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jonathanrobert's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
gray5217's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
hbcbray's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Edmund Crispin undermines the traditional sleuth-based whodunnit here, by having the sleuth - Gervase Fen - be almost an absent non-character for a majority of the book. And then Fen is so odd, so idiosyncratic, he's hard to be interested in. Still, the mystery itself is an interesting and engaging one.
frithnanth's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
I can't say whether this book is intended to be a satire of the genre. If not, it's really bad.
bookwormbev17's review against another edition
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
helgamharb's review against another edition
2.0
I have seen phantoms there that were as men,
And men that were as phantoms flit and roam.
-James Thomson
A locked-room mystery with the usual detested murder victim, the usual suspects with alibis and the usual motives for murder.
And men that were as phantoms flit and roam.
-James Thomson
A locked-room mystery with the usual detested murder victim, the usual suspects with alibis and the usual motives for murder.
jrenee's review against another edition
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
3.75
lilirose's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Un giallo classico che più classico non si può, in cui non manca nessuno degli elementi tipici del genere: un delitto apparentemente insolubile, una rosa di sospettati ognuno con un ottimo movente e soprattutto l'investigatore eccentrico ma geniale.
L'inizio è promettente perchè riesce a presentarci i personaggi e l'ambiente in cui si muovono in maniera brillante e scanzonata, non solo evitando il rischio "spiegone" ma addirittura riuscendo a creare un po' di suspense. Poi pian piano la storia perde mordente e si trascina in giri a vuoto, fino ad arrivare ad un finale francamente debolissimo: peccato perché di solito nei mystery si va in crescendo e si punta tutto sul climax, se non funziona quello ne risente il giudizio sull'intera opera. Il problema è che se crei un detective talmente geniale che risolve il caso tre minuti dopo essere arrivato sulla scena (cito testualmente), poi devi essere molto bravo a giustificare il motivo per cui il libro vada avanti per un altro centinaio di pagine e Crispin evidentemente non ce l'ha fatta, si è perso in lungaggini e minuzie. Per fortuna lo stile arguto e l'ironia garbata la rendono una lettura comunque piacevole.
In conclusione un amante dei gialli vecchio stile qui troverà un dignitoso esponente della categoria, personalmente lo ritengo l'ennesimo esempio del perché fra le miriadi di giallisti fioriti nella prima metà del '900 in Inghilterra solo Agatha Christie abbia superato brillantemente la prova del tempo.
L'inizio è promettente perchè riesce a presentarci i personaggi e l'ambiente in cui si muovono in maniera brillante e scanzonata, non solo evitando il rischio "spiegone" ma addirittura riuscendo a creare un po' di suspense. Poi pian piano la storia perde mordente e si trascina in giri a vuoto, fino ad arrivare ad un finale francamente debolissimo: peccato perché di solito nei mystery si va in crescendo e si punta tutto sul climax, se non funziona quello ne risente il giudizio sull'intera opera. Il problema è che se crei un detective talmente geniale che risolve il caso tre minuti dopo essere arrivato sulla scena (cito testualmente), poi devi essere molto bravo a giustificare il motivo per cui il libro vada avanti per un altro centinaio di pagine e Crispin evidentemente non ce l'ha fatta, si è perso in lungaggini e minuzie. Per fortuna lo stile arguto e l'ironia garbata la rendono una lettura comunque piacevole.
In conclusione un amante dei gialli vecchio stile qui troverà un dignitoso esponente della categoria, personalmente lo ritengo l'ennesimo esempio del perché fra le miriadi di giallisti fioriti nella prima metà del '900 in Inghilterra solo Agatha Christie abbia superato brillantemente la prova del tempo.
omegabeth's review against another edition
4.0
In my attempt to explore more Golden Age authors, I was pleased to find this available as an e-book. Some of the other readers have commented on the awkwardness of portrayal of women in this book, but when looking at the whole, it’s not just women that Crispin doesn’t understand—it’s more that the entire book is short on characters with ‘realistic’ motivations, male or female. (Just for scope/scale, he is nowhere near as misogynistic as Rex Stout.)
The plot is thin, there are gaps in the explanation, and the journalist character is named Nigel (12 years after Ngaio Marsh’s first mystery), but it’s not just tropes and devices. The murderer is part of one of the couples that get engaged during the book, which is very much outside the typical classic arc. There is a police inspector who comes in handy for arresting people, but is a bit character part, and the police procedurality is absent. The clues are all there—no slight of hand here, and not much misdirection, either, just some interesting ideas well integrated into the story.
That having been said, it’s a much better book than that would imply, and it’s better than the 3 stars I give it—more like 3.5 or so, but not a 4.
The writing is often excellent, with an overlay of academic, atmospheric stodge befitting the eccentric Oxford don/detective Gervase Fen at the center. This is very much a first novel, and I am looking forward to continuing the series (Kindle Unlimited for the win!)
The plot is thin, there are gaps in the explanation, and the journalist character is named Nigel (12 years after Ngaio Marsh’s first mystery), but it’s not just tropes and devices. The murderer is part of one of the couples that get engaged during the book, which is very much outside the typical classic arc. There is a police inspector who comes in handy for arresting people, but is a bit character part, and the police procedurality is absent. The clues are all there—no slight of hand here, and not much misdirection, either, just some interesting ideas well integrated into the story.
That having been said, it’s a much better book than that would imply, and it’s better than the 3 stars I give it—more like 3.5 or so, but not a 4.
The writing is often excellent, with an overlay of academic, atmospheric stodge befitting the eccentric Oxford don/detective Gervase Fen at the center. This is very much a first novel, and I am looking forward to continuing the series (Kindle Unlimited for the win!)