#JustTheFacts2019Gold

dexter96: 1. The Ha-Ha Case (apa The Brandon Case) by J. J. Connington (1934) (Mystery Bingo Original – Set in England, Mystery Bingo Revised – Set in UK or USA, Reading Bingo – Based on a True Story, Just the Facts – Outdoor Location) – a young man just attaining the age of majority goes one rainy morning on a rabbit hunt accompanied by his elder brother, his tutor and a another man of ambiguous standing. While walking alone along a so-called ha-ha (a sunken wall with a ditch) he is shot to death. Was it an accident? Suicide? Or maybe murder? Apparently based on a real-life case (the Ardlamont case in Argyll, Scotland) – see Curtis Evans’s introduction. The novel is a 1/3rd of Cyril Hare’s style legal entanglements (a case concerning entail and the principle of English Borough with an insurance policy thrown in for good measure), a 1/3rd of meticulous (to some measure) investigations and interrogations a la Freeman Wills Crofts carried out mainly by the ambitious and rather self-important inspector Hinton and a final resolution borrowed as if from R. Austin Freeman. Although absent for the greater part of the investigation, at the end Sir Clinton Driffield (his 9th outing) steals the show but not the whole glory from the poor inspector. The “squire” Wendover also makes a cameo appearance. Slow steady plodding fun as expected from one of the “humdrum” masters. 7/10

dexter96: 2. Murder in the Willett Family by Rufus King (1931) (Mystery Bingo Original – Set in USA, Just the Facts – Multiple Deaths with Different Means) – the Willet family are quite an unpleasant bunch. A couple of them are bumped off – some by shooting, some by poison. I just seem to not care much about them. Lieutenant Valcour solves the crime (his fourth case) by just being there, showing compassion to the matriarch of the family and receiving some cablegrams. Not completely fair. King’s writing is overly dramatic as usual. I just cannot warm up to his exuberant style. I still prefer his short stories and the only standalone novel (The Case of the Dowager's Etchings) that I have read to the Valcour series - maybe being more humorous suits his style better. 5/10

dexter96: 3. Thirteen Guests by J. Jefferson Farjeon (1936) (Mystery Bingo O/R – A Country House Mystery, Just the Facts – At a Country House) – a charming country house mystery with delightfully assembled cast comprising not exclusively a young man with a wounded heart and ankle, a romantic interest represented by a beautiful widow with uncertain past and future, a steady ever-dependable English lad showing equal proficiency in wielding a cricket bat, handling a horse and throwing red herrings about, another romantic interest personified by the rebellious daughter of the lord of the manor, the lord of the manor himself and his political opponent (growing strangely affiliated lately), a spinsterish mystery writer with a theory or two, a nouveau riche family as her faithful retinue, a duo of amateur sleuths consisting of a probing columnist and his artful and artistically recognized sidekick, the proverbial butler, Bessie - the maid and would-be model, and so on, and so on... Thus, thirteen guests plus. When after a stag hunt with ramifications two men are found dead (one - strangled, the other, the unfortunate 13th guest – poisoned), the remaining guests are thrown into the vortex of a police investigation led and "gingered up" by the “more than usually intelligent” inspector Kendall. He even solves the case eventually. Sort of... The mood is rather light-hearted throughout, maybe helped by the fact that (quote) one of the victims is a complete stranger and the other totally unloved (unquote). However, the book ends on a much more sombre note. The denouement comes rather abruptly leaving a lot of loose ends and mars the otherwise excellent story with a taste of unfairness. 7/10 (+ 1 point for the story it could have been)

dexter96: 4. Mystery in the Channel (apa Mystery in the English Channel) by Freeman Wills Crofts (1931) (Mystery Bingo O/R – Detective Team, Just the Facts – Death by Shooting) – the seventh case of Joseph French starts when the crew of the Southern Railway Company’s Chichester, a liner on her usual daily trip in the English Channel between Newhaven and Dieppe, find an abandoned yacht with two men on-board dead by shooting (as the inspector himself mentions later in the book, a lot of his cases have something to do with the sea). The men are easily identified as the chairman and the vice-chairman of Moxon General Securities, a concern on the brink of financial collapse. With the looming financial crisis in the background and a cunning villain who as if disappeared into thin air, Inspector French is as meticulous as ever, this time assisted by numerous other policemen from the Yard, local constabularies or the continent. We know some of them (Tanner, Willis) from previous cases. Let’s not forget the faithful Sergeant Carter who does not only leg-work for the inspector but plays a rather important role in the end. As far as the plot is concerned, it’s fair to say that Freeman Wills Crofts is the greatest schemer of them all. A solid police procedural without extraneous trivialities save for a couple of bocks and a snifter of scotch and soda here and there. 8/10

dexter96: 5. Dead Man’s Shoes by Leo Bruce (1958) (Mystery Bingo Original – Involves Water, Just the Facts – During Trip/Vacation) – the fourth instalments in Leo Bruce’s series seem both to be duds (the other one being Case with Four Clowns). This one begins with some high-tension episodes concerning one rather unpleasant character Wilbury Larkin and his interactions with the crew and the several passengers on-board the cargo boat Saragossa on route from Tangier to London. Everything culminates into his apparent death overboard either by murder or suicide. Nobody sheds a tear for him because (apart from his appalling behavior) he is the almost certain murderer of Gregory Willick (an amiable old gentleman living with his much younger female partner at Barton Place in the village of Barton Abbess) shot a couple of weeks before while walking out with his dog. Carolus Deene is called in to investigate by certain Mrs. Roper (formerly known as Bugs Kritchley of At Death’s Door’s fame) and does so during his between-the-semesters holiday. He is assisted in the investigation which involves a lot of travel (to the English countryside, to Morocco, to Spain and a short stay in Gibraltar) by the “odious” and “precocious” Rupert Prigley who is already a 6th-grader. The novel is a breezy read – some of the characters are just splendid, the dialogue is vibrant and if not outright hilarious draws a chuckle or two. The mystery is so-so – the culprit at least is quite guessable (the clues are plenty and easily spotted). The author’s (real name Rupert Croft-Cooke) bitter attitude towards the police (personified by the conspicuously uninterested in the murder case inspector Maltby) is quite evident at times. (Warning: contains a spoiler about one of the previous Deene’s case – Death of Cold). 6/10 (brought up by the inimitable Socker for all his dandling and coddling)

