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Inspector Alan Grant #4
La strana scomparsa di Leslie
"Un giovane e aitante fotografo americano, Leslie Searle, grazie a un fortuito incontro a una festa viene invitato a soggiornare in un paese di campagna in cui risiede un gruppo di artisti. Da lì Searle, insieme a un giornalista radiofonico, parte per una gita in canoa sul fiume, ma a metà del percorso sparisce senza lasciare traccia. Non è un territorio sconosciuto per l'ispettore Alan Grant, che ha già incontrato Searle, e ha un'amica, l'attrice Marta Hallard, con una casa proprio nello stesso villaggio. Che fine ha fatto il fotografo? Ha avuto un incidente? È stato rapito? Ha inscenato volutamente la sua sparizione? È stato ucciso? Certo, in caso di omicidio i sospettati sarebbero tanti, e Grant si trova ad affrontare un'indagine complicata, che risolve brillantemente grazie al suo intuito e alle sue doti investigative. Come in tutte le opere di Josephine Tey, i personaggi e l'ambientazione sono tanto vivi da sembrare veri, la scrittura è impeccabile e il finale davvero inaspettato."
218 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1950
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About the author
Josephine Tey
127 books827 followersJosephine Tey was a pseudonym of Elizabeth Mackintosh. Josephine was her mother's first name and Tey the surname of an English Grandmother. As Josephine Tey, she wrote six mystery novels featuring Scotland Yard's Inspector Alan Grant.
The first of these, The Man in the Queue (1929) was published under the pseudonym of Gordon Daviot , whose name also appears on the title page of another of her 1929 novels, Kif; An Unvarnished History. She also used the Daviot by-line for a biography of the 17th century cavalry leader John Graham, which was entitled Claverhouse (1937).
Mackintosh also wrote plays (both one act and full length), some of which were produced during her lifetime, under the pseudonym Gordon Daviot. The district of Daviot, near her home of Inverness in Scotland, was a location her family had vacationed. The name Gordon does not appear in either her family or her history.
Elizabeth Mackintosh came of age during World War I, attending Anstey Physical Training College in Birmingham, England during the years 1915 - 1918. Upon graduation, she became a physical training instructor for eight years. In 1926, her mother died and she returned home to Inverness to care for her invalid father. Busy with household duties, she turned to writing as a diversion, and was successful in creating a second career.
Alfred Hitchcock filmed one of her novels, A Shilling for Candles (1936) as Young and Innocent in 1937 and two other of her novels have been made into films, The Franchise Affair (1948), filmed in 1950, and 'Brat Farrar' (1949), filmed as Paranoiac in 1963. In addition, a number of her works have been dramatised for radio.
Her novel The Daughter of Time (1951) was voted the greatest mystery novel of all time by the Crime Writers' Association in 1990.
Miss Mackintosh never married, and died at the age of 55, in London. A shy woman, she is reported to have been somewhat of a mystery even to her intimate friends. While her death seems to have been a surprise, there is some indication she may have known she was fatally ill for some time prior to her passing.
The first of these, The Man in the Queue (1929) was published under the pseudonym of Gordon Daviot , whose name also appears on the title page of another of her 1929 novels, Kif; An Unvarnished History. She also used the Daviot by-line for a biography of the 17th century cavalry leader John Graham, which was entitled Claverhouse (1937).
Mackintosh also wrote plays (both one act and full length), some of which were produced during her lifetime, under the pseudonym Gordon Daviot. The district of Daviot, near her home of Inverness in Scotland, was a location her family had vacationed. The name Gordon does not appear in either her family or her history.
Elizabeth Mackintosh came of age during World War I, attending Anstey Physical Training College in Birmingham, England during the years 1915 - 1918. Upon graduation, she became a physical training instructor for eight years. In 1926, her mother died and she returned home to Inverness to care for her invalid father. Busy with household duties, she turned to writing as a diversion, and was successful in creating a second career.
Alfred Hitchcock filmed one of her novels, A Shilling for Candles (1936) as Young and Innocent in 1937 and two other of her novels have been made into films, The Franchise Affair (1948), filmed in 1950, and 'Brat Farrar' (1949), filmed as Paranoiac in 1963. In addition, a number of her works have been dramatised for radio.
Her novel The Daughter of Time (1951) was voted the greatest mystery novel of all time by the Crime Writers' Association in 1990.
Miss Mackintosh never married, and died at the age of 55, in London. A shy woman, she is reported to have been somewhat of a mystery even to her intimate friends. While her death seems to have been a surprise, there is some indication she may have known she was fatally ill for some time prior to her passing.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 653 reviews
November 21, 2017
In this 4th book of Josephine Tey’s Inspector Grant series, he is active in it from the beginning. A young man disappears – or is disappeared – and Scotland Yard has assigned Alan Grant the responsibility of figuring out whether it is by fair means or foul.
Once again, I am impressed by the writing and Josephine Tey’s excellent grasp of psychology. How and why people take the actions they do is always in depth and real in her characters. As many other writers of her era, the main character gets those “lightbulb” moments that we are not quite privy to. If we are paying very close attention we might catch one or two, but while Inspector Grant shares some of his ah-ha moments, he doesn’t share the details.
I don’t mind this device at all because it gives my brain a good exercise in trying to figure out what it is he knows or has discovered and how that links into the other facts we have.
I enjoyed this read as a nice easy read between heavier novels and recommend it for pure, enjoyable light reading.
Once again, I am impressed by the writing and Josephine Tey’s excellent grasp of psychology. How and why people take the actions they do is always in depth and real in her characters. As many other writers of her era, the main character gets those “lightbulb” moments that we are not quite privy to. If we are paying very close attention we might catch one or two, but while Inspector Grant shares some of his ah-ha moments, he doesn’t share the details.
I don’t mind this device at all because it gives my brain a good exercise in trying to figure out what it is he knows or has discovered and how that links into the other facts we have.
I enjoyed this read as a nice easy read between heavier novels and recommend it for pure, enjoyable light reading.
September 2, 2018
Josephine Tey's life was cut tragically short. If not for this I do believe would be talking about "The Big Five" Golden Age Detective Writers, rather than "The Big Four."I can't comment on Margery Allingham's works as I have only read one, but Tey at her best is definitely superior to Ngaio Marsh - & while Tey has weaker works, so do Sayers & Christie. This particular novel is all kinds of awesome & one of the very few 5★ I have given this year for fiction that isn't a reread.
It isn't just that this is a very well constructed mystery - all the characters are well realised. The world building (to use a modern term) is also quite wonderful. I felt I was living in the village & engaged in all the local affairs.
This is the 4th Inspector Grant mystery. I am really looking forward to rereading The Daughter of Time which is another mystery from Tey's very creative brain. I'm hoping it lives up to my memory.
I will mention that the edition I read doesn't have Tey's usual racist comments, so I'm assuming it has been cleaned up.
In case I haven't been clear, I highly recommend this one.
It isn't just that this is a very well constructed mystery - all the characters are well realised. The world building (to use a modern term) is also quite wonderful. I felt I was living in the village & engaged in all the local affairs.
This is the 4th Inspector Grant mystery. I am really looking forward to rereading The Daughter of Time which is another mystery from Tey's very creative brain. I'm hoping it lives up to my memory.
I will mention that the edition I read doesn't have Tey's usual racist comments, so I'm assuming it has been cleaned up.
In case I haven't been clear, I highly recommend this one.
May 13, 2015
In my opinion, Josephine Tey is up there with the best British crime novelists of the last century. She wrote intriguing mysteries in clear, crisp and witty prose. Her detective, Inspector Grant, is well-developed and interesting without having any of the obvious eccentricities many crime writers choose to foist upon their detectives. Tey was also good with the minor characters, although in this novel it's fair to say that some are more believable than others.
