The Girl in the Cellar by Patricia Wentworth, for the 1961 Club

Most people think of Patricia Wentworth as a Golden Age of Detective Fiction writer whose books fall into the cozy category; however, The Girl in the Cellar opens with a very frightening scene.

The heroine has passed out and wakes up in darkness:

The Night of Fear by Moray Dalton, for Dean Street December

This is my third entry for Dean Street December, and it seems appropriate for it to be a mystery by an author I’d never heard of until Dean Street Press reprinted 15 of her books. Starting in 1924, Moray Dalton published 29 mysteries, most of which feature two detectives, Scotland Yard inspector Hugh Collier and private inquiry agent Hermann Glide. I thought I had chosen the first in the series but as it is set at a Christmas house party in the country, it was still very suitable.

The Dower House by Patricia Wentworth, for the #1925Club

Amabel Grey, a young widow living on a tiny income, is anguished when her daughter Daphne demands £200 so she can travel with friends to Egypt. She simply doesn’t have it. But when she visits her lawyer, she overhears an old acquaintance, Mr. George Forsham, complaining that three sets of tenants have left the Dower House he owns, claiming it was haunted. He asks the lawyer to find a caretaker who will stay for six months and, after he storms out, Amabel takes on the assignment, securing payment in advance.

The Black Honeymoon by Constance and Gwenyth Little - 12/20 Books of Summer

Miriel Mason has been supporting the war effort as a nurse and has been assigned to a difficult yet affluent patient, Richard Lang. Distracted by his attractive nephew, Ian, a lieutenant on furlough, Miriel has just married Ian on the strength of five days’ acquaintance. In the taxi after the civil ceremony, he explains he has no money so they need to spend their honeymoon at Richard’s house – but not to worry, it will be private because Richard is in the hospital and his elderly sister Violet never leaves the house. 

Ladies' Bane by Patricia Wentworth, for the #1952Club

It’s time for the 1952 Club, featuring books published that year and hosted this week by Simon at Stuck in a Book and Karen at Kaggsy’s Bookish Ramblings. The inimitable Miss Maud Silver, along with a young woman fighting for her sister’s happiness, are featured in my first selection, Ladies’ Bane.

The Astonishing Adventure of Jane Smith by Patricia Wentworth #DeanStreetDecember24

Jane Smith is alone in the world and down to her last two shillings and eleven pence when a strange young man mistakes her for her cousin Renata. Jane and Renata have never met but they are the daughters of identical twins – and are virtually identical themselves, at least in looks. 

The Case is Closed by Patricia Wentworth – a Miss Silver mystery for the #1937Club

Title: The Case is Closed
Author: Patricia Wentworth
Publication: Warner Books, paperback, originally published in 1937
Genre: Mystery/series
Setting: London and environs

It's the first day of the 1937 Club, hosted by Simon at Stuck in a Book and Karen at Kaggsy’s Bookish Ramblings to feature reviews of books published in that year.

Quick Curtain by Alan Melville

Title: Quick Curtain
Author: Alan Melville
Publication: British Library Crime Classics/Poisoned Poisoned Pen Press, paperback, originally published in 1934
Genre: Mystery
Setting: England

Description: It’s opening night at the Grosvenor Theatre for Blue Music, a musical produced by the impressive (at least to himself) impresario, Douglas B. Douglas, and everything is going well until actor Hilary Foster pulls out what is meant to be a prop revolver and aims it at the leading man.

Silence in Court by Patricia Wentworth

Title: Silence in Court
Author: Patricia Wentworth
Publication: Hodder & Stoughton, hardcover, originally published in 1945
Genre: Mystery
Setting: WWII London

Description: For three years during the war, Carey Silence worked as a secretary for a Member of Parliament, until a train they were on was machine-gunned by enemy aircraft.

They Do It With Mirrors by Agatha Christie #ReadChristie23

Title: They Do It With Mirrors
Author: Agatha Christie
Publication: Morrow, paperback, originally published in 1952
Genre: Mystery
Setting: British countryside, 20th century

Description: Who knew that our own Miss Marple studied in Florence as a young woman with the two rich Martin girls from America (no relation)!! 

Grey Mask by Patricia Wentworth - introducing Miss Silver!

Title: Grey Mask
Author: Patricia Wentworth
Publication: Warner, paperback, originally published in 1928
Genre: Mystery
Setting: English countryside

Description: Charles Moray has been out of the country for four years, having left with bitterness when his fiancé, Margaret Langford, broke their engagement with no explanation right before the wedding.

