A review by leandrathetbrzero
Obelists at Sea by C. Daly King

funny lighthearted 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

3.0

 The Psychologists are on the case!  🧐 
 
↓ Similar Reads ↓

  1. The Curious Mr. Tarrant by C Daly King (on my TBR!)
  2. The Man in the Brown Suit by Agatha Christie
  3. Cat’s Paw by Roger Scarlett

A murderer strikes aboard the Meganaut, a luxury transatlantic liner making its way from New York City to London. The lights go out, a gunshot is heard, and two bodies are discovered when the lights come on again. The ship’s captain and his crew are baffled by what appears to be a rather strange sequence of events, so they elicit the help of four passengers. Four psychologists, each trained in a different expertise, take a shot at solving this impossible crime. Four solutions are offered. Only one can be correct…

I received this book in May as a part of my subscription with the Mysterious Bookshop. Even though I do own a beat-up copy of The Curious Mr. Tarrant, a collection of eight stories by C Daly King, Obelists at Sea was my first experience with the psychologist-cum-mystery writer. Trained as a psychologist himself, King clearly had a lot of fun while creating each of his four psychologist detectives. For instance, Dr. Frank B. Hayvier (“frank behavior”) is a behaviorist, and Dr. Malcolm Plechs (“male complex”) supports theories of the Freudian variety. Mystery readers who like this kind of word puzzling will certainly enjoy King’s playful writing style. 

There were many elements in this golden age American mystery that I thoroughly enjoyed: the double-meaning character names, the transatlantic liner setting, and the self-aware humor from an author who is clearly familiar with all of the detective fiction tropes that were popular during this era. However, you’ve been warned: this is a chunkier GADF title as far as narrative length goes, and the psychological monologues dragged more than once. With that said, it is worth the read for avid GADF fans. I’m glad to have read this novel and reached its conclusion (as to fully enjoy the “clue finder” King so kindly provides at the end of the book), and I will 100% be trying this author again in the future, even though the mystery plot itself was so-so for me. 

A gorgeous edition nonetheless that I am so happy to add to my growing American GADF collection! 
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