Series
Publication
Collins Crime Club (2023), 400 p.
Original publication date
1951
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Genres
Subjects
Description
As inventive as Agatha Christie, as hilarious as P.G. Wodehouse discover the delightful detective stories of Edmund Crispin. Crime fiction at its quirkiest and best. Long inhabited by a collection of profoundly offbeat locals, there has been a recent influx of the newly rich and well to do arriving in the village of Cotten Abbas ..
User reviews
LibraryThing member Eat_Read_Knit
The sleepy village of Cotten Abbas is woken up very suddenly when a spate of anonymous letters begin to circulate. As tensions rise, the visiting Mr Datchery begins to ask questions - but when the letters are followed by a suicide and a murder, both his investigation and that of the police become
Gervase Fen is heavily involved rather than flitting around the edges of the action, the characters and plot are strong, and there are some pleasing conundrums and red herrings. The daft cat Lavender is quite entertaining, and there's the usual humour in the writing. I probably ought to have been able to work out the solution, but although I managed to join some of the dots I missed some of the others, so the ending was pleasantly tense and dramatic.
This isn't the best Fen novel that I've read, but neither is it the worst, and for me it scores somewhere between a 4 and a 4.5.
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urgent and serious. Can the person to whom so much of the evidence points really be guilty? Is there a conspiracy? And who is Mr Datchery really?Gervase Fen is heavily involved rather than flitting around the edges of the action, the characters and plot are strong, and there are some pleasing conundrums and red herrings. The daft cat Lavender is quite entertaining, and there's the usual humour in the writing. I probably ought to have been able to work out the solution, but although I managed to join some of the dots I missed some of the others, so the ending was pleasantly tense and dramatic.
This isn't the best Fen novel that I've read, but neither is it the worst, and for me it scores somewhere between a 4 and a 4.5.
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LibraryThing member Romonko
As always Gervaise Fen is whimsical and funny. In this book he enters a tiny English village under another name as he sets out to discover the authorship of some very unlovely poisoned pen letters. Inevitably, these letters lead up to a murder, and Fen is there to aid the local constabulary in
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their investigation. The funny part in this book is the cat called "Lavender". The book weaves in and around this wonderful cat who is always on the hunt for "Martians" in the house of Colonol Babbington. Although, I figured out the murderer fairly quickly, I still enjoyed the getting there. And Mr. Crispin introduces a parallel storyline that may or may not have had something to do with the initial poison pen letters. That kept me guessing. Wonderful characters, and a wonderful, sleepy little village where lots is happening below the radar so to speak. Show Less
LibraryThing member leslie.98
Very good mystery - ignore the blurb on the back of the book, as it is completely misleading! Although I managed to work out parts of the solution, I couldn't see how it all went together. Crispin also threw in a suspenseful side plot towards the end which kept me from being able to ponder on the
Fen is incognito for the majority of the book, although for readers familiar with him it was easy to spot who he was on first appearance. Visiting the village of Cotten Abbas to investigate a spate of nasty anonymous letters, he is confronted with a suicide and then a murder within days of his arrival. Are these all linked, or has someone taken advantage of the situation to commit a murder (or two)?
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clues. Fen is incognito for the majority of the book, although for readers familiar with him it was easy to spot who he was on first appearance. Visiting the village of Cotten Abbas to investigate a spate of nasty anonymous letters, he is confronted with a suicide and then a murder within days of his arrival. Are these all linked, or has someone taken advantage of the situation to commit a murder (or two)?
Show Less
LibraryThing member leslie.98
Very good mystery - ignore the blurb on the back of the book, as it is completely misleading! Although I managed to work out parts of the solution, I couldn't see how it all went together. Crispin also threw in a suspenseful side plot towards the end which kept me from being able to ponder on the
Fen is incognito for the majority of the book, although for readers familiar with him it was easy to spot who he was on first appearance. Visiting the village of Cotten Abbas to investigate a spate of nasty anonymous letters, he is confronted with a suicide and then a murder within days of his arrival. Are these all linked, or has someone taken advantage of the situation to commit a murder (or two)?
Show More
clues. Fen is incognito for the majority of the book, although for readers familiar with him it was easy to spot who he was on first appearance. Visiting the village of Cotten Abbas to investigate a spate of nasty anonymous letters, he is confronted with a suicide and then a murder within days of his arrival. Are these all linked, or has someone taken advantage of the situation to commit a murder (or two)?
Show Less
LibraryThing member Overgaard
trying to figure out the title - did not catch the reference on first read
Crispin funny as always - loved the way Fen wrapped bandage around his head to get the sympathy he felt due him
Crispin funny as always - loved the way Fen wrapped bandage around his head to get the sympathy he felt due him
LibraryThing member piemouth
Good mystery but not as funny and witty as the previous books.
Language
Original language
English
ISBN
9780008530549
Physical description
400 p.; 7.8 inches
Pages
400