Take a photo of a barcode or cover
A review by cleheny
The Nine Tailors by Dorothy L. Sayers
4.0
The Nine Tailors is not my favorite Wimsey mystery, but it's a very good one. Sayers clearly studied up on change ringing; because I know very little about the practice, the chapter titles didn't really mean much for me (Sayers uses change-ringing terminology for clever plays on words). This mystery is set in the Fens, in a small parish with a charming, Bells-obsessed vicar and his more practical wife. Sayers was obviously much struck by this part of the country; the landscape takes on a character all its own, the first time in any of the Wimsey mysteries.
The mystery itself is interesting and heart-breaking in its own way. Once again, Sayers paints a sympathetic picture of her chief suspects. She is fond of letting decent people who bear responsibility for others' deaths find a way out that doesn't include prison. I do sometimes get tired of this, as it feels like its designed to give Peter a way out. Yes, he investigates crimes for fun, and he will agonize over the consequences to the murderers (the usual punishment was hanging), but, so often, he's spared having to confront the unpleasant results of his investigations. Still, there's a lot of good characterization, and some really enjoyable Bunter scenes. Also, I appreciate that, except for Clouds of Witness, when Peter investigates a death outside London, the local police are competent and good to work with.
The mystery itself is interesting and heart-breaking in its own way. Once again, Sayers paints a sympathetic picture of her chief suspects. She is fond of letting decent people who bear responsibility for others' deaths find a way out that doesn't include prison. I do sometimes get tired of this, as it feels like its designed to give Peter a way out. Yes, he investigates crimes for fun, and he will agonize over the consequences to the murderers (the usual punishment was hanging), but, so often, he's spared having to confront the unpleasant results of his investigations. Still, there's a lot of good characterization, and some really enjoyable Bunter scenes. Also, I appreciate that, except for Clouds of Witness, when Peter investigates a death outside London, the local police are competent and good to work with.