Scan barcode
tombomp's review against another edition
3.0
Obviously the quality of the stories is variable but there's only one that's outright *bad* or offensively break my suspension of disbelief. At the same time none are really "wow" either. The bad one is The Secret Garden by GK Chesterton, which I admit I didn't read this time because when I first read it years ago I thought it was the worst mystery story I'd ever read. Chesterton doesn't think atheists are human and can't imagine human motives for them so the denouement is purely ludicrous and to be honest I cannot understand why anyone would think this story was good.
Probably the best stories are The New Catacomb by Arthur Conan Doyle - which is highly predictable and yet the payoff is still satisfyingly macabre - and Have You Got Everything You Want? by Agatha Christie - which doesn't have the sparkle of her best writing yet the solution is the most clever *and* satisfying of the book. The other interesting one is The Perfect Murder by Stacy Aumonier, which like the Conan Doyle story is macabre and avoids issues of justice in favour of a grimly satisfying dramatic twist. Other stories are alright but just don't have that special something to elevate them. The Long Dinner by HC Bailey has a highly unusual murder method and crime but somehow doesn't really feel like a "wow" ending like it should. Petit-Jean by Ian Hay is on the poorer side in my opinion but it's at least interesting as an example of a war time story.
At the same time I do really love these compilations, even if individually the stories aren't brilliant, and I'll definitely keep reading them. I really appreciate the range of the stories chosen and how most of them are a bit unusual and admire the editing work. Also I'll admit reading this around the UK election kind of soured my mood
Probably the best stories are The New Catacomb by Arthur Conan Doyle - which is highly predictable and yet the payoff is still satisfyingly macabre - and Have You Got Everything You Want? by Agatha Christie - which doesn't have the sparkle of her best writing yet the solution is the most clever *and* satisfying of the book. The other interesting one is The Perfect Murder by Stacy Aumonier, which like the Conan Doyle story is macabre and avoids issues of justice in favour of a grimly satisfying dramatic twist. Other stories are alright but just don't have that special something to elevate them. The Long Dinner by HC Bailey has a highly unusual murder method and crime but somehow doesn't really feel like a "wow" ending like it should. Petit-Jean by Ian Hay is on the poorer side in my opinion but it's at least interesting as an example of a war time story.
At the same time I do really love these compilations, even if individually the stories aren't brilliant, and I'll definitely keep reading them. I really appreciate the range of the stories chosen and how most of them are a bit unusual and admire the editing work. Also I'll admit reading this around the UK election kind of soured my mood
fictionfan's review against another edition
4.0
The Brits abroad...
This is another in the British Library's series of anthologies of vintage crime stories edited by Martin Edwards. This time, the focus is on Continental Europe as the authors take us to casinos in Monte Carlo, catacombs in Rome, castles on the Rhine, in search of the usual murder, mystery and mayhem. To be clear, this is British authors visiting the Continent – I believe there's a new anthology coming along soon containing stories by non-Brits translated into English, some for the first time, which should be fun.
I found this collection quite variable in quality. Although there were certainly enough 4 and 5 star stories to keep me entertained, there were also several stories that didn't quite cut it as far as I'm concerned. Partly this is to do with the settings – I freely admit I prefer the traditional English manor house or village, or the foggy streets of London, as the setting for my vintage crime fix. But also it's because sometimes I felt the setting wasn't really brought to life terribly well, or there was a touch too much of that British condescension towards all foreigners.
Oddly there were also a couple of stories where the attitude towards (lower-class) women goes well over the out-dated line towards outright misogyny – not a thing I'm normally aware of in vintage crime. Something about going abroad seems to bring out the worst in Brits, I think! I hasten to add that one of these stories was written by a woman, Josephine Bell, who clearly felt that her young female murder victim had brought her fate on herself by her unladylike behaviour in pursuing a man - it actually contains the line “She was asking for it!” The other one was by Michael Gilbert who rounds his story off with the equally astonishing line: “Many a successful marriage has been founded on a good beating.” Well, Mr Gilbert, should you ever propose to me, I'll be sure to give you a sound thrashing before I reply...
