Saturday, September 5, 2015

Reading diary: JOSEPHINE PULLEIN-THOMPSON, PATRICIA MOYES


JOSEPHINE PULLEIN-THOMPSON, Gin and Murder (1959)

I always pay close attention to the "Coming Soon" page on the Greyladies website, and I'm usually at least intrigued by all the books they reprint. When I saw that they were starting to reprint the three murder mysteries written by children's author Josephine Pullein-Thompson, however, I wasn't sure they would be my cup of tea. Pullein-Thompson, along with her sisters Diana and Christine, is best known for her pony books (their mother, Joanna Cannan, whose mystery Death at the Dog I reviewed here a while back, is in fact generally credited with creating the genre), and her mysteries, published between 1959 and 1963, are set among the horse-and-hound set which typically don't interest me a great deal.

But when I saw a used copy of Gin and Murder listed online for dirt cheap, I put my trust in the good judgment of Shirley at Greyladies and snatched it up. The result being one of the most enjoyable and entertaining mysteries I've read in quite a while. In fact, I've already ordered a copy of her second mystery, They Died in the Spring, which hasn't yet been reprinted by Greyladies, as well as her third, Murder Strikes Pink, a beautiful new copy of which has just arrived direct from Greyladies. (For whatever reason, Greyladies has published the third book before the second, so I've had to make do with a used large print edition of They Died, which will undoubtedly be replaced by a Greyladies copy if and when they reprint that one as well.)

In some ways, Gin and Murder is a surprisingly gritty mystery, not quite as "cosy" as one might expect from an author known for her children's fiction. The plot turns around a man who is poisoned in the middle of a cocktail party, at which those who had a motive for killing him didn't go near him all night, and those who went near him had no reason for wanting him dead. The cast of suspects contains nary a one that a reader is likely to feel affection for, but in this case I didn't mind at all. I even found that I rather liked Elizabeth Chadwick, despite her rather dim-witted insistence that the victim must have been poisoned by his own ceiling (something that apparently very nearly happened in real life to playwright and editor Clare Boothe Luce, author of the play version of The Women):

Elizabeth Chadwick, used to fighting the domestic battles of the world from a column in one of the glossier magazines for women, was not to be intimidated by a policeman of Hollis's calibre. Under his handling she soon became contentious. No, she hadn't been watching her guests with lynx-like eyes. She had no more expected them to murder each other than she had expected them to steal the silver. She had watched for the empty hand in order to offer it an eatable, but hadn't registered to whom the hand belonged. She had watched for signs of boredom and for people with no one to talk to, but they had been few, for everyone had known everyone else.

Later on, Elizabeth also comments a bit dramatically, "One can't help remembering that Guy stood there, that someone was watching him, contemplating murder. One waits for Banquo."

Greyladies back cover blurb for Gin and Murder

But if most of the suspects are a bit chilly and unlikeable, it's hard not to like D.C.I. James Flecker from Scotland Yard, who is called in to investigate. Typically, I feel just the reverse when reading mysteries—I like the characters and find the detectives rather dull—at least when they're real detectives and not just charming amateurs. But Flecker is a thoughtful man as well as a clever one, and Pullein-Thompson allows us to see a bit of his humanity and his worries:

He felt depressed as he climbed the steep oak stairs, hideously carpeted in red and green, and his depression increased as he surveyed the little beamed bedroom with its alien suite in imitation walnut, linoleum-covered floor and lace-muffled casement. He switched on the electric fire and scuffled in his suitcase for a writing-pad and pen. Now he must try to make something of what he had learned that afternoon. And then, as he sat before the fire, he realized that it wasn't the cold and the corned beef, the pickles or the soapy cheese that had depressed him. It was the cheerless muddle of the world, 'the still sad music of humanity'; the situations which drove people to murder.

I'd be willing to bet that I won't be able to resist writing about Pullein-Thompson's other mysteries when I've had the chance to read them. In the meantime, though, in case any other mystery fans are feeling the same kind of resistance I had to overcome, I do highly recommend giving her a chance. I can't wait to dive into the next one.




PATRICIA MOYES, Many Deadly Returns (1970, aka Who Saw Her Die?)


I wrote a bit last year about my discovery of Patricia Moyes. I had stumbled across her second mystery, Down Among the Dead Men (1960), at a library book sale, and been completely seduced by it. I promptly backtracked to read her debut, Dead Men Don't Ski (1959), which I also enjoyed but felt was perhaps not quite so well plotted (certainly a forgivable offense in a first novel).

I never got round to noting here that a few months ago I read a much later Moyes novel, A Six-Letter Word for Death (1983) (the fourth from last of her nineteen mysteries, and also a book sale find), which I absolutely loved, with its highly entertaining crossword puzzle clues and charming characterization. But I realized at that point that I was destined to wend my way (in my usual sluggish style) through all of Moyes' novels.

It took me a few more months, but I finally got around to sampling another of her works, from around the middle of her career, and now I have a new favorite. Although, as Moyes carefully notes in the book's closing pages, the bizarre and brilliant method of murder described in Many Deadly Returns was not created entirely from Moyes' own imagination (it's based on a near-death experience reported in the news), it is no less brilliant for all that.

