From the Bookshelf of Reading the Detectives…

Murder at Monk's Barn (The 'Perrins, Private Investigators' Mysteries Book 1)

Cecil Waye

Start date: June 1, 2022

Finish date: June 30, 2022

Discussion: Group Challenges

Why we're reading this: Another pseudonym for Detection Club member John Rhode
[close] Another pseudonym for Detection Club member John Rhode

Find A Copy At

Group Discussions About This Book

Showing 2 of 166 topics — 7,784 comments total

Group Challenges

* Sept 25: The Mystery of the Blue Train (1928) by Agatha Christie
By Susan · 14 posts · 16 views

last updated Sep 02, 2025 12:08AM

* Sept 25: The Mystery of the Blue Train (1928) - SPOILER Thread
By Susan · 4 posts · 12 views

last updated Sep 01, 2025 04:16PM

showing 2 of 2 topics view all »

What Members Thought

May 24, 2022 Susan rated it really liked it

The prolific author Cecil John Charles Street wrote under many pseudonyms, including John Rhode, Miles Burton and Cecil Waye. Under the pen name of Cecil Waye, the author wrote four mysteries featuring the Perrins, a brother and sister duo who ran a private investigation agency. "Murder at Monk's Barn," is the first and there is also, "The Figure of Eight", "The End of the Chase" and "The Prime Minister’s Pencil." These have been out of print for many years but now lovers of Golden Age crime are ...more

11 likes · Like · see review

May 20, 2022 Susan in NC rated it really liked it

Shelves: det-club-2022

I really enjoyed this Golden Age mystery, featuring the Perrins siblings, brother and sister private investigators.

The story opens literally with a bang, as Gregory Wynter is shot through the head as he’s shaving at his dressing room mirror. It’s a cold, dark autumn night, so the curtains are drawn, but the shot came through the closed window. The angle of the hole through both the glass and curtains reveal the shot came from the garden below, but how did the killer get in and out of the walled ...more

4 likes · Like · see review

Jun 03, 2022 Carolien rated it liked it

Shelves: 2022, english-mystery

A man is shot dead through the drawn curtains of his room. The shot could only have come from the shrubbery of Monk's Barn, but there was no was for the shooter to escape after the shot. Yet, there was nobody in the garden immediately after the shot was fired. Christopher and Vivienne Perris are asked by the deceased's brother to investigate the murder. I enjoyed the characters and the final solution is very complex. ...more

4 likes · Like · see review

Dec 31, 2021 Jan C rated it really liked it

Shelves: mystery, 2021

The man of 1000 names (not really, but he did use a number of names), and twice as many books, strikes again. Obviously, this is an exaggeration.

This series is about Christopher and Vivienne Perrin. They are hired by Austin Wynter to determine who killed his brother, since he thinks that he is probably going to be charged with it. Vi takes the lead and goes to Fordington (?) where his brother lived. They apparently didn't get along that well, especially after his marriage. Previously I think the ...more

3 likes · Like · see review

May 30, 2022 Diana rated it liked it

Shelves: mystery, read-in-2022

Maybe a 3.5. Better than average, with an ingenious murder and seemingly unbreakable alibi.

1 like · Like · see review

Jun 05, 2022 Jenn Estepp rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: sleuths-and-gumshoes, kindling, pandemic-and-aftermath

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

Like · see review

Jun 01, 2022 Sandy rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery-classic, rread-2022, mystery-detective-grp, z2022-ga-challenge

I found the two main detectives bland, the murderer predictable and the murder method unlikely. On the plus side, a couple of the minor characters were interesting, and the setting was fine.

Like · see review