The Town Cried Murder

by Leslie Ford (Pseudonym), Zenith Jones Brown

Lovely Faith Yardley's betrothal to a man from the north is abruptly followed by murder -- and more murder. Transformed by terror, quaint and beautiful Williamsburg, Virginia waits for the killer to strike again, and wonders: This time, will it be Faith Yardley herself?

"Another of Leslie Ford's ace items in murder and love, full of suspenseful moments and first-rate: sleuthing." --New York World Telegram

Genres: Mystery

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1939

About the author

Leslie Ford is the nom de plume of Zenith Jones Brown , who also wrote as David Frome and Brenda Conrad.

Reviews

[Bev · Rating 2 out of 5]

Our story is told to us by Miss Lucy Randolph, a spinster brought up in the tradition of a true Southern lady. Having never married, she has invested all of her maternal feelings in her young relative Faith Yardley. Faith's mother (also Faith) died when she was young and she has been brought up under the rather prim, self-sacrificing eye of her father's sister, Melusina. Melusina has, as she will tell anyone who will sit still long enough, sacrificed all for her brother and the sake of the Yardley mansion. Her Southern pride will not allow Yardley Hall to be sold to "those Yankee Restoration people" who have given new life to so many of Virginia's lovely old homes...including Miss Lucy's. Melusina would much rather sell off what family heirlooms she can...and when those run out, trade Faith's happiness in on an arranged marriage with a wealthy older man to save the family fortunes.

That's where our story begins. Miss Melusina has sent the announcement of Faith's engagement to Mason Seymour to the papers and considers everything settled. But then young, brash and handsome Bill Haines arrives. Haines is the ward of a man who paid his addresses to both Melusina and Lucy before being turned down and leaving Virginia for greener pastures. He has a note of introduction that allows him to take up lodging in Miss Lucy's home. He meets Faith and instantly falls in love. And that's when the trouble starts.

Haines winds up heading off to Seymour's house to tell him what he thinks of an elderly man taking advantage of a young girl like Faith and the next thing we know Seymour is dead. He was apparently shot from the terrace outside while he sat writing at his desk and it looks like the gun used came from Miss Lucy's place. Things look black indeed for Haines. But there are a few mysteries that the police will need to clear up before they can be sure. Who left the bloody stain on the Yardley's well? Who was

the mysterious shadow that Miss Lucy saw when she was out roaming about that night? What happened to Seymour's second will? Just how many people were in and out of Seymour's house that evening anyway? What did Faith's father do when he found out his sister had talked Faith into marrying someone she didn't love? Did he take matters into his own hands?

To my mind, this wasn't Ford at her best. The primary distraction is the dialogue and Miss Lucy's inner monologue. These seemed to be full of non sequiturs and a lot of jumping from one subject to another. The characters just plow ahead with their conversations as if everything is in order and making perfect sense, but it really wasn't.

And, honestly, the wrap-up wasn't nearly as satisfying as it could have been. It was a typical "gather all the suspects and bring out the evidence against them all in turn" scene and that would have been just fine. I happen to like those because they tend to cover all the clues and red herrings and straighten everything out. But there was one twist too many--if John Crabtree (our investigator) had stopped his finger-pointing at Melusina, I would have been best-pleased. She had a dandy little motive and that interfering woman really would have made a nice culprit and gotten her out of the way of young love. I still find that I enjoy the Ford books that feature Colonel Primrose & Grace Latham the most. Her standalone books just don't hold up as well. ★★ and a half

First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting portions of review. Thanks.

[Bev · Rating 2 out of 5]

See review other edition

[M Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

No Colonel Primrose in this one, but nonetheless the stand-in for Mrs Latham consistently does idiotic things to shield handsome young men that couldn't possibly have done it because they're young lovers.

As always with Ms. Ford, the atmosphere and the portraits of the local aristocracy are exquisitely done. As is too often the case, the management of the timeline and geography of the murder are somewhat muddled.

I have a 1945 edition of this book and the racist language and attitude is quite "bracing".

[Margot Ayer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in the early days of Williamsburg becoming Colonial Williamsburg.

[Patti · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book written in the 1930’s. I really enjoyed it. Was slow to start, kept me reading by half way.

[Shelley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one starts slow, but soon you are really immersed in the setting and the slowness feels right. I would like to give this more stars but I really have to say that the use of the word 'darky', among other things, really jarred me and threw me out of the narrative each time. I can usually disregard things of this nature in older books as the product of their time - but this is certainly a drawback of this author and must be mentioned. Otherwise, this is a short, charming read that will pull you into the south in the quaint setting of colonial Williamsburg. Faith is rather an idiot, but Lucy is simply lovely and the last line in the book is delightful.

[Neer · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting mystery set in small town America.

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