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slferg's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Dr Strangelove is called on when filling in for another doctor in London to visit a patient. He is not given her name or address, but it appears to him that an attempt has been made to strangle her. After a time, in which he cannot get the woman out of his mind, he is offered the purchase of a deceased doctor’s practice. It’s not a large practice, but it gives him something to do as he has inherited some money but still needs work to supplement it. He is asked to check on a woman who is related to the agent he deals with and discovers her to be the woman from London who is hiding from her husband - who had tried to strangle her and is a neurotic type who uses drugs and drinks. But her husband comes in search of her. He does not find her but she disappears one evening and all are afraid she is dead and that her husband killed her. However Dr Thorndyke, a medical jurist, has taken an interest in the case.
The story is related by Dr Strangelove who had fallen in love with the mysterious Angelina before she disappeared.
The story is related by Dr Strangelove who had fallen in love with the mysterious Angelina before she disappeared.
justasking27's review
3.0
A little different than the standard Dr Thorndyke mystery, as the narrator here sends dispatches to Thorndyke and we don't get any of his hints until close to the end.
alexauthorshay's review
4.0
Definitely one of the better Thorndyke novels. Every novel has a twist, and each novel deploys said twist at different times, though all within sight of the end of the book. This novel deployed it very near to the end, almost like in "Helen Vardon's Confession." However, where the Helen Vardon novel failed beyond atrocity, this novel put the twist in with time to spare and was not nearly as irritating for doing so.
This particular crime's twist was not as surprising to me as it might have been had I read this book as a stand-alone or after taking a break from the series, but the rest of the plot was intriguing enough that the surprise at the end was hardly even relevant to the quality of the book. It simply made things more amusing and provided the happily-ever-after that looked impossible. (But of course you should expect as much when the detective is Thorndyke; his whole purpose is solving and explaining the impossible.)
This particular crime's twist was not as surprising to me as it might have been had I read this book as a stand-alone or after taking a break from the series, but the rest of the plot was intriguing enough that the surprise at the end was hardly even relevant to the quality of the book. It simply made things more amusing and provided the happily-ever-after that looked impossible. (But of course you should expect as much when the detective is Thorndyke; his whole purpose is solving and explaining the impossible.)
vesper1931's review
4.0
One year before, Dr. Strangeness treats a Mrs Johnson, but now he has taken over a medical practice in Rochester and meets her again as Mrs Angelina Frood, who is hiding from her husband. But when she goes missing he feels inclined to investigate and involves Dr Thorndyke in the mystery.
An entertaining mystery
Originally published in 1924
An entertaining mystery
Originally published in 1924
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