“And what a simple explanation, if that were all of it! Simple and natural – and surprising. The good old formula. The sort of thing that lay concealed beneath the red-herring trickery of all good fictional problems, then bobbed up at the end to knock the cock-eyed reader cold with astonishment..” It’s Week Two of … Continue reading REPRINT OF THE YEAR: Paging Doctor Death! Doctor Death? Paging Doctor Death!
Author: Brad
REPRINT OF THE YEAR: The Case of the Case of the Case of the . . .
“A murder case is simply a jigsaw puzzle, a lot of things to be put together. If you have the right solution, all of the parts fit into the picture. If some of the parts don’t seem to fit, it’s a pretty good indication you haven’t the right solution.” Perry Mason It’s that time of year … Continue reading REPRINT OF THE YEAR: The Case of the Case of the Case of the . . .
FUN WITH CELERY: The Further Misadventures of Ellery Queen
In 2018, when I took part in the ROY awards, that annual celebration by crime bloggers of republished classic mysteries, one of the books I entered for consideration was a The Misadventures of Ellery Queen, collection of stories about the great American detective Ellery Queen that had been compiled by two of his greatest fans, … Continue reading FUN WITH CELERY: The Further Misadventures of Ellery Queen
FANGS FOR THE MANORYS: The Strange Case of the Barrington Hills Vampire
It has been forty-five years since we could all savor the prospect of a “Christie for Christmas.” Alas, that time is passed, so I propose a new tradition: a “Byrnside for Boo-time!” The classic-style impossible crime mysteries penned by modern-day scribe James Scott Byrnside are, by turns, mystifying, sometimes fear-inducing, and most of the time … Continue reading FANGS FOR THE MANORYS: The Strange Case of the Barrington Hills Vampire
A HUNDRED YEARS OF CHRISTIE – THE FINAL CHAPTER: The Millennium and Beyond
“In my end is my beginning.” Many books begin with an epigraph; Agatha Christie’s characters speak in them. The occasion, more often than not, is dark. After all, these people are bearing witness to – or maybe committing – murder. “Who would have thought the old man to have had so much blood in him?” … Continue reading A HUNDRED YEARS OF CHRISTIE – THE FINAL CHAPTER: The Millennium and Beyond
A HUNDRED YEARS OF CHRISTIE: Entr’acte at the Vicarage
Hello, fellow Christie fans! I'm busy working on the next but last chapter of my celebration of the Christie centenary, decade by decade. I need a little more time with the "aughts," so I thought I would distract you with a very good time I recently had talking with Moira (Clothes in Books) and Jim … Continue reading A HUNDRED YEARS OF CHRISTIE: Entr’acte at the Vicarage
A HUNDRED YEARS OF CHRISTIE: Doubtful Devotion in the 90’s
“Even Max admitted that she was elusive. He once said a revealing thing about her to me - that she was an exceptional combination of outer diffidence and inner confidence. Both of these were utterly genuine, like everything about her. It is extraordinary enough that, with all her worldwide fame, she should have been so … Continue reading A HUNDRED YEARS OF CHRISTIE: Doubtful Devotion in the 90’s
A HUNDRED YEARS OF CHRISTIE, PART SEVEN: Mistress of Media in the 80’s
When I was a student, focused on the study of literature and theatre, I learned a hard lesson: there was a schism between those works which are deemed “art” and those classified as “popular culture”. As a child, my love of comic books was derided as . . . well, childish. Studying drama at U.C. … Continue reading A HUNDRED YEARS OF CHRISTIE, PART SEVEN: Mistress of Media in the 80’s
A HUNDRED YEARS OF CHRISTIE, PART SIX: Requiem and Rebirth in the 70’s
“What can I say at seventy-five? ‘Thank God for my good life, and for all the love that has been given to me.’” Agatha Christie: An Autobiography “It’s sad really, but nowadays one is only interested in the deaths!” Nemesis (1971) Six Novels Passenger to Frankfurt (1970) Nemesis (1971) Elephants Can Remember (1972) Postern of Fate (1973) Curtain (1975) * Sleeping … Continue reading A HUNDRED YEARS OF CHRISTIE, PART SIX: Requiem and Rebirth in the 70’s
HOW HELEN MCCLOY HELPED RID ME OF MY OCD
I may be knee deep in my monthlong survey of Agatha Christie (the 70’s drop tomorrow!), but I’m still trying to carve out the time and energy to read other authors. Seven months of lockdown have admittedly done a number on me, concentration-wise, so bare with me if after a long fallow period, I attempt … Continue reading HOW HELEN MCCLOY HELPED RID ME OF MY OCD
Ah Sweet Mystery! 