cleheny's review against another edition
4.0
Busman's Honeymoon is a romance with a mystery as the backdrop. Sayers takes us from the immediate aftermath of Peter and Harriet's engagement through the first weeks/months of their marriage (with the majority of the novel spent on the first few days).
From engagement through wedding is told through a series of letters by various characters and, principally, through diary excerpts written by the Dowager Duchess of Denver. These are really fun; as usual, Sayers is able to do a great deal of characterization in short segments. And the Dowager is as delightful as she has always been. The bits about Helen are particularly enjoyable.
And then we move to the wedding night and the first days of their marriage. There is a murder mystery inserted here, but the focus is on Harriet and Peter's marriage, how they enjoy and appreciate it, and also how they come to terms with it. There is a pair of scenes where they acknowledge both the depth of their love and also the challenge of being truly supportive of each other.
For readers who love not only Harriet and Peter, but also Bunter, the marriage is a reason for happiness but also concern--how will this affect everyone's favorite valet/manservant/photographer/best friend? Bunter, of course, responds with great professionalism and loyalty to both, but there's a beautiful moment, towards the end of the book, when an action of Peter's makes Bunter feel that he is still an important part of his life.
As usual, Sayers surrounds the trio with a number of vivid characters. Busman's Honeymoon was a play before it was a novel, so some of the theatricality of the supporting characters is likely due to their creation for the stage. Mr. Puffett is a favorite of mine, and Aggie Twitterton, Frank Crutchley, Mrs. Ruddle, and the vicar (and his wife) are all vividly drawn. The murder scheme is ingenious and probably far more sophisticated than what could be expected of the killer.
The ending brings us back to a theme introduced in the first Wimsey mystery, Whose Body: Peter's difficulty accepting the consequences of his own investigations. The sufferings alluded to in earlier novels are depicted more specifically here. This is another aspect of Peter with which Harriet is unfamiliar, but she demonstrates her understanding and devotion. There's reason to hope that Peter, if not cured, will be able to cope better.
Although Sayers wrote two more stories set during Peter and Harriet's marriage, Busman's Honeymoon is really the goodbye to these characters together. Harriet isn't much in the other stories (The Haunted Policeman and Talboys), and definitely doesn't play a role in solving the problem. So this is the true ending of the Wimsey-Vane stories, and it's a lovely way to end their story.
From engagement through wedding is told through a series of letters by various characters and, principally, through diary excerpts written by the Dowager Duchess of Denver. These are really fun; as usual, Sayers is able to do a great deal of characterization in short segments. And the Dowager is as delightful as she has always been. The bits about Helen are particularly enjoyable.
And then we move to the wedding night and the first days of their marriage. There is a murder mystery inserted here, but the focus is on Harriet and Peter's marriage, how they enjoy and appreciate it, and also how they come to terms with it. There is a pair of scenes where they acknowledge both the depth of their love and also the challenge of being truly supportive of each other.
For readers who love not only Harriet and Peter, but also Bunter, the marriage is a reason for happiness but also concern--how will this affect everyone's favorite valet/manservant/photographer/best friend? Bunter, of course, responds with great professionalism and loyalty to both, but there's a beautiful moment, towards the end of the book, when an action of Peter's makes Bunter feel that he is still an important part of his life.
As usual, Sayers surrounds the trio with a number of vivid characters. Busman's Honeymoon was a play before it was a novel, so some of the theatricality of the supporting characters is likely due to their creation for the stage. Mr. Puffett is a favorite of mine, and Aggie Twitterton, Frank Crutchley, Mrs. Ruddle, and the vicar (and his wife) are all vividly drawn. The murder scheme is ingenious and probably far more sophisticated than what could be expected of the killer.
The ending brings us back to a theme introduced in the first Wimsey mystery, Whose Body: Peter's difficulty accepting the consequences of his own investigations. The sufferings alluded to in earlier novels are depicted more specifically here. This is another aspect of Peter with which Harriet is unfamiliar, but she demonstrates her understanding and devotion. There's reason to hope that Peter, if not cured, will be able to cope better.
