Reading the Detectives discussion

Golden Age mystery nominations please for our May 2022 group read.

Please only nominate books written and published in the Golden Age period, or a little earlier or later - if in doubt whether a title is eligible, please ask.

As usual, just one nomination per group member, and only one book by any individual writer can be nominated per month. Looking forward to seeing all the suggestions.

I nominate Capital Crimes: London Mysteries, a collection published by Martin Edwards. Available on Kindle for $2.99, but don´t know about the UK. Also on Kindle Unlimited, at least in Europe.

With its fascinating mix of people – rich and poor, British and foreign, worthy and suspicious – London is a city where anything can happen. The possibilities for criminals and for the crime writer are endless. London has been home to many of fiction's finest detectives, and the setting for mystery novels and short stories of the highest quality.

Capital Crimes is an eclectic collection of London-based crime stories, blending the familiar with the unexpected in a way that reflects the personality of the city. Alongside classics by Margery Allingham, Anthony Berkeley and Thomas Burke are excellent and unusual stories by authors who are far less well known. The stories give a flavour of how writers have tackled crime in London over the span of more than half a century. Their contributions range from an early serial-killer thriller set on the London Underground and horrific vignettes to cerebral whodunits. What they have in common is an atmospheric London setting, and enduring value as entertainment.

I’ve found the books that didn’t win our polls a wonderful resource for unknown to me titles, so I’ll nominate one I wanted to read, but have not gotten to - thanks to whoever brought this to my attention:

Death of an Airman

Death of an Airman is an enjoyable and unorthodox whodunit from a writer whose short life was as remarkable as that of any of his fictional creations. When an aeroplane crashes, and its pilot is killed, Edwin Marriott, the Bishop of Cootamundra in Australia, is on hand. In England on leave, the Bishop has decided to learn how to fly, but he is not convinced that the pilot's death was accidental. In due course, naturally, he is proved right. The Bishop and Inspector Bray of Scotland Yard make an appealing pair of detectives, and ultimately a cunning criminal scheme is uncovered.

I checked my sources, and it’s $9.99 on Kindle, but my city library and Scribd have the ebook, so hopefully it’s available for others.

Michaela wrote: "I nominate Capital Crimes: London Mysteries, a collection published by Martin Edwards. Available on Kindle for $2.99, but don´t know about the UK. Also on Kindle Unli..."

Yay, I love short story collections, was going to nominate one, but remembered this had been nominated and lost.

Susan in NC wrote: "Michaela wrote: "I nominate Capital Crimes: London Mysteries, a collection published by Martin Edwards. Available on Kindle for $2.99, but don´t know about the UK. Al..."

Oh! Death of an Airman is also interesting for me. :) I think I nominated it a while ago...

I have read both of them, but on Kindle Unlimited. I've gave both four stars, so I wouldn't mind re-reading.

Thank you, Michaela and Susan - two good nominations to start us off. I enjoyed Capital Crimes a few years ago and am keen to read Death of an Airman.

I will nominate Weekend at Thrackley by Alan Melville


Jim Henderson is one of six guests summoned by the mysterious Edwin Carson, a collector of precious stones, to a weekend party at his country house, Thrackley.
The house is gloomy and forbidding but the party is warm and hospitable – except for the presence of Jacobson, the sinister butler. The other guests are wealthy people draped in jewels; Jim cannot imagine why he belongs in such company.

After a weekend of adventure – with attempted robbery and a vanishing guest – secrets come to light and Jim unravels a mystery from his past.

Michaela wrote: "Susan in NC wrote: "Michaela wrote: "I nominate Capital Crimes: London Mysteries, a collection published by Martin Edwards. Available on Kindle for $2.99, but don´t k..."

Thanks for that, I knew it was nominated before- I’ve found some great mysteries through previous nominations!

I will nominate The Silk Stocking Murders

A classic Golden Age crime novel, and one of the first to feature a serial killer.

Investigating the disappearance of a vicar’s daughter in London, the popular novelist and amateur detective Roger Sheringham is shocked to discover that the girl is already dead, found hanging from a screw by her own silk stocking. Reports of similar deaths across the capital strengthen his conviction that this is no suicide cult but the work of a homicidal maniac out for vengeance – a desperate situation requiring desperate measures.

