From the Bookshelf of Reading the Detectives…

Thus Was Adonis Murdered (Hilary Tamar, #1)

Sarah Caudwell

Start date: November 13, 2021

Finish date: December 7, 2021

Discussion: Buddy reads

Why we're reading this: Several group members wanted to read this together.
[close] Several group members wanted to read this together.

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What Members Thought

Mar 05, 2011 Bev rated it really liked it

Shelves: mystery, silver-age-mystery, british-mystery, mount-tbr-2014

Julia's intrepid friends--consisting of her colleagues in chambers as well as Oxford don and sometime sleuth Hilary Tamar are the recipients of Julia's letters from abroad and soon learn that she is suspect number one in the murder of the beautiful Ned Watson. They determine to track down clues and haunt the fellow Art Lovers until proof can be found to persuade the Italian authorities of Julia's innocence. Somehow just the fact that the murder was too tidy for Julia to be responsible is just no Julia's intrepid friends--consisting of her colleagues in chambers as well as Oxford don and sometime sleuth Hilary Tamar are the recipients of Julia's letters from abroad and soon learn that she is suspect number one in the murder of the beautiful Ned Watson. They determine to track down clues and haunt the fellow Art Lovers until proof can be found to persuade the Italian authorities of Julia's innocence. Somehow just the fact that the murder was too tidy for Julia to be responsible is just not as convincing to the Italian police.

Thus Was Adonis Murdered reads like a cross between Jane Austen, British drawing room comedy, and Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest written as a murder mystery. There are so many scenes that make up this upper-crust-sounding, yet slightly slap-dash amateur investigation so much fun to read. From the letters written by Julia that give us a firm idea of her intellectually sound but common sense starved self as well as the background for the murder to the barristers' shameless pumping of art aficionado Benjamin Dobble to Cantrip's interview with Major Linnaker, a shady art and antiques dealer, there are delights all along the way.

I really must share this tidbit from Cantrip (about the interview):

Was it really only two hours? It seemed much longer than that. Much longer. Much, much longer. The Major's known a lot of women. English women. Italian women. Arab women. Serbo-Croatian women. The right sort of women, the wrong sort of women. Women who would, women who wouldn't, women who might have. He told me about them all. Are you sure it was only two hours?

The light touch and light banter between the barristers make for a quick and entertaining read. I thoroughly enjoyed the dry British wit and sarcastic humor. There are also several very apt descriptions of the academic life and mind. Very appealing, fun, and interesting.

Back in 2011 when I read The Shortest Way to Hades, I made mention of the fact that nowhere in the story do we learn whether Hilary Tamar be male or female (and that I didn't really notice this until John at Pretty Sinister Books pointed it out). I had assumed that Hilary was a woman because Hilary is generally a feminine name in the US. And certain ways in which the other characters addressed our law-type scholar made me think s/he was female as well. This particular reading makes me think that Hilary is a man. There's something about the way s/he addresses fellow characters. Darn it. Caudwell is pretty good at this keeping a secret and mystifying the reader business. Now I'm curious to see which way I lean in book number three.

I love the Edward Gorey covers on these....one of the main reasons I first grabbed them up. I'm so glad that the stories live up to the covers.

First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting. Thanks. ...more

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Feb 11, 2012 Jenn Estepp rated it really liked it

Shelves: it-s-funny-because-it-s-funny, sleuths-and-gumshoes, comfort-food

I have been wanting to read this for ages and it was rather worth the wait. And once I landed it, I absolutely tore through it. Funny, smart mystery which mixes Shakespeare allusions with pratfalls. I mean, come on. Also, lots of epistolary bits, so such my personal catnip.

Although I am woman enough to admit that it initially also made me feel stupid. Like, "Oh, hm, I don't think I'm getting that reference. And I am not sure of that definition. Maybe I am not as smart as I think." It is very dr ...more

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