From the Bookshelf of Reading the Detectives…

Envious Casca (Inspectors Hannasyde & Hemingway, #6)

Georgette Heyer

Start date: June 15, 2023

Finish date: July 7, 2023

Discussion: Buddy reads

Why we're reading this: Next in our series of Heyer buddy reads.
[close] Next in our series of Heyer buddy reads.

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Buddy reads

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What Members Thought

May 05, 2010 Susan in NC rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: holiday-rereads, currently-re-reading, tbr-with-gr-groups, reread, want-to-reread, kindle, library-book, my-library

6/23: Still a delightful holiday reread for me - Heyer’s typically unpleasant characters, young and old, create darkly funny and awkward scenes at this uncosy Christmas House party! Intriguing and diabolical murder method, and murderer.

12/2022: Wow, great ending, some fascinating characters in this one, and an intriguing locked room Murder plot. Inspector Hemingway gets plan of opportunity to show off his “flair” in this case!

12/18: bumped up to 4 stars; yes, several brittle, unpleasant characte ...more

6 likes · Like · see review

Jan 06, 2016 Teri-K rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: amusing-to-funny, mystery-golden-age, z-permanent-bookshelf, historical-mystery, christmas

This is a wonderful golden-age, locked room, country house mystery. And it takes place at Christmas! What more could a mystery lover want?

Pity poor Cousin Joseph, who only wants to celebrate a traditional country Christmas with mistletoe, plum pudding, and all his loved ones about him. You may think your family's not much fun at the holidays, but they're nothing to his, with his curmudgeonly older brother Nate continuously complaining about lumbago and fighting with everyone. Add in a depressed ...more

5 likes · Like · see review

Dec 27, 2016 Julie Durnell rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: england-uk, mystery, christmas

I enjoyed this book, but it was hard going the first half-once I got past the interminable family squabbling, the sardonic grinning Stephen, and the quelling looks from butler Sturry is was very good. The ending makes the book worth the read for sure!

5 likes · Like · see review

Jun 14, 2011 Abbey rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: myst-set-andor-auth-uk, myst-fems-project, vintage, reviewed

1941, #2 Inspector Hemingway, rural England at Christmastime
classic set-up, basic plot, decent-to-good characters, well-crafted, entertaining overall.
[classic cosy, three stars and a touch more]

Can’t get more basic classic big-house cosy than this, with its Wicked Uncle holding the purse strings, two siblings each bitter and strong-willed, a dependent weak brother and his peculiar wife, the patient cousin, a magnet for all the goings on (also in love with one of the siblings/heirs), two intrus 1941, #2 Inspector Hemingway, rural England at Christmastime
classic set-up, basic plot, decent-to-good characters, well-crafted, entertaining overall.
[classic cosy, three stars and a touch more]

Can’t get more basic classic big-house cosy than this, with its Wicked Uncle holding the purse strings, two siblings each bitter and strong-willed, a dependent weak brother and his peculiar wife, the patient cousin, a magnet for all the goings on (also in love with one of the siblings/heirs), two intrusive newcomers and wannabe family members (a playright and an insipid blonde) asked down for the holidays by the siblings, and a nicely diabolical plot carefully set into motion by The Least Likely Suspect.

I twigged onto the culprit almost immediately but read on just to see how it might come out, and persevered all the way through because I wanted to know how the murder was actually done. Must admit, locked-room stories are definitely not my favorite type of mysteries, so I started at a disadvantage, and several of the characters were *extremely* annoying, plus Heyer kept harping on a couple of particularly maddening bits over and over! But the over-emphasis actually had a point; it’s not Heyer’s fault if what would likely have been seen as amusing in the 1930s affected me somewhat as nails on a blackboard do...

But the writing is mostly excellent - and mostly funny too, if awfully similar to her previous mysteries. The main action consists of acerbic, witty family members who mouth off regularly against stupid or clueless family members or outsiders, with barbs flying and Attitude-with-a-large-“A” all over the place. But I do happen to find that-sort-of-thing amusing, and Heyer is extremely good at it. The only true weakness is that of the personality of the policemen, particularly the lead one, Inspector Hemingway. Possibly he might have seemed more interesting had I read the earlier book in which he featured, but I haven’t done so as yet. He came across here as boring, perfunctorily written, almost pure stock, unlike his predecessor in her writing, Inspector Hannasyde.

However, the over-all effect is that of a classic, entertaining couple-of-afternoons reading. At 400 pages it was a touch repetitve in places and would have benefitted from some slight pruning, but while not her best, it’s still very good stuff.
...more

2 likes · Like · see review

Nov 18, 2022 Sarah rated it it was ok · review of another edition

I thought I should overcome my prejudice against Romance writers and give this mystery a try, especially since the paperback edition I found came with endorsements from the New York Times and Dorothy Sayers. But I didn't like any of the characters, found the stetting almost stereotypical, and guessed the culprit while still have to plow through another 100 pages. Not my kind of mystery. ...more

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Dec 09, 2020 Laura Anne rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery, british-isles

A satisfactory and solvable locked-room mystery, but disappointing that this was lacking in Heyer's light touch; no likable characters, less humor than usual. The final chapter was the best part and I thought this would have worked better as a short story or novella. ...more

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