dexter96: 6. The Case of the Empty Tin by Erle Stanley Gardner (1941) (Mystery Bingo Revised – Made into a TV Show, Just the Facts – Made into TV/Film/Play) – Perry Mason starring into a hardboiled cosy. Or a young adult novel. Or a Sax Rohmer’s thriller (or at least what I imagine a Sax Rohmer’s thriller would be like – I am yet to read one, maybe later this year). And not starring Perry Mason (he is just marking his presence as do by the way Della Street, Paul Drake and Lieutenant Tragg). And Perry Mason is not “the Perry Mason” but some wannabe Perry Mason trudging along with Della Street’s, Paul Darke’s and Tragg’s lookalikes. Perhaps everything seems too muddled. Believe me, it is muddled. This is the first Gardner among thirty or so that I have read that feels subpar. The cast is full of stock characters (including even the infamous oriental man of mystery). Things just happen and people do things (even murders) with paper thin motivation. Uncharacteristically, Perry Mason is not the dominant lead we are used to and do a lot of stupid things himself with no clear idea as to why and then lucks his way out. Lieutenant Tragg shows none of his usual perspicacity and is surprisingly amenable and easily duped. And to cap it all, there is no court room scene. The novel reads very much as an early very pulpy Gardner (earlier than The Case of the Velvet Claws) learning his trade and stringing together a tale of clichés. Made into episode 25 of the classic Perry Mason TV series (1957 – 1968) with Raymond Burr and Barbara Hale. 5/10 (even the greatest may have a day off and still on par with the Rufus King’s effort read earlier this year)

dexter96: 7. The Black Lizard (黒蜥蜴 Kuro-tokage, transl. Черния гущер) by Edogawa Rampo (1934) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – Crime other than Murder, Just the Facts – Any Country but US/UK) – the super sleuth and master of disguise Akechi Kogoro versus the Black Lizard (the Japanese Arsène Lupin ergo also a master of disguise) who happens also to be a woman. A classic (sort of) inverted tale about the (un)successful attempts of the Black Lizard to kidnap Sanaye, a wealthy jeweller's beautiful daughter seemingly as part of a plot to steal the "Star of Egypt" (maybe the most expensive diamond in the world). Later a more bizarre and sinister motive comes to light. A lot of twists and turns as the two adversaries try to outwit each other. The action takes place in Tokyo, Osaka and on a small island off the coast of Japan. Macabrely humorous. 6/10 Note: Beast in the Shadow (transl. Чудовище в мрака) read previously

dexter96: 8. The Man Who Didn’t Fly by Margot Bennett (1955) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – Involves Mode of Transportation, Just the Facts – Made a “Best of” List, Reading Bingo – A Forgotten Classic) – A chartered plane making a flight to Dublin disappears over the Irish Channel. Four men were set to fly that day but only three arrived at the airport for the flight. The bodies of the pilot and the three passengers are never recovered. Neither the eponymous man who didn’t fly appears to account for his absence thus leaving “four persons to share three deaths”. What follows is a missing person investigation spanning from the Brickford Airport through the Fairway Arms to the Cotswolds. The investigation which ever threatens to turn into a murder one is led by Inspector Lewis and Sergeant Young and comprises mainly the unreliable witness evidence of the Wades (a father and two daughters) about the events in the couple of days prior to the unfortunate flight. In these circumstances the novel is much more character driven than one might expect but the plot development is never sacrificed – the end is logical if (in retrospect) somewhat unsurprising. Slightly disappointing as a detective story, highly satisfying as a character study. In this respect reminiscent to the other Margot Bennett’s book that I have read – Someone from the Past. Made the “best of” lists of both Anthony Boucher and Julian Symons. 7/10 (another classic mystery writer whose books are in dire need of reprint)

dexter96: 9. Fool's Gold by Dolores Hitchens (1958) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – Out of Comfort Zone, Just the Facts – Out of Comfort Zone) – nourish novel - a couple of ex-con juvenile delinquents make plans to lay hands on some easy money kept by an old lady. What can go wrong? The answer is everything. For a reader (as me) seeking mainly entertainment in a mystery novel the story is too much realistic. Most of the characters are unsympathetic (led by greed and making wrong choice after wrong one) – in most cases primal urges prevail over rationality. The gold makes everyone fool. The mood is oppressive – there is a feeling of predestination and the finale is not unexpected. Not my cup of tea – too much gloom and doom. 5/10 (first experience for me with a Dolores Hitchens’s novel and I have the feeling that I would have liked more either her earlier D. B. Olsen’s novels, or her short – lived private eye series, or her collaborations with her husband – that will be tested presently)

dexter96: 10. The Layton Court Mystery by Anthony Berkeley (1925) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – An Amateur Detective, Just the Facts – A Journalist/Writer) – the first novel of Anthony Berkeley and the first one of his novels read by me – it took me several years to finally decide how to tackle Anthony Berkeley’s versatility – I started from the beginning – a humorous country house mystery with a locked-room murder and an investigation led by the proverbial amateur sleuth – Roger Sheringham, an over-brimming with energy man of letters and incurably curious smart aleck. He eventually bumbles and babbles his way to the final solution assisted or at least only mildly hampered by his own appointed Watson – Alexander Grierson. The solution of the locked-room puzzle is of the pre-GAD variety and thus slightly disappointing. The identity of the killer for the modern reader is not the surprise that it should have been in the year of the original publication. 7/10 (I would definitely go back to A. B. C. soon)

dexter96: 11. For the Defence: Dr. Thorndyke by R. Austin Freeman (1934) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – Medical Mystery, Just the Facts – In the Medical Field) – a scientific melodrama of the inverted kind (Dr. Thorndyke does not appear until two thirds into the narration). The fate and one’s stupidity arrange a string of vicious coincidences so that a man is arraigned for his own murder. The good doctor re-arranges everything so that the normal order is restored. There are even improvements in the end. The situation into which the main protagonist (an artist named Andrew Barton suffering mentally because of his disfigured nose due to a cricket accident) finds himself is possible but highly improbable and can be resolved easily if a little common sense is applied. And (for the first time in a Freeman’s novel – twenty-three read so far overall) the science behind all the plastic surgery mumbo-jumbo in the book sounds implausible (at least for a layman as me). 5/10

