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Pembunuhan Ala Inggris
Di Warbeck Hall, sebuah rumah tua pedesaan Inggris, beberapa komponen klasik berkumpul di sana; dekorasi Natal, teh dan kue, kepala pelayan yang setia, kerabat, orang asing, badai salju, dan hadirnya sianida di antara semua itu.
Ada ketegangan di antara para tamu sejak awal. Mereka tidak menyukai satu sama lain karena banyak alasan; politik, cinta segitiga, atau bahkan rasisme. Lalu kematian beberapa orang sejak Natal tiba benar-benar akan membuat pembaca ingin menuduh semua tokoh, termasuk seorang sejarawan Yahudi Jerman.
Diterbitkan pertama kali pada tahun 1951, An English Murder menyajikan kisah tentang bagaimana orang-orang kelas atas melakukan pembunuhan dengan cara Inggris!
Ada ketegangan di antara para tamu sejak awal. Mereka tidak menyukai satu sama lain karena banyak alasan; politik, cinta segitiga, atau bahkan rasisme. Lalu kematian beberapa orang sejak Natal tiba benar-benar akan membuat pembaca ingin menuduh semua tokoh, termasuk seorang sejarawan Yahudi Jerman.
Diterbitkan pertama kali pada tahun 1951, An English Murder menyajikan kisah tentang bagaimana orang-orang kelas atas melakukan pembunuhan dengan cara Inggris!
248 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1951
227 people are currently reading
6270 people want to read
About the author
Cyril Hare
73 books99 followersCyril Hare was the pseudonymn of Alfred Alexander Gordon Clark who was the third son of Henry Herbert Gordon Clark of Mickleham Hall, a merchant in the wine and spirit trade in the family firm of Matthew Clark & Sons.
Having spent most of his formative years in the country where he learned to hunt, shoot and fish, he was educated at St Aubyn's, Rottingdean and Rugby, where he won a prize for writing English verse, before reading history at New College, Oxford, where he gained a first class degree.
His family tradition indicated a legal career and he was duly called to the bar in 1924 and he joined the firm of famed lawyer Ronald Oliver and went on to practice in the civil and criminal courts in and around London.
He was 36 when he began his writing career and he picked his pseudonymn from Hare Court, where he worked, and Cyril Mansions, Battersea, where he lived after he had married Mary Barbara Lawrence in 1933. The couple had one son and two daughters.
His first literary endeavours were short, flippant sketches for Punch magazine and he had articles published in the Illustrated London News and The Law Journal. His first detective novel, 'Tenant for Death' was published in 1937 and it was called 'an engaging debut'.
During the early years of World War II he toured as a judge's marshall and he used his experiences as the basis for his fourth novel 'Tragedy at Law', which was published in 1942. In that same year he became a civil servant with the Director of Public Prosecutions and in the latter stages of the war he worked in the Ministry of Economic Warfare, where his experiences proved invaluable when writing 'With a Bare Bodkin' in 1946.
He was appointed county court judge for Surrey in 1950 and he spent his time between travelling the circuit trying civil cases and writing his detective fiction.
In addition to these two strings to his bow, he was a noted public speaker and was often in demand by a wide variety of societies. But his workload did curtail his literary output, which was also hampered by the fact that he did not use a typewriter, and his reputation, very good as it is in the field of detective fiction, stands on nine novels and a host of short stories. He also wrote a children's book, 'The Magic Bottle' in 1946 and a play, 'The House of Warbeck' in 1955.
He has left two enduting characters in Inspector Mallett of Scotland Yard, who featured in three novels, and Francis Pettigrew, an amateur sleuth, who also featured in three novels. In addition the two appeared together in two other novels, 'Tragedy at Law' (1942) and 'He Should Have Died Hereafter' (1958).
Having suffered from tuberculosis for some time, he died at his home near Boxhill, Surrey on 25 August 1958, aged only 57. After his death Michael Gilbert introduced a fine collection of his short stories entitled 'The Best Detective Stories of Cyril Hare', in which he paid due tribute to a fellow lawyer and mystery writer.
Gerry Wolstenholme
June 2011
Having spent most of his formative years in the country where he learned to hunt, shoot and fish, he was educated at St Aubyn's, Rottingdean and Rugby, where he won a prize for writing English verse, before reading history at New College, Oxford, where he gained a first class degree.
His family tradition indicated a legal career and he was duly called to the bar in 1924 and he joined the firm of famed lawyer Ronald Oliver and went on to practice in the civil and criminal courts in and around London.
He was 36 when he began his writing career and he picked his pseudonymn from Hare Court, where he worked, and Cyril Mansions, Battersea, where he lived after he had married Mary Barbara Lawrence in 1933. The couple had one son and two daughters.
His first literary endeavours were short, flippant sketches for Punch magazine and he had articles published in the Illustrated London News and The Law Journal. His first detective novel, 'Tenant for Death' was published in 1937 and it was called 'an engaging debut'.
During the early years of World War II he toured as a judge's marshall and he used his experiences as the basis for his fourth novel 'Tragedy at Law', which was published in 1942. In that same year he became a civil servant with the Director of Public Prosecutions and in the latter stages of the war he worked in the Ministry of Economic Warfare, where his experiences proved invaluable when writing 'With a Bare Bodkin' in 1946.
He was appointed county court judge for Surrey in 1950 and he spent his time between travelling the circuit trying civil cases and writing his detective fiction.
In addition to these two strings to his bow, he was a noted public speaker and was often in demand by a wide variety of societies. But his workload did curtail his literary output, which was also hampered by the fact that he did not use a typewriter, and his reputation, very good as it is in the field of detective fiction, stands on nine novels and a host of short stories. He also wrote a children's book, 'The Magic Bottle' in 1946 and a play, 'The House of Warbeck' in 1955.
He has left two enduting characters in Inspector Mallett of Scotland Yard, who featured in three novels, and Francis Pettigrew, an amateur sleuth, who also featured in three novels. In addition the two appeared together in two other novels, 'Tragedy at Law' (1942) and 'He Should Have Died Hereafter' (1958).
Having suffered from tuberculosis for some time, he died at his home near Boxhill, Surrey on 25 August 1958, aged only 57. After his death Michael Gilbert introduced a fine collection of his short stories entitled 'The Best Detective Stories of Cyril Hare', in which he paid due tribute to a fellow lawyer and mystery writer.
