A review by sarahmatthews
The Cheltenham Square Murder by John Bude

mysterious medium-paced

The Cheltenham Murder by John Bude 

Read on audio 

Narrator: Gordon Griffin

Pub 1937, 256pp

Reissued by British Library Crime Classics,2016

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This book opens with a dispute between neighbours about the removal of an old elm tree which serves to neatly introduce the cast of characters who live in a quiet square of 10 houses, the focal point of the story. They’re a generally quiet upper middle class group who’re mostly retired, but resentments and distrust simmer under the surface. They include Miss Boon and her many dogs, Arthur West who has both marital and money trouble, Fitz and his young wife, doctor Pratt, the Watt sisters who live next door to Reverend Matthews and the most recent resident who’s caused a lot of upset, Captain Cotton.

They’re summed up at the end of Chapter 1:

“Thus the inhabitants of Regency Square – diverse, yet as a community, typical; outwardly harmonious, yet privately at loggerheads; temperamentally and intellectually dissimilar, yet all of  them chiselling away at the same hard block of granite which, for want of a better word, we call life.”

The unusual murder in question is the reason I read the book - someone is shot in the back of the head by an arrow through an open window! A fabulously ridiculous set up and the ensuing puzzle is a lot of fun for the reader. It turns out that 5 of the inhabitants of the square are keen and talented archers who’re members of a local club, giving a small set of clear suspects from the start. the addition of Aldous Barnet, a writer of detective stories, who contacts his friend Superintendent Meredith to begin the investigation was a nice touch though a bit more of the writer would have been my preference as the last section of the novel is very much given over to the twists and turns of the sleuthing by Meredith and Inspector Long of the local police, which I found less enjoyable than the early part where the speculation and gossip of the characters themselves was the focus. Perhaps Long was written to be an irritating character to contrast with the more senior Meredith but he did get on my nerves a bit by the end!

I guessed elements of the mystery as it progressed, including one key point that they took forever to get to, but the solution was great when it came. I enjoyed this mystery overall and would definitely read another by John Bude in this series.

I red this book on Audible and was pleased to find the introduction by Martin Edwards was included which isn’t always the case.

Read for the #1937Club hosted by Karen and Simon.