Here, Inspector Grant is sent to investigate the disappearance of a very attractive young photographer whose arrival in an English village has had a disturbing impact on a number of the locals. Not surprisingly for a crime novel, there's more than a touch of the implausible in the narrative. If you're going to read this type of novel, you have to be able to suspend disbelief and just go with it. You also have to be prepared for a resolution that you can't work out for yourself, as some fairly crucial information is withheld from the reader until the big reveal. That's not my favourite style of mystery, but when it's written by Josephine Tey, I'm prepared to forgive a lot.
December 6, 2022
Josephine Tey causes me to slow down, listen and contemplate matters. This was such an interesting story and the writing so intricate and different from anything else that I read. At first, I had trouble adjusting to the different pace and language, however in time I found I loved it.
Favorite quotes:
You know how it is when you wait and wait for a loved one to arrive and you begin to imagine the very worst, how they might be laying dead in a ditch somewhere, well "Just when his heart had blackened and shrunk to the state of a very old mushroom," the missing couple arrives full of the excitement of their adventures.
Then, when your conversation is going well and you say something inadvertently that hits a nerve: "It was exactly like touching a snail, he thought. The instant closing-up and withdrawal. One moment she was frank and unselfconscious. The next moment she was started and defensive."
Favorite quotes:
You know how it is when you wait and wait for a loved one to arrive and you begin to imagine the very worst, how they might be laying dead in a ditch somewhere, well "Just when his heart had blackened and shrunk to the state of a very old mushroom," the missing couple arrives full of the excitement of their adventures.
Then, when your conversation is going well and you say something inadvertently that hits a nerve: "It was exactly like touching a snail, he thought. The instant closing-up and withdrawal. One moment she was frank and unselfconscious. The next moment she was started and defensive."
August 19, 2021
Los misterios de Josephine Tey no solo son una muestra perfecta del "cozy mystery", sino que además son todos muy originales. Es experta en crear los "thriller chill", o novelas de suspense tranquilo, que parece una contradicción, pero creedme que funciona.
En este caso tenemos una comunidad de artistas, un simpático desconocido que revuelve un poco el ambiente y una desaparición que requiere la intervención del detective Alan Grant. Divertida y con un gran ritmo, puede que descubriera la solución antes de que la diera el detective (porque el uso del "truco cochino y tramposo, como yo lo llamo, era la única solución), pero eso no impidió que disfrutara de una novela detectivesca de la vieja escuela que afianza a Josephine Tey en mi altar de escritores de misterio favoritos.
Añadiré un cosa más: esta novela es sorprendentemente queer. Lo digo como algo bueno.
En este caso tenemos una comunidad de artistas, un simpático desconocido que revuelve un poco el ambiente y una desaparición que requiere la intervención del detective Alan Grant. Divertida y con un gran ritmo, puede que descubriera la solución antes de que la diera el detective (porque el uso del "truco cochino y tramposo, como yo lo llamo, era la única solución), pero eso no impidió que disfrutara de una novela detectivesca de la vieja escuela que afianza a Josephine Tey en mi altar de escritores de misterio favoritos.
Añadiré un cosa más: esta novela es sorprendentemente queer. Lo digo como algo bueno.
July 31, 2025
To Love and Be Wise is an entertaining installment of the Inspector Alan Grant series. I've read four novels of the series now and this is one of her best. The other is The Franchise Affair.
In To Love and Be Wise, Tey presents Grant in his best light. His presence is felt fully throughout the novel. For the first time, I could get a clear understanding of his character. I haven't much cared about Detective Inspector Alan Grant before but I came to like him in this novel. His wisdom and police intuition are portrayed to his best advantage. His investigative skills are admirable and the investigation is carried out methodically. It was fun to follow the Detective Inspector in his examinations. My improved impression of Grant considerably increased my enjoyment.
Another equally important factor that contributed to enjoying this novel is the supporting characters, most of them eccentric artists, including Grant's friend Marta. But somehow, I liked them. Their varying character traits brought much life to the story. Marta and Detective Sergeant Williams perhaps are my favourite out of the lot.
The story in To Love and Be Wise is well-written and interesting. The mystery plot is done very well. Until the very last chapter, I was kept in total darkness. The revelation blew my mind. I wasn't expecting that. But at the same time, I couldn’t help being annoyed. It seemed to me that Josephine Tey had deliberately concealed some of the vital clues so as to mislead the reader. I hate when authors do that. I expect fair play from them. :) However, to my astonishment, I realized later that these vital facts, which I thought to be deliberately hidden, were in fact scattered here and there throughout the story. Only I haven't paid enough attention! 😀
There is no argument that Josephine Tey writes very well. Anyone who has read her will agree to that. She is perhaps the best prose writer of the Golden Age. Yet, my author-reader relationship with her is a difficult one. My experience is that it's not always easy to connect with her stories. So, I'm truly glad to have enjoyed at least two of this series.
More of my reviews can be found at http://piyangiejay.com/
In To Love and Be Wise, Tey presents Grant in his best light. His presence is felt fully throughout the novel. For the first time, I could get a clear understanding of his character. I haven't much cared about Detective Inspector Alan Grant before but I came to like him in this novel. His wisdom and police intuition are portrayed to his best advantage. His investigative skills are admirable and the investigation is carried out methodically. It was fun to follow the Detective Inspector in his examinations. My improved impression of Grant considerably increased my enjoyment.
Another equally important factor that contributed to enjoying this novel is the supporting characters, most of them eccentric artists, including Grant's friend Marta. But somehow, I liked them. Their varying character traits brought much life to the story. Marta and Detective Sergeant Williams perhaps are my favourite out of the lot.
The story in To Love and Be Wise is well-written and interesting. The mystery plot is done very well. Until the very last chapter, I was kept in total darkness. The revelation blew my mind. I wasn't expecting that. But at the same time, I couldn’t help being annoyed. It seemed to me that Josephine Tey had deliberately concealed some of the vital clues so as to mislead the reader. I hate when authors do that. I expect fair play from them. :) However, to my astonishment, I realized later that these vital facts, which I thought to be deliberately hidden, were in fact scattered here and there throughout the story. Only I haven't paid enough attention! 😀
There is no argument that Josephine Tey writes very well. Anyone who has read her will agree to that. She is perhaps the best prose writer of the Golden Age. Yet, my author-reader relationship with her is a difficult one. My experience is that it's not always easy to connect with her stories. So, I'm truly glad to have enjoyed at least two of this series.
More of my reviews can be found at http://piyangiejay.com/
May 1, 2013
God can this woman write anything worthy of less than five stars? How is she not more famous? Her talent is so underrated. I'm consistently impressed with her work. In To Love and Be Wise (which is a lovely title) it's fair to say the investigation makes absolutely no progress for 90% of the book, and yet so much happens. Tey is unparalleled at drawing vivid, jump-off-the-page characters. I have never met a more self-confident author. Her voice can be incredibly hilarious at the most unexpected moments and though the case itself is fairly light throughout (for most of the novel indeed nobody's sure there's even a case at all) it's a wonderful occasion for her to display her knowledge of human nature and she does so beautifully. The end is incredible - both completely out there and so logical. I've never read an end that feels both like a tremendous deflation and the greatest stroke of genius ever. She's amazing. Please do read her if you haven't already.
April 2, 2017
To Love and Be Wise boasts another absolutely gorgeous cover by Pamela Patrick. This is one time when I understand the Goodreads folk who obsess about uniformity in a series. My editions are a ragtag group; someday I'd like to have the matched set.