The Listening Eye: A Miss Silver Mystery by Patricia Wentworth

Title: The Listening Eye: A Miss Silver Mystery
Author: Patricia Wentworth
Publication: Warner, paperback, originally published in 1955
Genre: Mystery/Series
Setting: 20th century England

Description: Paulina Paine goes to an art gallery to see a painting done of her by David Moray, who rents her attic as his studio. The painting is called The Listener, reflecting the thoughtful look when she compensates for her loss of hearing by using other senses.

Fool Errant by Patricia Wentworth

Title: Fool Errant
Author: Patricia Wentworth
Publication: 1929
Genre: Mystery
Setting: England between the Wars

Description: Hugo Ross is down on his luck - unemployed, no university degree, and has only £5 when he hears about a job as secretary to a well-known inventor, Ambrose Minstrel.

The Poisoned Chocolates Case by Anthony Berkeley for the #1929Club

Title: The Poisoned Chocolates Case
Author: Anthony Berkeley
Publication: Chivers Press, hardcover, originally published in 1929
Genre: Mystery
Setting: London

Description: Roger Sheringham is the president of the Crimes Circle, an exclusive group of six, each passionately devoted to crime and detection.

Speedy Death by Gladys Mitchell for the #1929Club

Title: Speedy Death
Author: Gladys Mitchell
Publication: Vintage paperback, originally published in 1929
Genre: Mystery
Setting: 20th-century English countryside

Simon from Stuck in a Book and Karen from Kaggsy’s Bookish Ramblings are hosting the 1929 Club, where bloggers read and write about books published in a chosen year.

Description: A house party has been planned at the country home of amateur archeologist Alistair Bing to celebrate his birthday.

Day 2 – The Barbican Library

The Barbican Library is a public lending library located in the Barbican Centre in the City of London (see website). The Barbican Centre itself is a vast performing arts complex with theatres, a movie theatre, restaurants, shops, and a library on the second floor. The Barbican Library is the largest public library within the actual City of London (which is just a square mile) and is affiliated with two other libraries. The library serves a residential community of less than 8,000 as well as many who commute into the financial district from the London suburbs and local students.  It was the second destination for the British Studies group.

The library is cheerful and welcoming

Outrageous Fortune: A Golden Age Mystery by Patricia Wentworth

Title: Outrageous Fortune
Author: Patricia Wentworth
Publication: Warner, paperback, 1990 (originally published in 1933)
Genre: Mystery
Setting: 20th century England

Description: The Van Berg emeralds have been stolen and Elmer Van Berg shot and left for dead.  A man is unconscious in the hospital muttering about Jimmy Riddell or Randal and green beads, and the hospital helpfully advertises for his family on the radio as Twitter will not created until 2006.

Down Under, a mystery by Patricia Wentworth

Title: Down Under (Benbow Smith #4)
Author: Patricia Wentworth
Publication: Aeonian Press, hardcover, 1976 (originally published in 1937; now available from Dean Street Press)
Genre: Mystery
Setting: England, 1930s

Description: Rose Anne Carew's disappearance the day before her wedding causes a huge scandal. The police assume she ran away with another man, although Rose Anne and her fiancé, Oliver Loddon, had seemed to be a happy young couple.

Behold, Here's Poison by Georgette Heyer - for the 1936 Club

Title: Behold, Here’s Poison
Author: Georgette Heyer
Publication: Sourcebooks paperback, 2009 (originally published in 1936)
Genre: Mystery
Setting: 1930s England

This is a final review for 1936 Club, hosted by Simon from Stuck in a Book and Karen from Kaggsy’s Bookish Ramblings.

Description: Gregory Matthews is a tyrant who is disliked or feared by everyone in his household, which includes his sister Harriet, widowed sister-in-law Zoe, niece Stella, nephew Guy, and various servants.

Death at the President's Lodging by Michael Innes - for the #1936 Club

Title: Death at the President’s Lodgings
Author: Michael Innes
Publication: Penguin paperback (originally published in 1936)
Genre: Mystery
Setting: 1930s England

This week Simon from Stuck in a Book and Karen from Kaggsy’s Bookish Ramblings are hosting the 1936 Club, where bloggers read and write about books published in a chosen year.

Description: In this series launch, Inspector John Appleby of Scotland Yard is summoned to Oxford for the difficult and delicate task of investigating the murder of the unpopular Josiah Umpleby, president of St Anthony's College.