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The Black Seraphim
Young pathologist James Scotland handles the inquest into the murder of the archdeacon in the small cathedral town of Melchester
216 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 1983
2 people are currently reading
72 people want to read
About the author
Michael Gilbert
144 books92 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Born in Lincolnshire in 1912, Michael Francis Gilbert was educated in Sussex before entering the University of London where he gained an LLB with honours in 1937. Gilbert was a founding member of the British Crime Writers Association, and in 1988 he was named a Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America - an achievement many thought long overdue. He won the Life Achievement Anthony Award at the 1990 Boucheron in London, and in 1980 he was knighted as a Commander in the Order of the British Empire. Gilbert made his debut in 1947 with Close Quarters, and since then has become recognized as one of our most versatile British mystery writers.
He was the father of Harriett Gilbert.
Born in Lincolnshire in 1912, Michael Francis Gilbert was educated in Sussex before entering the University of London where he gained an LLB with honours in 1937. Gilbert was a founding member of the British Crime Writers Association, and in 1988 he was named a Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America - an achievement many thought long overdue. He won the Life Achievement Anthony Award at the 1990 Boucheron in London, and in 1980 he was knighted as a Commander in the Order of the British Empire. Gilbert made his debut in 1947 with Close Quarters, and since then has become recognized as one of our most versatile British mystery writers.
He was the father of Harriett Gilbert.
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
February 7, 2021
[5 stars for the mystery, 1 for everything else]
"The Black Seraphim" gives every sign of a being an old-fashioned golden age mystery in the Christie/Sayers mode. It's even set in a cathedral close, in a country town: the next best thing to a country house, a setting which was presumably, by 1984, becoming entirely obsolete, while the close was only mostly so. But this is an illusion, generated by the setting and characters: in fact, the book takes a quite different tack from the likes of Christie, for whom crime is the result of the evil that lurks in the hearts of men. Gilbert, instead, is a follower of the noir writers, for whom crime is the result of corruption in society. And for Gilbert, who was apparently an arch-conservative, that corruption has arisen largely as the result of the declining influence of the aristocracy and, in particular, the Church. No Thatcherite, Gilbert is happy to throw business and finance into the pot of enemies, along with labor and the press: the police are doing their best, but without the guidance they should be receiving from their betters there's a limit to what they can do, while the scientists, though not wrong in and of themselves, are being turned to for guidance that ought to come from clerics. (Labor naturally comes in for the meat of the drubbing, with a number of hoary anti-union bromides dragged out: the solution to labor's troubles, apparently, is for good workers to wait for their hard work and loyalty to be rewarded by their employers.) Gilbert writes well, and the mystery itself is handled brilliantly, but the book is saturated by a worldview that I found to be deeply repellent.
"The Black Seraphim" gives every sign of a being an old-fashioned golden age mystery in the Christie/Sayers mode. It's even set in a cathedral close, in a country town: the next best thing to a country house, a setting which was presumably, by 1984, becoming entirely obsolete, while the close was only mostly so. But this is an illusion, generated by the setting and characters: in fact, the book takes a quite different tack from the likes of Christie, for whom crime is the result of the evil that lurks in the hearts of men. Gilbert, instead, is a follower of the noir writers, for whom crime is the result of corruption in society. And for Gilbert, who was apparently an arch-conservative, that corruption has arisen largely as the result of the declining influence of the aristocracy and, in particular, the Church. No Thatcherite, Gilbert is happy to throw business and finance into the pot of enemies, along with labor and the press: the police are doing their best, but without the guidance they should be receiving from their betters there's a limit to what they can do, while the scientists, though not wrong in and of themselves, are being turned to for guidance that ought to come from clerics. (Labor naturally comes in for the meat of the drubbing, with a number of hoary anti-union bromides dragged out: the solution to labor's troubles, apparently, is for good workers to wait for their hard work and loyalty to be rewarded by their employers.) Gilbert writes well, and the mystery itself is handled brilliantly, but the book is saturated by a worldview that I found to be deeply repellent.