The story: A disconcertingly beautiful young man becomes part of the lives of an extended family – and then disappears. He leaves behind amidst the bewilderment a girl who loves him despite herself, her fiancé who is all at once a suspect in foul play of some sort in the disappearance, and a detective (Alan Grant, of course) intensely frustrated by a puzzle whose solution evades him. I don't recall ever reading this before (though given my memory that means little), and so the basic effect of having new Josephine Tey to read is a wonderful thing.
I enjoyed the exploration of the effect an extravagantly attractive man has on those he meets. Beauty is one of those attributes, like wealth or height or curly hair, which many who lack it envy, and which is, sometimes at least, not all it's cracked up to be. This gorgeous creature Leslie Searles attracts attention, including from DI Alan Grant – and he has learned over a lifetime of it to manipulate it, to some degree.
I liked that there is no implication that for the most part the attention is sexual in nature. I have the feeling that in a book written more recently the instant interest Alan shows in him would be hedged about with explanation and defense. Here, it is quite simply that he is something extraordinary, and his entrance into a room is something like the arrival of a bird of paradise: even if you're not a bird lover, you have to take notice of the sheer extravagant splendor.
The vicar of the village where he roosts for a lengthy visit states his belief that Searles is a demon in disguise – it's the only explanation for his beauty, and for the unsettling effect he has on everyone. He is disconcerting. It also nicely explains his so-abrupt disappearance as he and a comrade (Walter Whitmore, a Thoreau-wannabe who mellifluously reads nature essays on the radio) canoe down the river with plans to turn the adventure into a book.
"But – but Walter Whitmore!" Grant said. "There is something inherently absurd about it, you know. What would that lover of little bunnies have to do with murder?"
"You've been in the Force long enough to know that it is just those lovers of little bunnies that commit murder," his chief said snappily.
But the demon theory is not an explanation the police are prepared to carry on with, however it appeals to Alan Grant, and he irritably steps up the search when locals' attempts to find Leslie fail. If it were only that Leslie is missing, the initial sweeps might be held sufficient – after all, an adult may abscond with himself as he pleases. But the circumstances under which he vanished are the problem: he was seen to bait the "bunny-lover" Whitmore at a pub the night before his disappearance was noticed – again, by Walter Whitmore. Walter, through a native self-confidence or naïveté, is ready and willing to discuss the circumstances, including those that lead to conclusions that his fiancée was quite possibly falling in love with Leslie and that Walter was well aware of the possibility, seemingly never adding the two and the two to make the four: he is a very real suspect.
He's also a very real character, almost of Ted Baxter ilk: not a bad man, or a stupid one, really – just egocentric and unexpectedly oblivious. His fiancée, Liz, is lovely, an ordinary sort of a woman who knows Walter's shortcomings and cares for him anyway, but still finds herself swept away by the combination of stunning good looks and an equally deadly intelligence and humor that provides her with conversation she can never have with Walter. Leslie is more reserved; the short time he is in the picture presents a vivid image of his personality, but as Alan finds it's not that easy to get a handle on exactly who he was; part of it, though, is a little illumination of what it's like to live inside that spotlight, to be that bird of paradise, inspiring love and hatred and all sorts of other strong emotion simply by virtue of looking as he looks. Minor characters are, as always, wonderful portraits in miniature; secondary characters – including a deeper acquaintance with Marta Hallard – are, as always, unique and genuine; and Alan Grant, as always, is magnificent.
The mystery is, as is typical with Josephine Tey, not really one which is conducive to solution by the armchair detective. I want to say I guessed it, but that could just be internal Tonypandy. But, as is typical with Tey, the mystery isn't the point. It's just a hook – a clever and engaging hook – on which to hang an exploration of personalities. This must drive some mystery buffs straight up a wall. Since I read for character and quality of writing before anything else, I'm perfectly happy. I might have mentioned it in other reviews: I adore Josephine Tey.
The story: A disconcertingly beautiful young man becomes part of the lives of an extended family – and then disappears. He leaves behind amidst the bewilderment a girl who loves him despite herself, her fiancé who is all at once a suspect in foul play of some sort in the disappearance, and a detective (Alan Grant, of course) intensely frustrated by a puzzle whose solution evades him. I don't recall ever reading this before (though given my memory that means little), and so the basic effect of having new Josephine Tey to read is a wonderful thing.
I enjoyed the exploration of the effect an extravagantly attractive man has on those he meets. Beauty is one of those attributes, like wealth or height or curly hair, which many who lack it envy, and which is, sometimes at least, not all it's cracked up to be. This gorgeous creature Leslie Searles attracts attention, including from DI Alan Grant – and he has learned over a lifetime of it to manipulate it, to some degree.
I liked that there is no implication that for the most part the attention is sexual in nature. I have the feeling that in a book written more recently the instant interest Alan shows in him would be hedged about with explanation and defense. Here, it is quite simply that he is something extraordinary, and his entrance into a room is something like the arrival of a bird of paradise: even if you're not a bird lover, you have to take notice of the sheer extravagant splendor.
The vicar of the village where he roosts for a lengthy visit states his belief that Searles is a demon in disguise – it's the only explanation for his beauty, and for the unsettling effect he has on everyone. He is disconcerting. It also nicely explains his so-abrupt disappearance as he and a comrade (Walter Whitmore, a Thoreau-wannabe who mellifluously reads nature essays on the radio) canoe down the river with plans to turn the adventure into a book.
"But – but Walter Whitmore!" Grant said. "There is something inherently absurd about it, you know. What would that lover of little bunnies have to do with murder?"
"You've been in the Force long enough to know that it is just those lovers of little bunnies that commit murder," his chief said snappily.
But the demon theory is not an explanation the police are prepared to carry on with, however it appeals to Alan Grant, and he irritably steps up the search when locals' attempts to find Leslie fail. If it were only that Leslie is missing, the initial sweeps might be held sufficient – after all, an adult may abscond with himself as he pleases. But the circumstances under which he vanished are the problem: he was seen to bait the "bunny-lover" Whitmore at a pub the night before his disappearance was noticed – again, by Walter Whitmore. Walter, through a native self-confidence or naïveté, is ready and willing to discuss the circumstances, including those that lead to conclusions that his fiancée was quite possibly falling in love with Leslie and that Walter was well aware of the possibility, seemingly never adding the two and the two to make the four: he is a very real suspect.
He's also a very real character, almost of Ted Baxter ilk: not a bad man, or a stupid one, really – just egocentric and unexpectedly oblivious. His fiancée, Liz, is lovely, an ordinary sort of a woman who knows Walter's shortcomings and cares for him anyway, but still finds herself swept away by the combination of stunning good looks and an equally deadly intelligence and humor that provides her with conversation she can never have with Walter. Leslie is more reserved; the short time he is in the picture presents a vivid image of his personality, but as Alan finds it's not that easy to get a handle on exactly who he was; part of it, though, is a little illumination of what it's like to live inside that spotlight, to be that bird of paradise, inspiring love and hatred and all sorts of other strong emotion simply by virtue of looking as he looks. Minor characters are, as always, wonderful portraits in miniature; secondary characters – including a deeper acquaintance with Marta Hallard – are, as always, unique and genuine; and Alan Grant, as always, is magnificent.
The mystery is, as is typical with Josephine Tey, not really one which is conducive to solution by the armchair detective. I want to say I guessed it, but that could just be internal Tonypandy. But, as is typical with Tey, the mystery isn't the point. It's just a hook – a clever and engaging hook – on which to hang an exploration of personalities. This must drive some mystery buffs straight up a wall. Since I read for character and quality of writing before anything else, I'm perfectly happy. I might have mentioned it in other reviews: I adore Josephine Tey.
