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Duplicate Death (Inspectors Hannasyde & Hemingway, #7)

Georgette Heyer

Start date: February 15, 2024

Finish date: March 5, 2024

Discussion: Buddy reads

Why we're reading this: Next in this very popular series.
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What Members Thought

Mar 17, 2019 Susan rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I have read a few of Georgette Heyer’s mysteries and enjoyed them very much. I read this for one of my Goodreads groups, even though I dislike reading books out of order and two characters, Stephen and Timothy Hart, appeared in 'They Found Him Dead,' which I have not read before. However, as there was no time to read the earlier book, I went against my usual reading rules and read this out of order.

“Duplicate Death,” was published in 1951 and is one of her later mysteries. It involves a murder ...more

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Jul 09, 2020 Lady Wesley rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: listened, aud-rev, mystery-golden-age-or-similar

This may be my favorite Heyer mystery. It is such fun to find Terrible Timothy all grown up. And the cast of characters is varied and fun. Even the unlikeable ones.

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

Shelves: reread, want-to-reread, my-library, currently-re-reading, audiobook, detectives-buddy-read24, favorites

8/2024: ok, reread twice in one year, for different groups, but I still enjoy the quirky characters, Heyer’s satirical eye on Bright Young Things and those aspiring to post-WWII High Society on London (the loathsome Mrs. Haddington and her stunning but empty headed, spoiled daughter), and the snarky wise-cracking (now) Chief Inspector Hemingway of Scotland Yard. Just finished a grim nonfiction read, I was in the mood for something witty and lighthearted - and Heyer’s clever GA mysteries almost a 8/2024: ok, reread twice in one year, for different groups, but I still enjoy the quirky characters, Heyer’s satirical eye on Bright Young Things and those aspiring to post-WWII High Society on London (the loathsome Mrs. Haddington and her stunning but empty headed, spoiled daughter), and the snarky wise-cracking (now) Chief Inspector Hemingway of Scotland Yard. Just finished a grim nonfiction read, I was in the mood for something witty and lighthearted - and Heyer’s clever GA mysteries almost always deliver!

Matt Addis does a tremendous job narrating- I used to really enjoy the previous female narrator (Ulli Berve), she was perfect at the female characters that play such a large part in this, from the icy tones of Mrs. H to the whiny, grating tones of her spoiled daughter, and everyone in between, but didn’t acquire the Audible before it disappeared, to be replaced by the new guy. I was peeved at first, but he’s really grown on me, his warmth, humor and insouciance really comes through as Hemingway! Entertaining, good fun as a listen.

1/2024: still a very enjoyable and entertaining 4 star GA mystery, loaded with Heyer’s wit and sparkle, read with the Reading the Detectives Group. Treated myself to the Matt Addis Audible, and I’m glad his Scots brogue and Gaelic pronunciation is much better than the original audiobook!

2/2021: Still four stars, audiobook is very entertaining, but the imitation of a Scottish brogue and Celtic speaking for Sgt. Grant is still pretty bad, I think. We have several Brits in our group, and a Scotswoman - have to check out their thoughts!

4/2019: Enjoyed this reread, bumped my rating up to 4 stars. I used an Audible credit to get the audiobook and read along with it, and that made the mystery much more fun this time around! I was able to appreciate Hemingway’s snarky comments and ignore Grant’s Gaelic asides - actually seemed normal when spoken. To read it, with no translation provided, is distracting; the narrator was good, but anytime (like chapter 17) where Grant had prolonged dialogue, her Scottish brogue sounded oddly Russian - otherwise, she did a wonderful job. I always enjoy Heyer’s mysteries - her quirky characters and sparkling humor and dialogue are delightful.

7/2015: I didn't enjoy this mystery as much as I thought I would because I found Chief Inspector Hemingway's constantly snarky, sarcastic comments really annoying, which I haven't noticed in the previous Heyer mysteries he was in which I thoroughly enjoyed. I always knew I liked Inspector Hannasyde better, and Hemingway's smart ass personality was fun when he served as Hannasyde's subordinate; in this book he just got on my nerves, along with Inspector Grant's running Gaelic commentary - that just annoys me, if you're going to have a character constantly using another language, give me a translation or a glossary!

Otherwise this was a great Heyer plot for me - odious, self-absorbed young people with chips on their shoulder and attitude to spare, communists, self-righteous servants, cold-blooded blackmailers and drug dealers ensnaring the twittering upper classes of Post-WWII London and getting their comeuppance - good stuff, and nobody does it better! Also seemed to go on a bit long and then wind up suddenly - but I still find Heyer's weaker efforts more entertaining than most of what passes for mysteries nowadays. ...more

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May 10, 2013 Becky rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: readin2013, 2019familytreechallenge, reviewcopy, rereads_2019, 2019reviews, shareatea2019, ng_rc_hallshame, 2019goodrule-old

First sentence: There were several promising-looking letters in the pile laid on Mrs. James Kane's virgin breakfast-plate on Monday morning, but, having sorted all the envelopes with the air of one expectant of discovering treasure-trove, she extracted two addressed to her in hands indicative either of illiteracy or of extreme youth.