August 19, 2025
A short and extraordinarily deft book, managing to convey the flavours of boys' boarding school story, Trollopean ecclesiastical hyjinks, small-town mystery, journalistic caper, legal thriller, CSI, and romance, without committing fully to any of them. Subtract the more risqué bits, and it's about the perfect book for me, particularly because the Christians in the book behave as if they truly believed in it.
October 10, 2017
Young pathologist James Scotland is advised to take a long vacation after collapsing in front of a lecture hall full of medical students. He chooses to return to Melchester Close, a Cathedral community where he spent an enjoyable term as a tutor. There he is welcomed by old friends, and attracted to the Dean's lovely daughter; but he quickly finds himself witness to the disturbing undercurrents among the Chapter's new leaders. The Archdeacon is intent on financial stability above all, while the Dean is Faith, first and foremost. The residents and clerics of the Close and school have taken sides, and James must steer a careful course to avoid being drawn into the dicey political debate.
Meanwhile, members of Melchester's town council are pushing to convince the cathedral leaders to sell land for a development scheme. The Archdeacon is in favor, but the Dean is opposed. When murder occurs, Dr. Scotland is put in the position of pursuing the evidence --even as his new love is implicated-- or letting a murderer escape justice.
This is a very enjoyable mystery, but I have to say that the murderer's motives seemed pretty thin to me when finally revealed (almost as thin as the source of the book's title, which is not revealed until the epilogue.). However, there is much science here as Dr. Scotland teams with other forensics experts to discover the poison used to kill the victim. And as usual, Gilbert's marvelous characters carry the reader along at a cracking pace.
Meanwhile, members of Melchester's town council are pushing to convince the cathedral leaders to sell land for a development scheme. The Archdeacon is in favor, but the Dean is opposed. When murder occurs, Dr. Scotland is put in the position of pursuing the evidence --even as his new love is implicated-- or letting a murderer escape justice.
This is a very enjoyable mystery, but I have to say that the murderer's motives seemed pretty thin to me when finally revealed (almost as thin as the source of the book's title, which is not revealed until the epilogue.). However, there is much science here as Dr. Scotland teams with other forensics experts to discover the poison used to kill the victim. And as usual, Gilbert's marvelous characters carry the reader along at a cracking pace.
April 10, 2022
Although the novel was published in 1983, it feels like it might have been set two decades earlier. It starts when an overworked young doctor, James Scotland, is advised to spend a full month in the cathedral town of Melchester, where he has friends and connections. He soon realizes that two of the Church dignitaries, the Archdeacon and the Dean, are at daggers drawn over a proposal to sell off a church meadow for development by a local syndicate. This battle is largely fought during tea parties, committee meetings and other civilized occasions, but when the Archdeacon dies in agony during a church service, it's clear that there has been foul play.
I found the book so-so, mainly because I had a hard time keeping track of all the characters. This small town boasts a Cathedral (with lots of clergy and lay staff), a Choir (with more clergy and an organist), a school (with lots of personnel) and a Theological College (with more students and staff), as well as the usual townsfolk, and two competing newspapers (each with their own staff). The Church intrigue had a definite flavor of Anthony Trollope or Angela Thirkell, and I enjoyed that. On the other hand, the murder didn't occur until well into the book, and for me the tension between the Archdeacon and the Dean, with their associated fractions of the Melchester population, was not really enough to keep me entertained.
I found the book so-so, mainly because I had a hard time keeping track of all the characters. This small town boasts a Cathedral (with lots of clergy and lay staff), a Choir (with more clergy and an organist), a school (with lots of personnel) and a Theological College (with more students and staff), as well as the usual townsfolk, and two competing newspapers (each with their own staff). The Church intrigue had a definite flavor of Anthony Trollope or Angela Thirkell, and I enjoyed that. On the other hand, the murder didn't occur until well into the book, and for me the tension between the Archdeacon and the Dean, with their associated fractions of the Melchester population, was not really enough to keep me entertained.