February 18, 2009
Tey does things with her apparently simple plots that no one, but no one else can manage. A deliciously sly woman.
November 25, 2023
While not strictly speaking a "cozy mystery" in the sense of the genre, this was a very cozy detective novel with likable characters and a satisfying ending. It is the kind you curl up with on a rainy day and try to puzzle out the solution before the detective. (Which, HA! I did!) I want more Inspector Grant.
August 22, 2023
Alas, I am done - this charming, witty, endlessly entertaining reading interlude is complete. Every page had at least one delightful conversation exchange, a thoughtful phrase, an attitude of embracing life in all of its troubles, peculiarities, and joy. Populated by memorable supporting characters - Miss Lavinia Fitch who writes romance novels, the egotistical playwright Toby Tullis, and Marta Hallard, the smart actress friend of Inspector Grant - the story is dominated by the charming Leslie Searles, a well-known photographer and visitor to England. Searles is provocative and compelling in equal doses: he entertains locals with his polite disregard of Toby Tullis, while mesmerizing others with his personable ways. And then he disappears, presumably drowned, maybe pushed into the water. Grant is the only one who senses a quality of professional illusion about the disappearance, and he holds to his gut instinct as he interviews the locals and and refuses to take the easy verdict despite the pressure from his boss. It's been a long time since I was reading a book that made me excitedly anticipate bedtime (reading time!), but this novel kept me wanting more. For the delight that it provided me, Tey can have all the stars she wants.
November 24, 2019
T [image error]
Edited to add a picture of Calder Alexander Eno the preternaturally enormous cat. He loves lying on books and devices; probably he can absorb books by osmosis. He is extremely affectionate and loves to lie on the sofa with me while I read. But not now, because it is warm and he would like me to get up and feed him. The Gorey cat looks like him, I think.
[image error]
I now return you to the book review.
Oh, well done. It would do nicely for Cozy Mystery as well. There isn't much to it, but it is so well-mannered.
Library copy
Edited to add a picture of Calder Alexander Eno the preternaturally enormous cat. He loves lying on books and devices; probably he can absorb books by osmosis. He is extremely affectionate and loves to lie on the sofa with me while I read. But not now, because it is warm and he would like me to get up and feed him. The Gorey cat looks like him, I think.
[image error]
I now return you to the book review.
Oh, well done. It would do nicely for Cozy Mystery as well. There isn't much to it, but it is so well-mannered.
Library copy
August 30, 2025
Salcott St Mary war einst ein beschauliches englisches Städtchen, bis einige Londoner Künstler*innen es für sich entdeckt haben. Nun wimmelt es dort an Kunstschaffenden, von einem erfolgreichen Radiomoderator über eine berühmte Romanautorin bis hin zu einem mäßig begabten Balletttänzer ist alles dabei. Die Situation wird unübersichtlich, als ein überaus attraktiver amerikanischer Fotograf zur Künstlerkolonie dazu stößt - und plötzlich spurlos verschwindet. Detective Alan Grant nimmt die Ermittlungen auf und stößt auf viele Geheimnisse und Ungereimtheiten.
Josephine Tey ist das Pseudonym der schottischen Autorin Elizabeth MacKintosh (1896–1952), die vor allem für ihre Kriminalromane bekannt geworden ist. Mit "Wie ein Hauch im Wind" legt sie einen klassischen Whodunnit-Krimi vor - allerdings ohne Leiche, was den Fall besonders vertrackt für den Ermittler Alan Grant macht. Ich habe gerne mit Grant ermittelt und Theorien zum Verschwinden des Fotografen Leslie Searle aufgestellt, der kurz bevor er zuletzt lebend gesehen wurde in ein Eifersuchtsdrama verstrickt war. Insgesamt lief mir dieser Krimi-Klassiker aber doch zu langsam an. Tey stellt zunächst das gesamte Personal des Buchs vor, wofür man fast zwei Hände zum zählen benötigt - ich habe schnell den Überblick verloren. Bis wirklich etwas Kriminalistisches im Roman passiert, vergehen viele, viele Seiten, was ich als recht langatmig empfunden habe. Die Auflösung am Ende mochte ich auch nicht so sehr, obwohl sie für einen Kriminalroman, der 1950 veröffentlicht wurde, durchaus als fortschrittlich angesehen werden kann. "Wie ein Hauch im Wind" hat mich gut unterhalten und ich mochte diesen englischen Künstler-Flair, für meinen Geschmack hätte es aber ein bisschen spannender sein dürfen.
Übersetzt von Manfred Allié.
Josephine Tey ist das Pseudonym der schottischen Autorin Elizabeth MacKintosh (1896–1952), die vor allem für ihre Kriminalromane bekannt geworden ist. Mit "Wie ein Hauch im Wind" legt sie einen klassischen Whodunnit-Krimi vor - allerdings ohne Leiche, was den Fall besonders vertrackt für den Ermittler Alan Grant macht. Ich habe gerne mit Grant ermittelt und Theorien zum Verschwinden des Fotografen Leslie Searle aufgestellt, der kurz bevor er zuletzt lebend gesehen wurde in ein Eifersuchtsdrama verstrickt war. Insgesamt lief mir dieser Krimi-Klassiker aber doch zu langsam an. Tey stellt zunächst das gesamte Personal des Buchs vor, wofür man fast zwei Hände zum zählen benötigt - ich habe schnell den Überblick verloren. Bis wirklich etwas Kriminalistisches im Roman passiert, vergehen viele, viele Seiten, was ich als recht langatmig empfunden habe. Die Auflösung am Ende mochte ich auch nicht so sehr, obwohl sie für einen Kriminalroman, der 1950 veröffentlicht wurde, durchaus als fortschrittlich angesehen werden kann. "Wie ein Hauch im Wind" hat mich gut unterhalten und ich mochte diesen englischen Künstler-Flair, für meinen Geschmack hätte es aber ein bisschen spannender sein dürfen.
Übersetzt von Manfred Allié.
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May 8, 2019Blago nestandardni krimić zlatnog doba koji se na kraju pretvori u zaista veličanstveno trolovanje čitalaca i opovrgavanje svih naših čitalačkih očekivanja. I imala bih šta da kažem i za i protiv, ali bi to nažalost pokvarilo iznenađenje a i ne bi bilo previše koherentno.
April 9, 2013
Josephine Tey is the pseudonym for Elizabeth Mackintosh (1896-1952). Both a playwright (under the pseudonym Gordon Daviot) and novelist and due to a fierce predilection to keeping her life private, little is known about this author. She guarded her life jealously, avoided the press, side-stepped photographers, and never did any interviews. Biographers for the most part are therefore fairly well pissed-off about the whole secretive thing.
And that's actually why Tey's novels are a bit of a game with readers and biographers alike (including myself). Absent documentary information about this writer, it is to the novels they turn for hints about her life. It's like knitting, a pleasant past time with many a reader and in fact Tey often referred to her novels as being tantamount to "Yearly Knitting." One might compare this to a comparable story in today's music industry where Taylor Swift who though not exactly shunning the media, steadfastly refuses to discuss her personal life and points her critics and admireres to her singer/songwriter work for the answer to their questions. Just so with Ms. Tey.
And though she wrote primarily mysteries, they appear more as an afterthought to Tey. When reading her novels, you get the feeling she's pursuing something other than a conclusion to the mystery...something always wrapped in a puzzle in and of itself and something always decorated using a wonderful sense of language. She has been described as writing with exquisite characterization and a meticulous prose style.