Gerry Wolstenholme
June 2011
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 622 reviews
July 9, 2025
A very English murder, indeed!
The plot was actually rather good, which surprised me as some of the golden age detective fiction can go a little off the rails toward the end. This one kept (what I thought was) the right amount of campy spirit needed to make it a cozy mystery, but inserted the right amount of true crime vibe to make the murders seem plausible.
And the red herrings were well-done, too! Just enough to throw you off the scent, but still credible when looked back on after you're done.
The skinny gist is that a dying viscount invites his son, his first cousin (with a bodyguard in tow), and several old family friends to his home for one final Christmas. There is also a historian in residence, working on...history stuff. I don't know, don't judge me. But he's Jewish and a Holocaust survivor, and Hare is actually sensitive to this, which doesn't always come through in books of this era.
The ever-faithful butler and his daughter round out the holiday murder mystery.
The house party, now snowed in, is on edge due to the underlying fractures between the guests.
And then one of them drops dead.
Of cyanide poisoning.
As the bodies pile up, more secrets come to light, and the cracks in everyone's alibis start to show. The bodyguard takes on the role of policeman, and the historian takes on the role of foreign-man armchair detective. Between the two of them, can they keep the rest of the party safe until the snow melts?
And more importantly, figure out whodunnit?
I found this author by listening to his short story, The Euthanasia of Hilary's Aunt, in the detective anthology, Bodies from the Library. It was one of my favorites, so I poked around and ended up here.
Recommended for fans of Golden Age Detective stories.
The plot was actually rather good, which surprised me as some of the golden age detective fiction can go a little off the rails toward the end. This one kept (what I thought was) the right amount of campy spirit needed to make it a cozy mystery, but inserted the right amount of true crime vibe to make the murders seem plausible.
And the red herrings were well-done, too! Just enough to throw you off the scent, but still credible when looked back on after you're done.
The skinny gist is that a dying viscount invites his son, his first cousin (with a bodyguard in tow), and several old family friends to his home for one final Christmas. There is also a historian in residence, working on...history stuff. I don't know, don't judge me. But he's Jewish and a Holocaust survivor, and Hare is actually sensitive to this, which doesn't always come through in books of this era.
The ever-faithful butler and his daughter round out the holiday murder mystery.
The house party, now snowed in, is on edge due to the underlying fractures between the guests.
And then one of them drops dead.
Of cyanide poisoning.
As the bodies pile up, more secrets come to light, and the cracks in everyone's alibis start to show. The bodyguard takes on the role of policeman, and the historian takes on the role of foreign-man armchair detective. Between the two of them, can they keep the rest of the party safe until the snow melts?
And more importantly, figure out whodunnit?
I found this author by listening to his short story, The Euthanasia of Hilary's Aunt, in the detective anthology, Bodies from the Library. It was one of my favorites, so I poked around and ended up here.
Recommended for fans of Golden Age Detective stories.
October 29, 2012
I wasn't sure what to think when I read a British mystery written in 1951 that actually acknowledges that the Holocaust happened and even includes a sympathetic Jewish character. It was refreshing to read a book that didn't have all of the crude anti-foreign stereotypes that I've come to associate with Christie, Heyer, and other British writers of the period. One of the characters does use offensive anti-Semitic language, but it is actually supposed to be a negative character trait (what a thought!).
Instead of attacking foreigners, Hare uses the foreign character and the way the others react to him to take quite a few clever swipes at the various political post-War factions in Britain at the time and at his fellow countrymen in general. There are a lot of clever observations made about the class structure of the time, but Hare doesn't write like somebody who holds a grudge against any particular group. It also seemed to me that he treated both the left and the right side of the political spectrum fairly equally, which is something of a rarity.
As for the mystery itself, I liked the way it unfolded. I felt that all the necessary clues to solve it were given as the plot progressed, and although I didn't pick up on all of them as I read, at the end I was able to look back and see that they had been mentioned. The story moved well; once I started reading I wanted to keep reading, which is always a good sign. I will definitely look for more of his books.
Instead of attacking foreigners, Hare uses the foreign character and the way the others react to him to take quite a few clever swipes at the various political post-War factions in Britain at the time and at his fellow countrymen in general. There are a lot of clever observations made about the class structure of the time, but Hare doesn't write like somebody who holds a grudge against any particular group. It also seemed to me that he treated both the left and the right side of the political spectrum fairly equally, which is something of a rarity.
As for the mystery itself, I liked the way it unfolded. I felt that all the necessary clues to solve it were given as the plot progressed, and although I didn't pick up on all of them as I read, at the end I was able to look back and see that they had been mentioned. The story moved well; once I started reading I wanted to keep reading, which is always a good sign. I will definitely look for more of his books.
March 27, 2023
Ein unterhaltsamer Weihnachtskrimi! Eigentlich beinhaltet die Geschichte alles, was ich sehr gerne lese: Ein Setting in England, ein altes Landgut, eine Familie eingeschneit zu Weihnachten und der Sohn des Hausherren, der an einer Zyankali-Vergiftung stirbt. Jetzt heißt es natürlich, den Mörder zu finden und jeder der Anwesenden ist verdächtig!
Das ist inhaltlich genau meins! Dennoch konnte mich die Geschichte nicht so richtig packen. Sie hat mich zwar gut unterhalten können, hatte zwischendurch aber auch ihre Längen.
Dennoch ein gutes Buch mit dem gewissen Charme des alten englischen Krimis. 💗
Das ist inhaltlich genau meins! Dennoch konnte mich die Geschichte nicht so richtig packen. Sie hat mich zwar gut unterhalten können, hatte zwischendurch aber auch ihre Längen.
Dennoch ein gutes Buch mit dem gewissen Charme des alten englischen Krimis. 💗
December 13, 2018
Published in 1951, this is a typical, country house, murder mystery, with a slightly different feel. Although the setting is one familiar to readers of Golden Age mysteries – a group of guests, a snowed in country house – the modern world is beginning to impinge. Domestic staff is harder to get hold of and Briggs, the butler, valiantly does his best to keep up standards with far less help than he previously had. Meanwhile, the house itself, is suffering from a lack of staff, and money. It looks impressive, but maintenance is expensive and death duties will mean that the present Lord Warbeck’s son, Robert, is unlikely to be able to afford his inheritance.
