Reviews

Trial and Error by Anthony Berkeley

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rachaelh79's review against another edition

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funny mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character

3.5

christel_booksmart's review against another edition

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4.0

Amazing not-so-whodunnit! Would love to read more of Berkeley’s books now, esp after learning of his history in starting the Detective Club with Agatha Christie. This was a very sophisticated book right from the get-go, with an interesting plot, characters and words that warranted a dictionary consult (which I personally love). I especially loved the ending. Anyone that likes Christie-esque crime stories will love this.

mikewa14's review against another edition

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5.0

full review here
http://0651frombrighton.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/trial-and-error-anthony-berkeley.html

carolpk's review against another edition

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The Hook - I wish I could remember exactly how Trial and Error came to my attention. I read lots of mystery publications and I would guess it was in one of these that my interest in this title was piqued. I had never heard of British Author, Anthony Berkeley, 1893-1971; quite prolific and seemingly well received in the mystery realm. Berkeley, along with Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers and other mystery writers founded the Detection Club in London in 1930. This group not only met sociably and helped each other with their writing skills but also formed a code of ethics in which they agreed to give the reader a fighting chance to solve the puzzle presented.

"Do you promise that your detectives shall well and truly detect the crimes presented to them using those wits which it may please you to bestow upon them and not placing reliance on nor making use of Divine Revelation, Feminine Intuition, Mumbo Jumbo, Jiggery-Pokery, Coincidence, or Act of God? Wikipedia

The club continues today though the rules have been relaxed. Berkeley also wrote under the pen name of Francis Iles.

The Line - ”Mr. Todhunter began to feel, not without surprise, that he had really been excessively ordinary all his life, and if this drab record were ever to be broken now was the time.”

The Sinker
Lawrence Butterfield Todhunter is facing an imminent death. Mr. Todhunter (please don’t use the Butterfield) hosts a dinner gathering of his prominent friends none of which know his fate and think the question he poses regarding the killing of an evil person, one not fit to live, is pure speculation. Mr. Todhunter sees it as his duty to leave the world a better place on his demise, to do ”the best that he can for his fellows” by removing some villainous individual from our midst.

This simplistic beginning soon becomes one of those tangled webs we weave, complexly plotted and beautifully executed. Published in 1937 Trial and Error is stylistically written and formulates an intriguing and satisfying tale. I have not enjoyed a mystery as much in some time.

bookerage's review against another edition

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funny mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Great mystery in which the suspect is on a mission to prove his guilt. This is a different approach to a crime story, funny and suspenseful until the last page.

Anthony Berkeley writes amazing dialog, the novel could be turned into a theater play.