The books are period pieces, written over half a century ago and require a particular love of reading such pieces (which I fortunately possess). The Man in Queue her first mystery with Grant (written as a beginner) was reportedly written in two weeks for a competition sponsored by the publisher Methuen and is dedicated to her typewriter named: Brisena. Her second Inspector Grant novel, which I've not read, was A Shilling for Candles. Throughout the novels I get a sense that Ms. Tey was not fond of celebrated figures in history. Her most famous mystery The Daughter of Time would be a good example of writer-frowning-upon-writer (in this case, Shakespeare).
Romance, or rather marriage is often avoided in her novels. It's like: Success must be brought to oneself and not through others. It describes Inspector Grant, who appears in a number of her novels, perfectly (though there are some deviations here and there). Bratt Farrar another of her famous novels reveals to the reader Tey's obvious fondness for horses. And perhaps through The Singing Sands, a posthumously discovered novel and her last, the reader catches a glimpse of Tey's life long fondness with the poetry of the English and Scottish landscape. It is also one of my favorite book covers because it perfectly illustrates the essence of this mystery novel.
And who is Inspector Grant? I imagine him as a stoic - outwardly calm and thoughtful; inwardly brimming with intelligence and emotion. As with most policemen, he is dedicated to his craft and in typical British mannerisms does so without succumbing to mind numbing intoxicants to forget the horrors of murder and sociopathic behavior...thus avoiding becoming one of the flawed heroes we often encounter in detective mysteries.
I'm not going to write a review for each one of her novels. I'll leave it to the reader to tell me who Ms. Tey really was. And, as always where it comes to series books, I'll repeat this one for all of her Inspector Grant novels. Enjoy!
And that's actually why Tey's novels are a bit of a game with readers and biographers alike (including myself). Absent documentary information about this writer, it is to the novels they turn for hints about her life. It's like knitting, a pleasant past time with many a reader and in fact Tey often referred to her novels as being tantamount to "Yearly Knitting." One might compare this to a comparable story in today's music industry where Taylor Swift who though not exactly shunning the media, steadfastly refuses to discuss her personal life and points her critics and admireres to her singer/songwriter work for the answer to their questions. Just so with Ms. Tey.
And though she wrote primarily mysteries, they appear more as an afterthought to Tey. When reading her novels, you get the feeling she's pursuing something other than a conclusion to the mystery...something always wrapped in a puzzle in and of itself and something always decorated using a wonderful sense of language. She has been described as writing with exquisite characterization and a meticulous prose style.
The books are period pieces, written over half a century ago and require a particular love of reading such pieces (which I fortunately possess). The Man in Queue her first mystery with Grant (written as a beginner) was reportedly written in two weeks for a competition sponsored by the publisher Methuen and is dedicated to her typewriter named: Brisena. Her second Inspector Grant novel, which I've not read, was A Shilling for Candles. Throughout the novels I get a sense that Ms. Tey was not fond of celebrated figures in history. Her most famous mystery The Daughter of Time would be a good example of writer-frowning-upon-writer (in this case, Shakespeare).
Romance, or rather marriage is often avoided in her novels. It's like: Success must be brought to oneself and not through others. It describes Inspector Grant, who appears in a number of her novels, perfectly (though there are some deviations here and there). Bratt Farrar another of her famous novels reveals to the reader Tey's obvious fondness for horses. And perhaps through The Singing Sands, a posthumously discovered novel and her last, the reader catches a glimpse of Tey's life long fondness with the poetry of the English and Scottish landscape. It is also one of my favorite book covers because it perfectly illustrates the essence of this mystery novel.
And who is Inspector Grant? I imagine him as a stoic - outwardly calm and thoughtful; inwardly brimming with intelligence and emotion. As with most policemen, he is dedicated to his craft and in typical British mannerisms does so without succumbing to mind numbing intoxicants to forget the horrors of murder and sociopathic behavior...thus avoiding becoming one of the flawed heroes we often encounter in detective mysteries.
I'm not going to write a review for each one of her novels. I'll leave it to the reader to tell me who Ms. Tey really was. And, as always where it comes to series books, I'll repeat this one for all of her Inspector Grant novels. Enjoy!
November 10, 2019
Inspector Alan Grant has his investigative work cut out for him in To Love and Be Wise. A man whom he met quite by accident at a party later disappears. Grant, only at the party to pick up his dinner companion for the evening, gave little thought to Leslie Searle after that chance encounter, but the image of the man and Grant's perceptions about him, rise to the surface when Scotland Yard sends him to the village of Salcott St. Mary to investigate.
As with all of Tey's works, this is a character-driven tale -- and what characters some of them are!
A delightful police procedural/mystery.
As with all of Tey's works, this is a character-driven tale -- and what characters some of them are!
A delightful police procedural/mystery.
May 13, 2021
The biographers could not be more accurate when they write that you never know what you're going to get with Josephine Tey. This one takes place in the country outside of London. In the opening chapter, Inspector Grant goes to a cocktail party to meet his actress friend Marta Hallard to take her to dinner. The room is packed and a young man, Leslie Searle, asks Grant if he can see William Whitmore who he has come to meet. Grant introduces Searle to Whitmore's aunt, author Lavinia Fitch, for whom the cocktail party is being given. Grant doesn't give the young Searle another thought until Searle is reported missing, presumed to have drowned in the Rushmere River near Salcott St. Mary.
OK, so this doesn't seem all that different from other mysteries. Methods of murder are a dime a dozen in mystery novels so why not a drowning in a river? In that way, of course, this is indeed much like other mystery novels. What Tey does so marvelously is her characterization and they all work in this. I could say also that I really like Tey's writing style, but I keep saying that sort of thing.
Another thing the biographer's say is that Tey died too young. I'm old enough now to think that all of us are going to die too young, that there will always be things left undone, sights not seen, books not read. But Tey (or more accurately Elizabeth McKittrick) died at age 56. In her lifetime, only 5 novels in the Inspector Grant series were published - the manuscript of a sixth was found after her death and published posthumously. I mention this, because this was my 6th and last to be read of the series. I'm sad there are no more. I found a 5th star for 2 of them and while I liked this one, I think it is truly just a middlin' 4-stars.
OK, so this doesn't seem all that different from other mysteries. Methods of murder are a dime a dozen in mystery novels so why not a drowning in a river? In that way, of course, this is indeed much like other mystery novels. What Tey does so marvelously is her characterization and they all work in this. I could say also that I really like Tey's writing style, but I keep saying that sort of thing.
Another thing the biographer's say is that Tey died too young. I'm old enough now to think that all of us are going to die too young, that there will always be things left undone, sights not seen, books not read. But Tey (or more accurately Elizabeth McKittrick) died at age 56. In her lifetime, only 5 novels in the Inspector Grant series were published - the manuscript of a sixth was found after her death and published posthumously. I mention this, because this was my 6th and last to be read of the series. I'm sad there are no more. I found a 5th star for 2 of them and while I liked this one, I think it is truly just a middlin' 4-stars.
February 19, 2023
Qué cómodo y comfortable misterio! Mi primer encuentro con Josephine Tey (de la que mi primer recuerdo es de cuando mi hermana leyó en la secundaria una de esas ediciones resumidas de Oxford de Brat Farrar).
Una de las grandes damas de la edad de oro del crimen. Pero también una que tiene su propio estilo, bien reconocible. Posee una prosa muy ágil, inteligente, una honda introspección de sus personajes en apenas unas pocas líneas y un flujo de la trama que a pesar se ser sosegado a uno lo mantiene queriendo saber más y más y hacerle pasar páginas una tras otra.
Si bien la resolución del misterio no es tan hábil y sorpresiva como la de sus compañeras grandes damas (sí, Christie, Allingham y Sayers) e incluso puede llegar a parecer un pelín anticlimático, a uno le termina sorprendiendo y pareciendo muy a tono.
