Reading in Reykjavík

Genre : Historical mystery. Themes : Deception, escape, forced marriage, murder. Reading challenge : What's in a Name , the book with a profession in the title, and my final book for this challenge. I was planning to read a piece of social history, What the Butler Saw: Two hundred and fifty years of the servant problem , for this challenge, but looking over my bookshelves I spotted the 8 books I had left to read in the Brother Cadfael historical mystery series, and couldn't resist picking the next one as the final book in the challenge: The Hermit of Eyton Forest . Now, some might say that being a hermit is a religious vocation rather than a profession, but in fact there once existed a professional class of ornamental or garden hermits . They were men who were specifically hired and paid to live in hermitages or other suitable structures on great estates and to be full-time hermits for a given length of time, generally seven years. I read the previous book in the serie...

The cover of my copy. Genre: Historical murder mystery; detective fiction.   Themes: Murder, secrets, false identities, false pretences, unexpected visitors, movies, young love.  Reading challenge: What's in a Name 2016 Challenge book no.: 4/6, a book with an item of clothing in the title. The titular mink (a coat) is the property of one of the characters in this frothy and funny country-house murder mystery. (You will have to read the book if you want to know how and why it got mutilated). The Affair of the Mutilated Mink and the books that preceded it and followed it, The Affair of the Blood-stained Egg Cosy and The Affair of the 39 Cufflinks , have been justifiably called tributes to the Golden Era mystery, and one quickly realises that it doesn't take place in some unspecified version of the 1930s, but specifically the 1930s of the detective novels of Dorothy L. Sayers, Ngaio Marsh and Michael Innes, whose detectives, Wimsey, Alleyn and Appleby, ...

Genre: Historical detective fiction, murder mystery, cosy mystery. Themes : M urder, s ocial reputations, unhappy marriages, I originally  chose the third book in the Beau Brummell mysteries as the book with an item of clothing in the title for the What's in a Name Challenge . However, I prefer, whenever possible, to read series books in the correct reading order, so I decided to read this, the first book in the series, as a preliminary to The Bloodied Cravat . I read this one through, but The Bloodied Cravat was a DNF for me (see the glossary)and I ended up with another book for the challenge. This is quite a frothy mystery in the historical/cosy sub-genre. A loathsome old aristocratic woman is murdered by adding poison to her nightly drink of warm milk and the prime suspect is her lady's companion, a young gentlewoman recommended to her by the Duchess of York. Brummell is in love with the Duchess and will do just about anything she asks of him, but as she is marr...

Here is my first What‘s in a Name challenge book: item no. 2, the something you'd see in the sky , that thing of course being a raven . I have been making my way through the Brother Cadfael series in order of publication for the last several years, going rather slowly because I have been picking them up from second hand book shops, flea market stalls and BookMooch, knowing I would want to keep them after reading them. This is the 12th in the series out of 21, so I am a little over halfway there. Synopsis: The parish priest of Holy Cross, commonly called the Foregate because it lies just outside the walls of the abbey, dies and the Abbot of Saint Peter and Saint Paul brings back from a visit to his bishop a priest to replace him. But the priest clashes with his flock due to his inflexibility and lack of humility and kindness. When he is found drowned in the mill-pond on Christmas Day with a suspicious wound on the back of his head, foul play is suspected and Brother Cadfael ...

If you’re sensitive to SPOILERS , don’t read beyond the plot summary. I noticed this book because of the cover, which is reminiscent of an old-fashioned children's book (until you look closer and notice the skull-and-crossbones snowflakes). Genre: Murder mystery Year of publication: 1994 (this edition 2009) Type of mystery: Historical cosy. No. in series: 1 Series detective: Daisy Dalrymple Type of investigator: Amateur (and police) Setting & time: England, 1920s The Honourable Miss Daisy Dalrymple arrives at Wentwater Court just after the beginning of the new year to write and photograph a story for Town & Country magazine. She already knows a couple of young people there, but in addition she meets Lord Wentwater, his children and his lovely young second wife, who seems to be very troubled and afraid of their houseguest, Lord Astwick. When Astwick is found drowned in the skating pond, everyone assumes it was an accident, but when the police arrive on ...

