What do you think?
Rate this book
Department D-3 #1
The Department of Queer Complaints
It The New Invisible Man; Footprint in the Sky; The Crime in Nobody's Room; Hot Money; Death in the Dressing Room; The Silver Curtain; Error at Daybreak, these 7 stories are all Colonel March mysteries, as well, this collection The Other Hangman; New Murders for Old; Persons or Things Unknown; Blind Man's Hood, this book reprints the contents of the original hardcover edition which contained these 11 stories (of which 4 are NOT Colonel March stories)
241 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1940
5 people are currently reading
147 people want to read
About the author
Carter Dickson
71 books78 followersCarter Dickson is a pen name of writer John Dickson Carr.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
June 26, 2019
COUNTDOWN: Mid-20th Century North American Crime
BOOK/Novella 141 (of 250)
"Blind Man's Hood" is the focus here in this collection. It first appeared in the April 1938 issue of the Strand Magazine, according to 'all-things-locked-room' expert, Otto Penzler. This could be a good collection if you're a teacher, and your focus is 'thinking out of the box'.
HOOK=3: "At that time, of course, there was no dead woman lying inside [the house]. Intriguing, but probably true at the start of any number of books, novellas and shorts.
PACE=3: Just right for a novella.
PLOT= 3: I need only say that John Dickson Carr/Carter Dickinson's mastery of the "impossible crimes" is unequaled. But he's done better.
CHARACTERS=3: The dead woman you'll remember, no one else.
ATMOSPHERE/PLACE=4: "An isolated house is brilliantly lit, the front door is open, but the house is seemingly empty." Or, "The library was a long, low room with beams. The windows toward the road were uncurtained; but those in the side-wall, where a faded red-brick fireplace stood, were bay windows with draperies closed across them. Hunter could have sworn he saw one of the draperies move" Muriel assured him, "I believe some gentlemen [some time ago]...pulled the curtain back...He felt some hair, and it moved." Something invisible and hairy? The atmosphere works nicely to build the story.
SUMMARY: Eventually, though there is a dead lady in a completed isolated house, she doesn't belong there at all, how can that be? My overall rating is 3.2, John Dickson Carr/Carter Dickinson's impossible crimes are always a good to great read and are usually found as shorts or novellas. He expands his genres into other areas, though, and his full length novels often can't keep a great mystery moving.
BOOK/Novella 141 (of 250)
"Blind Man's Hood" is the focus here in this collection. It first appeared in the April 1938 issue of the Strand Magazine, according to 'all-things-locked-room' expert, Otto Penzler. This could be a good collection if you're a teacher, and your focus is 'thinking out of the box'.
HOOK=3: "At that time, of course, there was no dead woman lying inside [the house]. Intriguing, but probably true at the start of any number of books, novellas and shorts.
PACE=3: Just right for a novella.
PLOT= 3: I need only say that John Dickson Carr/Carter Dickinson's mastery of the "impossible crimes" is unequaled. But he's done better.
CHARACTERS=3: The dead woman you'll remember, no one else.
ATMOSPHERE/PLACE=4: "An isolated house is brilliantly lit, the front door is open, but the house is seemingly empty." Or, "The library was a long, low room with beams. The windows toward the road were uncurtained; but those in the side-wall, where a faded red-brick fireplace stood, were bay windows with draperies closed across them. Hunter could have sworn he saw one of the draperies move" Muriel assured him, "I believe some gentlemen [some time ago]...pulled the curtain back...He felt some hair, and it moved." Something invisible and hairy? The atmosphere works nicely to build the story.
SUMMARY: Eventually, though there is a dead lady in a completed isolated house, she doesn't belong there at all, how can that be? My overall rating is 3.2, John Dickson Carr/Carter Dickinson's impossible crimes are always a good to great read and are usually found as shorts or novellas. He expands his genres into other areas, though, and his full length novels often can't keep a great mystery moving.
May 27, 2020
Una bella e piacevole raccolta di racconti del giallo di Carter Dickson. Il protagonista è il colonnello March, a capo del dipartimento D3, che si occupa di casi strani o inspiegabili. Piccola gemma.