Además, tenemos otra iteración, una práctica e inteligente del clásico “detective hidalgo” como lo llamara Rian Johnson.
Una de las grandes damas de la edad de oro del crimen. Pero también una que tiene su propio estilo, bien reconocible. Posee una prosa muy ágil, inteligente, una honda introspección de sus personajes en apenas unas pocas líneas y un flujo de la trama que a pesar se ser sosegado a uno lo mantiene queriendo saber más y más y hacerle pasar páginas una tras otra.
Si bien la resolución del misterio no es tan hábil y sorpresiva como la de sus compañeras grandes damas (sí, Christie, Allingham y Sayers) e incluso puede llegar a parecer un pelín anticlimático, a uno le termina sorprendiendo y pareciendo muy a tono.
Además, tenemos otra iteración, una práctica e inteligente del clásico “detective hidalgo” como lo llamara Rian Johnson.
August 17, 2024
Tey's beautiful writing and the bucolic English countryside of 1950, populated with quirky artist types bring this story to life. This book is extremely character driven, with only a passing nod at plot. Inspector Grant investigates a disappearance, but there are few clues and nothing that even points to foul play. Enjoy the book for the writing, the atmosphere, and the brief but surprising twist at the end.
June 16, 2025
I found this Josephine Tey book to be just as well done as the others I have read. Love her witty writing style, and characters are well drawn. Not a fast paced detective story, but Inspector Grant is fair and thorough.
Read for June monthly group selection in Reading The Detectives.
Read for June monthly group selection in Reading The Detectives.
November 6, 2023
Μερικές σκόρπιες σκέψεις για την «Εξαφάνιση στον ποταμό Ράσμερ» της Josephine Tey:
1. Μου άρεσε η ιστορία, μικρή, λιτή και γεροδεμένη, της εξαφάνισης του νεαρού Αμερικανού φωτογράφου με την ιδιαίτερη ομορφιά από την γραφική έπαυλη της εγγλέζικης επαρχίας. Μου άρεσαν οι χαρακτήρες, ο Γουόλτερ Γουίτμορ με την Λιζ του και τις πολύ Αγγλίδες θείες του, ο επιθεωρητής Άλαν Γκραντ και η αιθέρια Μάρτα, ο μυστηριώδης Λέσλι Σιρλ και ο συμπαθέστατος αστυνομικός ερευνητής Γουίλιαμς.
2. Τι ευχάριστο, ανάλαφρο μυστήριο! Από την στιγμή που το ξεκινάς, δυσκολεύεσαι να το αφήσεις από τα χέρια σου. Γρήγορη γραφή, επαρχιώτικη ατμόσφαιρα (μικρό χωριό με λίγους κατοίκους χωρίς άλλοθι και αρκετούς που θα μπορούσαν να έχουν το κίνητρο και την ευκαιρία), πολύ ενδιαφέρουσα αντιμετώπιση των χαρακτήρων και μια ασυνήθιστη, για τα δεδομένα της εποχής που γράφτηκε, ανατροπή στο τέλος.
3. Με χάλασε λίγο το σύνηθες πατρόν της εποχής, όπου ο ντετέκτιβ έχει αυτά τα «lightbulb monents» που δεν τα μοιράζεται, έστω επιδερμικά, ούτε με τους συναδέλφους του ούτε με τους αναγνώστες. Αντιπαθητικό κλισέ, με δυσαρέστησε αρκετά, αν και ίσως δεν θα έπρεπε, γνωρίζοντας τις μόδες των '50s, δηλαδή.
4. Αν και δεν ήτανε τίποτε ιδιαίτερο, με διασκέδασε πολύ αυτό το βιβλίο. Εξαιρετικό για ένα πολύ ενδιαφέρον ελαφρύ ανάγνωσμα!
1. Μου άρεσε η ιστορία, μικρή, λιτή και γεροδεμένη, της εξαφάνισης του νεαρού Αμερικανού φωτογράφου με την ιδιαίτερη ομορφιά από την γραφική έπαυλη της εγγλέζικης επαρχίας. Μου άρεσαν οι χαρακτήρες, ο Γουόλτερ Γουίτμορ με την Λιζ του και τις πολύ Αγγλίδες θείες του, ο επιθεωρητής Άλαν Γκραντ και η αιθέρια Μάρτα, ο μυστηριώδης Λέσλι Σιρλ και ο συμπαθέστατος αστυνομικός ερευνητής Γουίλιαμς.
2. Τι ευχάριστο, ανάλαφρο μυστήριο! Από την στιγμή που το ξεκινάς, δυσκολεύεσαι να το αφήσεις από τα χέρια σου. Γρήγορη γραφή, επαρχιώτικη ατμόσφαιρα (μικρό χωριό με λίγους κατοίκους χωρίς άλλοθι και αρκετούς που θα μπορούσαν να έχουν το κίνητρο και την ευκαιρία), πολύ ενδιαφέρουσα αντιμετώπιση των χαρακτήρων και μια ασυνήθιστη, για τα δεδομένα της εποχής που γράφτηκε, ανατροπή στο τέλος.
3. Με χάλασε λίγο το σύνηθες πατρόν της εποχής, όπου ο ντετέκτιβ έχει αυτά τα «lightbulb monents» που δεν τα μοιράζεται, έστω επιδερμικά, ούτε με τους συναδέλφους του ούτε με τους αναγνώστες. Αντιπαθητικό κλισέ, με δυσαρέστησε αρκετά, αν και ίσως δεν θα έπρεπε, γνωρίζοντας τις μόδες των '50s, δηλαδή.
4. Αν και δεν ήτανε τίποτε ιδιαίτερο, με διασκέδασε πολύ αυτό το βιβλίο. Εξαιρετικό για ένα πολύ ενδιαφέρον ελαφρύ ανάγνωσμα!
March 18, 2019
To Love and Be Wise was published two years before Christie’s They Do It With Mirrors and it is vastly different in many ways, but I found it interesting that the detective in both books was inspired by misdirection as used by a magician to solve the case.
The mystery in To Love and Be Wise is fairly bloodless. When the book opens, Inspector Grant meets the charming Hollywood photographer, Leslie Searle, at a party and inadvertently helps Searle inveigle his way in to the life of romance writer Lavinia Fitch and her family. A few weeks later, Grant is called in to investigate Searle’s disappearance. Did he wander off, fall in to the river by accident or did someone in Miss Fitch’s circle murder him and dispose of the body?
Josephine Tey will never replace Christie or Sayers in my mystery-loving heart, but her books are fun in their own way. They are, however, very much of their time in their attitudes towards gender, class or anyone not English. The charming Marta (who also pops up in The Daughter of Time) is very much an embodiment of the perfect woman: naturally supportive, ready to serve tea or cook an omelet when necessary and never asking questions or becoming curious.
The mystery in To Love and Be Wise is fairly bloodless. When the book opens, Inspector Grant meets the charming Hollywood photographer, Leslie Searle, at a party and inadvertently helps Searle inveigle his way in to the life of romance writer Lavinia Fitch and her family. A few weeks later, Grant is called in to investigate Searle’s disappearance. Did he wander off, fall in to the river by accident or did someone in Miss Fitch’s circle murder him and dispose of the body?
Josephine Tey will never replace Christie or Sayers in my mystery-loving heart, but her books are fun in their own way. They are, however, very much of their time in their attitudes towards gender, class or anyone not English. The charming Marta (who also pops up in The Daughter of Time) is very much an embodiment of the perfect woman: naturally supportive, ready to serve tea or cook an omelet when necessary and never asking questions or becoming curious.
May 20, 2023
It's been a week since I finished this (still behind--who knows if and when I'll catch up?) and I've finished a few other books, but most of this has stayed with me.