December 22, 2016
I see that Michael Gilbert wrote many, many detective novels of different types, with no regular series or protagonists. Widely admired by other authors, and critics and devotees, it seem that his versatility stopped his becoming as well known as he deserved.
This was my first by him, a cathedral close whodunnit from the early 1980s, in which a young pathologist returns to Melchester Close and is an actor in the disputes and back-biting between factions, which leads to murder and death.
More like a good novel with a whodunnit framework, this novel provides a examination of characters, personalities, principles and motives, with thoughtfulness and humour.
I shall look out for more by Gilbert.
This was my first by him, a cathedral close whodunnit from the early 1980s, in which a young pathologist returns to Melchester Close and is an actor in the disputes and back-biting between factions, which leads to murder and death.
More like a good novel with a whodunnit framework, this novel provides a examination of characters, personalities, principles and motives, with thoughtfulness and humour.
I shall look out for more by Gilbert.
May 19, 2020
Apparently I read this in 2007, yet it was totally tabula rasa when I picked it up again in 2020. I loved all the bits about music. Like not being fond of books with mafioso-type thugs, I am also not as interested in plots that turn on the shenanigans behind manipulated real estate deals, so this book rates lower on account of my prejudice. Also, I had a lot of trouble keeping the characters straight. However, I rather early on decided that I was sure "whodunit," and was totally amazed to learn I was doubly wrong. That was fun. And the hero gets the girl. She is a very strong person, but her dad was my favorite character in this book.
February 21, 2020
A re-read of another first class book by Michael Gilbert. This one starts with a young pathologist collapsing while delivering a lecture to a class of medical students. It takes a while to get to the murder but the story is replete with atmospheric descriptions of the inner workings of a Cathedral. A tad overblown for the sake of the story but the concerns are recognisable. Again the characters are overdrawn but yet have familiar echoes.
Some of the turns of the story are a little less than believable but the whole is so enjoyable that I am not bothered by this.
Some of the turns of the story are a little less than believable but the whole is so enjoyable that I am not bothered by this.
November 14, 2021
Gilbert is one of my favorite mystery writers, but I wasn't very fond of this one. There are too many characters to keep track of, and too much of the book is taken up with setting the scene for a mystery that I didn't think was very interesting. Also, not being familiar with the Church of England, I found it difficult to fathom the relationships between and among the various ecclesiastical officials and employees. Not a terrible book by any means, just not one of Gilbert's best, at least in my opinion.
January 4, 2026
How a cathedral community all works is a little confusing & outside my frame of reference but the infighting and communal drama was real & the characters were interesting. I was surprised about who the murderer was & who was and wasn't a murder victim.
August 14, 2019
A really enjoyable book. Will read more by this author in the near future.
September 17, 2021
This book took forever to become interesting. I was totally lost on all the titles of the people at the Cathedral/seminary. About 2/3rd's of the way through I finally became interessted.
February 11, 2022
One of Michael Gilbert’s greatest thrillers, I confirmed at first reading.
May 4, 2025
Another well plotted mystery by Gilbert.
November 15, 2013
About 40-45 years ago I used to read a lot of British mystery classics. I found them well written albeit not particularly interesting, with notable exceptions, such as, for example, Anthony Berkeley's "Trial and Error", Peter Dickinson's "A Pride of Heroes" or Josephine Tey's "Brat Farrar". I have been curious how my literary tastes changed in almost half a century.
Michael Gilbert is mainly famous for his "Smallbone Deceased", but I chose "The Black Seraphim" to begin the rediscovery of the "classics". The plot of the novel takes place in Melchester, a small town in southern England, famous for its cathedral and medieval architecture. Dr. Scotland, a young pathologist from London who had connections with the town in the past, returns to Melchester to have restful vacations after several years of overwork. Obviously, he will not have a chance to rest. A serious conflict is brewing between prominent church personalities, the Dean and the Archdeacon, and what's worse, there is also an underlying conflict of business interests between various factions of the town elite. When a notable dies in unclear circumstances, Dr. Scotland volunteers his help.