Although Sayers wrote two more stories set during Peter and Harriet's marriage, Busman's Honeymoon is really the goodbye to these characters together. Harriet isn't much in the other stories (The Haunted Policeman and Talboys), and definitely doesn't play a role in solving the problem. So this is the true ending of the Wimsey-Vane stories, and it's a lovely way to end their story.
jazzlioness's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
meggymoocow's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
An absolute tour de force by Sayers here - after Gaudy Night, probably her best. Lost 0.25 for me due to some dated language and descriptions, but otherwise excellent. As in Gaudy Night, Harriet Vane makes an excellent POV character, as a middle-class woman dropped into the romantic ridiculousness of Wimsey’s life in the landed gentry. The murder mystery moves along at a reasonable pace, but it feels like a narrative device to explore the more nuanced elements of the work: the English class system, PTSD in interwar Britain, and so on. The relationship between Harriet and Peter is undeniably mushy at times, but it’s nice to see romance represented in characters beyond their 20s. The last few chapters take a slightly incongruous, but very welcome, turn into exploring what it means to love someone who is struggling with their mental health. Once again, Sayers seems to deal with themes far more modern than one would expect. Christie who?
marlisenicole's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
amielizabeth's review
2.0
Made myself finish because I was on a long road trip with no other books. The plot was fairly good, the beginning was hilarious, but I just don't think I have the patience to read these Wimsey books. They go on and on and on and on....
slferg's review against another edition
4.0
Saw the old black-and-white movie and had to reread the book to make sure of the movie. It didn't entirely jive with my vague memory of the book (been a few years since I read it). Of course the movie was off. The central premise and the big detail were pretty much correct, but not entirely of course and there is a lot more depth to the book. Glad I reread it. Now I will have to reread mroe of them.
msaari's review against another edition
5.0
Olipa hyvä! Kyllä nämä Sayersin Harriet Vane -dekkarit kannattaa ehdottomasti lukea. Luin itse ne vähän epäjärjestyksessä (2., 3., 1., 4.), suosittelen järjestyksessä lukemista, mutta yhtä kaikki – toimii! Onneksi Peter Wimsey -dekkareista edes tämä – ilmeisesti paras – nelikko on suomennettu suhtkoht modernisti ja on saatavilla melko vaivattomasti kirjastoista.
Kuolema häämatkalla vie Peter Wimseyn ja Harriet Vanen eli nykyisen Lady Peter Wimseyn häämatkalle heidän vastikään hankkimaansa maaseututaloon. Perille saavuttaessa talo vain on epämääräisessä kunnossa, kenellekään paikalliselle ei ole kerrottu kaupoista ja myyjääkään ei näy missään – kunnes tämä löytyy kellarista kuolleena ja siinäpä sitä sitten häämatka meneekin mukavasti tätä perin mystistä kuolemantapausta selvitellessä.
Kuolema häämatkalla on paitsi erinomainen klassinen dekkari, myös tavattoman hauska ja söpön romanttinen. Kaikkiaan siis aivan erinomainen kirja. Suosittelen – mutta lukekaa ihmeessä koko neljän kirjan sarja ja mieluusti oikeassa järjestyksessä, eli Myrkkyä, Kas tässä teille ruumis, Juhlailta ja viimeiseksi Kuolema häämatkalla.
Kuolema häämatkalla vie Peter Wimseyn ja Harriet Vanen eli nykyisen Lady Peter Wimseyn häämatkalle heidän vastikään hankkimaansa maaseututaloon. Perille saavuttaessa talo vain on epämääräisessä kunnossa, kenellekään paikalliselle ei ole kerrottu kaupoista ja myyjääkään ei näy missään – kunnes tämä löytyy kellarista kuolleena ja siinäpä sitä sitten häämatka meneekin mukavasti tätä perin mystistä kuolemantapausta selvitellessä.
Kuolema häämatkalla on paitsi erinomainen klassinen dekkari, myös tavattoman hauska ja söpön romanttinen. Kaikkiaan siis aivan erinomainen kirja. Suosittelen – mutta lukekaa ihmeessä koko neljän kirjan sarja ja mieluusti oikeassa järjestyksessä, eli Myrkkyä, Kas tässä teille ruumis, Juhlailta ja viimeiseksi Kuolema häämatkalla.
phire's review against another edition
4.0
Solidly half of this book was fanservice, but it was well-written fanservice wrapped around an engaging murder, which is all I need from books like these.
msjoanna's review
3.0
I had to switch from the audio version of this book because the audio quality was poor and hard to follow.
This is my first book by this author and my only interaction with Lord Peter Wimsey, so I don't have the background with these characters that I'd have if I'd read the previous twelve mysteries in this series. Still, I enjoyed this book and the look at English countryside provided herein. There are entertaining characters peppered throughout the story and an overly complicated murder method allowing lots of tromping about trying to figure out the significance of various clues.
Overall an enjoyable read.
This is my first book by this author and my only interaction with Lord Peter Wimsey, so I don't have the background with these characters that I'd have if I'd read the previous twelve mysteries in this series. Still, I enjoyed this book and the look at English countryside provided herein. There are entertaining characters peppered throughout the story and an overly complicated murder method allowing lots of tromping about trying to figure out the significance of various clues.
Overall an enjoyable read.