We begin well with a never-before-published Christianna Brand story: “No Face.” No Face is the name of a brutal serial killer who has successfully evaded the police. Seemingly the only man who has a chance of catching the faceless killer is “psychic” Joseph Hawke…if he can get the police to listen to him. I didn’t care much for it on my first read, but when I read it again for this review, I liked it more. Hawke isn’t exactly a pleasant protagonist, but Brand gives him enough of a conscience so that we root for him to outwit No Face. The ending is a nice surprise, well-foreshadowed.
The next story is from “Peter Antony,” a penname used by Peter and Anthony Shaffer. It is the only story featuring their detective Mr. Verity. Verity is called to the scene of an old woman’s murder. Someone stabbed her in the head during the night. All of the suspects have alibis and the corridor to the dead woman’s door was being watched by a nurse. Nonetheless, Verity interrogates the suspects, picks up on subtle clues, delivers a satisfying-but-not-spectacular solution and goes home…
And then we get part two, written by “J. M. Caffyn,” where the investigating officer notices a fatal flaw in Verity’s logic and reveals his own solution, which is much more reasonable and grounded. This is a fun bit of satire that jabs at one of the common clichés of detective fiction (and I don’t mean the locked room).
Helen Simpson’s “Hotel Evidence” is next on the list. Mr. Brodribb is a mild-mannered fellow whose wife is having an affair. Refreshingly, no one wants to kill each other here, instead she has a sensible plan to just have him fake desertion by hiding out at a hotel and “ignoring” her solicitor’s letters. Mr. Brodribb’s gradual realization of his new freedom is entertaining enough, and it’s nice to see virtue rewarded for once. Charming and different, but not quite what I wanted.
Our next story comes from Q. Patrick/Patrick Quentin/Jonathan Stagge/Gormon the Manslayer: “Exit Before Midnight.” Carol Thorne is a secretary for Leland and Rowley Process Company. Well, not for long, because it’s being devoured by Pan-American Dye Combine, and the merger is finalized on New Year’s Eve. Carol rushes back into the dark, almost deserted office, but finds a bizarre letter left in a typewriter. The writer opposes the merger and reminds the assembled shareholders that the sale isn’t finalized until midnight, and if some of the shareholders happened to die before then, there’d have to be another vote…Nonetheless, the merger goes through. The bulk of the shareholders leave for the night while those mentioned in the note remain. One of them thinks he knows what’s going on, but the lights blow and…well, you know.
This is more of a thriller than a mystery, and Q. Patrick does a good job of racking up the tension. Like in the best of these types of stories, our heroes are well and truly confined (the doors are blocked, the cleaning staff has the weekend off, the office is surrounded by a roof so they can’t throw messages out), and Patrick sells their fear through the eyes of Carol. Also, the killer has snatched up some calendar days to put on the victims; a nice, macabre touch. I suspected the killer but will give Patrick credit for leaving it ambiguous up till the last moment. Not much in the way of cluing, but the motive behind the murders is clever. This story reminds me that I really need to read more by this writing partnership.
Margery Allingham is up next with a lost radio play, “Room to Let.” A retired police officer recounts a baffling case from early in his career. A strange man moves into the home of a former doctor. He seems polite enough, but before long he begins to bully and terrorize the household. He reads their mail, chases off other visitors, and forces them to stay inside at all hours. And it’s likely that he’s an escapee from a private asylum. This part is handled excellently; Allingham conveys the terror of being constrained in your own house well. One night, the tension explodes, and the guest is found dead in his room with a bullet in the head. Only there’s no gun in the room, and the door is locked and bolted on the inside. Yes, it’s a locked room mystery! The solution is good, not innovative but satisfying, with a nice final twist at the end.
“A Joke’s a Joke” is the only short story by Jonathan Latimer. It’s an account of how an obnoxious prankster’s latest joke blows up in his face. Fun but light.
Next is a Christie story, “The Man Who Knew.” I read this in John Curran’s Murder in the Making, it’s first publication. It’s about a man who returns to his apartment with a sudden premonition of danger, a premonition confirmed when he sees that someone has written on his theater program the words “Don’t go home”… Christie later expanded this into “The Red Signal,” which is a better take on this idea. This is solid, as most Christie is, but too short to really carry the premise all the way through.