Originally published in July 2004, on my original 52 Books blog. Edited to remove spoilers. Author: Georgette Heyer Year published: 1951 Genre: Romance, historical (Regency period) Sub-genre(s): Mystery Where got: Public library The story: Soon after Gervase arrives at Stanyon castle to take up his duties as the Earl and landowner, it becomes apparent that someone wants him dead. The most likely suspect is Gervase’s passionate younger brother and heir, Martin, but Gervase is not ready to believe that without further evidence. Complicating the matter for the would-be killer is Drusilla, a practical young lady who is staying with the dowager Countess, and who always seems to be there when Gervase needs protection from the would-be killer.  Technique, characterisation and plot: The book is absorbing and funny, not just chuckle-chuckle funny, but laugh-aloud funny. The romance was subdued - in fact neither hero nor heroine gave any indication of being in love until t...

Originally published in June 2004, on my original 52 Books blog. I went to explore the new location of my favourite second-hand bookshop (which I approve of, although some of the mystery is gone - along with the mustiness) and came home with this book. It’s the second in a series, with all the books titled Face Down “something” . Author: Kathy Lynn Emerson Year published: 1998 Genre: Mystery Sub-genre(s): Historical Where got: Second-hand book store The story: Susanna, Lady Appleton, is sent to Madderly Castle, ostensibly to help Lady Madderly finish a book on herbology, but in reality to provide an excuse for her husband, Robert, to come there to investigate the murder of a man who was apparently involved in a conspiracy against Queen Elizabeth I. Shortly after arriving, the body count starts to mount and Susanna’s young protége, Catherine, falls in love with of one of the prime suspects. Solving the crimes takes the combined efforts of Susanna, Catherine, Robert and a...

Year of publication: 2004 No. in series: 1 Series detective: Dr. Siri Paiboun Type of investigator: Coroner/doctor Genre: Historical mystery Type of mystery: Murder Setting & time: The Lao People’s Democratic Republic; 1976 At age 72 and after a long service to the communist cause, Dr. Siri Paiboun had been looking forward to a nice retirement, but the newly installed authorities had other ideas and appointed him as the state coroner. With no experience of the work he is expected to do, no interest in the job and limited equipment, he tries to make the best of things, but it isn’t until a comrade’s wife dies mysteriously and the bodies of three dead Vietnamese soldiers turn up in a lake that things start to get interesting. I think I have a new favourite detective. Dr. Siri is deliciously grumpy and sarcastic, but he also has the good detective’s curiosity and willingness to find out the truth no matter what, and combined with his healthy disrespect for authority...

Year of publication: 1983 Series and no.: Brother Cadfael, # 7 Genre: Historical mystery Type of mystery: Robbery and murder Type of investigator: Monk Setting & time: Shrewsbury, England, 12th century A young travelling jongleur and entertainer is hunted down by an angry lynch mob bent on administering justice after a goldsmith is attacked and - they think - murdered on the night of his son's wedding. He manages to reach the sanctuary of the abbey church and when questioned, adamantly denies having had anything to do with the robbery. The goldsmith has survived the attack, but a robbery of that magnitude is punishable by death, so the young man is no better off. Cadfael's impression is that he is innocent, and that indefatigable sleuth sets off to investigate the crime. As always, love rears it's shining head, and the mystery seems impenetrably tangled. This is the best of the Cadfael books I have read so far. It not only has Peters' characteristic comfortabl...

Year of publication: 1981 Series and no.: Brother Cadfael #5 Genre: Historical mystery Type of mystery: Murder Type of investigator: Monk Setting & time: Shrewsbury, England; 1139 A wedding is to take place at the Shrewsbury abbey church, between an ageing knight and a young woman, the heiress to a great fortune who is being forced into the union by her greedy guardian. She loves one of her groom’s squires, and he her, but she is well guarded and escape is impossible. It becomes even more so after her young swain is accused of theft and barely escapes the clutches of the sheriff. When the groom is brutally murdered, suspicion naturally falls on the young man, but Brother Cadfael has reason to believe him innocent and sets out to investigate the matter thoroughly. Meanwhile, the fugitive plans to spring his ladylove from her guardians. This is one of the best of the 5 Cadfael books I have read so far, but not THE best. This opinion probably comes from my having suspected, with...