There's also plenty of good stuff, though. There's the usual mix of well known and more obscure names among the authors, and a nice mix of crimes, from 'impossible' mysteries to revenge murders, blackmail, theft, greed and even the occasional haunting. Here's a little selection of some of the ones I enjoyed most...
The New Catacomb by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle – I know I nearly always select the Conan Doyle story, but that's because he's such a great storyteller. This one is a lovely little revenge tale which climaxes in a catacomb in Rome. An interesting story well told, and with some effective touches of horror – make sure you don't read it if there's any danger of a power outage...
A Bracelet at Bruges by Arnold Bennett – While Kitty is showing her her new expensive bracelet to another woman, it somehow gets dropped into a canal in Bruges and is lost. Or is it? This is more of a howdunit with a neat solution and has a rather charming little romance thrown in. But the reason I enjoyed it so much is that it reminded me of the sheer quality of Arnold Bennett's writing – an author I loved when I was young, though for his fiction rather than crime, and had more or less completely forgotten. Must revisit him!
The Room in the Tower by J Jefferson Farjeon – our narrator, a writer, goes to stay in a castle on the Rhine looking for inspiration and atmosphere for his book. Perhaps he gets more atmosphere than he anticipated though when he gets lost in the gloomy corridors and ends up in the haunted tower. The story in this one is a bit weird but Farjeon builds up the tension well and there are some genuinely spooky moments.
So even though this isn't my favourite of these anthologies, there's still plenty to enjoy. And I haven't even mentioned the Agatha Christie story...
3½ stars for me, so rounded up.
NB This book was provided for review by the publisher, Poisoned Pen Press.
www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com
This is another in the British Library's series of anthologies of vintage crime stories edited by Martin Edwards. This time, the focus is on Continental Europe as the authors take us to casinos in Monte Carlo, catacombs in Rome, castles on the Rhine, in search of the usual murder, mystery and mayhem. To be clear, this is British authors visiting the Continent – I believe there's a new anthology coming along soon containing stories by non-Brits translated into English, some for the first time, which should be fun.
I found this collection quite variable in quality. Although there were certainly enough 4 and 5 star stories to keep me entertained, there were also several stories that didn't quite cut it as far as I'm concerned. Partly this is to do with the settings – I freely admit I prefer the traditional English manor house or village, or the foggy streets of London, as the setting for my vintage crime fix. But also it's because sometimes I felt the setting wasn't really brought to life terribly well, or there was a touch too much of that British condescension towards all foreigners.
Oddly there were also a couple of stories where the attitude towards (lower-class) women goes well over the out-dated line towards outright misogyny – not a thing I'm normally aware of in vintage crime. Something about going abroad seems to bring out the worst in Brits, I think! I hasten to add that one of these stories was written by a woman, Josephine Bell, who clearly felt that her young female murder victim had brought her fate on herself by her unladylike behaviour in pursuing a man - it actually contains the line “She was asking for it!” The other one was by Michael Gilbert who rounds his story off with the equally astonishing line: “Many a successful marriage has been founded on a good beating.” Well, Mr Gilbert, should you ever propose to me, I'll be sure to give you a sound thrashing before I reply...
There's also plenty of good stuff, though. There's the usual mix of well known and more obscure names among the authors, and a nice mix of crimes, from 'impossible' mysteries to revenge murders, blackmail, theft, greed and even the occasional haunting. Here's a little selection of some of the ones I enjoyed most...
The New Catacomb by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle – I know I nearly always select the Conan Doyle story, but that's because he's such a great storyteller. This one is a lovely little revenge tale which climaxes in a catacomb in Rome. An interesting story well told, and with some effective touches of horror – make sure you don't read it if there's any danger of a power outage...
