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Died on a Rainy Sunday
A claustrophobic story set around Jane and Graham Drummond; two of their friends, Tom and Ellie; Mr. & Mrs. McGregor, a couple who come to help while Jane takes a temporary job in London. And there are, of course, the children -- Jane's two and the McGregor child -- around whom explosive jealousy and hate swiftly begin to condense. During the long, wet summer, the failing architect and his career wife, the television personality, Jane's girlfriend and the baleful McGregors slowly build their relationship into... murder.
184 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1972
3 people are currently reading
77 people want to read
About the author
Joan Aiken
331 books601 followersJoan Aiken was a much loved English writer who received the MBE for services to Children's Literature. She was known as a writer of wild fantasy, Gothic novels and short stories.
She was born in Rye, East Sussex, into a family of writers, including her father, Conrad Aiken (who won a Pulitzer Prize for his poetry), and her sister, Jane Aiken Hodge. She worked for the United Nations Information Office during the second world war, and then as an editor and freelance on Argosy magazine before she started writing full time, mainly children's books and thrillers. For her books she received the Guardian Award (1969) and the Edgar Allan Poe Award (1972).
Her most popular series, the "Wolves Chronicles" which began with The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, was set in an elaborate alternate period of history in a Britain in which James II was never deposed in the Glorious Revolution,and so supporters of the House of Hanover continually plot to overthrow the Stuart Kings. These books also feature cockney urchin heroine Dido Twite and her adventures and travels all over the world.
Another series of children's books about Arabel and her raven Mortimer are illustrated by Quentin Blake, and have been shown on the BBC as Jackanory and drama series. Others including the much loved Necklace of Raindrops and award winning Kingdom Under the Sea are illustrated by Jan Pieńkowski.
Her many novels for adults include several that continue or complement novels by Jane Austen. These include Mansfield Revisited and Jane Fairfax.
Aiken was a lifelong fan of ghost stories. She set her adult supernatural novel The Haunting of Lamb House at Lamb House in Rye (now a National Trust property). This ghost story recounts in fictional form an alleged haunting experienced by two former residents of the house, Henry James and E. F. Benson, both of whom also wrote ghost stories. Aiken's father, Conrad Aiken, also authored a small number of notable ghost stories.
She was born in Rye, East Sussex, into a family of writers, including her father, Conrad Aiken (who won a Pulitzer Prize for his poetry), and her sister, Jane Aiken Hodge. She worked for the United Nations Information Office during the second world war, and then as an editor and freelance on Argosy magazine before she started writing full time, mainly children's books and thrillers. For her books she received the Guardian Award (1969) and the Edgar Allan Poe Award (1972).
Her most popular series, the "Wolves Chronicles" which began with The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, was set in an elaborate alternate period of history in a Britain in which James II was never deposed in the Glorious Revolution,and so supporters of the House of Hanover continually plot to overthrow the Stuart Kings. These books also feature cockney urchin heroine Dido Twite and her adventures and travels all over the world.
Another series of children's books about Arabel and her raven Mortimer are illustrated by Quentin Blake, and have been shown on the BBC as Jackanory and drama series. Others including the much loved Necklace of Raindrops and award winning Kingdom Under the Sea are illustrated by Jan Pieńkowski.
Her many novels for adults include several that continue or complement novels by Jane Austen. These include Mansfield Revisited and Jane Fairfax.
Aiken was a lifelong fan of ghost stories. She set her adult supernatural novel The Haunting of Lamb House at Lamb House in Rye (now a National Trust property). This ghost story recounts in fictional form an alleged haunting experienced by two former residents of the house, Henry James and E. F. Benson, both of whom also wrote ghost stories. Aiken's father, Conrad Aiken, also authored a small number of notable ghost stories.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
November 17, 2021
My first Joan Aiken read! This one was a slow burn and most definitely a departure from my usual Fear Street and Point horror reads, but I'm glad I stuck it through! Joan writes moody and atmospheric prose with some very adult themes for a YA book. For one, this is a book where the mom is the protagonist. And the husband's friend calls the nanny a "BITCH" and also Jane the protag contemplates divorcing her lame-ass husband. Definitely out of the typical YA zone!! 😅😅😱😱
So basically the new nanny is an insufferable hag who is weird and mean and Jane's kid acts scared around her when she comes to babysit. And the nanny's husband the gardener creeps out Jane too...but she NEEDS THEM because she's gone back to a work assignment for 2 months because her shitty husband blows through all the money 🥴🥴
Meanwhile shitty husband won't fire them because they have some kind of creepy hold on him.
