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lfro2013's review against another edition
informative
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Perfectly passable old detective yarn. I was rather hoping for a more hard boiled vibe but this is more stock standard, kind of feels like an episode of the classic Law and Order. Not a lot of drama or intrigue, mostly just standard detective work, enjoyable but not incredible.
baz46's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
tallbox's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
vesper1931's review
mysterious
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
Was gun collectors Lane Fleming death an accident as decided or a suicide. His widow Gladys approaches p.i. Jefferson Rand to appraise the gun collection to sell. But Rand believes Fleming was murdered but can he prove it.
Enjoyable mystery but too much information about guns.
Enjoyable mystery but too much information about guns.
libra17's review against another edition
4.0
I'm familiar with H. Beam Piper mostly as a science fiction author, but I do like the occasional locked room mystery and, with a reading challenge in mind (a book with a gun or a gun on the cover), I picked up this book. There are guns: 2,500 in the collection for which someone has been murdered, not to mention the many sundry other firearms, mostly antique collectibles, littered throughout the novel.
The premise of this story is that Lane Fleming - a prominent antique pistol collector and owner of the Premix food company - has been shot in his gunroom. The death is almost immediately declared an accident (though rumors of suicide circulate), but his widow doesn't buy it. She retains former Colonel Jefferson Davis Rand - now a private detective who also writes about antique firearms for genre publications - supposedly to appraise and broker the sale of the collection on the grounds that, as a prominent and knowledgeable individual not connected to any shops or museums, he the best neutral party possible to get the highest value from the sale. Unspoken, however, is the understanding that Rand will investigate the Fleming's death to determine what actually happened and, if necessary, catch the killer.
Prospective readers should also keep in mind that Murder in the Gunroom is set in the late 40s or early 50s and, as such, depicts period typical racism ("I'll bet Rivers bought himself a big drink when Lane Fleming was killed. Fleming was all set to hang Rivers's scalp in his wigwam," Chapter Nine) and sexism ("There was a bimbo just made to be leered at, and she probably resented it like hell if she weren't," Chapter Six), with a couple of comments that sound like homophobia and religious discrimination (I hadn't ever seen 'Jesuitical' used as a derogatory description before, but there's a first time for everything, I guess). None are particularly prominent, but all are embedded in the text and accepted by the characters as normal ways of looking at and interacting with the people and world around them. As this is an older work this is not particularly surprising, but it is something to keep in mind.
From a mystery standpoint, the story is decent. It keeps moving, dropping hints and oblique statements along the way, and comes to a logical conclusion explained for all those (like me!) who didn't pick up every single implication and what they meant. The characters were a bit stiff, but alright. Overall, the story was entertaining, though probably not one that I will return to.
The premise of this story is that Lane Fleming - a prominent antique pistol collector and owner of the Premix food company - has been shot in his gunroom. The death is almost immediately declared an accident (though rumors of suicide circulate), but his widow doesn't buy it. She retains former Colonel Jefferson Davis Rand - now a private detective who also writes about antique firearms for genre publications - supposedly to appraise and broker the sale of the collection on the grounds that, as a prominent and knowledgeable individual not connected to any shops or museums, he the best neutral party possible to get the highest value from the sale. Unspoken, however, is the understanding that Rand will investigate the Fleming's death to determine what actually happened and, if necessary, catch the killer.
Prospective readers should also keep in mind that Murder in the Gunroom is set in the late 40s or early 50s and, as such, depicts period typical racism ("I'll bet Rivers bought himself a big drink when Lane Fleming was killed. Fleming was all set to hang Rivers's scalp in his wigwam," Chapter Nine) and sexism ("There was a bimbo just made to be leered at, and she probably resented it like hell if she weren't," Chapter Six), with a couple of comments that sound like homophobia and religious discrimination (I hadn't ever seen 'Jesuitical' used as a derogatory description before, but there's a first time for everything, I guess). None are particularly prominent, but all are embedded in the text and accepted by the characters as normal ways of looking at and interacting with the people and world around them. As this is an older work this is not particularly surprising, but it is something to keep in mind.
From a mystery standpoint, the story is decent. It keeps moving, dropping hints and oblique statements along the way, and comes to a logical conclusion explained for all those (like me!) who didn't pick up every single implication and what they meant. The characters were a bit stiff, but alright. Overall, the story was entertaining, though probably not one that I will return to.
nachtvlucht's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
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