I is for Investigation

[Thank you to Kerrie, Mysteries in Paradise, for hosting the alphabet meme]

When I first fell for the genre of crime fiction, it was the puzzles, the game of trying to make sense of the clues, that caught me. My first ´love´ as an adult reader was Dorothy L. Sayers, one of the most famous Golden Age writers.

What I enjoyed in her books (apart from Lord Peter Wimsey whom I found rather charming) was the way she let the reader follow Wimsey´s investigation. She let us play along, showing us the cracked egg and the tube of paint, the cipher letter and the stains on the floor. So when I read a great mystery, it appealed to my curiosity, making me want to solve mysteries myself.

Give me some good detective work, and I´ll keep quiet - for a few hours at least.

I have learned to like other subgenres, but I still appreciate a good, old-fashioned investigation, and whether I write about amateur sleuths or police procedurals, I like to add those little clues: the dirty towel, the binoculars in the tree, the little toe etc.

Come back tomorrow for a new Kickinbottom story (a rather open-ended one) with a none-too-brilliant character who might need YOU to figure out what´s going on.
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Six Word Sunday

I am sure you have come across six-word stories or memoirs before, e.g. the famous Hemingway story: “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.” I think Shakespeare could have written some terrific ones: “Is that a dagger I s...?”

When my friend Margot, Confessions of a Mystery Novelist, called for dribbles the other day (fifty-word stories), my mind switched to Hemingway mode and began spitting out six-word stories.

Here is my new variation of the concept: stories inspired by book titles:

Golden Age Mysteries: 

1. “Gaudy Night.” “Unnatural Death.” “Whose Body?”

2. Having: “Busman´s Honeymoon.” Wanting: “Strong Poison.”

And now a threat: don´t you dare copying my idea – unless you come back here with a link so we can share the fun!
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Fame At Last - Or...

Oh dear, away from my computer for 24 hours, and already so many emails to read and answer. As school begins today, I have not had time to select a proper bait-in-the-box novel, but I thought you might enjoy hearing about my international fame:

Dear Sayers Dorothy L,

Some time ago my colleague, Mrs. …….., offered you the possibility of making your academic paper entitled "Are Women Human  Astute and Witty Essays on the Role of Women in Society" available as printed book.

Since we did not hear back from you, I am now wondering if you received our first email. I would appreciate if you could confirm your interest in our publishing house and I will be glad to provide you with detailed information about our services.

I am looking forward to receiving a positive response from you.

Thank you and kind regards,

………..
Acquisition Editor

…… Publishing House

Now the question is, should I give up my teaching career immediately, or should I wait and see how much money there is in my new (old) name?

S for Sayers and Staun

This week the letter of Kerrie´s alphabet meme is S.


S is for the British writer Dorothy L Sayers, a Golden Age favourite of mine. She wrote fourteen Lord Peter Wimsey novels and I devoured them all (several times).


I wrote a tribute to Ms Sayers (and to my dear grandmother) around a year ago in this post.


And S is for Danish writer Susanne Staun, a modern favourite of mine. I reread and reviewed her fantastic debut in March last year, and I am really sorry that you can only get her novels in Danish and German. (She says her books do not translate well, and I believe her; her tone is unique and very, very ironic).

Her first three Fanny Fiske novels are five-star crime stories, and while the fourth is a bit weaker, I will still give it three stars, and four for the latest, Before I Die (she sent me a signed copy, and my, how proud I was!)


S for Sayers og Staun.

Ugens bogstav er S.

S for den britiske forfatter Dorothy L Sayers, en af mine guldalder-favoritter (1920erne og 1930erne). Hun skrev fjorten krimier med den seje Lord Peter Wimsey, og jeg har slugt dem alle sammen – mange gange.

Jeg skrev en hyldest til D.L. Sayers (og til min dejlige farmor) for et år siden.