This is one of the more highly rated books in this series, but not as much for me. This isn't because it's not well written or the character poorly drawn, but I wasn't that thrilled with them. The mystery was rather clever but .
My favourite book so far, and it could partly be because the audiobook was brilliantly done and it was the first one I'd ever read, is the next one in the series. Sadly, my library network doesn't have these for all of the books.
This is one of the more highly rated books in this series, but not as much for me. This isn't because it's not well written or the character poorly drawn, but I wasn't that thrilled with them. The mystery was rather clever but .
My favourite book so far, and it could partly be because the audiobook was brilliantly done and it was the first one I'd ever read, is the next one in the series. Sadly, my library network doesn't have these for all of the books.
December 9, 2022
took me way too long to finish it so there's that 🙍🏻♀️
July 24, 2024
'Walter,' said Tullis, deciding on his line and leaning towards Walter with empressement, 'I have met him!'
'Met whom?' asked Walter who always remembered his accusatives.
trans men are better-looking than cis men. trans men are better boyfriends than cis men. trans men are better men than cis men.
no, wait—
'"Got a match, bud?" and I gave him a light; and he looked at me and nodded and said: "Thanks, bud," and went away without a second glance.'
I am trans. this is a threat.
no, wait—
'So devoted that you couldn't think quite straight about her.'
you are a man and you think I am your rival, and I am. you are a man and you think I am fighting you for the hand of one woman, and I am, but not the hand of the woman you think.
no, wait—
He longed to ask Liz what happens to a girl when she is engaged to a pushee and along comes a left-over from Eden, an escapee from Atlantis, a demon in plain clothes.
what pronouns shall we use for leslie searle? how shall we describe leslie’s gender? I cannot tell you how many conversations I have had with people in which people used my name excessively in order to avoid using any pronouns for me whatsoever.
no, wait—
Searle with his charm and his fly-by-night life. Searle with his air of being not quite of this world. No one could view this modern shower of gold with more instant distrust than Emma Garrowby.
gender/queer people are a threat to the social order.
no, wait—
What in Searle had suggested Lucifer to Ratoff's accusing mind?
Lucifer. A fallen glory. A beauty turned evil.
He saw in his mind a picture of the Searle who walked round the farm with him; his hatless blond hair blown into untidy ends by the wind, his hands pushed deep into very English flannels. Lucifer. He nearly laughed aloud.
But there was, of course, a strangeness in Searle's good looks. A—what was it?—an unplaceable quality. Something not quite of the world of men.
Perhaps that was what had suggested fallen angels to Serge's fertile mind.
local trans person goes stealth to avenge ex-girlfriend, more at 11
no, wait—
'Don't you indeed. That boy was making an impression on me in thirty seconds flat and a range of twenty yards, and I'm considered practically incombustible.'
DICK IN A BOX
no, wait—
'What was he like, sir?'
'A very good-looking young man indeed.'
'Oh,' Williams said, in a thoughtful way.
'No,' said Grant.
'No?'
'American,' Grant said irrelevantly. And then, remembering that party, added: 'He seemed to be interested in Liz Garrowby, now that I remember.'
when the trans guy gives u gay panic
no, wait—
take a shot every time leslie is referred to as the hottest person alive (die of alcohol poisoning). yes. let's do that.
the post-unmasking conversation about 'oddities' and 'female pirates' and 'quite[...] normal young [men]' and 'camouflage' (the gender euphoria of it all!!!!!) and 'married people' is...TOO MUCH FOR THIS ONE FRAGILE HUMAN BEING! VERY GOOD! emma donoghue did not fail me this time.
touched with occasional loveliness, too—in addition to leslie's, I mean.
'I read a lot of these, and every now and then one of them rings a bell. I remember one of them to this day. It wasn't poetry properly speaking, I mean it didn't rhyme, but it got me where I lived. It said:
"My lot is cast in inland places,
Far from sounding beach
And crying gull,
And I
Who knew the sea's voice from my babyhood
Must listen to a river purling
Through green fields,
And small birds gossiping
Among the leaves."
'Now, you see, I was bred by the sea, over at Mere Harbour, and I've never quite got used to being away from it. You feel hedged in, suffocated. But I never found the words for it till I read that. I know exactly how that bloke felt. "Small birds gossiping!"'
The scorn and exasperation in his voice amused Grant, but something amused him much more and he began to laugh.
'What's funny?' Rodgers asked, a shade defensively.
'I was just thinking how shocked the writers of slick detective stories would be if they could witness two police inspectors sitting on a willow tree swapping poems.'
a book for those who have known "desolation. Or fear. Or despair. Or any of the big, grinding things in life."
June 28, 2025
This fourth in the series was my favorite Alan Grant mystery so far. His stalwart sidekick, Williams, is introduced and he reminded me so much of Lord Peter Wimsey’s brother-in-law, Inspector Parker. Both men were “plodders” in the sense that they keep on looking and thinking when most others would have given up. In Love and Be Wise there is also a hint of a potential love interest. Both Williams and Marta help the reader to feel that the imperturbable Grant might be more human after all.
The reader knows in the first chapter who will die, but the author doesn’t kill this person off till much later so we get to watch each supporting character come and go, deciding for ourselves who will have the best motive. Of course, we will all be wrong!
Although this was my favorite in terms of character building and excellent writing, it was not my favorite in terms of its mystery. The resolution did not seem at all probable to me, but I can’t say more without giving away the whole story. I still loved this book.
The reader knows in the first chapter who will die, but the author doesn’t kill this person off till much later so we get to watch each supporting character come and go, deciding for ourselves who will have the best motive. Of course, we will all be wrong!
Although this was my favorite in terms of character building and excellent writing, it was not my favorite in terms of its mystery. The resolution did not seem at all probable to me, but I can’t say more without giving away the whole story. I still loved this book.
March 30, 2018
Long ago, in what now seems like another lifetime, I read a lot of Josephine Tey's books and admired her clever plots and superb writing. Last year, I reacquainted myself with her writing by rereading my favorite book of hers, The Daughter of Time. It gave me an appetite for reading more.
When I was reading her books in the past, to the best of my recollection, I never read this one. And I think I would have remembered for it is a devilishly clever tale.
It's the fourth in her series of books featuring Inspector Grant. This time he is sent to the remote English village of Salcott St Mary to investigate the disappearance of a young man.
Leslie Searle was a uniquely attractive man who was an ultra-fashionable portrait photographer from America. He was famous for taking pictures of actors and actresses, including some of Hollywood's big stars. He was talented and so good looking that he turned heads wherever he went.
But why did he go to this backwater village?
He claimed a connection to a man, now dead, who was a particular friend of one of the villagers. As he introduced himself, the villagers accepted and took him in and invited him to be a guest in one of the country homes. Soon he was firmly ensconced.
He teams up with one of the local celebrities, a writer and radio personality, to write a book about the river that runs through the village. The local person will do the writing and he will take pictures to illustrate. They plan to canoe down the river and camp by it every night, but shortly after they begin their adventure, one night, Leslie Searle disappears without a trace.
There is no sign of foul play and no body found. There seem to be no clues as to what could have happened, but attention focuses on the river. Was he murdered and thrown into the river? Did he accidentally fall into the river and drown? Did he deliberately jump into the river to commit suicide? Or was he kidnapped by some unknown party? The river is dragged repeatedly but no body and no evidence is found.
Then, a young boy out fishing brings up a shoe that is identified as Searle's, but nothing else is found.
Inspector Grant proceeds methodically with his investigation but is making no headway. He's given up and is pursuing other cases, when suddenly a lightbulb goes off over his head. He has that ah-ha moment that helps him to see what might have happened and why. As Tey told us in that other book of hers, truth is the daughter of time, and sometimes it takes time and distance to be able to see the truth.