dexter96: 12. A Louse for the Hangman by Leo Bruce (1958) (Mystery Bingo Original – Features Food, Mystery Bingo Revised – Eat, Drink and Be Merry, Just the Facts – Literary Allusion in Title) - Helter skelter, hang sorrow, care'll kill a cat, up-tails, and a louse for the hangman. (Ben Jonson, Every Man in His Humour) – amazingly, this time Carolus Deene (the History master at the highly-respected Queen’s School, Newminster) is asked by Mr. Gorringer (the ever disapproving of Deene’s extra – curricular activities headmaster of the school) to investigate the threatening letters received by Lord Penge (the bloater – paste king and his friend of old). At first Deene is not intrigued but when Michael Ratchett (Lord Penge’s secretary) is shot wearing the lord’s overcoat, he reluctantly agrees to go to Highcastle Manor to pit his wits against the insidious murdered. Hampered during his investigation by indigestion - causing five-course meals and a case of food poisoning (among other red herrings), Carolus Deene, this time unassisted by the incorrigible 6-grader Rupert Prigley, inevitably reaches the bitter truth about what is foul at the quaint manorial household much to his own and his headmaster’s regret. St first I thought I knew who the murderer was, then doubts beset my mind, and finally, I felt a bit stupid for being somewhat duped that easily 7/10 (I cannot disremember not to mention the quadruplely negative Spotter, no that won’t do!)

dexter96: 13. Tracks in the Snow by Godfrey R. Benson (later Lord Charnwood) (1906) – (Mystery Bingo Revised – Involves Clergy or Religion, Just the Facts – Includes Letter(s) or Diary Extracts) – the story behind the murder of Eustace Peters (an ex-official with the Consular Service residing at Grenville Combe, Long Wilton) as narrated by the local rector locum tenens. It is not much of a whodunit in the GAD sense, more of a Victorian sensational novel with a background story (much of it revealed by letters and other memorabilia either quoted or retold) leading to a murky past in the East (Saigon, Japan and the Philippines). Not very long and peripatetic but a bit tedious at times. 5/10 (a period piece)

dexter96: 14. The Case of the Drowning Duck by Erle Stanley Gardner (1942) – (Mystery Bingo Original – Author Read Before, Just the Facts – Unusual Murder Method) (re-read) – Perry Mason has his cold case and slowly warms up after his previous (abysmal) showing (The Case of the Empty Tin). An 18-year old possible mistrial for murder has its ramifications nowadays threatening the future and happiness of a young couple. An overzealous father is taught a lesson of empathy before the peace in the small local community (a la Doug Selby’s one) is finally restored. A so – so court room scene and a bit loose explanation of the murders (hm, unconvincing motivation anyone?) hamper otherwise expertly plotted yarn. By no means a chef-d’oeuvre but Mason returns somewhat to form. 6/10

dexter96: 15. Tom Tiddler’s Island (apa Gold Brick Island) by J. J. Connington (1933) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – Published Under More than One Title, Just the Facts – On an Island) – a standalone thriller by the “humdrum” master. (NB: puns intended) A mazy hidden passage, enciphered cryptograms, a low-down gang of most despicable characters, oversexed foreign gun – slingers galore, mysterious late-night high-strung overseas smugglers, assorted (pseudo)ornithologists, geologists, experimental chemists, shipwrecks, squally weather – all waiting on a small island off the Scottish coast to be discovered by an young newlywed couple looking for a few halcyon weeks to end their honeymoon. A bit loose and disjointed for a work of an expert plotter as Connington but still I liked it better than Rupert Penny’s (another plotter par excellence) foray into the genre (Cut and Run written under pen name of Martin Tanner). 5/10

dexter96: 16. The Penrose Mystery by R. Austin Freeman (1936) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – With a Lawyer/Courtroom/Judge, Just the Facts – Personal Name in Title) – Mr. Daniel Penrose is a strange bird – a human magpie. That is until the day he disappears without a trace leaving behind his collection of knick – knacks, assorted curios and some universally undisclosed treasures. Dr. John Thorndyke investigates on the insistence of Mr. Brodribb who once more finds himself peculiarly involved in the most twisted legal tangle of estates, bequests and legatees. The doctor’s logic is infallible as ever, though certain coincidences are much too convenient to be swallowed without reservations. 5/10

dexter96: 17. Not to Be Taken (apa A Puzzle in Poison) by Anthony Berkeley (1938) – (Mystery Bingo Revised – TBR First Lines, Just the Facts – Set in a Small Village) – the sudden death of John Waterhouse (a talented engineer in retirement in the village of Anneypenny) puts into turmoil the tranquil lives of several (un)happily coupled couples and uncoupled singles. Arsenically subversive mystery eventually solved by one of the deceased’s friends – Douglas Sewell, a fruit farmer in occupation and an accidental sleuth in Watson’s narratively speaking disguise. 8/10 (TBR first line winner - vs. Norman Berrow’s “Words Have Wings”, Ethel Lina White’s “She Faded into Thin Air” and Christopher Morley’s “The Haunted Bookshop” - and a last line to remember)

dexter96: 18. The D. A. Cooks a Goose by Erle Stanley Gardner (1942) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – Animal in the Title, Just the Facts – Death on Wheels) – Doug Selby finds himself in a fine place between the traps set by the “Old A. B. C.” (the unscrupulous shyster A. B. Carr) and the tricks played by his old would-be flame Inez Stapleton. In a case involving the poignant death of a baby in a car accident and the surprisingly large estate of a local miser he manages not to cook his goose and to do what the people pay him to get – justice. 8/10 (the D. A.’s series always delivers – alas, quality for the sake of quantity)

dexter96: 19. 2835 Mayfair (apa The Mayfair Mystery) by Frank Richardson (1907) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – Place in the Title, Just the Facts – Set in a Capital City) – an odd story. A facetious (alternating hairy with hirsute moments) retelling of another Collins classic. Maybe because of that the solution of the mystery is quite obvious (I imagine pretty daring for the time it was first published). 5/10 (a slight deduction for the ridiculously simple or simply ridiculous alibi in the end criminally overlooked by the police, press, Old Bailey, etc.)

