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emmalthompson85's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-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
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs and Racism
cryptix's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.75
A dying old woman dies a little earlier than her doctor expects, and Lord Peter Wimsey spends some two hundred pages trying to determine if a murder was even committed, much less how, why, and by whom. Rather a dry start for a mystery, and honestly it doesn't pick up much speed even when another mystery death crops up.
Having watched a lot of Psych recently, Wimsey strikes me in many ways as a 1920s version of a character like Shawn Spencer -- bright, a little irreverent, prone to getting off-topic, and constantly making pop culture references. Only, Wimsey's pop culture is Wordsworth and Voltaire, rather than John Hughes. Makes things a little hard to follow from 100 years later, but there's still a certain charm about it. Aside from the constant quips, there are some delightful turns of phrase, my favorite being along the lines of 'Lord Peter affectionately wrapped himself around an absurd quantity of eggs and bacon'. I find the character and his supporting cast charming enough to give some of the other books a try even if this one wasn't to my tastes.
Unfortunately the book is prone to other 20s issues, such as rampant casual misogyny (especially an annoying tendency to refer to 'females') and racism (including multiple uses of the n-slur and some unkind talk about Jews.) There's some 'gals being pals' talk that's so on-the-nose that it feels like intentional subtext, but one of the relationships discussed is long over and the other one ends in murder, so don't get your hopes up about that.
The book also ends on an oddly serious, morose note. It feels like it's trying to ground the story, but that comes out of left field after an entire book of characters -- especially Wimsey and his employee Miss Crimpson -- being odd to the point of caricature.
Overall I'd give this a miss.
Having watched a lot of Psych recently, Wimsey strikes me in many ways as a 1920s version of a character like Shawn Spencer -- bright, a little irreverent, prone to getting off-topic, and constantly making pop culture references. Only, Wimsey's pop culture is Wordsworth and Voltaire, rather than John Hughes. Makes things a little hard to follow from 100 years later, but there's still a certain charm about it. Aside from the constant quips, there are some delightful turns of phrase, my favorite being along the lines of 'Lord Peter affectionately wrapped himself around an absurd quantity of eggs and bacon'. I find the character and his supporting cast charming enough to give some of the other books a try even if this one wasn't to my tastes.
Unfortunately the book is prone to other 20s issues, such as rampant casual misogyny (especially an annoying tendency to refer to 'females') and racism (including multiple uses of the n-slur and some unkind talk about Jews.) There's some 'gals being pals' talk that's so on-the-nose that it feels like intentional subtext, but one of the relationships discussed is long over and the other one ends in murder, so don't get your hopes up about that.
The book also ends on an oddly serious, morose note. It feels like it's trying to ground the story, but that comes out of left field after an entire book of characters -- especially Wimsey and his employee Miss Crimpson -- being odd to the point of caricature.
Overall I'd give this a miss.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs
Moderate: Misogyny
Minor: Suicide
cheekylaydee's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racial slurs and Racism
readerlady's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-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
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs
Moderate: Homophobia, Misogyny, and Racism
phoebemurtagh's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cancer, Murder, Lesbophobia, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Cursing, Homophobia, Car accident, Alcohol, War, and Classism
kimalah's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Well. As far as a mystery, Unnatural Death is more a how was it done rather than a whodunnit. The perpetrator was pretty obvious from the beginning. Overall, the mystery itself was ok.
But oh boy, the racism and homophobia. It was apparent that Sayers was trying to condemn it through some awful characters, but it permeated the text. I know this is said to be of it’s time, but that doesn’t make it any less gross to me.
But oh boy, the racism and homophobia. It was apparent that Sayers was trying to condemn it through some awful characters, but it permeated the text. I know this is said to be of it’s time, but that doesn’t make it any less gross to me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Antisemitism, Religious bigotry, and Lesbophobia
Moderate: Murder
eleaax's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-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
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racial slurs, Racism, Suicide, and Xenophobia
marioncromb's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Lord Peter Wimsey investigates a death with no apparent means or motive. There are lots of lesbians. The story is pretty gripping but one of the twists is pretty obvious. I found Miss Climpson's style of letter writing incredibly amusing. The language is dated by use of certain slurs.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Homophobia, Racism, Sexism, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Lesbophobia, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Cancer, Suicide, Blood, Antisemitism, and Car accident
kjboldon's review
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I will forever adore this book because one clue was an extraordinary ham sandwich, and soon after is this line: "The examination was not a very pleasant matter, for the weather had been damp and warm and there had certainly been weasels."
There was also a happy, successful lesbian-coded duo. And a v curious fictional biographical note that Sayers filled with deliberate spoilers. But fair warning of 1920s racism and the N word, and some curious sexist commentary coming from the otherwise amiable Lord Peter and his friend Parker.
There was also a happy, successful lesbian-coded duo. And a v curious fictional biographical note that Sayers filled with deliberate spoilers. But fair warning of 1920s racism and the N word, and some curious sexist commentary coming from the otherwise amiable Lord Peter and his friend Parker.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Murder, and Classism
kmpuzzled's review against another edition
funny
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Racial slurs, Suicide, Antisemitism, and Religious bigotry