Mystery Series- Lord Peter Wimsey

Dorothy L. Sayers (Fair Use)

Dorothy L. Sayers, 1893-1957, is considered one of the top four female mystery writers of the Golden Age of Mysteries (1920s and 1930s). Her primary detective is Lord Peter Wimsey, an English gentleman who likes to solve mysteries as a hobby.

A number of the Wimsey tales are short stories, which by design are much simpler than novels. Such stories are so noted below.

Of the Golden Age detectives, Lord Peter is my least favorite. But you may not agree.

Recurring Characters of Note:
Lord Peter Wimsey
Mervyn Bunter, his batman
Charles Parker, his brother-in-law
Harriet Vane

#1 Whose Body?, 1923

#2 Clouds of Witness, 1926

#3 Unnatural Death/ The Dawson Pedigree (US title), 1927

Lord Peter Views the Body, 1928, short story collection

The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club, 1928

Strong Poison, 1930

The Five Red Herrings, 1931

Have His Carcase, 1932

Hangman's Holiday, 1933, short story collection

Murder Must Advertise, 1933

The Nine Tailors, 1934

Gaudy Night, 1935

Busman's Honeymoon, 1937

In the Teeth of the Evidence, 1940, short story in the collection of the same name
Lord Peter is visiting his dentist when the man is summoned to examine the teeth of a corpse for identification purposes. Of course, Wimsey envigles his way into the scene. The identification appears to be straightforward.

Absolutely Elsewhere, 1940, short story in the collection In the Teeth of the Evidence
Wimsey's brother-in-law, detective Parker has asked him to help with a crime where all the good suspects were elsewhere at the time. An unpleasant and financially tight-fisted man is found murdered at the dinner table. Phone conversations place the man's nephews miles away. There is a man waiting in the library who might like to kill him. There is the butler and the cook. The solution of this mystery depends upon an understanding of the technology of the time period.

Striding Folly, 1972, short stories collected posthumously

Lord Peter, 1972, short stories collected posthumously

Thrones, Dominations, 1998 published posthumously and completed by Jill Paton Walsh

Mystery Series - Roderick Alleyn

Ngaio Marsh

(Edith) Ngaio Marsh was a New Zealand writer in the golden age of crime fiction. She is considered one of the top four of the era (with Agatha Christie, Dorothy L Sayers, Margery Allingham). She lived from 1895-1982.

In my opinion she's in the running for the best of the lot. Her forte is collecting a large cast of characters with relationships, animosities and ulterior motives. She usually has scenes with rooms filled with people, and the reader must pay close attention to who is saying what to whom in order to have a glimmer of the solution to the crime.

Inspector Alleyn is the police presence in all her mysteries. All but four of the books are set in England. The others are in New Zealand.

Recurring Characters of note:
Inspector (becoming Chief Inspector) Roderick Alleyn
Agatha Troy, his wife
Inspector Fox, his assistant

#1 A Man Lay Dead, 1934

#1 Enter a Murderer, 1935

#1 The Nursing Home Murder, 1935

#1 Death in Ecstasy, 1936

#1 Vintage Murder, 1937

#1 Artists in Crime, 1938

#1 Death in a White Tie, 1938

#1 Overture to Death, 1939

#1 Death at the Bar, 1940

#1 Surfeit of Lampreys/ Death of a Peer (US title), 1941
The Charles Lampreys are a family whose immediate head, Charles, is the younger brother of a peer, George. Consequently, he keeps going through money in the way he's been accustomed to live, but George is the one who inherited the family fortune. Several times, the Charles Lampreys have needed to be bailed out of financial hardship by George. Now George says (apparently), "no more."

The family is a lively bunch, currently living in a double apartment in England (after we first meet them in New Zealand). There are a pair of twins who have spent their lives joking/lying about which is which. The oldest daughter is an actress, and two younger children round out the group. Their favorite passtime is playing charades and they keep a large closet full of props and costumes. Of course there are servants.

George angrily visits after the next request for funds, but he is found in the elevator, seriously wounded by one of the famous props.

This is one of the best examples of Marsh's ability to confuse everything with a huge group of people who are experts at play-acting, and the twins make it even more complex.

#1 Death and the Dancing Footman, 1941

#1 Colour Scheme, 1943

#1 Died in the Wool, 1945

#1 Final Curtain, 1947

#1 Swing Brother Swing/ A Wreath for Rivera (US title), 1949

#1 Opening Night, 1951

#1 Spinsters in Jeopardy/ The Bride of Death (US abridged version), 1953

#1 Scales of Justice, 1955

#1 Off With His Head/ Death of a Fool, 1956

#1 Singing in the Shrouds, 1958

#1 False Scent, 1959

#1 Hand in Glove, 1962

#1 Dead Water, 1963

#1 Death at the Dolphin/ Killer Dolphin (US title), 1966

#1 Clutch of Constables, 1968

#1 When in Rome, 1970

#1 Tied Up in Tinsel, 1972

#1 Black As He's Painted, 1974

#1 Last Ditch, 1977

#1 Grave Mistake, 1978

#1 Photo Finish, 1980

#1 Light Thickens, 1982

Mystery Series - Beverly Gray

dust jacket of Beverly Gray, Senior

The Beverly Gray mysteries were written over the time period of 1933- 1955. It is a series of 25 books, similar to the Nancy Drew books, but the girls are college age and young adults. The first four books take Beverly Gray through Vernon college with Beverly Gray, Freshman, then Sophomore, Junior and Senior The author is Clair Blank, and the first four books were published when she was only 18, just out of high school. The series continued until her death in 1955.

#1 Beverly Gray, Freshman, 1933

#2 Beverly Gray, Sophomore, 1933

#3 Beverly Gray, Junior, 1933

#4 Beverly Gray, Senior, 1933
This story is definitely a period piece, and clearly written for girls. The emphasis is on the social aspects of college life, although I give it some credit for lines like, "I've so many plans and hopes for the future. I want a career. I wnat to do something-- I don't think I could be content if I settled down now and threw all those dreams aside." The mystery itself is a bit thin with a plot including the kidnapping of a classmate who has been hired to star in a motion picture.

The primary emphasis of the plot is the changes in the girl's relationships as the "movie star" becomes something of a snob. Graduation brings a bittersweet ending to the girls' "club." However, the book is well-written and fits into the genre and the time period well.

#5 Beverly Gray's Career, 1935

#6 Beverly Gray at the World's Fair, 1935

#7 Beverly Gray on a World Cruise, 1936

#8 Beverly Gray in the Orient, 1937

#9 Beverly Gray on a Treasure Hunt, 1938

#10 Beverly Gray's Return, 1940

#11 Beverly Gray, Reporter, 1940

#12 Beverly Gray's Romance, 1941

#13 Beverly Gray's Problem, 1943

#14 Beverly Gray's Quest, 1945

#15 Beverly Gray's Assignment, 1947

#16 Beverly Gray's Adventure, 1944

#17 Beverly Gray's Challenge, 1945

#18 Beverly Gray's Journey, 1946

#19 Beverly Gray's Mystery, 1948

#20 Beverly Gray's Vacation, 1949

#21 Beverly Gray's Fortune, 1950

#22 Beverly Gray's Secret, 1951

#23 Beverly Gray's Island Adventure, 1952

#24 Beverly Gray's Discovery, 1953

#25 Beverly Gray's Surprise, 1955

Clair Blank

I found it extremelly interesting that the back cover of the "Senior" dust jacket advertizes the Judy Bolton mysteries. And even more interesting to me is the back flap has the seven Melody Lane mysteries, which are some of my favorites of the time period.