The Grand Babylon Hotel by Arnold Bennett

by Carol2 Comments
I love vintage mysteries, a bit old-fashioned, no gratuitous sex or violence. They're comfort reads for me. I read a short story by Arnold Bennett in Resorting to Murder from Poisoned Pen Press and enjoyed it, so I picked up the free Kindle version of The Grand Babylon Hotel and I'm glad I did. It's a light mystery, but full of intrigue and adventure and a plucky young woman who's not afraid of a bit of danger. The hotel was an interesting setting. The Babylon is a quite distinguished hotel and often hosts royalty, which is what leads to the sequence of events here. An equerry (an officer of a royal household who attends or assists members of the royal family) is found murdered. His body disappears. A prince fails to arrive for an important meeting in the hotel.  Rackham learns that his stellar staff is perhaps not quite as above-board as they appear. The story is a bit over the...
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Killer Dolphin by Ngaio Marsh

by Carol1 Comment
Ngaio Marsh's Inspector Alleyn books are comfort reads for me. When I'm tired or grouchy or don't know what I feel like reading, I pick one up. Whenever I see one at a used bookstore I pick it up, but I'm thrilled that they've published a bunch for the Kindle. This one opens with an odd set of circumstances that ends with Peregrine Jay restoring the Dolphin Theater and the opening production is his original play, The Glove, with the Shakespearean glove itself on display. The first half of the book lets us peak backstage. We meet the various actors, witness their petty feuds and jealousies. I enjoy this part of Marsh's books in general, the characters are always fun, sometimes stereotypical, but she always pulls together great casts. And of course, you're wondering who's going to die, because someone is. The second half of the book deals with Alleyn's investigation, which consists of lots of interviews and some clue-searching. I really...
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The Case of the Glamorous Ghost by Erle Stanley Gardner

by Carol4 Comments
Sunday evening I had a bit of a cold and when I'm not quite feeling up to par, I tend to pick up vintage mysteries. The Case of the Glamorous Ghost was the first I saw sitting on my shelf and since it's been a while since I've read a Perry Mason story, I picked it up. My daughter saw it and said something along the lines of "isn't that a tv show?" She watches that retro channel sometimes. I told her that yes, but the books actually came first. I'm not sure if I ever watched a full episode of the show. The Glamorous Ghost was what I expected - an interesting court case, some good dialogue, a slightly convoluted mystery. I think part of the reason I like mysteries from that era because they tend not to be overly violent. In general, they're also short, coming in at under 300 pages and while the characters are fun and well-drawn, they're not too depressed, they...
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