Originally published in 2 parts, on March 9-12, 2004. Book 7 in my first 52 books challenge. Part 1: Author: Peter Ackroyd Published: 1985 Where got: public library Genre: mystery, horror I read this book years ago as part of a college course on modern English literature, but I remember nothing about it. Even now, when I'm almost finished with part one, I still remember nothing about the previous reading, which I guess shows how interested I was in it at the time. Every other chapter happens in the 18th century and is written in the style of that time, which takes a while to get used to. The other chapters are written in modern English and happen in modern times. The narrative point of view shifts between chapters, from 1st person to 3rd person. These stylistic changes necessitate a shifting of mental gears at the beginning of each chapter and make the book challenging to read. So far I'm finding it to be a dark and rather menacing narrative. Dyer, the 18th century narrator...

Genre: Historical mystery Type of mystery: Murder Type of investigator: Amateur Year of publication: 1980 No. in series: 3 Series detective: Brother Cadfael, a Benedictine monk Setting & time: Shrewsbury, England, 1138 Story: A man who has pledged his estate to the monastery is murdered by slipping some massage oil made with monkshood (aconite, a deadly poison) into his food. Brother Cadfael, who made the oil to be used as a topical relief for rheumatism, is deeply offeneded. On top of that, the dead man’s wife turns out to be someone he loved very much as young man and had planned to marry. When suspicion falls on her teenage son who had been his stepfather’s intended heir before they had a falling out, she begs Cadfael to help the boy. He begins an investigation that is somewhat hampered by the Prior who is in charge of the monastery while the abbot is away and doesn’t approve of what he sees as Cadfael’s worldly ways, and also by the absence of deputy sheriff Hugh Bering...

I used to faithfully watch the television adaptations of the brother Cadfael books (starring Derek Jacobi as Cadfael) but I remember very little of them, except that I loved the medieval setting of the series. I have been patiently assembling the book series for reading ever since I joined BookMooch, as I want to read them all and would prefer to read them in order of publication. Now I have nearly the whole set and am ready to start. I read the first book, A Morbid Taste for Bones several years ago, and didn’t review it, but I may revisit it and post a review. Genre: Historical mystery Type of mystery: Murder Type of investigator: Amateur Year of publication: 1979 No. in series: 2 Series detective: Brother Cadfael, a Benedictine monk Setting & time: Shrewsbury, England, 1138 Story: At the end of the siege of Shrewsbury (a real historical event) by King Stephen (a real person), pretender to the English throne, the whole of the defending garrison, 94 men in all, are execute...

I started reading this book a couple of months ago and finished a couple of chapters, but for some reason I then put it aside and forgot about it for several weeks. Since it is also a TBR challenge book, having lingered on my TBR shelf for over 2 years, I have managed to kill two birds with this one stone, challengewise, and also got an enjoyable read out of it. Year of publication: 1982 Genre: Historical mystery Type of mystery: Murder Type of investigator: Amateur Setting & time: London, England, and aboard the passenger ship Mauritania on the way to New York; 1921. Story: Dentist Walter Baranov is devastated when his actress wife decides to go to Hollywood to pursue a career in the movies. As his practice is in her name and he is penniless without her, he sees no alternative but to go with her, that is until a young woman he has met and become attracted to puts into his head the idea of killing Lydia. The plan is to do it on board the passenger ship to New York and throw t...

Genre: Historical mystery Year of publication: 1996 No. in series: 5 Series detective: Gordianus the Finder Type of investigator: Private detective Setting & time: Rome, 52 B.C. Story: A rabble-rousing Roman politician is killed on the Via Appia highway, a day's journey from Rome, causing widespread rioting in the city. The dead man’s wife sends for Gordianus the Finder to hire him to discover what happened, but eventually he sets out along the Via Appia at the behest of another client. With a lot of digging and patient questioning he finds out what happened, but meanwhile trouble is brewing in his own household… Review: This is an interesting 1st century B.C. detective story and political thriller that reads in parts like a modern police procedural. Saylor’s writing is rich in detail and historical information, the plotting is layered and the narrative gripping, and the characters come alive on the page. Saylor is very good at drawing up an image of what Rome and the sur...