Lord Warbeck is old, and ill, and keen to have his family with him at Christmas. His guests include his son, Robert – who is the President of the League of Liberty and Justice, a right wing political group, Sir Julius Warbeck, Chancellor of the Exchequer, Mrs Carstairs, whose father was the rector of the parish when she was young, Lady Camilla Prendergast, a distant relative, and Dr Wenceslaus Bottwink, a Professor of History, currently doing research at Warbeck House.
The guests are an ill assorted group and tensions, political and personal, are in the air. The house is snowed in when there is a suspicious death and Rogers, a Special Branch Detective, whose job is to keep Sir Julius safe, is asked to step in to investigate. However, it is Dr Bottwink who, with the aid of his historical knowledge, solve the mystery. An interesting, post-war, setting for a classic murder mystery.
Lord Warbeck is old, and ill, and keen to have his family with him at Christmas. His guests include his son, Robert – who is the President of the League of Liberty and Justice, a right wing political group, Sir Julius Warbeck, Chancellor of the Exchequer, Mrs Carstairs, whose father was the rector of the parish when she was young, Lady Camilla Prendergast, a distant relative, and Dr Wenceslaus Bottwink, a Professor of History, currently doing research at Warbeck House.
The guests are an ill assorted group and tensions, political and personal, are in the air. The house is snowed in when there is a suspicious death and Rogers, a Special Branch Detective, whose job is to keep Sir Julius safe, is asked to step in to investigate. However, it is Dr Bottwink who, with the aid of his historical knowledge, solve the mystery. An interesting, post-war, setting for a classic murder mystery.
June 6, 2019
This was a delightful little gem of a book that I would never have picked up without happening upon it in a London bookshop, so hurrah for the power of in person discovery! This could not be more aptly titled because oh my lord, this is just such a quintessential British mystery of the era. It has the isolated closed circle element that I love and I was so into the social history/political history threads woven in. Very excited to try another Cyril Hare - he has a great (and rather funny) authorial voice
December 1, 2018
Half spoof, half homage to the vintage English country house murder mystery, this takes all the usual elements of a dysfunctional family, old loves and enmities, the house cut off by snow, murder - and gives them a shake-up by having a police bodyguard on hand who reluctantly plays detective ably assisted by a 'foreign' history professor. That Dr Bottwind is uncannily similar to Poirot is part of the joke - that he is Jewish and has survived the Holocaust adds a whole other dimension to a genre which generally ignores politics. Here the political strand is augmented by including characters who are, respectively, the leader of a British neofascist group, and the Chancellor of the Exchequer of a post war socialist government.
The mystery is somewhat thin but moves along easily, and there's another dig that the solution rests on British constitutional history which only Dr Bottwind realises. A light read rather than a classic but interesting for the way in which it reflects and resists genre elements.
The mystery is somewhat thin but moves along easily, and there's another dig that the solution rests on British constitutional history which only Dr Bottwind realises. A light read rather than a classic but interesting for the way in which it reflects and resists genre elements.
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November 9, 2021Retko se desi da u knjizi koja od tačke do tačke strogo ispunjava vrlo sužene zahteve određenog podžanra (ovde onaj tip detektivskog romana u kome se desi ubistvo u snegom zavejanoj kući pa se mala grupa šarolikih likova međusobno sumnjiči i optužuje) naiđete na lik kome se onako od srca obradujete i pomislite MOJ ČOVEK. A ovde se upravo to dogodilo. Doktor Venceslav Botvink je istoričar i to istoričar pedant koji posvećuje život nekim trećerazrednim istorijskim ličnostima i dešifrovanju njihovih marginalija po tuđoj prepisci. Ali takođe je istočnoevropski Jevrejin čija nam je biografija data tek u oskudnim naznakama tipa "biblioteka jeste bila ledena, ali je u konclogoru bilo mnogo hladnije pa mu sad ovo nije smetalo" ili nagoveštena u iskazima tipa "naravno da sam siguran da je u pitanju trovanje cijanidom. Viđao sam takve smrti, one se teško zaboravljaju". Osim toga, iako (ubeđena sam) nosi tegle od naočara, Botvink ima oštro oko za međuljudske odnose i sitne detalje, jednako oštar jezik i grozomoran profesorski humor koji ostali (na sreću ili na žalost) uglavnom ne kapiraju. Konačno, nešto dosta užasno za ostale likove iz knjige tj. potencijalne žrtve i ubice: Botvink je blaženo ubeđen da će i njima za razrešenje zagonetke zločina biti dovoljno da im nabaci kako samo treba da se sete šta se Vilijamu Pitu mlađem NIJE desilo tad-i-tad ili da malo razmisle o finesama engleskog ustavnog prava. Poaro nikad nije bio ovako skroman.
December 22, 2023
Very enjoyable country house mystery set at Christmas time during a snowstorm. However, if you are looking for a holiday book, this might not be a good choice as Christmas really plays no part in the story except as a reason for the people to have gathered together (and become stranded) at this country house.
Despite the presence of a Scotland Yard man, this is actually a cozy mystery since the solution of the mystery (and much of the detecting) is done by one of the guests,
Despite the presence of a Scotland Yard man, this is actually a cozy mystery since the solution of the mystery (and much of the detecting) is done by one of the guests,
January 19, 2024
4 stars. This is a wonderful mystery. A solid plot and solid characters - and not too many of them.
It is a bit different from most golden age mysteries because it is mentioned that one of the characters is a concentration camp survivor and another is leiding a group of british fascists. This isn't at all at the centre of the story, but it does add depth to it. On the whole it is still a pretty cozy christmas mystery.
I hadn't read anything by Cyril Hare before, but will be on the lookout for him in the future.
It is a bit different from most golden age mysteries because it is mentioned that one of the characters is a concentration camp survivor and another is leiding a group of british fascists. This isn't at all at the centre of the story, but it does add depth to it. On the whole it is still a pretty cozy christmas mystery.
I hadn't read anything by Cyril Hare before, but will be on the lookout for him in the future.
