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The Crime at Black Dudley (Albert Campion Mystery, #1)

Margery Allingham

Start date: May 1, 2017

Finish date: May 31, 2017

Discussion: Group reads

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Group reads

* Nominations for December 2025 group read
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* Oct 25: Murder Included (#1 D.I. Price) by Joanna Cannan
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What Members Thought

Feb 27, 2019 John rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: margery-allingham

A good crime story. However, it is a bit all over the place in the plot. People trapped in a gothic house by a criminal genius trying to find plans for a heist. A spooky story about a dagger which later is used for a murder in a weird pass the parcel game. Later an odd car chase and ultimately the villain is revealed.

Campion who would go on to be a recurring character only had a relatively minor role. A bit of a twit on the outside but looks can be deceiving. Dr Abbershaw was the main character ...more

6 likes · Like · see review

Dec 11, 2019 Shauna rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: golden-age-crime, 2019

This was my second attempt at reading Margery Allingham. This time I made it all the way through to the end but didn't enjoy it. Despite my great love for 'golden age' detective stories I couldn't warm to Albert Campion or indeed any of the other characters. ...more

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Sep 14, 2017 Jazz rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: series, golden-age-mystery-pre-1950, mystery-british, mystery-country-house, mystery-traditional

3.5 STARS | "The Tiger in the Smoke" was my first encounter with Margery Allingham's mysteries. I was in my twenties then and didn't much care for it, found it dated, and so avoided Allingham for decades. But in immersing myself in Golden Age mysteries recently, I decided to give her books another shot. I'm glad I did. Maturity has its benefits. Very much enjoyed this one and found it to be even a page-turner, though it's more thriller than mystery and the solution is probably impossible to gues ...more

3 likes · Like · see review

Jun 24, 2017 John Frankham rated it really liked it

Shelves: crime-detective

My 2019 re-read puts this up a notch, to 4*. Great fun and derring-do.

The first appearance of Albert Campion, but not as the leading character in this crime novel. Certainly very much an early, ill-structured book, with an overlong middle. Flashes of what was to come.

"A house party is under way at the remote mansion of Black Dudley, and among the guests are some very shady characters. As they playfully recreate the ritual of the Black Dudley Dagger, someone dies. Pathologist George Abbershaw sus ...more

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Mar 29, 2017 Gillian Kevern rated it really liked it

Margery Allingham is my least favourite of the Queens of Crime, but after a conversation with another vintage crime fan I wondered if I hadn't been too harsh. I reread The Crime at Black Dudley, and was pleasantly surprised. There were still a few weak points, but overall a pretty good story. Not really a mystery, but I wasn't expecting one. ...more

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May 21, 2017 Adrienne rated it really liked it

Albert Campion wasn't originally the star of this series, but a secondary character in this book. Fortunately for readers, the author was persuaded to shift her focus to Campion and abandon George Abbershaw, who is the central person in this book and nearly as dull as dishwater. ...more

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