Having established Roger Sheringham as a brilliant but headstrong young sleuth who frequently made mistakes, trusted the wrong people and imbibed considerable liquid refreshment, Anthony Berkeley took his controversial character into much darker territory with The Silk Stocking Murders, a sensational novel about gruesome serial killings by an apparent psychopath bent on targeting vulnerable young women.

I will nominate The Mayfair Mystery by Frank Richardson. Originally published in 1907. Originally known as 2835 Mayfair. Available in US on Kindle for $4.99.

Love the cover of The Mayfair Mystery, Jan

Is one of the Cadfael books too late to qualify? If not I'd like to nominate The Rose Rent

Horatia wrote: "Is one of the Cadfael books too late to qualify? If not I'd like to nominate The Rose Rent"

Hi Horatia - thanks for the suggestion, it doesn't really fit into the Golden Age period, but the good news is that the group is reading the Cadfael books in order as buddy reads and we have The Pilgrim of Hate coming up on March 15!

Horatia wrote: "Is one of the Cadfael books too late to qualify? If not I'd like to nominate The Rose Rent"

We have a buddy read of the Cadfael series in progress and are planning to read #10, The Pilgrim of Hate, this month. The Rose Rent will be on the schedule in a few months. Join the conversion if you are reading the series (and can remember ones you've read already).

Nominations so far:

Michaela: Capital Crimes: London Mysteries by Martin Edwards

Susan in NC: Death of an Airman by Christopher St. John Sprigg

Jill: Weekend at Thrackley by Alan Melville

Susan: The Silk Stocking Murders by Anthony Berkeley

Jan C: The Mayfair Mystery by Frank Richardson

That's five great titles. Any more? Aiming to get the poll up this weekend.

Thanks for pointing me in the way of the buddy read - I get a bit confused by all of the various threads so had missed that...

I get confused too and I'm usually the one who puts them up, so don't worry, Horatia!

No worries, Horatia - we do have a lot of threads! This thread could be handy as it has a list of all the books which are coming up:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Before the poll goes up, please could someone in the US please check if availability looks OK for the nominated titles? Many thanks.

I've just checked and they are all on Kindle at a reasonable price in the UK. :)

In US on Amazon:

Capitol Crimes: $8

Death of an Airman: $10 for Martin Edwards edition, $4 for earlier edition

Weekend at the Thackery: $9.50

Silk Stocking Murder: not available on kindle

Mayfair Mystery: $5

P.S. The British Crime Classic editions (aka Martin Edwards) are usually available in my library systems.

Thank you very much for looking these up, Sandy. Did you notice if Silk Stocking Murder was available at a reasonable price in paperback?

Judy wrote: "Thank you very much for looking these up, Sandy. Did you notice if Silk Stocking Murder was available at a reasonable price in paperback?"

If you really want a paperback there is a used one for $40. However, the hardcover is $10. Most are used so the prices range widely.

Thank you Sandy. Susan, unfortunately it sounds as if availability for this book may be difficult in the US. Would you like to change the nomination?

I am happy to remove the nomination, no problem. There are enough choices for the month.

Thank you Susan - I'll put the poll up soon. As you say, we have some more good choices, but it's a pity about the Berkeley availability.

The poll is now open - please vote for the book you want to read in May.
https://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/2...

I just saw that Death of an Airman is currently $1 in US. Wasn't sure I was going to read it but that's too good a price to miss.

The winner of the poll is Death of an Airman by Christopher St. John Sprigg, which will be our May group read. Thanks to all who nominated and voted.

Full results:

Death of an Airman 11 votes, 44.0%
Weekend at Thrackley 7 votes, 28.0%
Capital Crimes: London Mysteries 6 votes, 24.0%
The Mayfair Mystery 1 vote, 4.0%

Thanks, Judy!

Judy wrote: "The winner of the poll is Death of an Airman by Christopher St. John Sprigg, which will be our May group read. Thanks to all who nominated and voted.

Full results:..."
Yay, looking forward to this one.