A Bracelet at Bruges by Arnold Bennett – While Kitty is showing her her new expensive bracelet to another woman, it somehow gets dropped into a canal in Bruges and is lost. Or is it? This is more of a howdunit with a neat solution and has a rather charming little romance thrown in. But the reason I enjoyed it so much is that it reminded me of the sheer quality of Arnold Bennett's writing – an author I loved when I was young, though for his fiction rather than crime, and had more or less completely forgotten. Must revisit him!
The Room in the Tower by J Jefferson Farjeon – our narrator, a writer, goes to stay in a castle on the Rhine looking for inspiration and atmosphere for his book. Perhaps he gets more atmosphere than he anticipated though when he gets lost in the gloomy corridors and ends up in the haunted tower. The story in this one is a bit weird but Farjeon builds up the tension well and there are some genuinely spooky moments.
So even though this isn't my favourite of these anthologies, there's still plenty to enjoy. And I haven't even mentioned the Agatha Christie story...
3½ stars for me, so rounded up.
NB This book was provided for review by the publisher, Poisoned Pen Press.
www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com
jbleyle63's review against another edition
4.0
Another interesting collection of short stories from the British Library Crime Classics series with these tales set in Continental Europe. Collection includes: a non-Sherlock story from Arthur Conan Doyle with a very Poe-like feel; an Agatha Christie story featuring one of her less famous characters Parker Pyne; a Father Brown story from G.K. Chesterton. Martin Edwards provides his usual historical context with entertaining introductions to each tale.
melindamoor's review against another edition
4.0
Netgalley Arc received by the Publisher, Poisoned Pen Press, in exchange for an honest review.
"... crime writers had long understood that foreign settings fascinated their readers. People who had little or no prospect of ever being able to afford to travel extensively took pleasure in experiencing something of the appeal of exotic locales while devouring a good mystery. this was so even in the Victorian and Edwardian eras."
Here you have a book to enlighten as well as to entertain. :)
In this collection of British vintage crime stories, dating from the 1890s to the 1960s, we are leaving "parochial England" behind, visiting continental settings such as France, Germany, Italy, Belgium and more.
The collection includes 14 short stories by well-known authors such as Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie, G.K. Chesterton and Arnold Bennett and -to me at least- less familiar writers like J. Jefferson Farjeon, H. de Vere Stacpoole, F. Tennyson Jesse & al.
The book starts with a concise, but interesting introduction by the editor, Martin Edwards, about the history of British crime fiction writers "borrowing" continental locations for some of their works. As a big plus, we are offered a short commentary about the author and the story at the beginning of each piece, which I found very helpful for getting the "right" perspective.
Despite it being an anthology of crime fiction, I don't really take any risks by calling it lovely and recommend the stories as an easy read for the summer and for all seasons.
"... crime writers had long understood that foreign settings fascinated their readers. People who had little or no prospect of ever being able to afford to travel extensively took pleasure in experiencing something of the appeal of exotic locales while devouring a good mystery. this was so even in the Victorian and Edwardian eras."
Here you have a book to enlighten as well as to entertain. :)
In this collection of British vintage crime stories, dating from the 1890s to the 1960s, we are leaving "parochial England" behind, visiting continental settings such as France, Germany, Italy, Belgium and more.
The collection includes 14 short stories by well-known authors such as Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie, G.K. Chesterton and Arnold Bennett and -to me at least- less familiar writers like J. Jefferson Farjeon, H. de Vere Stacpoole, F. Tennyson Jesse & al.
The book starts with a concise, but interesting introduction by the editor, Martin Edwards, about the history of British crime fiction writers "borrowing" continental locations for some of their works. As a big plus, we are offered a short commentary about the author and the story at the beginning of each piece, which I found very helpful for getting the "right" perspective.
Despite it being an anthology of crime fiction, I don't really take any risks by calling it lovely and recommend the stories as an easy read for the summer and for all seasons.
bardic_llama's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
fernandie's review against another edition
3.0
Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss.
vsbedford's review against another edition
2.0
This collection of continental Europe sited crime stories falls short, to me, of the high bar for quality and content set by Poison Press. The mysteries dragged or, like in the case of the Father Brown entry, were so peremptory and cliche-ridden they reach the point of absurdity. Even Agatha Christie's most irritating sleuth, Parker Pyne, shows up to harrumph around after the lost jewels of an insipid couple on a train or some such nonsense; honestly, I was bored by that point. Not a recommend.
