February was a good reading month! I read fifteen books this month! My favorite book I read this month was The Plague Court Murders by John Dickson Carr, followed very closely by The Death at Crookham Hall. My biggest flop of the month was The Green Mummy, my lowest-rated book at one star.
Five Star Reviews: 3
Plague Court Murders was the standout book for me this month. I’m not the biggest John Dickson Carr fan (I am often overwhelmed by his maximalist approach to storytelling), but I did the creepy ghost story beginning. I liked the interplay between the detective master and his chronicler, Blake. The locked room element was extraordinarily well-crafted and actually seemed realistic. The reveal of the killer should not be missed. I wish I could reread this type of book for the first time.
Death at Crookham Hall is a book with much to say about the types of power women wield after the suffragette movement in England. Ostensibly, it’s about the accidental death of the master at Crookham Hall, the mysterious death of suffragette Violet Woodmore, and the disappearance of an insignificant housemaid. These three linked events drive the protagonist, Iris Woodmore, into a web of murder and silence that spans decades.
Ngaio Marsh’s The Nursing Home Murder is a good old-fashioned murder mystery. Sir Derek O’Callaghan, a prominent politician, dies on the operating table. Everyone in the operating theatre had a reason to wish him dead, but who did it? A classic closed circle of suspects rounds out this well-researched medical mystery.
Four Star Reviews: 6
Inspector French’s Greatest Case is the first in his series, and for his first adventure, French must catch a man who has stolen diamonds and fled England. Inspector French’s Greatest Case boasts of all Freeman Wills Crofts’s essential elements: much ado about train timetables, French’s dogged trailing of a suspect across several countries, and a mystery that unravels slowly like a naturalist. A little long and slow in places, but the slow burn of this read pays itself off nicely and makes it a classic.
The Million Dollar Suitcase is a little remembered book by Alice MacGowan. An unobtrusive bank teller fills his suitcase with a million dollars and walks out the door. Now on the brink of bankruptcy, the bank hires a young WWI vet to track down the teller, who appears to have vanished off the face of the earth. There’s a strong female protagonist and many clever deductions in The Million Dollar Suitcase that should not be missed.
The Cold Dish is the book that started the long-running Walt Longmire book series and the hit television show Longmire. A young, mentally challenged Cheyenne woman is brutally gang-raped, and her assailants are hunted down by a mysterious killer. The Cold Dish is a poignant exploration of whether it is better to avenge or forgive.
The Perfect Frame is the first book in William Ard’s Timothy Dane series. Private eye Timothy Dane investigates a pornography ring and insurance fraud after a buxom blonde slithers into his office and begs for help. Vamps, guns, and grit color this compact hard-boiled mystery. The Perfect Frame is somewhat challenging, so I highly recommend listening to Ben Tucker’s audiobook version, which you can find on YouTube.
Girl Waits with Gun by Amy Stewart follows the real life of Constance Kopp on her journey to becoming the first woman deputy. Part mystery, part fictionalized biography, this gripping historical mystery enlightens readers about factory owners’ absolute grip on citizens and how they formed criminal gangs to solidify power. Constance and her family are constantly threatened with kidnapping, their home is set on fire, and they are driven to the brink, all because their buggy collided with the wrong man’s car.
Agatha Christie fans who love cooking and baking will love Recipes for Murder, a cookbook of recipes from her many series. Maybe you’ve wanted to make Hercule Poirot’s perfect cup of hot chocolate or dine like Miss Marple at Bertram’s hotel. Chockablock with memorable recipes and menus for themed dinner parties or book clubs, Recipes for Murder is sure to delight.
Three Star Reviews: 5
Murder in Stained Glass is a lumpy first mystery story by celebrated illustrator Margaret Armstrong. Her central character, Miss Trumbull, a wealthy New York spinster with a Park Avenue apartment and a seemingly endless supply of money, has her only adventure in this book, which is a shame. When a prominent stained glass artist disappears with only a few bone fragments in his kiln, Miss Trumbull must travel the Eastern seaboard to unravel secrets that cannot be burned. A little too sparse at times and too slow in others, this uneven debut has flashes of brilliance, especially in the climax, but the disparate threads never really come together. I think if Armstrong had continued with Miss Trumbull, the shortcomings of this novel would have been overcome.
The Lake District Murder is another debut novel with tepid results. Inspector Meredith spends entirely too much time being flummoxed by a criminal gang and flitting around like Inspector French when the clues seem to make things pretty straightforward for readers. The crimes are done cleverly enough, but nothing really rises to the fore. If you want Inspector Meredith foiling a criminal gang at his best, I suggest Death on the Riviera instead. The Lake District Murder is the sort of book you will have forgotten you’ve read when you close the cover.
Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear introduces readers to the titular character, Maisie Dobbs, a remarkable woman navigating post-World War I England. The novel begins with Maisie opening her own private investigation agency after serving as a nurse during the war. As she tackles her first case involving a husband’s suspicions of infidelity, Maisie’s astute observations and empathetic approach reveal her unique investigative skills. Through flashbacks, readers learn about Maisie’s humble beginnings as a maid and her education under a wealthy benefactor, which shaped her into the independent and intuitive woman she has become. Overlong, and I wasn’t enamored with Maisie Dobbs, the character as much as necessary to love this book.
The Murder at Sissingham Hall is an excellent old country house mystery, so I was raring to get into it. The cover says it’s an Angela Marchmont book, but Angela is such an unobtrusive background character that I frequently forget she existed. The story is narrated by possibly the dumbest man alive, Charles Knox, and this weird choice makes the book feel like a bait and switch.
Over My Dead Body is not one of Rex Stout’s best. Part political intrigue, family reunion, part fencing mystery, and none of the parts is done as well as usual. However, a half-baked Rex Stout book is better than most books today. A little roughshod and unfocused, but a good read.
Star Reviews: 0
One Star Reviews: 1
Fergus Hume is a prolific mystery and horror writer. Still, The Green Mummy, which is about a mummy stolen on its voyage to Professor Braddock and Braddock’s assistant found murdered in the sarcophagus, is heavily marred by insufferable characters and so much racism….so much racism. It definitely made me less eager to read another Hume book soon.
TV Shows
“Mr. and Mrs. North” is a 30-minute mystery-comedy based on the Mr. and Mrs. North book series by Frances and Richard Lockridge. The two main characters are played by Richard Denning and Barbara Brixton, and the mysteries are actually clever with a lot of action, but the short run time really kills the ability to effectively tell any of the stories; the characters are just running from set piece to set piece. A man is killed, and barely ten minutes later, you know who the killer is. I hope this could be rebooted into a 60-minute mystery program because there’s much to work with. You can watch the series for free on Amazon Prime.
Still Life is a 2013 adaptation of the Louise Penny novel of the same name. The town of Three Pines is beautifully rendered, and the inhabitants, such as Ruth Zardo and Gabri, are especially well-cast. However, this adaptation is again marred by being a movie instead of a mini-series and a particularly lifeless portrayal of the kindly and introspective Chief Inspector Gamazhe. An acceptable way to spend 90 minutes, but nothing to get too excited about.
Reading Down My February TBR
I only had six books on my TBR.
I read five books from my February TBR:
- The Plague Court Murders
- The Death at Crookham Hall
- Maisie Dobbs
- Murder in Stained Glass
- The Labors of Hercules
I never got to Richardson’s First Case by Basil Thomson or The Mystery of Evil Eye by Anthony Wynne. Writing reviews of each short story in The Labors of Hercules and the shorter month made it difficult to finish everything. Oh well! I read eleven other books and watched a television series and a TV movie, so that’s a whole month of mystery in my book!
Golden Age of Detective Fiction 
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