Premise/plot: Duplicate Death should never, ever, ever be read before They Found Him Dead. Trust me--please. The novel opens and closes with the stars of They Found ...more

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Jul 11, 2016 Teri-K rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-mystery, great-to-re-read, mystery-golden-age

Warning: This is not a review. Instead I'm repeating some notes I made as part of a discussion of this book. I've read it several times and always enjoy it.

I like this, it's a nice follow up to They Found Him Dead, years later. I liked Terrible Timothy and Jim and Patricia a lot in that one, so it's fun to revisit them later. Also, the mentions of the war make a touching reminder that these people have survived some difficult times.

One of the things Heyer does well is poke fun at her character ...more

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May 05, 2018 ShanDizzy rated it it was ok · review of another edition

What a ghastly set of characters! I liked no one, not even the Inspector. So far this is my least favorite GH mystery.

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Nov 30, 2018 Gardener0126 rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

In the past, I had read a few of Heyer’s regency romances, and found her to be a very talented author. It was a surprise to find out that she also published a number of mysteries.

I found this one to be a very good traditional style mystery. So good, in fact, that I stayed up very late to finish it. The characters in this novel ranged from perfectly ordinary to somewhat exaggerated. Some were quite likable, some were not. Several were just the slightest bit mysterious to start with. All were wel ...more

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Jul 14, 2024 Frances rated it really liked it

Shelves: mystery-series

3.5 stars* I quite enjoy this short series of mysteries set in London in the after-war years, although the ending of this one was quite a stretch. There are a few recurring characters from an early book in this series which makes it fun.

Briefly, society man is murdered at a bridge party, with a handful of possible suspects. A few days later the hostess of the party is killed in the same way. There is a bit of upstairs downstairs intrigue, some high society high jinx, romance and marriage plots, ...more

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Mar 05, 2011 Bev rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: vintage-mystery, mystery, british-mystery, country-house

I'm in the home stretch of my Georgette Heyer Reading Challenge. Even thought it's a perpetual challenge, it feels good to know that I'll be finishing it up this year. Just finished Duplicate Death last night and have started They Found Him Dead (last one!). If I had paid attention to publication dates, I would have reversed the order--because these two novels are almost companion pieces. We meet some of the central characters in They Found Him Dead and it would have been nice to read the books I'm in the home stretch of my Georgette Heyer Reading Challenge. Even thought it's a perpetual challenge, it feels good to know that I'll be finishing it up this year. Just finished Duplicate Death last night and have started They Found Him Dead (last one!). If I had paid attention to publication dates, I would have reversed the order--because these two novels are almost companion pieces. We meet some of the central characters in They Found Him Dead and it would have been nice to read the books in chronological order. Ah well...maybe on my next read-through.

Duplicate Death centers on double death that begins at a cut-throat night of duplicate bridge at the home of a not quite top drawer member of society. No one is really quite sure how Mrs. Haddington managed to win the good graces of Lady Nest and with them an entrance into society. But there she is and there she plans to stay. She's got a beautiful daughter to launch and she's scheming to land her a suitable husband (read rich and titled). She invites a houseful of guests for a night of bridge play....but they certainly didn't expect it to turn into a game of murder.

When one of the guests steps away from the game to take an expected phone call, his tablemates become a bit restless when he does not return within a reasonable amount of time. It is discovered that someone has cut his game short....permanently. Daniel Seaton-Carew is discovered, strangled with picture wire around his neck. There are a limited number of the guests who were not tied to a bridge table during the crucial minutes....and it is up to Inspectors Hemingway and Grant to sift through the motives and movements and try to identify the guilty party. Things become more complicated when Mrs. Haddington herself is found strangled in the same room and in a similar manner a few days later. The crimes look the same...but have they been committed by the same hand?

This mystery is a bit of a mixed bag for me. There is some very witty dialogue and some engaging characters. I particularly like Timothy Harte and his brother James Kane--both of whom are in They Found Him Dead. Inspectors Hemingway and Grant are, as always, great fun to follow as they scoop up clues and interview folks. The major jarring point is Hemingway's very prominent attitude towards homosexuals in this one. I don't remember it being so pronounced in other novels...but then I don't remember it being quite so obvious to me when I read it before. But, that aside, this is a very interesting mystery that keeps the pages turning and the reader guessing. Three and a half stars. ...more

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May 01, 2019 Annarella rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I'm a huge fan of Georgette Heyer and I think this is one of her best mystery.
Somehow the characters, the dialogues and the descriptions reminded me of her Regency novel: lovely, humorous and engaging.
The mystery was good, no plot hole, and it kept me guessing till the end.
Recommended!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine. ...more

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Dec 29, 2024 Sarah G rated it really liked it

A great story with strong characterisation and lots of red herrings and clues along the way. I've given it an extra half * for the brilliant narration of the audiobook by Matt Addis, which has, like Chief Inspector Hemingway, 'FLAIR'! (Audiobook) ...more

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