The book title has the word "DIED" in it, and I kept waiting for someone to DIE....when it finally comes, it is shocking and gnarly. All secrets will be revealed with a final desperate showdown, BUT YOU GOTTA WAIT. This book is a slow suspenseful build and shit doesn't start popping off til near the end.
4 out of 5 stabs from a steely garden spike from your overgrown garden. Don't hire the creepy old weird dude to be your gardener.
So basically the new nanny is an insufferable hag who is weird and mean and Jane's kid acts scared around her when she comes to babysit. And the nanny's husband the gardener creeps out Jane too...but she NEEDS THEM because she's gone back to a work assignment for 2 months because her shitty husband blows through all the money 🥴🥴
Meanwhile shitty husband won't fire them because they have some kind of creepy hold on him.
The book title has the word "DIED" in it, and I kept waiting for someone to DIE....when it finally comes, it is shocking and gnarly. All secrets will be revealed with a final desperate showdown, BUT YOU GOTTA WAIT. This book is a slow suspenseful build and shit doesn't start popping off til near the end.
4 out of 5 stabs from a steely garden spike from your overgrown garden. Don't hire the creepy old weird dude to be your gardener.
August 17, 2012
No matter what Goodreads may tell you, Died On A Rainy Sunday is not one of Joan Aiken's kids' books. It is, however, an excellent thriller.
February 29, 2020
Jane and Graham are short of money, so Jane rather reluctantly goes back to work for two months, leaving her two young children in the care of the disagreeable Mrs McGregor, whose husband, the even more disagreeable Mr McGregor, is doing some gardening for them. Jane dislikes the McGregors, but for some mysterious reason her husband insists on employing them and won’t hear of getting anyone else to replace them. Jane begins to wonder what sort of hold the McGregors have over Graham. The McGregors get more and more unpleasant (there are some really nasty incidents). The situation escalates until it all comes to a very dramatic head one weekend. I found the story quite gripping, and wanted to know what happened next, which is always good, but it was short on the humour and quirky characters that you find in Joan Aiken’s best books
March 2, 2025
On the back of this version of the novel there’s a quote from the Times Literary Supplement saying “really frightening” and I suppose it is really frightening that an otherwise reliable and good writer like Aiken can write a horrible, shrill, snobbish howl of suburban disgust like this. It’s like falling asleep watching a bunch of Tales of the Unexpected and dreaming the very worst story imaginable. The more accurate review here is “enough to give many a suburban housewife nightmares” from the Birmingham Mail, and if that nightmare extends to suddenly finding out you’re related to grotesque approximations of the working class (I mean, truly, the McGregors are like something the League of Gentlemen though were a bit too on the nose) then that’s probably fair. Just awful
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 13, 2014
This is not a book for children (like Goodreads indicates). I saw the front cover on a shelf in my library - all black and ominous, and I was instantly curious. Although the author's style was a bit dry, it was appropriate for the setting and time the characters were from. Plus it added that level of suspense in a terrifying kind of way - that there are truly evil people out there who might be lurking in everyday life. I definitely liked the book - it was scary!! I could feel compassion for the difficult position Jane was put in, leaving her daughter and infant son with such a horrid housekeeper, putting up with a unreliable and alcoholic husband, sadness for Jane having to work and leave her kids for the sake of providing for her family. I did not see the end coming. I thought for sure that everyone in Jane's family was a gonner! Scary!
May 22, 2021
I've got very mixed thoughts about this book. Joan Aiken is always an amazing writer, and I find her prose meditatively comforting. The way she describes a scene (or scenery, for that matter) is both old-school and refreshing. The setting works and the mood works. The book also excels in a lot of the side characters.
That said, the plot is a mess. It only works because the heroine doesn't stand up to her husband about anything. The driving mystery relies on a long-delayed conversation.
The creepy elements are appropriately creepy, but, again, they're undermined by the heroine refusing to stand up for herself. The story mostly focuses on her point of view. There is a valid literary tradition where the protagonist isn't necessarily sure whether anything is really wrong, or at least anything provable. In those kinds of stories, the protagonist won't act because she does not know whether or not she should. This isn't that kind of story after page 40 or so. I don't normally agree when people call the protagonist a wimp, but this one fits the bill.