Og S er for den danske krimiforfatter Susanne Staun, en af mine nutidige favoritter. Jeg genlæste og anmeldte hendes debut i marts sidste år.

Hendes tre første Fanny Fiske-bøger er femstjernede krimier (fængslende og uhyggelige, med masser af tjæresort humor), og selv om fireren er lidt svagere, vil jeg stadig give den tre stjerner, og fire stjerner til den seneste, Før jeg dør (forfatteren sendte mig en signeret udgave, og jeg var helt ellevild).

Fanny Fiske-serien:
Som arvesynden (1999)
Liebe/Mord som forløser (2000)
Mit smukke lig (2002)
Mine piger (2008)
Før jeg dør (2009)

Dorothy L. Sayers, The Nine Tailors (1934)

[Dansk titel: De ni klokkeslag, 1949]

This excellent classic is the eleventh Lord Peter Wimsey mystery. It begins on New Year´s Eve, when Wimsey and his faithful butler, Bunter, end up in a ditch during a snow storm in the Fenland. They seek help at the nearest house, the vicarage, and soon kind, bewildered Reverend Venables has engaged Lord Peter to assist the local bell ringing team who are struck by a severe flu. They have ambitious plans to ring a nine-hour peal (for more information, read the story). The ringing is carried out very successfully, but in the course of the night the squire´s popular wife dies.

Of course this is not only a story about campanology. Around Easter the squire himself dies, and when the sexton finds an extra – mutilated – body in his wife´s grave, the perplexed vicar asks Lord Peter for assistance. It appears that the dead man is connected to a case about some emeralds that were stolen several years ago, and an important clue is a cipher which seems to be related to bell ringing.

What is so excellent about the story is the way the old bells and the crime story are intertwined, for example in the title which refers to the nine ´tellers´ which are rung when a man dies. And as usual, Ms Sayers is able to keep up the excitement without employing too much blood and gore.

Dorothy Sayers, Busman´s Honeymoon (1937)

Cozy Mystery Reading Challenge # 2

This crime novel is not only a classic, but also the prototype of a cosy mystery, because the main part of the plot takes place in and around one single house, with the usual, small circle of suspects.

Several letters at the beginning of the novel indicate that Sayers may have planned to write an epistolary novel, but after the first twenty five pages she changes the style and continues in traditional crime fiction mode.

A short plot summary: the coveted bachelor Lord Peter Wimsey has finally married the independent crime fiction writer Harriet Vane, who has a past as a murder suspect. The two set out for their honeymoon in their newly acquired country house, Talboys. Contrary to their expectations, the former owner has vanished into thin air, and nothing has been prepared for their reception. The owner, cynical and stingy Mr Noakes, reappears soon enough, however, at the foot of the stairs of his own cellar.

The peace is over as the detective and crime writer can´t just enjoy their honeymoon with a murderer on the loose. Superintendent Kirk is a good and conscientious police officer, but he accepts their assistance eagerly, and rejoices at every opportunity to exchange literary quotations with Peter Wimsey.

As usual D.L. Sayers has created a fine and coherent crime plot, but the love story does take up a good deal of the book. Peter Wimsey fans will know that the public-spirited nobleman suffers when his own ´victims´ have been brought to justice (at a time when England had not given up the death penalty), and after having tried to cope with his feelings of horror and guilt on his own, he seeks Harriet´s help. “You´re my corner, and I´ve come to hide.”

For readers who enjoy cozy mysteries at all, this master mystery is a must.

Dorothy L Sayers, Peter Wimseys hvedebrødsdage (1950).
Denne krimi er dels en klassiker, dels prototypen på et cozy mystery, fordi så stor en del af handlingen udspiller sig i og omkring et enkelt hus, med den sædvanlige lille kreds af mistænkte.

En lang række breve ved starten af romanen kunne tyde på, at Sayers havde planer om at skrive en brevroman, men efter de første femogtyve skifter hun stil, og fortsætter på traditionel krimivis.

Et kort rids af handlingen: den eftertragtede ungkarl Lord Peter Wimsey er omsider blevet gift, med den uafhængige krimiforfatter Harriet Vane, som har en fortid som mordmistænkt. Parret drager på bryllupsrejse til deres nyindkøbte landsted, hvor alt skulle være klar til at modtage dem, men den tidligere ejer er forsvundet, og intet er forberedt. Ejeren, den kyniske og nærige Mr Noakes, dukker dog snart op igen for foden af sin egen kældertrappe.
Freden er forbi, for naturligvis kan detektiven og krimiforfatteren ikke bare nyde deres hvedebrødsdage, mens en morder er på fri fod. Den lokale mand, Superintendent Kirk er både dygtig og samvittighedsfuld, men tager gerne imod den udstrakte hånd.

Som sædvanlig har D.L. Sayers skabt et fint og sammenhængende krimiplot, men kærlighedshistorien fylder unægtelig også en del i bogen. Peter Wimsey-fans vil vide, at den samfundsbevidste adelsmand har det svært, når hans egne ´ofre´ har været for retten (i en tid hvor England endnu ikke havde opgivet dødsstraffen), og efter at have forsøgt at klare sig igennem på egen hånd som sædvanlig, overgiver han sig, og søger Harriets hjælp. ”Du er mit hjørne, og jeg er kommet for at skjule mig.”

For læsere, som overhovedet er til ´cozy mysteries´, er dette mestermysterium ikke til at komme uden om.

My first crime novel: Clouds of Witness (1926)

The first crime novel I got was Dorothy Sayers´ Cloud of Witness. Together with my parents I visited my grandmother one Sunday afternoon when I was around thirteen years old. As usual, I browsed her books and fell into the first adult crime story I had ever read. I enjoyed meeting Lord Peter Wimsey, the distinguished detective, and his little helper, Inspector Charles Parker, but of course we had to go home before I had finished reading the 286 pages.

"You may keep it. I have read it," my grandmother said so I brought my treasure home. Even today, when I own more than 500 crime novels, this old book is quite special to me. Not only because it was the first, but my dear, generous, humorous grandmother gave it to me!

So this was my first meeting with Dorothy Sayers. I really liked the book, and I have read all her Peter Wimsey stories years ago. One of the things I remember about "Clouds of Witness" is that I thought Wimsey and Parker were ´old men´, or at least middle-aged, so I was amazed when they had solved the mystery and celebrated by getting drunk. I thought that was out of character.



Min første krimi: Et væld af beviser (1947)
Den første krimi jeg fik, var Dorothy Sayers "Et væld af beviser". Jeg var på søndagsbesøg hos min farmor sammen med mine forældre, da jeg var ca tretten år gammel. Som sædvanlig gik jeg ombord i hendes bogreol, og faldt i min første voksenkrimi. Jeg nød mødet med Lord Peter Wimsey, den adelige detektiv, og hans lille hjælper, politiassistent Charles Parker, men selvfølgelig skulle vi hjem, længe før jeg var nået igennem alle 286 sider.

"Du må godt beholde den; jeg har læst den" sagde min farmor, så jeg tog min nyerhvervede skat med mig hjem. Selv idag, hvor jeg ejer mere end 500 krimier, er den plettede, gamle bog helt speciel for mig. Ikke bare fordi den var den første, men min søde, gavmilde og humoristiske farmor gav mig den!

Så sådan mødte jeg Dorothy Sayers for første gang. Jeg blev vældig glad for bogen, og har siden læst hele Peter Wimsey-serien. En af de ting, jeg kan huske om "Et væld af beviser" er, at jeg så Peter Wimsey og Charles Parker for mig som gamle mænd, eller i hvert fald midaldrende, så jeg var helt forbløffet, da de havde opklaret mysteriet og fejrede det ved at drikke sig fulde. Det passede ikke rigtigt til mine forestillinger.