February 7, 2023
A wonderful, little mystery for the English mysteries group.
I liked it very much and I admit that I was clueless till the end (though with some suspicions).
Excellent for a snowy, winter afternoon.
I liked it very much and I admit that I was clueless till the end (though with some suspicions).
Excellent for a snowy, winter afternoon.
January 10, 2015
3.5 stars.
I really liked this murder mystery, which was also a study of the British social order & anti-semitism. Dr Bottwink owes a lot to Hercule Poirot, but otherwise for me this was quite an original tale & I will be happy to read more by this author.
I really liked this murder mystery, which was also a study of the British social order & anti-semitism. Dr Bottwink owes a lot to Hercule Poirot, but otherwise for me this was quite an original tale & I will be happy to read more by this author.
August 4, 2018
A Christmas to remember. The book I read was published in 1951 by Little, Brown and Company. There are already so many editions listed I didn't take the trouble to add yet another edition.
Class distinction and prejudices; dying Lord of the Manor trying to have a family/friends gathering for his last Christmas; Exchequer of the government who can't add; a son who is decidedly not a gentleman and assorted others comprise this unhappy grouping where cyanide pays a visit.
Class distinction and prejudices; dying Lord of the Manor trying to have a family/friends gathering for his last Christmas; Exchequer of the government who can't add; a son who is decidedly not a gentleman and assorted others comprise this unhappy grouping where cyanide pays a visit.
January 29, 2025
Diese alten Weihnachtskrimis mag ich mittlerweile sehr gerne. Das Eintauchen in den alten Sprachstil vermittelt sofort den Charme der damaligen Zeit - wobei Charme hier vielleicht der falsche Ausdruck ist, denn meist sind diese Figuren in Krimis ja sehr vorbelastet und nicht immer sympathisch.
Hier fand ich toll, dass ich nicht sofort wusste, wer denn wohl das Mordopfer sein wird. Obwohl es in typischer Weise beginnt - mit einem Landhaus und altem Adel, dem greisen Familienoberhaupt, der zum Weihnachtsessen einlädt und schwer krank ist und die geladenen Gäste, die es meist auf dessen Geld und Erbe abgesehen haben. Allerdings sind die Konflikte hier eher untereinander als gegenüber dem alten Lord Warbeck, der zumeist das Bett hütet und so war schon ein Rätsel, wen es wohl treffen wird.
Dr. Wenzeslaus Bottwick ist momentan im Landhaus zu Gast und sichtet alte Unterlagen. Winterliche Kälte hält das alte Gemäuer frostig, und dass das Weihnachtsfest bevorsteht hätte er über seinen Studien beinahe übersehen. Als Ausländer sind ihm die "englischen Sitten" nicht sehr geläufig und er bemüht sich, sich anzupassen. Durch seine Herkunft sind ihm nicht alle gewogen.
Sir Julius ist der Neffe von Lord Warbeck, ein sehr ehrgeiziger Schatzkanzler und hat deshalb eine Abneigung gegen Mrs. Carstairs Gatten, der die Nachfolge seines Amtes anstrebt. Auf den Erben des Hauses, Robert Warbeck ist er neidisch und kann dessen politische Ambitionen nicht teilen.
Detective Rogers von New Scotland Yard ist als Sir Julius Leibwächter dabei.
Lady Camilla Prendergast ist eine ferne Verwandte, verliebt in Sir Robert und will endlich klären, ob es noch Chancen für eine gemeinsame Zukunft gibt.
Mrs Carstairs, ist als Pfarrerstochter auf dem Anwesen aufgewachsen und geht allen mit ihrer Lobhudelei auf ihren Gatten auf den Keks.
Sir Robert Warbeck ist der Sohn des Hauses und künftiger Lord Warbeck, aber ebenso Präsident der Liga für Freiheit und Gerechtigkeit, eine faschistische Organisation und steht damit vielen Ansichten im Weg.
Und dann wäre noch der alte und treue Butler Briggs, dem ein Geheimnis auf der Zunge und im Herzen brennt. Eine sehr interessante Rolle übrigens, diese ausgestorbene Art der Butler, die jegliche Emotion vermeiden und alles tun, was die Gäste wünschen. Und dennoch können sie eine gewisse Missbilligung der Norm durch winzige Kleinigkeiten zum Ausdruck bringen, die Außenstehende gar nicht bemerken würden.
Eine interessante Mischung und ein interessanter Fall. Es dauert eine Weile, bis die Tat geschieht, aber ich fand das Vorspiel dazu sehr spannend, weil man eben nicht wusste, welche Motive wohl dahinter stecken würden und auch danach blieb alles noch recht offen. Viele Hinweise wurden gegeben und da die Gäste (natürlich) eingeschneit und damit von der Außenwelt abgeschnitten wurden, gab es auch kein Entkommen.
Ich empfand es als sehr gute Unterhaltung für zwischendurch, wenn man diese klassischen winterlichen whodunit Krimis mag und war von der Auflösung dann auch überrascht.
Ich hatte dieses Buch übrigens als Hörbuch versucht vor einigen Wochen – und ich erkenne immer wieder wie sehr sich für mich eine gehörte und eine gelesene Version voneinander unterscheiden. Beim Hören konnte ich überhaupt nicht in die Atmosphäre eintauchen oder ein Gespür für die Personen bekommen, die anfangs eingeführt wurden - beim lesen dagegen war das überhaupt kein Problem und hat Spaß gemacht!
Weltenwanderer
Hier fand ich toll, dass ich nicht sofort wusste, wer denn wohl das Mordopfer sein wird. Obwohl es in typischer Weise beginnt - mit einem Landhaus und altem Adel, dem greisen Familienoberhaupt, der zum Weihnachtsessen einlädt und schwer krank ist und die geladenen Gäste, die es meist auf dessen Geld und Erbe abgesehen haben. Allerdings sind die Konflikte hier eher untereinander als gegenüber dem alten Lord Warbeck, der zumeist das Bett hütet und so war schon ein Rätsel, wen es wohl treffen wird.