Joan Aiken has written so many books that you can comfortably pick and choose which ones you prefer. I only recommend this one if you enjoy her style, because the narrative is lackluster.
That said, the plot is a mess. It only works because the heroine doesn't stand up to her husband about anything. The driving mystery relies on a long-delayed conversation.
The creepy elements are appropriately creepy, but, again, they're undermined by the heroine refusing to stand up for herself. The story mostly focuses on her point of view. There is a valid literary tradition where the protagonist isn't necessarily sure whether anything is really wrong, or at least anything provable. In those kinds of stories, the protagonist won't act because she does not know whether or not she should. This isn't that kind of story after page 40 or so. I don't normally agree when people call the protagonist a wimp, but this one fits the bill.
Joan Aiken has written so many books that you can comfortably pick and choose which ones you prefer. I only recommend this one if you enjoy her style, because the narrative is lackluster.
July 14, 2022
A Cracking Good Read!
I binged this book in one go, and I think that tells you a lot! Very easy to read, good pace, and a nice level of mystery throughout. Even though it was written in 1972, the main character Jane is very relatable with her struggle to manage a return to work, a home, children, and a toxic husband. Add in believable, sinister characters who make your blood boil, and you've got a great read. As a child I read Joan's work, so I'm excited to discover her adult thrillers (as well as kids books I missed the first time round, such as the hugely enjoyable The Shadow Guests).
I binged this book in one go, and I think that tells you a lot! Very easy to read, good pace, and a nice level of mystery throughout. Even though it was written in 1972, the main character Jane is very relatable with her struggle to manage a return to work, a home, children, and a toxic husband. Add in believable, sinister characters who make your blood boil, and you've got a great read. As a child I read Joan's work, so I'm excited to discover her adult thrillers (as well as kids books I missed the first time round, such as the hugely enjoyable The Shadow Guests).
December 5, 2020
Enjoyed this book the plot was good. Set in the 1970s. If I had been Jane I wouldn't have stood so long with Graham's behaviour. It flowed well. One earlier review said the author wrote children books this certainly wasn't one. Would read Joan Aiken again.
April 27, 2022
More like,
“Gaslit on a Rainy Sunday.”
Really enjoyed the writing in this one. A really taut, tense thriller that builds slowly, with an ending I sure didn’t see coming. Didn’t expect it to be as dark as it was tbh.
“Gaslit on a Rainy Sunday.”
Really enjoyed the writing in this one. A really taut, tense thriller that builds slowly, with an ending I sure didn’t see coming. Didn’t expect it to be as dark as it was tbh.
May 22, 2022
Short and atmospheric and a bit rushed at the end as these books usually are but it definitely kept me reading. Very surprised to find out this was for young people with some of the themes but it was written in the early 1970's and that is very evident when you read it.
September 20, 2023
auch wenn der anfang recht langsam war, hat mir das buch richtig gut gefallen. die stimmung war wahnsinnig unangenehm und bedrückend und hat die story wirklich gut zum leben erweckt.
January 10, 2016
I first read this back in about the fifth grade (many years ago) when I found it in my school library. Goodreads can't be blamed for thinking this is a children's book, apparently. It most definitely isn't. Having read this now as a adult, I'm surprised at all that I wouldn't have understood when reading it as a child. It's appropriately creepy and fits with the time period in which it was written. I like Mary Stewart's neo-Gothic novels better, but did enjoy this.
September 22, 2011
In hindsight, kinda reminds me of the Messangers (the horror movie, not the joan of arc movie). There's a family with two kids, just moved into a new house. Village native gets hired to help out and suspense ensues.
Died on a Rainy Sunday is a fine enough book. Aiken is a modest but talented author. I wouldn't necessarily recommend this as your first Aiken book though.
Died on a Rainy Sunday is a fine enough book. Aiken is a modest but talented author. I wouldn't necessarily recommend this as your first Aiken book though.
July 22, 2010
Very much suspenseful tale. Very short.
December 6, 2017
Onvan : Died on a Rainy Sunday - Nevisande : Joan Aiken - ISBN : 30894913 - ISBN13 : 9780030894916 - Saal e Chap : 1972
May 8, 2023
Still just as good on another re-read. Love this book!
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews