Reading the Detectives discussion

Published in 1941, this is the seventh mystery in the Nigel Strangeways series. This was, in fact, the last Strangeways novel until after the end of WWII, in 1947, when the series re-started.

Poet turned detective Nigel Strangeways is summoned to Easterham Manor in the depths of winter to investigate a series of strange events. Although not a Christmas mystery, it is set in winter, with a classic Golden Age setting of a snowed-in house party, culminating in murder and a cast of suspects who all have secrets to hide...

Please refrain from posting spoilers in this thread. Thank you.

A little like our current Ngaio Marsh, this is a snowy, rather than a Christmas, mystery.

Nigel and Georgia are invited to stay with her cousin, Clarissa Cavendish. Nearby, live the wonderfully named Hereward Restorick, with his American wife, Charlotte, and children, John and Priscilla. At their house party was Uncle Andrew, Aunt Elizabeth, Dr Bogan, Miss Eunice Aimsley and Will Dykes, an author.

On Christmas Eve, some strange events have led cousin Clarissa to believe something is wrong and she asks Nigel and Georgia to investigate.

This was the last book that the author wrote during WWII - this was published in 1941. His next book in the series, Minute for Murder was published in 1947 and set just after the war. This is one of my favourites and I think the setting of the Ministry of Morale, is an interesting one.

Anyway, hope that this wintry mystery will appeal to some of you.

I'm very excited about this one. I've been impatiently waiting for my next Audible credit so I can listen to it on audiobook - hopefully my credit should come through tomorrow! You have really whetted my appetite with that description, Susan. :)

Good to hear, Judy :) We have the next one coming up in February, if I remember right.

I've started listening now and must say I found the beginning a bit confusing - but now we have a flashback to the start, and I think all will become clearer!

Like the Marsh, we have a similar issue with wartime in this novel. Although there is a war, there are still weekend parties going on and the war doesn't seem to intrude at all in this story... I think the blackout is mentioned, but that's about it.

Judy wrote: "I've started listening now and must say I found the beginning a bit confusing - but now we have a flashback to the start, and I think all will become clearer!"

Are some books harder to listen to than to read do you think? I'm thinking of Golden Age type detective stories where the reader is presented with a lot of information to process at the beginning of the book. I love listening to audiobooks particularly with a good narrator but often find myself having to listen to the first chapters again or, as I've done with a book I'm listening to at the moment, get the book from the library to re-read sections of the book to remind myself about events or characters.

Ruth, I do think Golden Age mysteries do tend to introduce a lot of characters at the beginning. Sometimes, with audio, I just make a note of them as they are mentioned; although I suspect I often spell them incorrectly!

Ruth, I think you are right that some books are more difficult to listen to - I especially find this with non-fiction books, where I often want to reread a paragraph or check back!

But it can also be a problem with mysteries which introduce a lot of characters, as you say. Susan, that is a good idea to make a note of them. I'm now finding that I do know who everyone is in the Abominable Snowman, though (about a quarter of the way through - I haven't had much listening time over the last couple of days!)

The whole business with the cat supposedly seeing a ghost is intriguing and very different - Blake certainly comes up with some unusual plots, after the earlier one involving a dog in There's Trouble Brewing!

Yes, that's true, Judy. The cat was an interesting idea. My cat (long gone now, bless her) always went and miaowed by a particular door around nine or clock at night. She did it without fail for years, always becoming quite agitated for a few minutes and waking up, if she were asleep. The door led to a passage and, if we opened the door, she wouldn't go through. It was very odd and we never got to the bottom of the mystery.

That's very strange, Susan - a good starting-point for a mystery, or a ghost story!

I didn't grow up in a romantic, Victorian pile, though, but a housing estate in East London! Still, if you believe in such things, it was odd.

What did you think of Georgia's cousin? Why do you think she choose to live in the past? Not that it might not be a bad idea in wartime, I suppose, to just ignore it, where possible.

I think it is mentioned that she had a nervous breakdown and started to think she was living in the 18th century after that, after studying the era.

This reminds me, I did once hear a Desert Island Discs episode with a writer who sets his books in the 1940s, I think it was, and has decided to live his whole life as if he was in that era, so for instance he does not have a computer or a television, writes with a fountain pen/typewriter, only listens to music made before his period, etc. I'm afraid I can't remember who it was, though!

That's a bit extreme. I like the era, but I also like my kindle and ipod too much :)

Removed comment with spoiler ... I was in the wrong thread!

I'm getting on a bit slowly with this because I'm listening to it and haven't had much opportunity to do so, but am really enjoying it - I'm out tonight, but hoping to get on faster in the next couple of days! It's quite a tantalising mystery. :)

I haven't had much reading time this week either, Judy, so I sympathise. That I have had has been spent on The Magic Mountain, which is a huge book, but wonderful.

As long as you are enjoying Snowman, when you do listen, that's what matters :)

I will be reading this, but will be a bit late as I decided to read There's Trouble Brewing first to fill in the 'gap' in the series. But I think it's a Nov/Dec read? If so, I'm not late yet!

There's plenty of time, Pamela. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts when you get to it.