Dr. Wenzeslaus Bottwick ist momentan im Landhaus zu Gast und sichtet alte Unterlagen. Winterliche Kälte hält das alte Gemäuer frostig, und dass das Weihnachtsfest bevorsteht hätte er über seinen Studien beinahe übersehen. Als Ausländer sind ihm die "englischen Sitten" nicht sehr geläufig und er bemüht sich, sich anzupassen. Durch seine Herkunft sind ihm nicht alle gewogen.
Sir Julius ist der Neffe von Lord Warbeck, ein sehr ehrgeiziger Schatzkanzler und hat deshalb eine Abneigung gegen Mrs. Carstairs Gatten, der die Nachfolge seines Amtes anstrebt. Auf den Erben des Hauses, Robert Warbeck ist er neidisch und kann dessen politische Ambitionen nicht teilen.
Detective Rogers von New Scotland Yard ist als Sir Julius Leibwächter dabei.
Lady Camilla Prendergast ist eine ferne Verwandte, verliebt in Sir Robert und will endlich klären, ob es noch Chancen für eine gemeinsame Zukunft gibt.
Mrs Carstairs, ist als Pfarrerstochter auf dem Anwesen aufgewachsen und geht allen mit ihrer Lobhudelei auf ihren Gatten auf den Keks.
Sir Robert Warbeck ist der Sohn des Hauses und künftiger Lord Warbeck, aber ebenso Präsident der Liga für Freiheit und Gerechtigkeit, eine faschistische Organisation und steht damit vielen Ansichten im Weg.
Und dann wäre noch der alte und treue Butler Briggs, dem ein Geheimnis auf der Zunge und im Herzen brennt. Eine sehr interessante Rolle übrigens, diese ausgestorbene Art der Butler, die jegliche Emotion vermeiden und alles tun, was die Gäste wünschen. Und dennoch können sie eine gewisse Missbilligung der Norm durch winzige Kleinigkeiten zum Ausdruck bringen, die Außenstehende gar nicht bemerken würden.
Eine interessante Mischung und ein interessanter Fall. Es dauert eine Weile, bis die Tat geschieht, aber ich fand das Vorspiel dazu sehr spannend, weil man eben nicht wusste, welche Motive wohl dahinter stecken würden und auch danach blieb alles noch recht offen. Viele Hinweise wurden gegeben und da die Gäste (natürlich) eingeschneit und damit von der Außenwelt abgeschnitten wurden, gab es auch kein Entkommen.
Ich empfand es als sehr gute Unterhaltung für zwischendurch, wenn man diese klassischen winterlichen whodunit Krimis mag und war von der Auflösung dann auch überrascht.
Ich hatte dieses Buch übrigens als Hörbuch versucht vor einigen Wochen – und ich erkenne immer wieder wie sehr sich für mich eine gehörte und eine gelesene Version voneinander unterscheiden. Beim Hören konnte ich überhaupt nicht in die Atmosphäre eintauchen oder ein Gespür für die Personen bekommen, die anfangs eingeführt wurden - beim lesen dagegen war das überhaupt kein Problem und hat Spaß gemacht!
Weltenwanderer
December 22, 2017
A perfect Christmas read here especially if you like the old school Christie type mysteries - it is also a short read which adds to the perfect Christmas read thing you can get through it over the holiday.
An English country house, a gathering of family, then a MURDER. Classic and in this case really brilliantly done. Atmospheric, totally of it's time I loved it.
I don't really think there's a lot else that I can say. It is a beautiful read and I want to read the other crime books Cyril Hare wrote now.
Recommended for fans of classic crime.
An English country house, a gathering of family, then a MURDER. Classic and in this case really brilliantly done. Atmospheric, totally of it's time I loved it.
I don't really think there's a lot else that I can say. It is a beautiful read and I want to read the other crime books Cyril Hare wrote now.
Recommended for fans of classic crime.
December 15, 2018
A short and entertaining mystery that subverts some of the traditions of the 'English country house murder'. In particular, it's much more politically aware and much more candid about the post WWII inability of the landed gentry to maintain those grand country houses. The characters were well-drawn.
December 24, 2017
A great English country house read in the tradition of the locked room, although it is a snowed-in house in which all the characters find themselves isolated. And, it being Christmas makes the crime especially ghastly. A thoroughly satisfying read for the holidays, short but engaging.
December 21, 2019
This was a very enjoyable book which I only picked up because it’s mentioned in numerous reading lists for classical Christmas novels. As many others it’s set in an English country house during the festive season. With a snowstorm going on outside someone is killed and since the telephone line and the roads are blocked the remaining guests need to find out who the murderer is. The reason why I don’t rate this book better than 3.5 stars is because it has nothing to do with Christmas. When I read a seasonal murder mystery novel I want Christmas to play an actual part in the story and get into a festive mood and that’s not the case with this novel.
November 30, 2022
Der alte Lord Warbeck liegt im Sterben – deshalb lädt er seine engsten Verwandten und Bekannten zu einem letzten Weihnachtsfest auf seinem Landgut ein. Er selbst ist bereits in so schlechter Verfassung, dass er eigentlich gar nicht mehr den Gastgeber spielen kann. Diese Aufgabe soll sein einziger Sohn und Nachfolger, der mürrische und jähzornige Robert Warbeck übernehmen.
Ansonsten sind noch die junge Lady Camilla, Cousin Sir Julius, der eine beachtliche Karriere hingelegt hat und derzeit der Schatzkanzler Großbritanniens ist, Familienfreundin Mrs. Carstairs und der leicht eigenartige Historiker Dr. Bottwink eingeladen. Vor allem Letzterer ist den andere Besuchern ein Dorn im Auge – der ausländische Dr. Bottwink (man munkelt, er sei Jude) – der hat doch bei so einer intimen Familienfeier nichts zu suchen! Doch der alte Lord besteht darauf: Bottwink ist sein Gast, er feiert mit der Familie. Neben einigen namenlosen Hausangestellten sind zudem auch noch der altehrwürdige Buttler Briggs, seine Tochter Susan und der Polizist Rogers (als Leibwächter für Sir Julius) im Herrenhaus anwesend.
Die Stimmung ist von Anfang an aufgeladen – doch als das Haus pünktlich zum Weihnachtsfest komplett eingeschneit und von der Außenwelt abgeschnitten wird, kommen die Konflikte erst richtig ins schwelen. Und trotzdem sind alle überrascht, als um Mitternacht der erste Mord geschieht. Die möglichen Täter sind alle anwesend. Doch wer wäre so kaltblütig, seine üblen Gedanken in die Tat umzusetzen?
