Author: JJ

#602: In the First Degree (1933) by Roger Scarlett

/ JJ / 11 Comments

Roger Scarlett v3star filledstar filledstar filledstar filledstar filled
It’s been a fun ride with Dorothy Blair and Evelyn Page, but now we reach the end.  A mere five books came from these two ladies under their Roger Scarlett nom de plume, and it’s thanks to the tireless work of the folk at Coachwhip publications — and GAD’s own Curtis Evans — that these hugely enjoyable novels have been made available again.  Because enjoy them I have, and my feelings about this final volume are amplified by having read all that preceded it; without that context, I (and possibly you — be forewarned) would not have gotten quite as much out of this last hurrah.  As it is, and as you can clearly see above, I loved it to bits.

Continue reading →

#601: Little Fictions/Going Home – The Crime Stories of Edgar Allan Poe: ‘The Murders in the Rue Morgue’ (1841)

/ JJ / 12 Comments

Poe header

Sometimes my Tuesday posts are themed as Little Fictions, wherein I look at short stories; back in May I did a month themed around the origins of my detective fiction obsession called Going Home.  This month it’s a Megazord comprised of both, looking at short stories that formed the origins of detective fiction…and there’s only one place to go for that.

Continue reading →

#599: Heir Presumptive (1935) by Henry Wade

/ JJ / 31 Comments

Heir Presumptivestar filledstar filledstar filledstar filledstar filled
Without wishing to overlook the great work once done by The Murder Room, someone needs to reprint Henry Wade.  I enjoyed The Hanging Captain (1933) and very much enjoyed The Duke of York’s Steps (1929), but Heir Presumptive (1935) is in another class altogether and, like Craig Rice the other week, if he has any other books written with even half the fizz and joy of this one, those are books I wish to read…but, goddamn, the man’s fully OOP at present and something needs to be done.  Because if you haven’t read this one yet, I urge you to find it at the earliest opportunity, and that means we’ll then be in competition for any other paperbacks out there once you love this as much as I did.

Continue reading →

#597: A Little Help for My Friends – Finding a Modern Locked Room Mystery for TomCat Attempt #13: Impolitic Corpses (2019) by Paul Johnston

/ JJ / 13 Comments

Impolitic Corpses

Cast triskaidekaphobia aside!  Sure, these modern impossible crime novels haven’t always shown the subgenre at its best, but Paul Johnston was one of the many contemporary crime fiction authors I read back in the early 2000s, and a chance to reconnect with him and the series that made his name can only be a good thing…right?

Continue reading →

#596: The Dartmouth Murders (1929) by Clifford Orr

/ JJ / 2 Comments

Dartmouth Wailing Rock Murdersstar filledstar filledstar filledstarsstars
The name Clifford Orr first came to my attention on account of the Roland Lacourbe-curated ‘100 Books for a Locked Room Library’ list featuring Orr’s second and final novel, The Wailing Rock Murders (1932).  So when that title cropped up in this twofer of Orr’s complete output, I snapped it up and just had to wait for sufficient snow to clear from the peak of Mount TBR.  And, as it happens, I’m posting this review of his debut novel The Dartmouth Murders (1929) a mere two days after what would have been Orr’s 120th birthday — entirely by accident, as anyone who has met me in real life will be able to attest.  Such organisation is not one of my strong points.

Continue reading →

#595: Reflections on Detection – The Knox Decalogue 2: The Supernatural

/ JJ / 15 Comments

Decalogue header

Sometimes I regret saying I’ll do stuff; this week, I regret saying I’ll explore each of the rules of Ronald Knox’s Detective Fiction Decalogue in depth.  Mainly because I’m busy, and so I’m not going to do this as well as I otherwise might.  And that frustrates me doubly, because Rule 2 is the one that got me thinking about this in the first place.

Continue reading →

#593: Home Sweet Homicide (1944) by Craig Rice

/ JJ / 18 Comments

Home Sweet Homicidestar filledstar filledstar filledstar filledstar filled
As a rule, I start getting a bit nervous if it takes me more than three days to finish a book.  I read Home Sweet Homicide (1944), the first of Georgiana Ann Randolph Craig’s novels I’ve ever attempted, over one week and one day and, quite honestly, would have happily kept reading it for another month or two.  I’ve never gotten a sense of her as an author from her short stories — largely, I’d imagine, because of the need to cram in character and plot in less space — and, if I’m honest, didn’t relish the screwball antics her reputation seemed to promise.  Well, no fear.  This isn’t screwball, it’s not especially tightly plotted, and it’s possibly the best book I’ve read in a long ol’ time.

Continue reading →