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A review by billd
Look to the Lady by Margery Allingham
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
Look To The Lady by Margery Allingham is the 3rd book in her Albert Campion mystery series and about the 10th book I've enjoyed in the series. Yes, I haven't been reading in sequence. (I don't think it matters all that much). Allingham was one of four British female mystery writers who made up the Queens of Crime during the 'Golden Age of Detective Fiction. The others were Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers and Ngaio Marsh. I've enjoyed all of these authors. You should check each of them out.
So.... Look to the Lady finds gentleman sleuth and his man servant, Lugg (and he is one), trying to help a certain Val Gyrth protect a family heirloom. Val has been living rough in London and while trying to sleep on a park bench one night, he sees an envelope on the ground.. addressed to himself. This leads him to a small late night cafe where he is told to go to a certain address, home to the one and only Albert Campion. However, even this trip is filled with adventure as the cab driver tries to kidnap him.
Val's father's estate houses an antiquity related to the royalty, the Gyrth Cup, and when the oldest son achieves his 25th year, there is a ceremony to hand over the responsibility for guarding the cup. Campion was hired to find Val, get him home and protect the cup from a gang of thieves who steal such priceless antiquities.
So there is your story. It's entertaining, peopled with interesting characters, lots of thieves, gypsies, witches... Does the mystery make sense or get resolved... sure... but it's the fun and games that make it entertaining. Campion is an interesting character, somewhat like Dorothy L. Sayers Lord Peter Wimsey. It's worth checking out the series and all of these great Queens of Crime. (3.0 stars)
So.... Look to the Lady finds gentleman sleuth and his man servant, Lugg (and he is one), trying to help a certain Val Gyrth protect a family heirloom. Val has been living rough in London and while trying to sleep on a park bench one night, he sees an envelope on the ground.. addressed to himself. This leads him to a small late night cafe where he is told to go to a certain address, home to the one and only Albert Campion. However, even this trip is filled with adventure as the cab driver tries to kidnap him.
Val's father's estate houses an antiquity related to the royalty, the Gyrth Cup, and when the oldest son achieves his 25th year, there is a ceremony to hand over the responsibility for guarding the cup. Campion was hired to find Val, get him home and protect the cup from a gang of thieves who steal such priceless antiquities.
So there is your story. It's entertaining, peopled with interesting characters, lots of thieves, gypsies, witches... Does the mystery make sense or get resolved... sure... but it's the fun and games that make it entertaining. Campion is an interesting character, somewhat like Dorothy L. Sayers Lord Peter Wimsey. It's worth checking out the series and all of these great Queens of Crime. (3.0 stars)