___________________
Ist Ende November zu früh für den ersten Weihnachtskrimi des Jahres? 😅 I hope not.
Das hier war ein klassischer Krimi aus dem 20. Jahrhundert, vielleicht nicht sonderlich originell, aber ich habe ihn ganz gerne gehört. Besonders gut hat mir gefallen, dass er die englische Gesellschaft zur Zeit der Veröffentlichung so kritisch behandelt. Wie schon eine andere Rezension hier besagt, geht Cyril Hare da mit allen Schichten gleichermaßen ins Gericht.
Auch fand ich es schön, dass der etwas seltsame Dr. Bottwink, der von den anderen teilweise wirklich herablassend behandelt wurde, am Ende der gewiefteste Beobachter war.
Gemütliches Cozy Crime für die Vorweihnachtszeit für Freund*innen des klassischen Kriminalromans.
3,25🌟
Ansonsten sind noch die junge Lady Camilla, Cousin Sir Julius, der eine beachtliche Karriere hingelegt hat und derzeit der Schatzkanzler Großbritanniens ist, Familienfreundin Mrs. Carstairs und der leicht eigenartige Historiker Dr. Bottwink eingeladen. Vor allem Letzterer ist den andere Besuchern ein Dorn im Auge – der ausländische Dr. Bottwink (man munkelt, er sei Jude) – der hat doch bei so einer intimen Familienfeier nichts zu suchen! Doch der alte Lord besteht darauf: Bottwink ist sein Gast, er feiert mit der Familie. Neben einigen namenlosen Hausangestellten sind zudem auch noch der altehrwürdige Buttler Briggs, seine Tochter Susan und der Polizist Rogers (als Leibwächter für Sir Julius) im Herrenhaus anwesend.
Die Stimmung ist von Anfang an aufgeladen – doch als das Haus pünktlich zum Weihnachtsfest komplett eingeschneit und von der Außenwelt abgeschnitten wird, kommen die Konflikte erst richtig ins schwelen. Und trotzdem sind alle überrascht, als um Mitternacht der erste Mord geschieht. Die möglichen Täter sind alle anwesend. Doch wer wäre so kaltblütig, seine üblen Gedanken in die Tat umzusetzen?
___________________
Ist Ende November zu früh für den ersten Weihnachtskrimi des Jahres? 😅 I hope not.
Das hier war ein klassischer Krimi aus dem 20. Jahrhundert, vielleicht nicht sonderlich originell, aber ich habe ihn ganz gerne gehört. Besonders gut hat mir gefallen, dass er die englische Gesellschaft zur Zeit der Veröffentlichung so kritisch behandelt. Wie schon eine andere Rezension hier besagt, geht Cyril Hare da mit allen Schichten gleichermaßen ins Gericht.
Auch fand ich es schön, dass der etwas seltsame Dr. Bottwink, der von den anderen teilweise wirklich herablassend behandelt wurde, am Ende der gewiefteste Beobachter war.
Gemütliches Cozy Crime für die Vorweihnachtszeit für Freund*innen des klassischen Kriminalromans.
3,25🌟
November 19, 2021
This is a Golden Age classic recommended to me by a friend. I enjoyed the Poirot-like amateur detective; most of the other characters were stereotypical. Never in a million years could I have figured out whodunnit.
December 30, 2017
Cyril Hare loves to throw a bit of obscure law and/or English history about in his books and he does it again in The Christmas Murder (aka An English Murder; 1951). But not knowing the ins and outs of English law and history as well as our author (who was actually His Honor Judge [Alfred Alexander] Gordon Clark, and as a young barrister had chambers in Hare Court) didn't detract from the enjoyment of the mystery--nor did it prevent me from spotting the culprit (though I may not have known precisely why s/he did it).
The crime takes place as you might expect from the title of this edition during Christmas at the country home of Lord Warbeck, an ailing peer who wants to be among his family for what he believes will be his last Christmas. But as midnight strikes on Christmas Eve Warbeck's young son, Robert staggers to the windows which show a raging blizzard and falls dead from poison. There is no hope that the local police will make it to the Hall any time soon as snowfall has cut the country house off from the outside world. So the case lands with the only available policeman--the man assigned as personal bodyguard to Lord Warbeck's brother, the Chancellor of the Exchequer.
Robert wasn't exactly the most lovable of men. He was rude and selfish. He flaunted his fascist politics. He could be cruel in his love affairs. He was almost asking to be murdered. But was he done in by the girl whose heart he had broken? Or by a relative that he'd been cruel to one too many times? Or maybe the long-suffering family servant had finally had enough of Master Robert's ways?
On the spot is also an unassuming Jewish historian--a survivor of Auschwitz who has come to catalogue the Warbeck history. Accustomed to historical "detective" work of a sort, he has an eye for detail and less-than-obvious connections and soon Dr. Wenceslaus Bottwink has discovered not only the culprit, but the unconventional motive for the murder.
I read this once upon a time from the library under its original title An English Murder. In fact, it was the very first Cyril Hare novel that I read and I enjoyed it enough to put the other Hare books on my "To Be Found" list. I was pleased to find it in this edition and back in 2014 and to have it available to read at Christmastime. It is a lovely country house mystery with a positive view of Jewish refugees and an interesting look at British class structure woven in. Those who enjoy the Golden Age style--where the clues are displayed (whether one is astute enough to pick them all up or not) and fair play is observed--will enjoy this one. ★★★★ then and ★★★★ now.
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting. Thanks.
The crime takes place as you might expect from the title of this edition during Christmas at the country home of Lord Warbeck, an ailing peer who wants to be among his family for what he believes will be his last Christmas. But as midnight strikes on Christmas Eve Warbeck's young son, Robert staggers to the windows which show a raging blizzard and falls dead from poison. There is no hope that the local police will make it to the Hall any time soon as snowfall has cut the country house off from the outside world. So the case lands with the only available policeman--the man assigned as personal bodyguard to Lord Warbeck's brother, the Chancellor of the Exchequer.