dexter96: 21. Sweet Poison by Rupert Penny (1940) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – Means of Murder in Title, Just the Facts – Set at School) – DCI Edward Beale (this time assisted only by Tony Purdon) has (rather unwillingly at first) his “Poison Tuck Case” at Anstey Court Preparatory School where some strange occurrences involving French chocolates and cyanide of potassium make the Assistant-Commissioner Sir Francis Barton feel concerned about the future of his own brat currently residing there (at the not-so-extortionate fee of a hundred and sixty-five guineas per annum). There is something (je ne sais quoi) about Rupert Penny’s novels that makes them the (almost) perfect GAD novels in my mind. Even though the start is rather repetitiously slow and pedestrian (the murder does not happen until halfway through the book). Even though this time the murder is not impossible (except in a sense that those who have a motive do not have an opportunity and vice-versa). Even though for once in a Penny’s puzzle the culprit is quite detectable (through the sheer lack of suspects). Even this time. I really enjoy Penny’s unhurried style, measured approach to characterization, the laid-back dialogues interspersed light-hearted quips, the irreproachable logic of the narrative and the overabundance of how-do-I-miss-that clues. Fair play at its best. 9/10 (OK, it is not that good really – because the novel is the 6th or 7th best of the Beale’s cases I have read so far - so, pure (figurative) nepotism in action – and thanks Ramble House, alas, only one to go)

dexter96: 22. The Seventh Guest by Gaston Boca (Les Invités de minuit) (1935) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – Set Outside USA/UK, Just the Facts – Watson Narrator, Reading Bingo – A Book with a Mystery) – if you expect a fair play detective novel in GAD traditions with an ingenious locked-room puzzle, you will be disappointed. If you expect a fascinating Sherlockian story with hauntingly spooky rural setting, you will be less so. The main disappointment will be that Stéphane Triel is a truly “remarkable” sleuth. He is so withdrawn, so much in the background, so passive, so spare with his words and his actions, that you are not sure whether he exists or is just a figment of his Watson’s (Luc Dutheil) imagination. Otherwise, it is an atmospheric and very emotional story (if rather a short one) colourfully told, with tragic undercurrents running throughout, and somewhat ambiguous ending. 7/10

dexter96: 23. The Kind Man by Helen Nielsen (1951) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – A Man in the Title, Just the Facts – Death by a Knife/Dagger, Reading Bingo – First Book by a Favourite Author) – one small Californian town subsisting on one cannery, one temporarily wifeless and carless local chief of police, two murders done with one knife with a peculiar hilt and backstory, two suspects poles apart in practically everything, two motives – (lack of) love and (lack of) money, one murderer with one grudge and no remorse – a superb debut novel by Helen Nielsen (on par with some of her later chez-d’oeuvres as The Crime Is Murder, The Woman on the Roof and Sing Me a Murder). A subdued full-blown detective novel with noir shadings. 9/10

dexter96: 24. The Seven Deadly Sisters by Patricia McGerr (1947) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – A Woman in the Title, Just the Facts – Timing of Crime Is Crucial, Reading Bingo – A Number in the Title) - aka Pick Your Victim 2: Seven Self-centred Wives for Seven Wimpy Masochists. Newly wed and expectant mother Sally happily residing with her husband Peter in good old England receives a letter from a good old school friend mentioning by the way the recent murder by means of poison of one of her uncles committed obviously by one of her seven “poisonous” (as revealed later) aunts. Apparently it is very much old news in the new world so the letter does not specify which aunt killed her husband. Worrying about the heredity of her unborn child Sally wants Peter to convince her that the inclination to murder is not a trait affecting all and everyone of her female next of kin but only one specific aunt. Thanks to Sally’s very detailed reminiscences about her life with the family in New York running back to her teens he very much does so. The novel follows the pattern of McGerr’s debut novel though as almost every “sequel” is less successful than the original. Firstly, the whole premise of the story is more implausible (not counting Sally’s omnipresence) and artificially created than the one in Pick Your Victim and secondly, the identities of the killer sister and her espousal victim are less successfully hidden (the experienced reader should have at least strong suspicions from half-way point onward). Still it is a fun read, very much so. 8/10 (a soap-opera mystery par excellence)

dexter96: 25. Dead Lion by John and Emery Bonett (1949) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – Author with a Pseudonym, Just the Facts – An Animal in the Title) - an emotionally charged one written in collaboration by a married couple (real names John Hubert Arthur Coulson and Felicity Winifred Carter Coulson). Cyprian Druse is the lion from the title (obviously dead at the beginning of the book). He is also a renowned literary critic, cynic and altogether not a very pleasant character when still alive. Being spurned once in the past, he hates women but unfortunately (for them) he is still loved by some. The book is touted as Professor Mandrake’s case but he plays a rather peripheral role in this one. Druse’s nephew Simon Carne, a literary agent himself, is the reluctant Watson of the tale and turns out in the mix of things from the moment his arrival on English soil from America. Firstly, he stumbles upon his dead uncle’s body, secondly he discovers some clues disproving the idea of an accidental death, then finds some suspects with plausible motives, and finally gets involved in a romantic skirmish with (possibly) the love of his life. There is very little detection in the book – it is more like a love story (and discourse about love) with a mystery in the background. All in all, the book is adorable, unfolding for much of the time as a romantic comedy but finishing on a much more sombre note. 8/10 (a very pleasant read indeed)

dexter96: Eight Faces at Three (apa Death at Three & Murder Stops the Clock) by Craig Rice (1939) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – A Number in Title, Just the Facts – A Comic/Humorous Novel) - the debut outing of the free swilling, soft-hearted and somewhat grubby criminal lawyer John J. Malone accompanied by the free swilling, soft-hearted and somewhat chic (yet-to-be) couple Jake Justus and Helene Brand is a very entertaining mystery indeed . 7/10 (despite the dearth of suspects thoroughly suspenseful until the very end but fails to produce an overall “wow” denouement maybe to some extent due to a mite unfounded character reversal)

dexter96: A Banner for Pegasus (apa Not in the Script) by John and Emery Bonett (1951) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – Set in the Entertainment World, Just the Facts – An Artist/Photographer) - after making a cameo appearance in Dead Lion Hazel Fairweather returns (very deservedly) in her own love story cum mystery when a London film crew (inclusive of a certain quite lovable art designer) invades her home village of Steeple Tottering. This time Professor Mandrake (rediscovering himself as an amateur artist totally incomparable to Picasso) cuts a more prominent figure in detection although the mystery part is perhaps weaker than that in Dead Lion. 8/10 (call me a sucker for a bit of romance, though interestingly it is one of the Barzun’s hundred)

dexter96: 28. The Yellow Turban by Charlotte Jay (1955) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – A Colour in the Title, Just the Facts – A Colour in the Title, Reading Bingo – Set on a Different Continent) - very far from a traditional whodunit. It is a what-when-why-whodunit or what-the-hell-is-going-on or is there sense-in-it-at-all type of book. Much like in Beat Not the Bones the mystery is just a vehicle for exploration of people, places and times. William Brooke is on a mission to Pakistan to find his former friend Roy Finley and bring him back to England – alive. It turns out not so simple, especially when a knifed blood-splattered corpse keeps you a company in your dark and dingy hotel room. Exasperating, mysterious, chaotic, claustrophobic, confusing, oppressive and charming at the same time – not an easy read, like the Orient itself. 5/10 (a lesser less purposeful version of Beat Not the Bones at the same time too real and too close to me for comfort)

dexter96: 1. Death in High Heels by Christianna Brand (1941) – (Mystery Bingo Original – Size in the Title, Just the Facts – Death by Poison) – silly girls do silly things in a silly business catering to silly customers. One of them accidentally (or else?) dies in a rather silly way of oxalic acid overdose. Enter silly Inspector Charlesworth who blunders his way here and there and naturally (for him) falls in love. And then everyone turns suddenly shrewd. Mostly entertaining (a bit dragging in the middle). 7/10 (an intentionally silly and charming debut)

dexter96: 30. Dead Men Don’t Ski by Patricia Moyes (1958) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – A Professional Detective, Just the Facts – Professional Is Main Sleuth) – a very assured first novel. Chief Inspector Henry Tibbet accompanied by his wife Emmy is on a holiday at the small resort of Santa Chiara in the Italian Alps. Covertly, he is on an undercover mission against an international drug ring running from Sicily through the Alps and all the way to London. Things escalate fairly quickly when the main suspect is found dead on a chairlift during his descent from the Bella Vista Hotel where the Tibbetts are also residing. Henry Tibbett has to combine his famous “nose” with Capitano Spezzi’s (of the local carabinieri) methodical work (chairlift timetables, yeah!) in order to thwart a massacre on the snowy ski runs. Minor quibbles - a fairly obvious culprit and motive (the “how” part of the problem saves the day) and some obscure clues (a map would be useful). 8/10 (a colourful supporting cast of miscellaneous tourists interspersed with some local flavour plus plenty of skiing trivia make this a splendid read)

dexter96: 31. Thirty Days Hath September by Dorothy Cameron Disney (with George Sessions Perry) (1942) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – Time/Day/Month in Title, Just the Facts – During a Recognized Holiday) – a lesser version of the author’s “Death in the Back Seat”. A long and arduous Labor Day week-end is awaiting Sally and Tom. Not only the summer is suddenly going away from the Connecticut shore they have chosen as their home away from the big city but they are expecting a not entirely welcomed guest – Jenny Iverson, a self-made Fifth Avenue cosmetics mogul with a rather luxuriant outlook. But when their guest does not arrive on the 5 o’clock Boston Special and instead turns out dead in a heap of clamshells they find themselves in a far worse situation than anticipated. 7/10 (a solid mystery though some of the clueing is a bit on the ridiculous side)

dexter96: 32. An Oxford Tragedy by J. C. Masterman (1933) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – An Academic Mystery, Just the Facts – An Academic) – thirteen dons sitting on a table, one’s accidently shot. Along comes Ernst Brendel from Vienna and solves the crime. Despite the abundance of maps and room-plans it is not a completely fair play mystery (some of the deductions are rather unconvincing if not laughable) and reads more like a “great detective” story from the beginning of the 20th century. More successful as a poignant and tragic tale than as a mystery (thus the apt title – an Oxford tragedy rather than a mystery). 5/10 (still waters run deep but still are still)

dexter96: 33. Call Mr. Fortune by H. C. Bailey (1919) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – A Short Story Collection, Just the Facts – Death by Blunt Instrument) – a rather underwhelming short story collection again in the “great detective with an ace up one’s sleeve” vein. Pre-GAD and not fair play. The deductions are not very spectacular. Paucity of suspects doesn’t help either. Clearly an apprentice effort. 5/10 (a bland beginning for Dr. Reginald Fortune)

dexter96: 34. Stone Cold Dead in the Market by Christopher Landon (1955) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – A Book by an Author You Have Never Read Before, Just the Facts – Because Simon Says So/At the Bottom of Your TBR Pile, Reading Bingo – A Book with a Blue Cover) – a murder on the London stock exchange(a rather charming former version of it). The victim seems to be the only totally unsympathetic character among a slew of quaint and sometimes quite playful jobbers and brokers. Investigated by Major Robert Ross – one of a rare breed – a full-fledged British P.I. (though this is his first and probably last serious case) assisted by and assisting the CID. 7/10 (a peculiar murder method, a curious murder motive, a lovely excursion to the English countryside or rather seaside and a time-table alibi packed together in a heart-warming representation of a cutthroat profession and mores long gone)

dexter96: 35. The Grindle Nightmare (apa Darker Grows the Valley) by Q. Patrick (1935) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – A Book with a Spooky Title, Just the Facts – Death by Drowning, Reading Bingo – A Book That Scares You) – science, madness and gruesome murders (of both animals and people). The narrative, though sometimes rather detached and lacking the graphic details characteristic of the contemporary serial killer slashers (this is more like a, out-of-sight, out-of-mind traditional whodunit), is still quite effective and capable of stirring some uneasy feelings (too much empathy will kill you). Scary because of some parallels with a certain real life criminal case. 8/10 (a disturbing, rather cinematographic but surprisingly cerebral pre-Wheeler tale not for the squeamish and faint of heart)

