David Thorpe – Carol's Notebook

The Case of the Late Pig by Margery Allingham

March 25, 2020March 25, 2020 by CarolNo Comments

"The main thing to remember in autobiography, I have always thought, is not to let any damned modesty creep in to spoil the story. This adventure is mine, Albert Campion's, and I am fairly certain that I was pretty nearly brilliant in it in spite of the fact that I so nearly got myself and old Lugg killed that I hear a harp quintet whenever I consider it. It begins with me eating in bed." The Case of the Late Pig is narrated by Albert Campion himself, which takes away a bit of the charm of the characters for me. Part of the fun is how he lets others see him as silly and perhaps not too bright, but with him telling the story we don't get that full effect. Also, even though he's telling us what he did and what he thought, he leaves his conclusions until the end. He has to, it's a mystery novel, but would you really...

Flowers for the Judge by Margery Allingham

March 12, 2020March 12, 2020 by Carol2 Comments

On a beautiful morning in 1911, Tom Barnabas, a director of the publishing firm Barnabas and Company, left his London house and walked down the street. Somewhere along that street, before he reached the tobacconist’s shop on the corner, he disappeared. His disappearance was never explained – or solved. Twenty years later, another director of the firm disappears. His family turns to Albert Campion for help, but before he can get far on the case the man turns up dead. A great deal of circumstantial evidence points at the victim’s cousin, a young man who is clearly in love with the victim’s widow. The cousin, Mike Wedgwood, is arrested, and the police are quite satisfied. Flowers for the Judge is a true mystery. Mr. Campion here is clever and follows the clues. He allows his intelligence to show throughout. He believes Mike is innocent, as do other members of the family, including Gina, the victim’s widow. And so Mr. Campion...

Police at the Funeral by Margery Allingham

January 14, 2020January 14, 2020 by CarolNo Comments

Campion is contacted by Joyce Blount, who is engaged to a friend of his. Joyce lives in Socrates Close, Cambridge, surrounded by the old, eccentric Faraday family. The matriarch of the family is Caroline Faraday, widow of a famous academic. However, Uncle Andrew has gone missing and all is not well within the household. As a favor to his friend, Marcus, Campion goes to the house and helps with the investigation. Upper-class families are always at least a bit more open to others like themselves than to detectives. It turns out Uncle Andrew is dead, just the first of the murders. The family members don't get along well, but they all rely on Mrs. Faraday, since none have money of their own. To be honest, I really enjoyed them. One Aunt was a bit of a religious fanatic, an uncle is a closet drinker who wants to be braver than he is, Joyce is just sweet, Carolin is as tough as...

The Christmas Egg by Mary Kelly

December 9, 2019December 9, 2019 by Carol4 Comments

Three days before Christmas, Inspector Nightingale is called to the scene of a suspicious death. An elderly woman has been found dead in her bed. It may have been natural cause, but she has been robbed. Nightingale discovers she was a Russian princess who had fled to Britain during the Revolution, bringing with her jewelry and valuable pieces of art. There has been a recent spate of burglaries and Nightingale suspects this is another by the same group. We know from the beginning that the princess's grandson is probably involved and there's never really any doubt that it's connected to the other thefts. The bulk of the book follows Nightingale and his sergeant as they identify and catch the thieves. While the story takes place around Christmas, it's not very Christmassy. There are no interrupted celebrations, no warm feelings. There is a bit of present buying, but even that turns out questionable, and traipsing through the snow can be deadly....

Lord James Harrington and the Christmas Mystery by Lynn Florkiewicz

December 3, 2019December 3, 2019 by Carol4 Comments

The Christmas Mystery is the first of the Harrington series I've read. James and his wife Beth live in the small village of Cavendish and have converted the Harrington manor house into a hotel catering to the well-to-do. It's Christmas time and the Harrington's are hosting their annual Christmas dinner and participating in events around the village. Then one of their guests is killed, poisoned, and James, along with I assume are the regulars, decide to investigate. After all, they can't have people worry about ending up dead if the stay or eat at the hotel. This was fine. I enjoyed the Christmas in a small town setting. The solution to the mystery reached back to the Great War. A lot of folk in town either fought themselves or had relatives who did. It looks at PTSD and acknowledges that not everyone who was on the right side was a hero. Overall though, it was just fine. It works as a...

Look to the Lady by Margery Allingham

May 3, 2019May 3, 2019 by Carol7 Comments

After listening to the first Albert Campion mystery I wasn't sure how I felt about the series. Look to the Lady is definitely a funner book. Campion is our main character now, and while he's still an odd duck, he clearly knows a lot about what is going on and has quite a few influential friends. The chalice is a priceless, ancient relic and a rich collector wants it. This collector is a member of a group that has its own methods and rules, and Campion is quite familiar with their system. Campion is becoming an interesting character. He is not quite a detective, more like a clever, innocuous man for hire. His plan this time is to figure out who the collector's agent is and basically make sure that person ends up dead. I listened to this one right after the first, so comparisons are inevitable. Allingham took more care of the secondary characters this time around. They were more fully...