Robert wasn't exactly the most lovable of men. He was rude and selfish. He flaunted his fascist politics. He could be cruel in his love affairs. He was almost asking to be murdered. But was he done in by the girl whose heart he had broken? Or by a relative that he'd been cruel to one too many times? Or maybe the long-suffering family servant had finally had enough of Master Robert's ways?
On the spot is also an unassuming Jewish historian--a survivor of Auschwitz who has come to catalogue the Warbeck history. Accustomed to historical "detective" work of a sort, he has an eye for detail and less-than-obvious connections and soon Dr. Wenceslaus Bottwink has discovered not only the culprit, but the unconventional motive for the murder.
I read this once upon a time from the library under its original title An English Murder. In fact, it was the very first Cyril Hare novel that I read and I enjoyed it enough to put the other Hare books on my "To Be Found" list. I was pleased to find it in this edition and back in 2014 and to have it available to read at Christmastime. It is a lovely country house mystery with a positive view of Jewish refugees and an interesting look at British class structure woven in. Those who enjoy the Golden Age style--where the clues are displayed (whether one is astute enough to pick them all up or not) and fair play is observed--will enjoy this one. ★★★★ then and ★★★★ now.
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting. Thanks.
December 25, 2021
An unhappy family gathers at Warbeck Hall to celebrate Christmas. Summoned by the ailing Lord Warbeck, they come for what will be his last Christmas. Yet the death they encounter soon after their arrival is not his but that of his son Robert, a fascist with a secret he has kept hidden from his family until now. With access to the outside world cut off by a heavy snowstorm, the remaining members must determine the answer to a pressing question — whom among them is the murderer?
Cyril Hare’s novel is more than just a country house mystery set during the holidays. It also captures a Britain in transition, with the old social order under assault from a more egalitarian-minded populace. The politics of this lies at the heart of the tensions between the characters, and politics also plays a role in the murder at the center of it. It makes for a different take on the classic country house mystery than is typically the case, yet I couldn’t help but feel that Hare doesn’t quite pull it off. For while the politics might provide a fresh element the author lays it on a little too thickly, which overwhelms the other aspects of what makes for a truly great novel of the genre.
Cyril Hare’s novel is more than just a country house mystery set during the holidays. It also captures a Britain in transition, with the old social order under assault from a more egalitarian-minded populace. The politics of this lies at the heart of the tensions between the characters, and politics also plays a role in the murder at the center of it. It makes for a different take on the classic country house mystery than is typically the case, yet I couldn’t help but feel that Hare doesn’t quite pull it off. For while the politics might provide a fresh element the author lays it on a little too thickly, which overwhelms the other aspects of what makes for a truly great novel of the genre.
December 18, 2019
A traditional snowed-in-for-Christmas country house setting complete with his Lordship and a butler, but with a very ingenious solution, which I never would have guessed.
December 17, 2018
3.5 stars- Very enjoyable country house murder - snow covers the ground and cuts this isolated Christmas party off from the world, and then the murders begin...
I’ve never read Cyril Hare before, and read this with the Reading the Detectives group. As others in the group pointed out, Dr. Bottwick, the academic present at the house to do historical research, owes a debt to Hercule Poirot. Like Christie’s Belgian detective, he is an outsider among the British guests and servants, thus able to observe and bring his particular expertise to bear to solve a murder (Poirot was a former police detective, Bottwick is a historian with an extensive knowledge of English history).
Interesting twist on the usual country house setting - Christmas is an excuse for the gathering, but it’s not really a Christmas book. Hare skillfully exploits the isolation of a snowstorm and subsequent flooding as the thaw sets in to add to the building tension and claustrophobic fear. Well done and interesting motive and plot twists; nothing terribly sneaky as a murder method, but quirks of English law serve as an excellent motive. Satisfying conclusion, summed up Poirot-style, but not overly drawn out - well done all round.
I’ve never read Cyril Hare before, and read this with the Reading the Detectives group. As others in the group pointed out, Dr. Bottwick, the academic present at the house to do historical research, owes a debt to Hercule Poirot. Like Christie’s Belgian detective, he is an outsider among the British guests and servants, thus able to observe and bring his particular expertise to bear to solve a murder (Poirot was a former police detective, Bottwick is a historian with an extensive knowledge of English history).
Interesting twist on the usual country house setting - Christmas is an excuse for the gathering, but it’s not really a Christmas book. Hare skillfully exploits the isolation of a snowstorm and subsequent flooding as the thaw sets in to add to the building tension and claustrophobic fear. Well done and interesting motive and plot twists; nothing terribly sneaky as a murder method, but quirks of English law serve as an excellent motive. Satisfying conclusion, summed up Poirot-style, but not overly drawn out - well done all round.
March 10, 2018
《I apologize, I realized I had accidentally swapped my review of An English Murder with my review of A Man Lay Dead. After thoroughly confusing myself, I think I got it straight now. Lol : ) 》
I was in the mood for a good Country House mystery so I decided to read An English Murder by Cyril Hare. The Lord of the manor is ill and bedridden so he decides to invite several family members and close friends to his home at Warbeck Hall for one last Christmas holiday gathering.
There's an undercurrent of tension amongst the guests right from the start. They dislike each other for a multitude of reasons- politics, love triangle, racism, classism- you name it.
With that said, the characters are really the downfall of this book I think. None of them were very likeable at all which made the book kind of dreary and boring to me.
Also just a heads up, if you are thinking of waiting until Christmas to read as a holiday book its really not necessary. This isn't really a festive story and the holiday is only mentioned a couple times, if that.
I was in the mood for a good Country House mystery so I decided to read An English Murder by Cyril Hare. The Lord of the manor is ill and bedridden so he decides to invite several family members and close friends to his home at Warbeck Hall for one last Christmas holiday gathering.
There's an undercurrent of tension amongst the guests right from the start. They dislike each other for a multitude of reasons- politics, love triangle, racism, classism- you name it.
With that said, the characters are really the downfall of this book I think. None of them were very likeable at all which made the book kind of dreary and boring to me.
Also just a heads up, if you are thinking of waiting until Christmas to read as a holiday book its really not necessary. This isn't really a festive story and the holiday is only mentioned a couple times, if that.
December 18, 2020
Enjoyable Golden Age mystery.
