The Cup and the Lip

by E.X. Ferrars

Why, on a wet and stormy night, did the old and very ill novelist Dan Braile decide to take a walk?When he doesn't come back his family are at first reluctant to call the police, despite the fact that he had claimed someone was trying to poison him. But they become steadily more tense as the evidence points towards a horrifying conclusion - and under the strain their united front begins to crack . . . 'A consummate professional in clever plotting, characterisation and atmosphere' Washington Post

Genres: Mystery

184 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1975

About the author

Aka Elizabeth Ferrars

Elizabeth Ferrars is a pseudonym of Morna Doris MacTaggart Brown. She was born in Rangoon, Burma.

Reviews

[Danielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Title: The Cup and the Lip
Author: Elizabeth Ferrars
Series: N/A
Release Date: 1975
Publisher: HarperCollins
Rating: 4 stars

Favourite character: Peter
Least favourite character: Kate

Mini-Review: Okay so this was amazing as usual. I love Elizabeth Ferrars books, her writing is just... ugh, I love it. My reason for it not being 5 stars is because of the ending. Not the reveal of the whodunnit, that shocked me. No the romance subplot that was never followed through on. I feel cheated.

Fan Cast:
Peter Harkness - Harry Lloyd
Gina Marston - Ellie Bamber
Max Rowley - Tom Burke
Kate Rowley - Olivia Colman
Juliet Weldon - Laura Carmichael
Walter Weldon - Martin Freeman
Helen Braile - Clare Holman
Anna Weinstock - Celia Imrie
Adrian Rolfe - Aaron Taylor-Johnson
Daniel Braile - Bill Nighy
Arthur - Harry Holland
Cliff Paton - Anthony Boyle
Rosie Paton - Simona Brown
Detective Superintendent Crabtree - Alex Price

[Sophie Woodhouse · Rating 2 out of 5]

an exciting whodunit murder mystery, but unfortunately the ending/solution was unsatisfactory. the writing is not brilliant, but the story is well-paced

[Bill · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've read three other books by Elizabeth Ferrars; Skeleton Staff, The Crime and the Crystal and Murder of a Suicide and for the most part enjoyed them. The Cup and the Lip was also entertaining. It moves along at a nice clip and kept me interested in what was happening.
Author Dan Braile has a number of friends, fellow writers for the most part, up at his home, Gray Gables. He is to take part in a question and answer session with some of his compatriots and the local arts society. But Dan has been ill for awhile and friend Peter is asked to come up from London to replace him in the session. Strangely, Dan thinks he's being poisoned, maybe by one of his visitors so Peter gets involved in that mystery.
After the function, Dan disappears and another acquaintance, Rolfe, shows up. As the group tries to find Dan and wonder whether they should call the police as well, a dead body is discovered.
So there you go, many questions to be answered and they are all explored. Is Dan being poisoned? Is one of his guests the perpetrator? Why would someone want to poison him? Whose body is discovered?
The book keeps you entertained and the ultimate solution was satisfying. I enjoyed. (3 stars)

[Colin · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short and ultimately slight tale told by Ferrars in that smooth and lucid style that is characteristic of much of her writing.
It involves one of her typical groups of middle-class, respectable people, literary types in this case, a suspected poisoning and an inexplicable disappearance on a wild and stormy evening. Most of the activity is confined to an old house and a nearby hotel and the cast of characters is an intimate one - a classic closed circle setup.
Ferrars was always highly readable and it is never a chore to spend time on one of her books. That said, this brief novel feels a little lightweight, and the resolution is somewhat ambiguous.

[Laura L. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Felt the woman in the story was very naive but was probably due to the date it was written (we have come a long way).. She was gullible to have gone along with the things she did. Otherwise liked the book and it read quickly.

[Marie-Clare · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not for me. I didn't warm to the characters and found the plot unconvincing.

[Jodie Gaston · Rating 3 out of 5]

An intriguing setup — a novelist convinced one of his friends is trying to poison him — pulls you in straight away. Ferrars builds the tension nicely through subtle digs, and quiet paranoia, before the story takes a darker turn when one of the group is suddenly killed. Two crimes is a nice twist.
That said, the ending dragged a little for me. The final explanations went on longer than they needed to, taking some of the sting out of an otherwise clever twist. Still, it’s a thoughtful, character-driven mystery with that classic Ferrars touch — genteel settings, sharp observations, and just enough menace under the surface.

[Kacper Nedza · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully constructed mystery turning on fine characterization and keen insight. One of Ferrars' best.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

For my full review click on the link below:
https://crossexaminingcrime.wordpress...