I received an ecopy from the publishers and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I received an ecopy from the publishers and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
ebancroft's review
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
ssejig's review against another edition
3.0
I usually enjoy the stories picked out by Mr. Edwards for his anthology series. And the book started off well, I enjoyed "A Bracelet at Bruges" and "The Secret Garden." But the rest of the stories didn't really hold my attention. I think that these were perfectly fine stories, they just didn't resonate with me at this point in time.
joecam79's review against another edition
4.0
As editor Martin Edward explains in his introduction to this anthology, there is a prevalent but mistaken impression that British crime fiction of the "Golden Age" is invariably set in the familiar landscapes of home. It is a view which is reinforced by TV and movie adaptations of "cozy mysteries". If what they portray were anything near to reality, the mind-boggling levels of violent criminality in sleepy, pastoral English hamlets would be enough to make any sociologist or criminologist go wild.
This enjoyable collection sets the record straight by presenting the reader with a generous selection of stories set on the Continent. The reasons for the protagonists finding themselves away from the British Isles are varied - holidaying, work, war, or the necessities of the investigation itself. The nature of the crimes are equally diverse, ranging from murder most foul (through poisoning and beheading, just to mention a couple of morbid examples) to theft and espionage. It makes for a deliciously assorted bag.
What I particularly liked, however was the well-judged balance between familiar crime writers and characters (Agatha Christie's Parker Pyne, Chesterton's Father Brown, to give an example) and lesser-known (at least to me) authors and characters such as Marie Belloc Lowndes and her Hercules Popeau (the unwitting prototype of Christie's Poirot). Arthur Conan Doyle, who obviously needs no introduction is, interestingly, represented by a story which is generally classified amongst his "dark" or "weird" tales - The New Catacomb. It features no investigator and its setting is deliciously Gothic. As a fan of the latter genre, I also enjoyed the spooky melodrama of J. Jefferson Farjeon's "The Room in the Tower" as well as H.C. Bailey's "The Long Dinner". Bailey's investigator - Reggie Fortune - is rather irritating, but the windswept Breton landscape and the echoes of "folk horror" still made this a worthwhile read.
This anthology's publication date was, quite cannily, set for August. It is indeed the perfect holiday read for mystery lovers: a book to carry on a trip abroad or to use as accompaniment to some armchair travelling - to the Continent, of course.
This enjoyable collection sets the record straight by presenting the reader with a generous selection of stories set on the Continent. The reasons for the protagonists finding themselves away from the British Isles are varied - holidaying, work, war, or the necessities of the investigation itself. The nature of the crimes are equally diverse, ranging from murder most foul (through poisoning and beheading, just to mention a couple of morbid examples) to theft and espionage. It makes for a deliciously assorted bag.
What I particularly liked, however was the well-judged balance between familiar crime writers and characters (Agatha Christie's Parker Pyne, Chesterton's Father Brown, to give an example) and lesser-known (at least to me) authors and characters such as Marie Belloc Lowndes and her Hercules Popeau (the unwitting prototype of Christie's Poirot). Arthur Conan Doyle, who obviously needs no introduction is, interestingly, represented by a story which is generally classified amongst his "dark" or "weird" tales - The New Catacomb. It features no investigator and its setting is deliciously Gothic. As a fan of the latter genre, I also enjoyed the spooky melodrama of J. Jefferson Farjeon's "The Room in the Tower" as well as H.C. Bailey's "The Long Dinner". Bailey's investigator - Reggie Fortune - is rather irritating, but the windswept Breton landscape and the echoes of "folk horror" still made this a worthwhile read.
This anthology's publication date was, quite cannily, set for August. It is indeed the perfect holiday read for mystery lovers: a book to carry on a trip abroad or to use as accompaniment to some armchair travelling - to the Continent, of course.