January 18, 2009
Great volume to be snowbound with--from the period when John Dickson Carr was able to balance eerie atmosphere with ingenious story (even including believable characters, sometimes). Many of his best locked-room stories are here ("The Footprint in the Sky," "The Silver Curtain," "Persons or Things Unknown") along with one of the most unforgettably horrific stories I have ever read in my life, "Blind Man's Hood."
PS. The "Department of Queer Complaints" is (detective) Colonel March's office at Scotland Yard, dealing with uncanny crimes. Nothing to do with other Queer complaints.
PS. The "Department of Queer Complaints" is (detective) Colonel March's office at Scotland Yard, dealing with uncanny crimes. Nothing to do with other Queer complaints.
June 15, 2019
Bellissima raccolta di racconti incentrati su delitti o situazioni impossibili, risolti argutamente dal colonnello March. I migliori della raccolta per me sono "Il nuovo uomo invisibile", "La cortina d'argento" e "L'appartamento disabitato" (quest'ultimo ha la stessa soluzione di un noto romanzo con H.M).
July 24, 2014
Fascinating stories, even if the quality is somewhat variable.
December 26, 2018
A mixed bag of 11 stories, seven of which feature Col. March of New Scotland Yard's Department of Queer Complaints.
Did not enjoy: the new invisible man, footprint in the sky, hot money.
Rather enjoyed: the crime in nobody’s room, the silver curtain, error at daybreak, persons or things unknown.
Found disturbing : the other hangman with its implication of mob justice and criminals who go scot-free because of their connections.
New Murders for Old deliberately tries to confuse the issue when the narrator narrates it to a listener in the story but continues to address her by name in the story rather than using ‘you’. Irritating to say the least. And the end is cheating the readers.
Really enjoyed: death in the dressing room, and blind man’s hood where a game of Blind Man’s Bluff turns into real Halloween stuff.
*
First Line: A Taxi brought him to the Derby Street Entrance of New Scotland Yard
First Published in London by William Heinemann Ltd, 1940
Pages 241
Did not enjoy: the new invisible man, footprint in the sky, hot money.
Rather enjoyed: the crime in nobody’s room, the silver curtain, error at daybreak, persons or things unknown.
Found disturbing : the other hangman with its implication of mob justice and criminals who go scot-free because of their connections.
New Murders for Old deliberately tries to confuse the issue when the narrator narrates it to a listener in the story but continues to address her by name in the story rather than using ‘you’. Irritating to say the least. And the end is cheating the readers.
Really enjoyed: death in the dressing room, and blind man’s hood where a game of Blind Man’s Bluff turns into real Halloween stuff.
*
First Line: A Taxi brought him to the Derby Street Entrance of New Scotland Yard
First Published in London by William Heinemann Ltd, 1940
Pages 241
September 25, 2018
These are little short story gems. While Colonel March is described as large and wide, I still picture Boris Karloff in the role...and seeing some of the episodes from the TV series helped me picture the character as I read this book. The mysteries have surprising twists---hardly one is predictable. I was fortunate to find a 1940 paperback copy and will definitely reread this in the future....and go back and finish the TV series.
April 1, 2025
A deliciously entertaining selection of short but gold stories by one of my favourite mystery authors of all time. There is no real standout but there are no real disappointments either, although to be perfectly honest it was easy to guess most of the culprits and tricks employed.
My personal ranking would be:
1. Error at Daybreak
2. Footprint in the Sky
3. The Silver Curtain
4. The Crime in Nobody's Room
5. Death in the Dressing Room
6. Hot Money
7. The New Invisible Man
My personal ranking would be:
1. Error at Daybreak
2. Footprint in the Sky
3. The Silver Curtain
4. The Crime in Nobody's Room
5. Death in the Dressing Room
6. Hot Money
7. The New Invisible Man
June 10, 2022
While some of the stories are familiar and Colonel March is not an indispensable character in any of them, they are quick to get through and important to Carr's fans. The stories range from excellent (in two cases) to bearable (in two case).
May 24, 2020
Good locked room mysteries. "Blind Man's Hood" is the most evocative, with it's touch of supernatural revenge.
September 8, 2024
短篇案件合集万岁！我最爱的，每篇都好喜欢。
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 12, 2018
In some ways it reminded me of Chesterton's The Club of Queer Trades.