In brief, Detective Inspector Henry Tibbett and his wife Emmy (surely one of the most charming and realistically loving couples in all of mysterydom) are sent to stay at the country estate of Lady Crystal Balaclava, an elderly eccentric with a scandalous past, who believes—from what her Ouija board has told her—that she is about to be murdered. Because she has so many important contacts, her fears are taken seriously enough for Henry and Emmy to have to make the best of a weekend among strangers for Lady Crystal's annual birthday celebration. The eccentric lady even insists that Henry sample all food and drink before she herself does. Despite this, however, and with Henry and her other guests looking on, she promptly keels over in the middle of her celebration—apparently from poisoning.


The case is just one big charming rollick from there on, and although Moyes shows enough of her hand to get the reader thinking along the right lines, the final solution is surprising and effective. Perfect marks for cleverness here, and for readability as well, since the characters—including Lady Crystal's three grown daughters and their husbands, as well as her long-time female companion—are always entertaining, if not always likeable.

I'm beginning to think that Moyes is among the most underrated of mystery authors—her titles all being out of print at the moment, though relatively readily available second hand, and none are available as ebooks. And I'm also beginning to think that my list of absolute favorite mystery writers must now include Moyes alongside Christie, Mitchell, and Tey. Who would have thought?!

13 comments:

  1. This summer on a visit to the UK, I was visiting a National Trust Property (I forget which one), where there was a pair of rooms full of used books. The standard size paperbacks were marked one pound. My friend soon spotted a paperback she wanted, and I spotted a sign that said "all one pound paperbacks are now 3 for one pound". So, of course, we started looking closely at the paperbacks again. And one of the two I found that looked interesting was Many Deadly Returns, with the same cover art, the only difference I can find it my copy was originally priced at $5.95 instead of $3.95, so I assume a later printing. Based on your recommendation I will have to push it toward the top of my to be read pile!

    Jerri

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    1. What a great find for a third of a pound, Jerri. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. It's certainly an unusual plot!

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    2. I read Many Deadly Returns while we were away for a couple of days. I did enjoy it, and am interested in more books in the series, but perhaps didn't love quite as much as you did. Perhaps in part because it is my first book in the series and I was getting to know the Tibbetts. If I had known them from previous books, it might well have had me enjoy it more, just as I have come to love Miss Marple and can enjoy those of the series that for some reason are less strong, because they show me more of Miss Marple. I guess the whole "I'll resign my post if I can't solve this perfect crime" was a bit tough since I don't already "know" how he normally interacts with his career. Certainly a great plot, with a medical and scientific twist that in some ways reminds me of The Documents in the Case, Dorothy Sayers' non-Lord Peter mystery. I also must admit that I tend to enjoy mysteries more on second readings when I know the ending and can watch the book being put together. So, someday down the road on my second reading I might well like it more. And it certainly was well worth the 1/3 of a pound price!

      Jerri

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    3. Actually, now that I recall, I found the threatened resignation a bit hard to swallow as well, Jerri, but I guess I like Henry and Emmy so much (we're on a first name basis, you see) that I glided right over it. For what it's worth, my first Moyes was Down Among the Dead Men, and I found it a great intro to the Tibbetts. Emmy even gets to play a real role in the investigation there. Or, as I mentioned above, A Six-Letter Word for Death is also excellent.

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  2. I corresponded with Josepghine Pullein-Thompson when I was writing my book Masters of the "Humdrum" Mystery and she informed me that she stopped writing mystery fiction because publishers made her feel that the "traditional mystery" was no longer wanted. A shame because I think all three of mysteries are good.

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    1. How interesting that you were in touch with her, Curtis. It's sad that her publishers discouraged her writing more mysteries. I'm reading the second one now and enjoying it just as much as the first.

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  3. Gin and Murder sounds like a lot of fun (hmmm, take THAT comment out of context?) so I'll go looking for it. But being a stickler about cover art, I have to assume that, written in 1959, it also takes place then, and not ca. 1934 as the cover image depicts.

    Picky picky picky.

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    1. Perhaps the party in the book is a "dress like it's 1934" party? Though I confess I don't recall that. On the other hand, I would never have noticed the fashion anachronism of the cover image on my own. Perhaps if they had been wearing bustles, I would have thought that something wasn't quite right...

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  4. When i was young i read all 3 sisters horsy books despite never sitting on or feeding one(the horse not one of the siblings)Strange child?

    Tina

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    1. And here I was picturing you feeding the three sisters, Tina! I imagine lots of readers of horse books didn't have access to real horses--it's a bit like reading a book set in a part of the world you'll probably never visit?

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  5. I have always loved Moyes and have always kept a sharp lookout for them in libraries and secondhand bookshops. There are still one or two available in our county library.

    I agree, Scott, she is very underrated and the Tibbetts are a delightful couple. They remind me of the Felses in the Ellis Peters non-Cadfael books. Also delightful.

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    1. I'm happy to know there's another Moyes fan out there, Gill. Henry and Emmy always seem to me like one of the most truly realistic married couples in mysteries. I've only read one of the Felse books--perhaps I need to return to those as well.

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    2. I do love most of the Felse books. For some reason Felse's wife and son seem more "real" to me than Felse himself, although he has grown on me over time. But the books in that series that have left the largest impact on my memory tend to be the ones that feature Bunty or Dominic instead of Felse (not that he isn't there). Death and the Joyful Woman and Grass-widow's Tale are two examples. There is another one where the son and his girl friend are at a folk music event but I can't remember the title.

      Jerri

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