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A review by somesuchlike
Thirteen Guests by J. Jefferson Farjeon
4.0
I bought The Thirteen Guests because I was craving some old-fashioned murder mystery and for the most part it didn’t disappoint, even if there was surprisingly little murder to be had!
As the introduction notes, it belongs, specifically, to the country house mystery genre. The thirteen guests of the title are at the house, Bragley Court, for a weekend of hunting and dinner parties. There’s a light-hearted, easy-going air to proceedings, even as people start dying.
It’s also enjoyable self-aware. One of the guests is a mystery novelist and, early on, the other characters speculate about what kind of novel she’d write about the events of their weekend away! Later, she thinks she’s solved the mystery based on her expertise – and is, naturally, dead wrong, not to mention entirely out of her depth when talking to a real detective.
The result is a playful tone, without going into the territory of outright parody. It’s a lot of fun to read.
However, there’s just plain too many characters to keep track of. A dramatis personae may have been useful, because I was constantly losing track of who’s who, which is unfortunate in a mystery novel where every detail is made to count.
I was also disappointed by the resolution – the set-up was so intriguing, but then much of the investigation was ‘offstage’ and the result was a whole lot of exposition. It’s unfortunate, because it’s obvious the author really knew his craft.
However, the final twist – which I shan’t spoil – was executed beautifully, and while I’m sure it’s by no means unique within the mystery genre it was certainly unexpected and, ultimately, oddly uplifting.
A good read, anyway, and I’ll probably check out his other, better-regarded mystery novels at some point.
As the introduction notes, it belongs, specifically, to the country house mystery genre. The thirteen guests of the title are at the house, Bragley Court, for a weekend of hunting and dinner parties. There’s a light-hearted, easy-going air to proceedings, even as people start dying.
It’s also enjoyable self-aware. One of the guests is a mystery novelist and, early on, the other characters speculate about what kind of novel she’d write about the events of their weekend away! Later, she thinks she’s solved the mystery based on her expertise – and is, naturally, dead wrong, not to mention entirely out of her depth when talking to a real detective.
The result is a playful tone, without going into the territory of outright parody. It’s a lot of fun to read.
However, there’s just plain too many characters to keep track of. A dramatis personae may have been useful, because I was constantly losing track of who’s who, which is unfortunate in a mystery novel where every detail is made to count.
I was also disappointed by the resolution – the set-up was so intriguing, but then much of the investigation was ‘offstage’ and the result was a whole lot of exposition. It’s unfortunate, because it’s obvious the author really knew his craft.
However, the final twist – which I shan’t spoil – was executed beautifully, and while I’m sure it’s by no means unique within the mystery genre it was certainly unexpected and, ultimately, oddly uplifting.
A good read, anyway, and I’ll probably check out his other, better-regarded mystery novels at some point.