This is a collection of 11 short stories, mostly puzzles - 7 feature Colonel March.
I had recently watched a couple of old old TV episodes of a Brit series starring Boris Karloff -- so of course I had to find the book (and now I see there are a couple more)
This is a collection of 11 short stories, mostly puzzles - 7 feature Colonel March.
I had recently watched a couple of old old TV episodes of a Brit series starring Boris Karloff -- so of course I had to find the book (and now I see there are a couple more)
June 11, 2015
Tradotti da Mauro Boncompagni, il GM 2175 presenta nove racconti con il colonnello March del Dipartimento D-3 di Scotland Yard, noto come il Dipartimento Casi Bizzarri.
Le prime 7 storie appartengono alla raccolta The Department of Queer Complaints del 1940 firmata Carter Dickson, mentre gli ultimi due sono stati pubblicati in The Men Who Explained Miracles del 1963. Le storie sono ingegnose, ma non del tutto convincenti.
Il nuovo uomo invisibile (10/12/2013) ***
Un'impronta in cielo (10/12/2013) ***1/2
Delitto in una stanza inesistente (17/3/2015) *1/2
Denaro che scotta (31/3/2015) *1/2
Il camerino della morte (2/4/2015) ***
La cortina d'argento (3/4/2015) ****
Errore all'alba (3/4/2015) ***1/2
La professione del signor Wilson (5/4/2015) **1/2
L'appartamento vuoto (7/4/2015) **1/2
Le prime 7 storie appartengono alla raccolta The Department of Queer Complaints del 1940 firmata Carter Dickson, mentre gli ultimi due sono stati pubblicati in The Men Who Explained Miracles del 1963. Le storie sono ingegnose, ma non del tutto convincenti.
Il nuovo uomo invisibile (10/12/2013) ***
Un'impronta in cielo (10/12/2013) ***1/2
Delitto in una stanza inesistente (17/3/2015) *1/2
Denaro che scotta (31/3/2015) *1/2
Il camerino della morte (2/4/2015) ***
La cortina d'argento (3/4/2015) ****
Errore all'alba (3/4/2015) ***1/2
La professione del signor Wilson (5/4/2015) **1/2
L'appartamento vuoto (7/4/2015) **1/2
June 30, 2014
It took me a long time to track this book down and required spending more than I was ideally willing to part with. But it was worth it. The stories are entertaining, but the "wow" factor of the solutions varies throughout and I think part of that is due to reading this in 2014, post Jonathon Creek, where one's exposure to locked rooms and other puzzles is such that the bar is set quite high. I still think Carr was one of the best in the game, though.
November 8, 2024
Read so far:
The New Invisible Man (aka The Invisible Murderer)--3
Footprint in the Sky (aka Clue in the Snow)--2
The Crime in Nobody's Room--2
Hot Money (aka The Hiding Place, A Case for Colonel March)--2
Death in the Dressing Room --3
The Silver Curtain--3
Error at Daybreak (aka The Lion's Paw)--3
The Other Hangman--2
New Murders for Old (aka The One Real Horror)--2
Persons or Things Unknown--3
Blind Man's Hood--3
The New Invisible Man (aka The Invisible Murderer)--3
Footprint in the Sky (aka Clue in the Snow)--2
The Crime in Nobody's Room--2
Hot Money (aka The Hiding Place, A Case for Colonel March)--2
Death in the Dressing Room --3
The Silver Curtain--3
Error at Daybreak (aka The Lion's Paw)--3
The Other Hangman--2
New Murders for Old (aka The One Real Horror)--2
Persons or Things Unknown--3
Blind Man's Hood--3
October 17, 2014
Classic detective stories and the resolution of some of them were absolutely great especially the ones that dealt with the locked room mystery. I had read this when I was younger thanks to my dad's rare collection and was introduced to Carter Dickson/John Dickson Carr's writing.
May 15, 2013
Anthology of short stories, at which is Colonel March.
Impossibles Cases and Locked Rooms.
Impossibles Cases and Locked Rooms.
Want to read
April 15, 2019Synopsis: eleven short stories, seven of which are Colonel March stories. Note that Carter Dickson is a pseudonym for John Dickson Carr.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews