some of his disliked acquaintances: George Ransom, with whom he had a quarrel; Charles Evetts, who is one of his not-so-trusted employees; a German refugee whom Grayling has denounced; and Hugh Rolandson, whom Grayling suspects of having an affair with his wife.

The train journey passes uneventfully in an awkward silence but later that evening Grayling dies of what looks like mustard gas poisoning and the suitcase of cash is nowhere to be found. Inspector Holly has a tough time trying to get to the bottom of the mystery, for the unpopular Councillor had many enemies who would be happy to see him go, and most of them could do with the cash he was carrying. But Inspector Holly is persistent and digs deep into the past of all the suspects for a solution, starting with Grayling's travelling companions. Somebody at the Door," first published in 1943, is an intricate mystery which, in the process of revealing whodunit, "paints an interesting picture of the everyday life during the war."

Thanks Jill, a great nomination to start us off - I've been meaning to try Somebody at the Door, one of the British Library Crime Classics titles. The wartime setting sounds intriguing.

I would like to nominate , The Franchise Affair by Josephine Tey. A classic of its time (and for many years after) it is rather problematic in some ways, and should be interesting to discuss.

"Robert Blair was about to knock off from a slow day at his law firm when the phone rang. It was Marion Sharpe on the line, a local woman of quiet disposition who lived with her mother at their decrepit country house, The Franchise. It appeared that she was in some serious trouble: Miss Sharpe and her mother were accused of brutally kidnapping a demure young woman named Betty Kane. Miss Kane's claims seemed highly unlikely, even to Inspector Alan Grant of Scotland Yard, until she described her prison -- the attic room with its cracked window, the kitchen, and the old trunks -- which sounded remarkably like The Franchise. Yet Marion Sharpe claimed the Kane girl had never been there, let alone been held captive for an entire month! Not believing Betty Kane's story, Solicitor Blair takes up the case and, in a dazzling feat of amateur detective work, solves the unbelievable mystery that stumped even Inspector Grant."

Another excellent nomination, thanks, Rosina. The Franchise Affair is also currently 99p on Kindle - one of the many tempting titles Susan has posted in the offers thread today!

Judy wrote: "Another excellent nomination, thanks, Rosina. The Franchise Affair is also currently 99p on Kindle - one of the many tempting titles Susan has posted in the offers thread today!"


That was what made me think of it. I thought that I had a paperback version - but cannot find it, so may have to buy the Kindle version in case it wins!

The Tey is $2.99 US, so very reasonable.

Judy wrote: "Thanks Jill, a great nomination to start us off - I've been meaning to try Somebody at the Door, one of the British Library Crime Classics titles. The wartime setting sounds intriguing."
Me, too!

Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "The Tey is $2.99 US, so very reasonable."

Thanks, Elizabeth, sounds like a TBR to me.

I do know how much Abigail loves Michael Innes books & I do own one. So I will nominate Appleby's End.

Appleyby's End was the name of the station where Detective-Inspector Appleby got off the train from Scotland Yard.

That could have been coincidence, But, from then on coincidences came too often, too fast & too many to be genuine.

My hero, Carol!

Oh, dear. And I can only vote for one book a month ...

Interesting group of titles so far. If one was to read only one book by Tey, then The Franchise Affair should be it. As someone who doesn't really like or rate the rest of her output, I have no problem recommending this.

Thank you for the nomination, Carol - I've been thinking I should give Innes another try and had heard that Appleby's End is a good one.

Nominations so far:

Jill: Somebody at the Door by Raymond Postgate

Rosina: The Franchise Affair by Josephine Tey

Carol: Appleby's End by Michael Innes

Not many nominations so far this month - does anyone have anything else to add? The poll will go up mid-week.

Anyone interested in continuing the Sam Wyndham series by Abir Mukherjee? We read the first, so #2 is A Necessary Evil. I tried to load it, but Goodreads is freaking out on me!

Judy wrote: "Amazingly, it's now time to nominate for our November 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 no..."


I'm sorry, but I am new in the group and I don't know what you mean by "the GA period". Thankyou

We do tend to fall into insider code, don't we? Sorry about that! It stands for Golden Age mysteries, basically those written from the start of the twentieth century till--well, the end date is flexible, and it becomes more a matter of the writing style and tone. People like Agatha Christie and Dorothy Sayers and Margery Allingham are at the core of the genre, but we have wandered increasingly far afield, even as far as P. D. James (though I personally would not consider her books GA).

Susan in NC wrote: "Anyone interested in continuing the Sam Wyndham series by Abir Mukherjee? We read the first, so #2 is A Necessary Evil. I tried to load it, but Goodreads is freaking out on me!"

Did we read A Rising Man? It is an excellent series.

A Necessary Evil . Oh, there we go!

Let’s see if I can get a plot summary up:

“India, 1920. Captain Wyndham and Sergeant Banerjee of the Calcutta Police Force investigate the dramatic assassination of a Maharajah's son.

The fabulously wealthy kingdom of Sambalpore is home to tigers, elephants, diamond mines and the beautiful Palace of the Sun. But when the heir to the throne is assassinated in the presence of Captain Sam Wyndham and Sergeant 'Surrender-Not' Banerjee, they discover a kingdom riven with suppressed conflict. Prince Adhir was a moderniser whose attitudes - and romantic relationship - may have upset the more religious elements of his country, while his brother – now in line to the throne – appears to be a feckless playboy.

As Wyndham and Banerjee desperately try to unravel the mystery behind the assassination, they become entangled in a dangerous world where those in power live by their own rules and those who cross their paths pay with their lives. They must find a murderer, before the murderer finds them…“

As I'm new to the group I'm not sure about nominating books yet. I came across this link recently and maybe something from this could be nominated if possible.

https://strandmag.com/10-undervalued-...

Sandy wrote: "Susan in NC wrote: "Anyone interested in continuing the Sam Wyndham series by Abir Mukherjee? We read the first, so #2 is A Necessary Evil. I tried to load it, but Goodreads is freaking out on me!"..."

I thought we did, I did, and assumed it was nominated by the group or won. It is excellent! If we didn’t read the second book, I’ll nominate the first.

Shaina wrote: "As I'm new to the group I'm not sure about nominating books yet. I came across this link recently and maybe something from this could be nominated if possible.

https://strandmag.com/10-undervalued..."

Great list, thanks Shaina!

Abigail wrote: "We do tend to fall into insider code, don't we? Sorry about that! It stands for Golden Age mysteries, basically those written from the start of the twentieth century till--well, the end date is fle..."

Thankyou so much for your explanation and I feal at home at once, since I'm a great fan of Agatha Christie! So this is the poll for me to participate in! 🙂

I nominate The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler.

Susan in NC wrote: "Sandy wrote: "Susan in NC wrote: "Anyone interested in continuing the Sam Wyndham series by Abir Mukherjee? We read the first, so #2 is A Necessary Evil. I tried to load it, but Goodreads is freaki..."

Sorry, I meant to say if we haven’t read A Rising Man as a group, I’ll nominate that book, NOT the second book (yes, I’m one of those read a series in order types!)

Welcome, Nike - I will start putting "Golden Age" instead of GA in the poll announcements each month!

Susan in NC wrote: "Sorry, I meant to say if we haven’t read A Rising Man as a group, I’ll nominate that book, NOT the second book (yes, I’m one of those read a series in order types!)..."

I've just checked and we haven't read it, so will add it to the nominations!

I know I've got a copy on my Kindle, and am very tempted.

Nike wrote: "I nominate The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler."

Great nomination, Nike. thank you. I don't think we have read any Chandler as a group so far.

Shaina wrote: "As I'm new to the group I'm not sure about nominating books yet. I came across this link recently and maybe something from this could be nominated if possible.

https://strandmag.com/10-undervalued..."

Thanks very much for this link, Shaina, a fascinating selection of 10 underrated books. Curtain is already coming up in January as the last of the group's Poirot buddy reads. We have also previously read The Documents in the Case.

I've checked on availability of the other 8 and sadly most are out of print - maybe Martin Edwards' list will spur publishers on to reprint them, though!

The two which are in print and on Kindle in the UK (I can't check for other countries) are Suicide Excepted by Cyril Hare, which was the runner-up in our poll last month, and The Sweepstake Murders by J.J. Connington. Do you fancy nominating either of those? I was actually thinking of nominating a Cyril Hare, but they both sound good.

Nominations so far:

Jill: Somebody at the Door by Raymond Postgate

Rosina: The Franchise Affair by Josephine Tey

Carol: Appleby's End by Michael Innes

Susan in NC: A Rising Man by Abir Mukherjee

Nike: The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler

Possible nomination to come from Shaina.

Judy wrote: "Susan in NC wrote: "Sorry, I meant to say if we haven’t read A Rising Man as a group, I’ll nominate that book, NOT the second book (yes, I’m one of those read a series in order types!)..."

I've ju..."

Thanks, Judy! I guess it was just nominated in the past but didn’t win, so I read it. It is a great series, if not this I was thinking of nominating a Cyril Hare once I saw it on Shaina’s list!

Please do, Susan. I would be happy if someone used the list and nominated some from them. I would like to read many of them.

Judy@ Thank you for waiting for my nomination however I don't think I will nominate any book this time. Maybe next year onwards or once I have read a few more GA authors.

Thanks Shaina, you are welcome to nominate when you like.

I was thinking of nominating the Cyril Hare book but as it was in the poll last month and we have so many great titles already perhaps I will leave it this time around.

Does anyone want to nominate anything else before the poll goes up mid-week?

I wouldn't mind reading more Connington, but the title mentioned isn't to hand right now. How about Nemesis at Raynham Parva which is on Kindle for 99p or £1.59 under its alternative title of Grim Vengeance?

Shaina wrote: "Please do, Susan. I would be happy if someone used the list and nominated some from them. I would like to read many of them.

Judy@ Thank you for waiting for my nomination however I don't think I w..."

Thanks, Shaina, but I’ve already nominated a title, and I believe members are limited to one nomination a month. Colin has nominated an interesting title, and a new (to me) author. You’ll find a lot of great titles and authors from this group - enjoy!

i just received my 2nd copy of Gallows Court by Martin Edwards. I apparently was unaware that I already had a kindle copy when I bought the paperback. I'm guessing that I really want to read this book.

It is a GA-style book. Taking place in the '30s but published in 2018. A hanging judge's daughter is solving crimes but a reporter is suspicious. Did she also commit the crimes?

I was so pulled in by the description that I didn't even stop to check whether I already owned it.

So I'll nominate this.

There were only three nominations when I last looked at this thread. Quite an embarrassment of riches at the moment.

Yes, we now have 7 nominations, more than usual, so I will get the vote put up without further ado! Thanks to Colin and Jan for the further nominations.

The nominations are:

Jill: Somebody at the Door by Raymond Postgate

Rosina: The Franchise Affair by Josephine Tey

Carol: Appleby's End by Michael Innes

Susan in NC: A Rising Man by Abir Mukherjee

Nike: The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler

Colin: Nemesis at Raynham Parva aka Grim Vengeance by J.J. Connington

Jan: Gallows Court by Martin Edwards

The poll is now open - 7 great titles to choose between! Please do cast your vote:

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

I'm hoping that lots of these are renominated in future polls, as it looks to be a good selection.

Judy wrote: "Welcome, Nike - I will start putting "Golden Age" instead of GA in the poll announcements each month!"

Thankyou! No problem, maybe I'm the only one who didn't get it 🙂

Nike wrote: "Judy wrote: "Welcome, Nike - I will start putting "Golden Age" instead of GA in the poll announcements each month!"

Thankyou! No problem, maybe I'm the only one who didn't get it 🙂"

Hey, Nike, welcome! This is a lovely group, a lot of knowledgeable readers, my To Read pile is tottering from all the new books I want to read...the only problem is some of the titles are no longer in print here in the US, or harder to find here. But I put them on my list and hope for reissues!

Susan in NC wrote: "Nike wrote: "Judy wrote: "Welcome, Nike - I will start putting "Golden Age" instead of GA in the poll announcements each month!"

Thankyou! No problem, maybe I'm the only one who didn't get it 🙂"

..."

Thankyou! I'm already starting to enjoy this group 🙂

Very close at the moment. The Franchise Affair has just gone into the lead, but only one vote ahead of A Rising Man.

The results are in and the winner is The Franchise Affair by Josephine Tey, which will be our November group read.

Very close poll this month! Full results:

The Franchise Affair (Inspector Alan Grant, #3) 8 votes, 26.7%
Somebody at the Door 7 votes, 23.3%
A Rising Man (Sam Wyndham, #1) 6 votes, 20.0%
Appleby's End (Sir John Appleby, #10) 4 votes, 13.3%
The Big Sleep (Philip Marlowe, #1) 3 votes, 10.0%
Nemesis at Raynham Parva 1 vote, 3.3%
Gallows Court 1 vote, 3.3%

Yippee!

But I've also added the next three on the list to my (Re-)Read Pile.

Good, I’ve had that one on my TBR pile for ages - and I’ve added the others, as well.

I will need to borrow it from the library, but I'm thrilled that it not only ticks a box in my new personal challenge of a book each year of the 20th & 21st Centuries, but also a year on an older challenge of a book by a woman author each year of the 20th Century. I'm approaching 3/4 complete on that list, and the books for years are harder to come by.