Genre: Historical mystery thriller Year of publication: 2006 No. in series: 1 Series detective: Yashim Togalu Type of investigator: Private investigator Setting & time: Istanbul, Turkey, 1830s Story: Yashim Togulu, the 19th century equivalent of a modern private investigator/spy, is approached by the head of the Turkish Sultan’s new modernised army in Istanbul and asked to investigate the kidnapping of four young officers and the murder of one of them, presumably by men belonging to what remains of the old army, the dreaded Janissaries . They had been forcibly disbanded 10 years earlier, but now seem to be planning a coup. At the same time the Validé, the Sultan’s mother, summons Yashim and asks him to find out who stole her jewels and murdered a young concubine in the harem. What follows is a thriller full of mysterious happenings, gruesome deaths, fire, chases and several near-death experiences for Yashim. Review: This is a well-written and -plotted mystery thriller, with i...

Title: Death of an Effendi Series detective: Gareth Owen, head of Cairo's Political CID No. in series: 12 Year of publication: 1999 Type of mystery: Murder, political intrigue, historical Type of investigator: Police Setting & time: Cairo, Egypt; 1909 Story: Owen is sent to keep an eye on a Russian businessman during a conference, but the man is short during a bird hunt and Owen suspects it is murder and not an accidental shooting. But proving it is another matter, especially when a man who may possibly have important information is being kept out of reach. It takes some clever manoeuvring to get to him, and what is revealed is a curious story of idealism, business and politics, but it it may be a small thing for Owen compared with the wrath of his girlfriend when one of the witnesses turns out to be a beautiful woman. Review: Pearce writes with a wonderfully light and airy touch, and his characters are three dimensional and human. He manages to tell a light-hearted stor...

Also writes as: Anna Apostolou, C. L. Grace, Ann Dukthas, Michael Clynes, Paul Harding, P. C. Doherty, Paul C. Doherty, Vanessa Alexander. Some books have been published under two different names: one of the above, and later the name Paul Doherty, which I believe is his real name and under which he now writes all his books. Note: Much of what I want to say about the writing style and characterizations and plotting and so on is applicable to all three books, so I will put it in the author review. Title: The Nightingale Gallery, being the First of the Sorrowful Mysteries of Brother Athelstan Series detective(s): Brother Athelstan, a Dominican friar, and Sir John Cranston, coroner of London No. in series: 1 Year of publication: 1991, under the name of Paul Harding; reissued in 2002 under the name of Paul Doherty Type of mystery: Murder, locked-room Type of investigator: Amateur and professional Setting & time: London, England, 1377 Number of murders: 4 Some themes: Locked-r...

Title: A Very Long Engagement Original French title: Un long diamanche de fiançailles Year of publication: 1991 (original), 1993 Type of mystery: Missing person Type of investigator: Amateur Setting & time: France, 1917-1924, with flashbacks and flash-forwards Number of corpses: Many Some themes: Love, hate, perseverance, truth, war crimes I had originally intended to review One Deadly Summer ( L'été meurtrier ) because I had seen and enjoyed the film, but I didn't like the first person narrative style of the book and gave up on it. I also suppose it was not that exciting for me to read because I already knew what the surprise twist was. When I came across this book I remembered that there had been a critically acclaimed film of the same title and a random reading of a few lines told me it was not written in the same narrative style as the other book, so I bought it. Story: In the winter of 1917 five French soldiers who have been sentenced to death for cowardice ...

Author: Josephine Tey Series detective: Inspector Alan Grant No. in series: 5 of 6 Year of publication: 1951 Type of mystery: Murder, historical Type of investigator: Professional, aided by an amateur Setting & time: A hospital in England, 1950's Some themes: History, regicide Story: Inspector Grant is lying in bed, recovering from a broken leg and other injuries sustained while trying to capture a criminal. He suffers from boredom until an old friend suggests he try working out some unsolved murder. A portrait of Richard III and people’s comment that the picture looks more like the image of a victim or a judge than a cold-blooded killer gives him interest in trying to discover the true events behind the mystery of the princes in the Tower , possibly the most notorious regicide in the history of England. He needs someone to do research for him, and with the help of a friend he enlists the aid of a young historian who starts ploughing through old documents in search of ...