dexter96: 36. Sealed Room Murder by Rupert Penny (1941) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – A Locked Room Mystery, Just the Facts – A Locked Room Mystery) – the last (alas) and in my humble opinion the least (alas) of the Edward Beale’s mysteries. The locked (i.e. sealed) room puzzle is fine though speculatively impractical bordering on incongruous (success/failure odds are well-nigh even for any sensible murderer). The novel around the puzzle is quite pedestrian not to say humdrum. The usual quips between Beale and Anthony Purdon maybe because Beale does not make an appearance until the story is parts done and Purdon does have only a cameo. It is mainly Douglas Merton’s fault, another (second for the week) young British private eye (in his uncle’s employ) and quite engaging one at that. So, not everything is lost. There is even a little bit of romance and titillating at that. All in all, a clever puzzle of the “wire cage” variety and an OK plotline with some thrills included. 8/10 (for auld land syne)

dexter96: 37. The Balcony by Dorothy Cameron Disney (1940) – (Mystery Bingo Revised – An Author Whose First/Last Name Begins with the Same Letter as Yours, Just the Facts – Author’s First/Last Name Begins with the Same Letter as Yours) – the most HBIK-ish and weakest of the few novels by Dorothy Cameron Disney I have read so far. A family reunion in rural Maryland of the heirs of a (self-proclaimed) Civil war hero (though a lesser one) goes slightly awry when one of the beloved aunties is found shot in her room. Cue a Scooby Doo style adventure with a mysterious stranger (friend or foe?), a secret hideout (plus), and a hidden treasure (earned hardly or hardly earned?). 6/10 (a classic deadly relations and naïve ingénue story)

dexter96: 38. Dr. Sam Johnson, Detector by Lillian de la Torre (1946) – (Mystery Bingo Revised – A Historical Mystery, Just the Facts – Set pre-1800) – Samuel Johnson – another great (if not gargantuan) lexicographer and natural puzzle solver. Well-researched historical background, authentic vernacular (even to reader’s detriment), detections on Sherlockian level with Father Brownish insight – the result is a magnificent collection of historical mysteries on par with the best of Carr’s output. 8/10 (a slight lament for the non-native English cum Scottish reader)

dexter96: 39. An Afternoon to Kill by Shelley Smith (1953) – (Mystery Bingo Revised – Published in Your Loved One’s Birth Year, Just the Facts – Set in Victorian Era) – a first encounter with an unfamiliar author. What starts as a bizarre adventure in an exotic land (very much à la Charlotte Jay) soon veers into the sensationalism of a lurid Victorian novel and somehow succeeds in ending quite unexpectedly on a lighter even facetious note. 7/10 (a worthwhile read)

dexter96: 40. Wall of Eyes by Margaret Millar (1943) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – Read by a Fellow Challenger, Just the Facts – Read by a Fellow Challenger, Reading Bingo – Written by Someone Under Thirty) – typical for Millar in its atypicality, her books always stand beyond genres and classification. What remains as a standard is the feeling of utter amazement and somehow inevitability when you begin to picture in your mind what the final reveal might be, slowly grow in conviction that this is the only possible way the book might and should end, and finally begin to wonder how you have not anticipated such a logical (and marvellously simple) explanation with all those clues strewn about. 9/10 (or even 10/10) (almost perfect amalgam of suspense, noir and mystery)

dexter96: 41. The Old Ladies' Tea Party (Le Thé des vieilles dames) by Pierre Véry (1937) – (Mystery Bingo Original – A Translated Work, Just the Facts – A Lawyer/Barrister/Judge) – Prosper Lepicq, the spiritual predecessor (if somewhat more commercially oriented) of Jean-Baptiste Adamsberg, while on a somewhat whimsical holiday journey on foot, makes an impulsive “butterfly” stop at the small town of Criquebec (pop. 400) and encounters superabundance of picturesque characters (with their quaint little secrets) among which a small coterie of old ladies with a penchant for clairvoyance. However, the idyllic sojourn is soon to be interrupted by a mysterious death… Maybe not completely fair mystery but a fairy tale of a mystery. 7/10 (si elle est belle, elle n'est pas fidèle and vice-versa – a slightly ponderous translation unfortunately veers to the latter)

dexter96: 42. The 17th Letter by Dorothy Cameron Disney (1945) – (Mystery Bingo O/R – A Book You Have to Borrow, Just the Facts – Set During the WWI or WWII) – an OK spy story with ramifications in the USA, Canada and Iceland. A charming young couple having received a mysterious correspondence from a friend currently abroad (the eponymous 17th letter in the form of a theatrical bill) find themselves in the whirlwind of a hectic cat-and-mouse chase with the Royal Mounties and somehow succeed in thwarting a grand (and overcomplicated) Nazi plot. 6/10 (somewhat dated but nevertheless entertaining and mostly light-hearted romp in the vein of Tommy and Tuppence Beresford’s early adventures)

dexter96: 43. The Longest Second by Bill S. Ballinger (1957) – (Just the Facts – Time/Date in Title) – a mysterious concoction of one part L. P. Davies’s amnesiac (and forcedly numb) stranger-in-a-strange- land hallucination and one part straight forward police procedural narrative stirred together until a crash course established. Add a couple of conspicuously gruesome throat cuts and a Twin Peaks dream sequence. Read bottoms up. 8/10 (apart from a slightly unoriginal ending a grossly engrossing read)

dexter96: 44. Heads You Lose by Christianna Brand (1941) – (Just the Facts – Death by Strangulation) – apparently a madman is on the loose outside (or maybe inside) Stephen Pendock’s country house where a bunch of his acquaintances fleeing from the London blitz are spending their time and inevitably some heads will be lost. Regretfully unfulfilled promises for an impossible crime. Inspector Cockrill is a rather bland and retiring character. In some aspects rather predictable read until a very pleasing surprise later on. 6/10 (an authoress already challenging Father Knox’s rules and seemingly in the process of testing what she can get away with)