September 29, 2018
Aptly named, this was a very enjoyable humorous read. It had all the elements I love: country manor, snowstorm leaving victims and murderer in isolation, snooty upper crust family with the standard butler, poison, and a foreigner—a little like Hercule Poirot—on the scene to ferret out clues until authorities can arrive. Even though I sometimes get lost in the various titles of the British aristocracy, the characters were easy to distinguish and the actual motive escaped my attention completely until the last pages. Excellent mystery!
January 26, 2022
Quel che promette, mantiene: un delitto inglese, un “enigma” inglese che più inglese non si può. Ciò detto una garbata e a tratti arguta lettura che tiene compagnia, non imperdibile ma consigliabile se le atmosfere, i manieri, il clima, i maggiordomi molto british sono apprezzati.
January 2, 2021
Dieses Buch werde ich im Rahmen meines Rezensionsmarathons im Oktober besprechen, daher erfolgt aktuell keine Bewertung.
December 29, 2020
'An English Murder' is a classic English Country House Christmas Murder Mystery that gently debunks 1950s English upper-class manners and beliefs..
The murder mystery works fairly well. Set in s splendid country house with a small group of closely connected guests snowed in over Christmas, it offers dramatic death scenes. a rich pool of suspects, damsels (of different classes) in distress, and triggers an almost over-mastering impulse to shout, 'the butler did it'.
Who did it, how they did it and why they did it slowly become clear as the plot unwinds like a skein of tangled wool pulled at by a cat. I enjoyed trying (and failing) to work the thing out.
Cyril Hare uses this mystery to display and gently debunk some of the beliefs and practices of the English upper-class in 1950. Much of this debunking assumes knowledge of recent events in British politics. I945-1950 saw the first full-term Labour government. They had been elected with a massive majority and saw themselves as having a mandate for fundamental change. At the end of their first full term, in 1950, the Labour Party stayed in power but with only a two seat majority, having lost seventy-eight seats. When the government called another election in 1951, the year 'An English Murder' was published, the Labour Party lost to the Conservatives. Hare manages to field characters from across the political spectrum in his small Christmas house party.
I liked that Hare chose to use a foreigner, Dr Botwink, a German Professor of history, who is studying the papers of the seventeenth century Lord Warbeck, to hold up a mirror to the twentieth century English. Dr Botwink speaks excellent engiish and has a better grasp of logic and more detailed knowledge of English history, including the history of the family hosting him, than the English upper-class around him do. Dr Botwink who, as well as studying and teaching in Heidelberg and Prague, has spent some time in a German concentration camp, has a very un-English view on politics and is constantly trying to understand the nuances of what the English think of as 'good form'.
At the beginning of the book set a few days before Christmas, Dr Botwink asks Briggs, the butler whether it is right for him to eat with the servants or with the guests who are coming for Christmas. He's happy when Briggs tells him that he should eat with the guests. Then he learns that the son and heir of the present Lord Warbeck will be present and he tells Briggs that he would rather eat with the servants. The exchange that follows is the start of taking a look at the English from the outside. Dr Botwink explains himself to Briggs by saying that the son is:
'...the president of this affair that calls itself the League of Liberty and Justice?’
‘I understand that to be the fact, sir.’
‘The League of Liberty and Justice, Briggs,’ said Dr Bottwink very clearly and deliberately, ‘is a Fascist organisation.’
‘Is that so, sir?’
‘You are not interested, Briggs?’
‘I have never been greatly interested in politics, sir.’
‘Oh, Briggs, Briggs,’ said the historian, shaking his head in regretful admiration, ‘if you only knew how fortunate you were to be able to say just that!’
I was amused to see that the current Lord Warbeck became a symbol for the plight of the aristocracy after World War II: passive, out of place and doomed. He is weak, bed-ridden and close to death. His decline mirrors that of the great houses who could no longer afford to staff or maintain their estates. His imminent demise raises the spectre of Death Duty which the Labour was using as a mechanism to redistribute wealth from the rich to the poor.
His brash and objectionable son and heir is used to show the flirtation of the English aristocracy with Fascism, although this case he seems to be driven less by political dogma and more from pique at his own loss of status. He's shown as leading a small, furtive group who dress-up in special jumpers in secret and play at being patriots.
His uncle, the present Lord Warbeck's brother, the Labour Chancellor of the Exchequer, also ends up being the butt of humour. This man, who has a key role in creating a new, more egalitarian, socialist Britain is shown to have no grasp of economics (he thinks he doesn't need it. He has chaps for that). We also learn that one of his dark, politically embarrassing, secrets is that while he often rode to hounds in his youth.
Then we have the women in the house party: the well-connected wife of a talented but Not-Our-Class-Darling Labour Junior Finance Minister who pushes her husband's career too hard and talks too much and a bright should-have-been-married-by-now-and-becoming-rather-desperate-about-it young gentlewoman who seems prone to passivity.
The servant classes are represented by the Butler and his daughter and the Personal Protection agent from Scotland Yard who is accompanying the Chancellor of the Exchequer. It was fascinating to watch these folks being torn between their old roles of unquestioning service and their awareness that that world was dying.
From the first death onwards, the Scotland Yard man is nominally in charge but clearly out of his depth. Meanwhile, Dr Botwink sets about solving the mystery as an act of self-preservation, reasoning that: 1. there is a murderer in the house and more murders may follow. 2. he is a foreigner and therefore the obvious person to take the blame.
I liked that the solution to the mystery required knowledge of an obscure piece of English law and a forgotten piece English history. I can imagine, that Cyril Hare, who was a County Court Judge when this book was published, saw this whole book as a sort of lawyerly joke. Still, it is a joke that is well told and which, eighty years later, still made me smile.
December 24, 2022
Das Buch eignet sich hervorragend als Lektüre zur Advents- und Weihnachtszeit. Es reizt durch seine verschiedenen Charaktere und die interessanten sowie spannenden Plot-Twists. Viele Elemente sind sehr "typisch" für den klassischen Detektiv- und Kriminalroman und damit vielleicht auch hier und dort vorhersehbar. Dennoch ereignen sich eine Reihe an überraschenden Ereignissen, die den Leser grübeln lassen. Vor allem aber ist der Roman "very british" und unterhaltsam! Frohe Weihnachten! :)
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