Busman’s Honeymoon by Dorothy Sayers has sat on my shelf for some time but was certainly well worth the wait. This book will be remembered as my favorite of the series highlighting as it does both the author’s style and her wonderful characters. We are celebrating the marriage of Lord Peter and Harriet Vane but I have to admit I was most thrilled that Lord Peter’s manservant, Bunther, was front and center in this offering.

Instead of going somewhere exotic for their honeymoon, Peter and Harriet slip away from their wedding and go to their newly purchased country home bringing Bunther along with them. Much to their surprise and although they had sent instructions, the house was far from ready for them. When the previous owner is discovered dead and most likely murdered, Harriet, Peter, and of course, Bunther have a mystery to solve.

In Busman’s Honeymoon we get to really appreciate the relationship between Harriet and Peter and can see that this is going to be a very successful marriage. The mixture of romance and murder mystery was very well done, and we also got to see a softer, more sensitive side to Lord Peter than he usually shows. My favorite line of the book was when Harriet declared her love for Peter but said she could happily marry Bunther. Of course Lord Peter totally agreed with her. This is the final book in the series and I am going to miss reading about these characters. ( )

This is a personal favorite of the Lord Peter Wimsey series. Henrietta Vines and Lord Peter are finally married and set out on their honeymoon only to discover a dead body in the cellar of their vacation home. One reason this book is so delightful is that it is nice to watch the interactions of the two characters. The first half of the book starts with the introduction of a rich cast of characters from a rural village. The second half is, of course, involved in solving the mystery but offers plenty of time for the interaction of the two main characters. A very entertaining read. ( )

This is the book in which Lord Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane get married. The mystery is incidental. I loved it! ( )

Re-read, November 2021: I maintain my theory that reading the Lord Peter books in order is almost a mistake...I think if I had started with the very first one, I would not have felt a strong inclination to read any more. No, it's in the quartet of books featuring Harriet Vane that Peter develops into a complex human. And the process of finding his fragile, painful, extraordinary balance with Harriet is the thing that actually matters.

Busman's Honeymoon is an exquisitely written story of the beginning of a marriage of two equal minds. It's unique and it's thought-provoking.

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Original review:

This is either a love story with detective interruptions, or the other way round. Either way, one is certain to prefer one part of it over the other, and I definitely prefer the interludes between Lord Peter and his new bride. Not only are they very much in love, they are incredibly honest, communicative, and generous with each other about the adjustment that married life means. They have both found rest from the weary world, in each other.

Here's one of my favorite of their exchanges:

"Harriet," he said, suddenly, "what do you think about life? I mean, do you find it good on the whole. Worth living?"
(He could, at any rate, trust her not to protest, archly: "That's a nice thing to ask on one's honeymoon!")
She turned to him with a quick readiness, as though here was the opportunity to say something she had been wanting to say for a long time:
"Yes! I've always felt absolutely certain it was good--if only one could get it straightened out. I've hated almost everything that ever happened to me, but I knew all the time it was just things that were wrong, not everything....It seems like a miracle to be able to look forward--to--to see all the minutes in front of one come hopping along with something marvelous in them, instead of just saying, Well, that one didn't actually hurt and the next may be quite bearable if only something beastly doesn't come pouncing out--"
"As bad as that?"
"No, not really, because one got used to it--to being everlastingly tightened up to face things, you see. But when one doesn't have to anymore, it's different--I can't tell you what a difference it makes."

Harriet's line has stayed with me ever since I first read it years ago, and I sometimes say it to myself--"It's just things that are wrong, not everything." I find it profound.

That Dorothy Sayers really has a gift for words.

Just a note on the text: There are a ton of classical allusions here, most of which I don't get, as I'm not good on Latin and my knowledge of poetry is patchy. Doesn't affect my enjoyment. There are also a few passages in French. But that's what Google Translate is for.
On re-reading this in 2021, I found an absolutely invaluable site here where someone has done a beautiful job with annotations and translations chapter by chapter. ( )

Lord Peter Wimsey