dexter96: 45. The Wychford Poisoning Case by Anthony Berkeley (1926) – (Just the Facts – Means of Murder in the Title) – a dull and muddled exposition of the author’s observations about the real life Maybrick case in the form of Roger Sheringham’s rambling and somewhat facetious prattle interspersed with (the infamous) utterly irrelevant spanking scenes, intermittent junketing and liberal libations. The resolution of the case never convinces – it just might (but not must) have happened that way. 5/10 (boring buffoonery - it should never have been one of Sheringham’s cases)

dexter96: 46. The Corpse Steps Out by Craig Rice (1940) – (Just the Facts – Crime Involved Fire/Arson) – murders in Radioland featuring the girl with the va-va-va-voom voice, a stable of imaginary horses, a highly anticipated richness (or is it a romp?) of minks and more than liberal libations (alternately rye and gin)… How can you get rid of a corpse if the occasion arises? And what can go wrong if you want to get married in a flash for the one you love? Even if she is rich. And a pyromaniac. And a reckless driver, the one who always jumps the lights. 7/10 (a medium rare mystery but gosh, do the three of them put the quip(s) in “équipe”)

dexter96: 47. The Norths Meet Murder by Frances and Richard Lockridge (1940) – (Just the Facts – A Librarian/Bookstore Owner/Publisher) – a stiff beginning with an unwelcomed corpse found by the enigmatic Norths in the bath of an empty flat in their apartment house prospected as a venue for a future party. The Norths remain somewhat non-descript until the very end but fortunately, another couple appears – “Loot” Weigand and Sergeant Mullins and the things liven up a bit. Then go stale again. Finally, a lobster party defrosts the case but a kind of a mundane solution leaves a lukewarm aftertaste. 6/10 (an uneven better than average mystery)

dexter96: 48. Exit Charlie by Alex Atkinson (1955) – (Just the Facts – An Actor/Actress) – the leading man (Charlie Manion) of a repertory theatre makes an exit from a play, life and all, i.e. is poisoned in his dressing room after a gruelling Wednesday performance of “The Second Warning” (a thriller). The murder is quasi impossible until (well after halfway into the book) Inspector Furniss makes (between a couple of peppermints) an unexpected discovery and the set suddenly simplifies. Still, the author’s love for the theatrical way of life remains contagious throughout. 7/10 (as most of the titles included in the Barzun’s hundred this one is a solid but unspectacular mystery)

dexter96: 49. The Viaduct Murder by Ronald A. Knox (1925) – (Just the Facts – A Vicar/Religious Figure) – four golfers (a don, a priest and two loafers) and a corpse on the links. And only one secret passage. Neither Chinamen nor doppelgangers. A timetable. And a map. An amusing amateurish affair (Sherlockiana per se) used as a vehicle for some good-natured preaching. Sadly, the end is a rather disappointing vindication of professional crime solving. 6/10 (daring flights of fictional imagination remain more entertaining than dull reality)

dexter96: 50. The Zakhov Mission (Контраразузнаване apa Случаят в Момчилово*) by Andrei Gulyashki (1959) – (Just the Facts – An Author from Your Country) – quite surprised that this one is available in English and even has a Wikipedia entry. Shamelessly ripped from there (with some additions and amendments) - “The Zakhov Mission is an espionage detective novel by the Bulgarian author Andrei Gulyashki first published in 1959. The English translation is by Maurice Michael, published in the UK in 1968 by Cassell, London, and in USA in 1969 by Doubleday, N.Y. (ISBN 0-304-92178-5). The protagonist of the novel, Avakum Zakhov (this is just an alias – his real name remains unknown), is a Bulgarian counter-espionage operative (also a polymath – a mathematician, an archaeologist, etc.), who foils a sabotage ploy (meanwhile saving a framed innocent man from facing the shooting squad) in a small (fictional) Bulgarian village close to the southern border (either with Turkey or Greece – it remains unclear which one). Avakum Zakhov was intended as a Bulgarian version of Sherlock Holmes: a solitary bachelor, who enjoys the rainy weather, loves to smoke his pipe by the fire, and solves detective mysteries by keen observation and deductive reasoning. The book spawned a series of (ten) Zakhov books, which became best-sellers in the Eastern Bloc. The first four books of this series have also been translated into many languages (the sixth of the series Срещу 07 is also available in English under the title Avakoum Zakhov Versus 07) and provided the inspiration for the popular Bulgarian television series The Adventures of Avakum Zakhov. “ 6/10 (it is a decent mystery suffering from dearth of suspects and marred with strong socialist realism influences, e.g. the local party leader and the chairman of the local cooperative as proven and trusted people are above any suspicion incidentally further reducing the tiny sample size of possible miscreants)

dexter96: 51. Malice Aforethought: The Story of a Commonplace Crime by Anthony Berkeley (as Frances Iles) (1931) – (Just the Facts – An Inverted Mystery) – after the tepid Wychford case I decided to somewhat invert my selection of Berkeley’s titles and the things really became (ta-da) lukewarm – simply put, inverted mysteries just are not my cup of tea. I do care for character development and I do like to know more about the motivation behind a crime (to some extent) but those do have to be sustained with (in)credible storyline(s) and the air of mystifying ingenuity. Realism spoils things. Reduces to drabs. OK, murderers are weak, stupid people with borderline mania of grandeur and low level of empathy. OK, when they make the first decisive step they are trapped and things always go from bad to worse. OK, I do not seem to care – I am interested in mysteries not in crime. The “good” (amorous) doctor kills his (domineering) wife and narrowly escapes (deserved) (capital) punishment only to come to grief later in rather an unexpected way. And he does it with bacteria. 7/10 (strangely fascinating - unsympathetic people doing wretched things)