The mystery is complicated and it is not one that your typical armchair detective - of whom I count myself one - will readily solve, and yet, once the solution is explained by Grant, as we look back over the book, we see that all the clues were there. Tey has given us all the information we needed but she has camouflaged it so well that it was not readily apparent.
This is not in any way a traditional mystery. The mystery is hardly even the main point, but rather it is an exploration of psychology and personalities, identity and gender. It is, in fact, a literary mystery, full of unforgettable characters, an intricate plot, and a wonderful use of language. It is classical Tey, a thoroughly diverting and delicious read.
When I was reading her books in the past, to the best of my recollection, I never read this one. And I think I would have remembered for it is a devilishly clever tale.
It's the fourth in her series of books featuring Inspector Grant. This time he is sent to the remote English village of Salcott St Mary to investigate the disappearance of a young man.
Leslie Searle was a uniquely attractive man who was an ultra-fashionable portrait photographer from America. He was famous for taking pictures of actors and actresses, including some of Hollywood's big stars. He was talented and so good looking that he turned heads wherever he went.
But why did he go to this backwater village?
He claimed a connection to a man, now dead, who was a particular friend of one of the villagers. As he introduced himself, the villagers accepted and took him in and invited him to be a guest in one of the country homes. Soon he was firmly ensconced.
He teams up with one of the local celebrities, a writer and radio personality, to write a book about the river that runs through the village. The local person will do the writing and he will take pictures to illustrate. They plan to canoe down the river and camp by it every night, but shortly after they begin their adventure, one night, Leslie Searle disappears without a trace.
There is no sign of foul play and no body found. There seem to be no clues as to what could have happened, but attention focuses on the river. Was he murdered and thrown into the river? Did he accidentally fall into the river and drown? Did he deliberately jump into the river to commit suicide? Or was he kidnapped by some unknown party? The river is dragged repeatedly but no body and no evidence is found.
Then, a young boy out fishing brings up a shoe that is identified as Searle's, but nothing else is found.
Inspector Grant proceeds methodically with his investigation but is making no headway. He's given up and is pursuing other cases, when suddenly a lightbulb goes off over his head. He has that ah-ha moment that helps him to see what might have happened and why. As Tey told us in that other book of hers, truth is the daughter of time, and sometimes it takes time and distance to be able to see the truth.
The mystery is complicated and it is not one that your typical armchair detective - of whom I count myself one - will readily solve, and yet, once the solution is explained by Grant, as we look back over the book, we see that all the clues were there. Tey has given us all the information we needed but she has camouflaged it so well that it was not readily apparent.
This is not in any way a traditional mystery. The mystery is hardly even the main point, but rather it is an exploration of psychology and personalities, identity and gender. It is, in fact, a literary mystery, full of unforgettable characters, an intricate plot, and a wonderful use of language. It is classical Tey, a thoroughly diverting and delicious read.
October 5, 2021
Necesitaba encontrar otra Agatha Christie que no tuviera nada que ver con Agatha Christie. Un misterio acecha una campiña inglesa y yo no he podido disfrutar más de la Picardía de algunos personajes, la perspicacia del detective y la sorpresa final.
Le he dado un cuatro, en vez de un cinco, porque ha habido un momento en el que todo ha pasado demasiado rápido. Pero por lo demás, un Mistery cozy de lo más apropiado para esta época del año.
Le he dado un cuatro, en vez de un cinco, porque ha habido un momento en el que todo ha pasado demasiado rápido. Pero por lo demás, un Mistery cozy de lo más apropiado para esta época del año.
December 29, 2018
This could very well be the best mystery story I've ever read. I purposefully took twice as long to read it to prolong the pleasure and I sadly closed the end cover when it was over.
I do not know how to review this book without giving anything away, which leaves me with subjective adjectives that will tell you only my opinion. I was about to go mad with curiosity as to how the mystery was going to be solved and I never for a second guessed the conclusion.
But here goes and I promise to give nothing away:
Inspector Grant is at a party for an actress friend of his. Coincidentally, a man, Leslie Searle, arrives at the same time. He is looking for someone, but does not know what she looks like. Grant knows who Searle is looking for and agrees to escort him to the person. Later Leslie is invited to come stay at the house of the actress, which is at a village turned into an artists' colony. That is all we hear of Grant for several chapters because we now accompany Searle and the actress and the others to the artists' colony.
Leslie Searle, we learn, is an American photographer and that is all anyone knows of him. He is a mysterious character that becomes more mysterious as he stays at the colony.
Leslie has some kind of hypnotic effect on all the people there at the colony, which both attracts and repels. The longer he stays, he collects an increasing number of people who become desperate about him, each for a different reason and for a different kind of desperation: some for approval, some because they develop a blinding hatred for him.
And then he disappears.
At this point of the story Inspector Grant re-enters to solve the mystery. Or try to solve it. Will he?
Josephine Tey is probably the best mystery writer I have read and I am sad to say I've only one more book of hers to read, The Daughter of Time. I've been saving it for last because I have read it is one of the best murder mysteries ever written. I have a hard time imagining it to be better than To Love and Be Wise, so it must really be something.
I do not know how to review this book without giving anything away, which leaves me with subjective adjectives that will tell you only my opinion. I was about to go mad with curiosity as to how the mystery was going to be solved and I never for a second guessed the conclusion.
But here goes and I promise to give nothing away:
Inspector Grant is at a party for an actress friend of his. Coincidentally, a man, Leslie Searle, arrives at the same time. He is looking for someone, but does not know what she looks like. Grant knows who Searle is looking for and agrees to escort him to the person. Later Leslie is invited to come stay at the house of the actress, which is at a village turned into an artists' colony. That is all we hear of Grant for several chapters because we now accompany Searle and the actress and the others to the artists' colony.
Leslie Searle, we learn, is an American photographer and that is all anyone knows of him. He is a mysterious character that becomes more mysterious as he stays at the colony.
Leslie has some kind of hypnotic effect on all the people there at the colony, which both attracts and repels. The longer he stays, he collects an increasing number of people who become desperate about him, each for a different reason and for a different kind of desperation: some for approval, some because they develop a blinding hatred for him.
And then he disappears.
At this point of the story Inspector Grant re-enters to solve the mystery. Or try to solve it. Will he?
Josephine Tey is probably the best mystery writer I have read and I am sad to say I've only one more book of hers to read, The Daughter of Time. I've been saving it for last because I have read it is one of the best murder mysteries ever written. I have a hard time imagining it to be better than To Love and Be Wise, so it must really be something.
June 30, 2023
I’m a bit baffled as to why this one seems to be even better reviewed than others. I suppose when people continue with a series, generally only the people invested in it keep going, and tend to grant a lot of leeway. I think this is a clear step back.
It’s tropey, very telegraphed, very uninteresting—especially because at the start we spend so much time with a character I genuinely could not care less about—and it being antiquated doesn’t excuse how transphobic it is. Trans people are talked about like sometimes people just dress up to do crimes, or written about in fetishistic terms. It’s not good and time doesn’t excuse it, because it’s actually just bad writing. Most of all, though, after the excellent previous book, this was sinfully boring.
It’s tropey, very telegraphed, very uninteresting—especially because at the start we spend so much time with a character I genuinely could not care less about—and it being antiquated doesn’t excuse how transphobic it is. Trans people are talked about like sometimes people just dress up to do crimes, or written about in fetishistic terms. It’s not good and time doesn’t excuse it, because it’s actually just bad writing. Most of all, though, after the excellent previous book, this was sinfully boring.
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