Mr. Gilbert's prose is remarkably cultured and his observations of Melchester's upper crust are sharp. However, there are way too many characters, and without writing names on a piece of paper I would not be able to keep track of who is who. The plot is set up in quite a leisurely manner; the introduction takes exactly one-third of the novel. The book is not that old (1984), yet it reads as if it were written in the Sixties. The denouement is satisfactory, but not memorable in any way.
It may be a great read, just not quite for me.
Two and a half stars.
Michael Gilbert is mainly famous for his "Smallbone Deceased", but I chose "The Black Seraphim" to begin the rediscovery of the "classics". The plot of the novel takes place in Melchester, a small town in southern England, famous for its cathedral and medieval architecture. Dr. Scotland, a young pathologist from London who had connections with the town in the past, returns to Melchester to have restful vacations after several years of overwork. Obviously, he will not have a chance to rest. A serious conflict is brewing between prominent church personalities, the Dean and the Archdeacon, and what's worse, there is also an underlying conflict of business interests between various factions of the town elite. When a notable dies in unclear circumstances, Dr. Scotland volunteers his help.
Mr. Gilbert's prose is remarkably cultured and his observations of Melchester's upper crust are sharp. However, there are way too many characters, and without writing names on a piece of paper I would not be able to keep track of who is who. The plot is set up in quite a leisurely manner; the introduction takes exactly one-third of the novel. The book is not that old (1984), yet it reads as if it were written in the Sixties. The denouement is satisfactory, but not memorable in any way.
It may be a great read, just not quite for me.
Two and a half stars.
April 19, 2025
James Scotland, a young pathologist, has been overworking himself and goes to visit a friend in a quiet cathedral town. But the town is in the middle of a heated battle within the cathedral and against the town as well. The dean and the archdeacon are the two opposing forces, and when the archdeacon becomes ill at a large luncheon, not too many folks are sad to learn of his death. But Scotland is not content to ascribe the death to natural causes. It must have been murder; and it will take his skill and his contacts as a forensic pathologist to track down the killer.
I really enjoyed this book. It's a little hard to categorize. In some ways, it is a cozy, with the closed range of suspects and the amateur sleuth. In some ways, it is a classic British police story, except that the police are not very well represented. And in some ways, it is a forensic crime mystery. But however I might categorize it, I was very pleased to find that for the first time in a while, I was completely unaware of the identity of the murderer until the very last moment. Nicely done.
I really enjoyed this book. It's a little hard to categorize. In some ways, it is a cozy, with the closed range of suspects and the amateur sleuth. In some ways, it is a classic British police story, except that the police are not very well represented. And in some ways, it is a forensic crime mystery. But however I might categorize it, I was very pleased to find that for the first time in a while, I was completely unaware of the identity of the murderer until the very last moment. Nicely done.
December 26, 2013
Doctor James Scotland, a young pathologist, needs a month's rest, and picks the cathedral city of Melchester, where he has friends. He's soon aware of the conflict among the Dean of the cathedral, the archdeacon, and some of the local business interests, which want to buy some cathedral land for industrial expansion and housing. The dean is an uncomfortable character, but James feels differently about the dean's daughter Amanda. Charming characters and situation.
July 25, 2015
This was an elegant, well-written, classically British mystery. Set in and around a Cathedral close, and populated with highly individual characters, it is a fine read that holds the reader's interest. It first appeared in 1984 but remains rewarding. I'll be seeking out more books by this author.
November 18, 2008
A classic English mystery set in a Cathedral Close
March 1, 2017
Great atmospherics, well-done plot.
Want to read
October 26, 2018Synopsis: James Scotland, a pathologist, has come to Melchester on a vacation. But he finds a hornet's nest of church politics and murder.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews