Reading the Detectives discussion
Group reads
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June 2019 group read - WINNER
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As Miss Pym Disposes by Josephine Tey did so well in the last poll, I thought maybe it is worth while including it in this poll. Also I don't think it is part of a series so would be a one-off read.
Thanks, Jill, I didn't want to nominate it again myself but definitely want to give it another shot!
Mod
Book 1 in a newly republished series.
“I want to catch them. To do that we’ve got to lead them on. Now listen to me.”
Elbert J. Pakenham of New York City is among just nine survivors of the sinking of the Coptic – not counting his black cat Jehosaphat. The benevolent Mr. Pakenham has made his fellow survivors joint beneficiaries in his will, his nephew having recently passed away. But it seems that someone is unwilling to share the fortune, as the heirs start to die under mysterious circumstances . . .
Then Mr. Pakenham himself disappears, and Inspector Collier of Scotland Yard suspects dirty work. When a trap is laid that seriously wounds his best friend at the Yard, Superintendent Trask, Collier is certain his suspicions are correct. Into his net are drawn a charming young woman, Corinna Lacy, and her cousin and trustee, Wilfred Stark; a landed gentleman of dubious reputation, Gilbert Freyne, and his sister-in-law, Gladys; an Italian nobleman of ancient lineage and depleted estate, Count Olivieri; and a Bohemian English artist, Edgar Mallory. But Collier will need some unexpected feline assistance before the case is solved.
One by One They Disappeared was originally published in 1929. This new edition features an introduction by crime fiction historian Curtis Evans.
Tenant for Death by Cyril HareTenant for Death, first published in 1937, is the initial book in the series featuring Scotland Yard's Inspector Mallett. The story opens with two estate agents sent to inspect a house in London, and upon arriving, discover a corpse; the home's tenant, Colin James, has also disappeared.
From the first edition dustjacket: “The discovery of a new and really first-class detective story writer is not something to announce in reckless phrases. It is after the most serious deliberation that we say that Mr. Cyril Hare is first-class, on the evidence of his first book, Tenant for Death. His murdered man is realistically produced in a hired house in a humdrum part of South Kensington; and in the method of discovering clues and unraveling identities there is nothing so freakish or bizarre as to irritate the orthodox reader. It is rather in the tightness of the argument and the accurate treatment that Mr. Hare's skill and knowledge show their quality; and the quality is such that the hardened reader can forgive him for drawing characters who are really human beings, and, some of them, quite attractive and agreeable.”
Cyril Hare was the pen-name of Alfred Alexander Gordon Clark (1900-1958).
Mod
The author has sort of floated around in threads in the group, and my curiosity was peaked.
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Death Lights a Candle by Phoebe Atwood Taylor. I think this may have been the second in the Asey Mayo series. I have not read them in order.Cape Cod murder mystery story from 1932. There was a house party and they got snowed in and the host got murdered. Poisoned ... but almost everyone has poison on/with them. Asey has been called the "Codfish Sherlock".
I read one of these stories and it noted that Pru was an "old lady" and then I found that she was younger than me. Maybe people aged faster back then.
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Probably one of the reasons I haven't really read this series in order. She's not on Kindle here either. Although I have hopes since I found Murder at the New York World's Fair on kindle.
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Here is the Amazon blurb:
‘Cleverly told ... brilliant character work and plotting up to the usual Symons standard’ – Observer
Lady Wainwright presides over the gothic gloom at Belting, in mourning for her two sons lost in the Second World War. Long afterwards a stranger arrives at Belting, claiming to be the missing David Wainwright – who was not killed after all, but held captive for years in a Russian prison camp. With Lady Wainwright’s health fading, her inheritance is at stake, and the family is torn apart by doubts over its mysterious long-lost son. Belting is shadowed by suspicion and intrigue – and then the first body is found.
This atmospheric novel of family secrets, first published in 1964, is by a winner of the CWA Diamond Dagger.
Ooh, I always like long-lost sons! Sounds like fun, and I’ve long been interested to try Julian Symons.
I just got this one from the library for another group challenge: Fire in the Thatch: A Devon Mystery
byE.C.R. Lorac. I believe someone in this group reviewed or suggested another of this author’s books recently, and I was intrigued enough to dig around for other titles. I also got this reissue by the same author: Murder by Matchlight
also by E.C.R. Lorac. Both sound like interesting premises, with the backdrop of WWII.
Mod
Judy wrote: "I've been meaning to try Lorac - I have another one by him, Bats in the Belfry: A London Mystery. Are you nominating one of those titles, Susan?"Yes, I was thinking either would be interesting- I just didn’t know if the group had read E.C.R. Lorac yet. Your title, Bats in the Belfry: A London Mystery, sounds great, too - I’ve got that on my tbr list, also.
I’m definitely going to read Fire in the Thatch: A Devon Mystery, for my challenge (book title with an element in it), but chronologically, Murder by Matchlight comes first, so I’ll nominate that one:
I would be really happy to read 'Miss Pym Disposes' seeing that was my preferred from last month, although I am excited about the other choice too.
Jemima wrote: "I would be really happy to read 'Miss Pym Disposes' seeing that was my preferred from last month, although I am excited about the other choice too."Me, too, I picked up a used copy a couple years ago, and would like to finally read it! Reading it with the group would finally get me to do it - I’m afraid I’m like a magpie - and books are the shiny objects that I can’t help collecting!
Mod
Last call for nominations - we have 6 titles suggested so far:
Jill: Miss Pym Disposes by Josephine Tey
Susan: One by One They Disappeared by Moray Dalton
Elizabeth: Tenant for Death by Cyril Hare
Jan: Death Lights a Candle by Phoebe Atwood Taylor
Judy: The Belting Inheritance by Julian Symons
Susan in NC: Murder by Matchlight by E.C.R. Lorac
Mod
If you haven't cast your vote yet, please head to the polls now!
https://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/1...
I don’t think we can lose - they all sound like good reads to me.
Mod
https://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/1...
I'll pop in and lobby for Tenant for Death by Cyril Hare. The group has read Josephine Tey before, but Cyril Hare would be exploring a new author for many of us. It's good to expand one's horizons.
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The runner-up book, Miss Pym Disposes by Josephine Tey, was only one vote behind and also did well in the previous month's poll, so we've decided to make this the group read for July - this means there won't be a vote next month.
Full results:
Tenant for Death 9 votes, 34.6%
Miss Pym Disposes 8 votes, 30.8%
The Belting Inheritance 5 votes, 19.2%
Murder by Matchlight 4 votes, 15.4%
One by One They Disappeared 0 votes, 0.0%
Death Lights a Candle (Asey Mayo Cape Cod Mystery, #2) 0 votes, 0.0%
Yay. We are all getting a choice then. Good decision. Both look like interesting reads.
I'm so glad-I've been hoping for the Tey for while!
Mod
Good stuff. Have bought the Hare just now on Kindle for 99p (thanks to those who pointed that out) and can get a cheap 2nd hand of the Tey on ebay by the look of it so I'm glad to be able to join in the reads for these 2 months!!
Yay! They all looked good, and I was able to get Hare on Scribd and I’ve had a used copy of Pym for years (hit pay dirt at a charity book sale a couple years back, nabbed a clutch of Tey paperbacks for a pittance!) one of those authors you know you want to read, so you might as well have them handy...
Tenant for Life $1.35 AUS Miss Pym not on special $7.86 AUS. Might hang out and wait on the latter. There may be a special before July or I might find it cheap 2nd hand.
I believe the lower price for Tenant is the regular price. The Kindle for the Josephine Tey is currently $11.99 in the US. Used paperbacks are much cheaper and can be gotten fairly easily, especially for a July read.
Reading the Detectives
Books mentioned in this topic
Tenant for Death (other topics)Miss Pym Disposes (other topics)
Tenant for Death (other topics)
Tenant for Death (other topics)
Tenant for Death (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Cyril Hare (other topics)Josephine Tey (other topics)
Cyril Hare (other topics)
E.C.R. Lorac (other topics)
E.C.R. Lorac (other topics)
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The books can be written in/set in the GA period, or a little earlier or later.
As usual, just one nomination per group member, please. Also, only one book by any individual writer can be nominated per month.