dexter96: 52. Green for Danger by Christianna Brand (1944) – (Just the Facts – In a Hospital/Nursing Home) – the first one of a series of (so far) four Brand’s titles (nigh on chef d’oeuvres) read in quick succession (deservedly so). What they have in common is the avuncular Cockie (Inspector Cockrill) who still prefers to stay in the background and to listen to other people making hypotheses and accusations and who still preserves this hard streak that prevents him from pardoning a crime and making excuses for a murderer. This one features a death on the operating table during a routine operation on a broken femur carried in a military hospital (under the London Blitz) which turns (furthermore) into a nightmare the lives of patients and medical staff (doctors, nurses and VADs) concerned. A brief recapitulation of my reading experience: one red herring – duly spotted; another victim on the operating table; a second red herring (or is it?) – spotted; a murder method – inferred correctly. And then what. And then there were none (red herrings)… time for afterthoughts - OK, I should’ve guessed it but I failed to connect a possible (and at one time contemplated upon) motive with a little piece of information here and that little fact there… duped but I feel it is a solvable one if one stays alert. 8/10 (a rather poignant/tragic denouement and story it turns out to be and it rings true to boot)

dexter96: 53. The Crooked Wreath (apa Suddenly at His Residence) by Christianna Brand (1946) – (Just the Facts – During a Special Event) – the quaint annual commemoration of “Grandmama” Serafita (Sir Richard March’s first “hybrid ballerina” wife) dutifully organized for him by his “steady eddie” second wife (and once-time “kept” mistress) Bella is afoot and the children (a rather strange lot) are all home for the occasion. The usual threats of disinheriting are thrown in the air and are duly followed by the usual death of the unwise testator. And then the sailing is not so plain, the murder/accident/suicide rapidly veers into the impossible realm, the relations turn out to be not only mixed but mingle-mangled and the motives seemingly start to disappear. So, the Cockie’s pitch is no doubt a queered one. 8/10 (strangely how Green for Danger and this one go in opposite directions regarding the raging WW2 in the background – the threat of the Blitz in the former is omnipresent throughout until the calm of the last “epilogue” scene while here the war is somewhere far away out of sight out of mind until the bomb literally falls in the final denouement)

dexter96: 54. Death of Jezebel by Christianna Brand (1948) – (Just the Facts – During a Performance of Any Sort) – the motive for the crime(s) seems to be more or less clear from the beginning, there is not a surfeit of suspects (the number is five), and still sometimes (as in this case) less is more – this should (must) rank among the must-reads of any (or at least locked room) mystery aficionado. In one word – impressive. Everything, from the intriguing preliminary setup abruptly ending in disaster, the scene of the first crime (the stage of the pageant with the tower, the damsel deservingly in distress on the balcony, and the eleven armoured knights on guard below),the eventual gallantry of the inevitable rivalry between the rather self-effacing (country) Inspector Cockrill and the overconfident (big city) Charlesworth, the gruesome send-back of the second crime to an earlier heads-you-lose case (accompanied by the charming reappearance among slight spoilers and improbable coincidences of another participant in that case), the multiple garden paths open for the reader to explore at will until the eye-opening revelations at the very death of it all, everything is well and truly just grand. Mesmerizing. 9/10 (consolingly being right all the time until proven very wrong in the end)

dexter96: 55. One for the Road by Fredric Brown (1958) – (Just the Facts – A Number in the Title) – a reporter for a local weekly paper is trying to solve the seemingly unmotivated murder of a newcomer in a small Arizona town. Well, the reporter is a rookie, the newcomer is a mysterious dolly bird, and this definitely is not the Night of the Jabberwock. Nevertheless, Fredric Brown is a brilliant writer because he does not let you know that until very late in this rather short novel, i.e. ten pages before the rather abrupt end. 7/10 (clearly one of Brown’s lesser works but scores bonus points for a favourite author and sheer readability)

dexter96: 56. London Particular (apa Fog of Doubt) by Christianna Brand (1952) – (Just the Facts – During a Weather Event) – weaker in plot compared to Death of Jezebel but with stronger and more engaging characters. The fog-assisted bewilderment in which I remained throughout certainly enhances my unadulterated appreciation (nigh on implicit worship). 9/10 (the force grows even stronger with middle-aged Brand and it is not even her Tour de Force which surely is coming soon to your humble servant’s TBR pile)

dexter96: 57. The Room Upstairs by Mildred Davis (1948) – (Just the Facts – Won an Award) – 1949 Edgar Award for Best First Novel - a rather soapish Dallas-style thriller with set pieces of dread and intrigue. Boy (the debonair detective) meets some girls (the notorious three sisters of that period suspense) and finally gets one (the last one standing). The surprising denouement is probably not that surprising as it once must have been. 7/10 (a pleasant and all in all not very disappointing read)

dexter96: 58. Roger Sheringham and the Vane Mystery (apa The Mystery at Lovers’ Cave) by Anthony Berkeley (1927) – (Just the Facts – An Author Not from Your Country) – The case at hand is the “accidental” death of Mrs. Vane found dead at the foot of the Ludmouth Bay’s cliffs. Roger Sheringham (once again in the guise of Daily Courier special reporter) bumbles and blabbers his way to another false solution. Luckily, the mundane reality and Inspector Moresby have hard task on hand to curb his enthusiasm. 6/10 (let the debunking of the great detective continue)

dexter96: 59. Quick Curtain by Alan Melville (1934) – (Just the Facts – At a Theatre/Circus/Other Place of Performance) – the murder on stage of the leading male star of the latest Douglas B. Douglas production at its London premiere (of course after the traditional test run in Manchester) entices the ineptitude of a semi-professional sleuthing duo (a father Scotland Yard detective figure and a dashing juvenile reporter son). Unfortunately, the boring reality withers another imaginative effort. 6/10 (amateur sleuthing sort of amusingly gone wrong)

dexter96: 60. Murder on Tour by Todd Downing (1933) – (Just the Facts – A Character Has a Job Similar to Yours) – the US Customs Agent Hugh Rennert (under the guise of a member of a party of American tourists on a jaunt to Mexico City) investigates the murder of a fellow agent who apparently has been hot on the trail of a cross-border smuggling ring. The rather telegraphic rendition of the events following the agent’s tragic death in his San Antonio hotel room does not impede the author’s mastery in successfully obfuscating clues in this ultimately fair puzzle. 8/10 (a gem of an aficionado’s debut mystery and a deserved triumph for a fictional colleague in another time and place)