I knew that S. S. Van Dine wrote short fiction but “The Almost Perfect Murder Case” was my first experience with it. The story is told by Philo Vance, recounting the death of a clerk at the German embassy in Chile. He was found dead in his burning office, struck over the head. A series of threatening letters points the finger at a Chilean office acting out an old grudge, but a cynical magistrate digs deeper. His case turns on the subtle difference between two words. I feel that the mistake that traps the killer probably should have been noticed anyway, but that’s a minor blemish. This is actually a very well-told story. Van Dine’s writing is straightforward but engaging, and this is well worth your time.
Next up is a real gem: “The Hours of Darkness” by Edmund Crispin. This was broadcast before, but this is a version of the story that includes Gervase Fen. Fen is called to the estate Rydells, where one of the guests has been strangled and brutally slashed up in the long gallery. This is another Crispin with a contrast between the viciousness of the crime and the light-heartedness of the rest of the story. It’s a testament to Crispin’s skill that he makes a story that mostly consists of various suspects trooping in and out of a room to be interrogated by the police and Fen engaging and witty. At first, I didn’t buy Fen’s logic pointing to the killer, but on thinking about it I found it more convincing (even if I don’t by that X would be thinking that clearly). It’s based on a seemingly-trivial detail that, as Fen points out, really doesn’t make a lot of sense until you realize what’s actually going on. This could have been shorter, but I’m glad it wasn’t.
“Chance is a Great Thing” is by E.C.R Lorac, who, yes, I must get to at some point. Here she quickly sets up then resolves the sudden death of an aunt by a clever murder method. Unfortunately for the killer, there’s a police officer right on the scene. This story is a bit light, and I feel that the method would have been better in a longer story, but what we have is good.
Clayton Rawson’s “The Mental Broadcast” might star The Great Merlini, but it isn’t a crime story; it’s an explanation of a magic trick. Namely how to predict which card a volunteer pulls out of a deck in a separate room while the magician is blindfolded. I had to read the solution a couple of times to understand it, but it’s a neat magic trick that pulls from the Jonathan Creek school of thought that most magic is someone going through great and unnecessary lengths to fool someone. And it’s nice to see Ross get one over on Merlini for once.
Ethel Lina White’s “White Cap” stars Tess Leigh, a secretary at a factory. She’s prone to suffering from blackouts when stressed after an injury. So, in true suspense heroine fashion, she’s suspect number 1 when her unpleasant boss is found shot to death on the side of the mountain that overlooks the factory. No mystery here, but a well-done suspense tale with a clever twist that clears her from suspicion.
“Sixpennyworth” is a stage play—likely meant for local community theater groups—from John Rhode, set at a pub. There are—besides the incompetent bartender—only a handful of customers in attendance: some local women, a stranger and his companion, and a man who all but screams, “blackmailer!” as soon as he starts talking. The pub’s lights blow out and, to the shock of no one, when they come back on, the man has been stabbed to death by one of the multiple bladed objects lining the walls. So far so cliché, but Rhode’s police officer Jimmy Waghorn—Dr. Priestley not in attendance—quickly pieces the crime together in another solid Rhode work.
The next story, "The Adventure of the Dorset Squire," is by an author I'd never heard of: C. A. Alington. The narrator is showing a friend around a castle and mentions an amusing story of a judge who found a maid wearing one of his wigs. This provokes the friend to recount his own story of how a dull house party suddenly transformed into a farce when the power went out. There's no crime here, but instead a very funny and amusing story of escalating events.
The collection ends with what I suspect will be the main draw for most readers: a never-before-published Lord Peter Whimsey story! “The Locked Room” sees Lord Peter staying over at the estate of an acquaintance and bantering with the daughter of the house. But soon, tragedy strikes. The lord of the house loses big on horseracing just as his wife arrives with a new gown, sparking an argument after which the host locks himself in the library. He is found dead by morning, a bullet in the head, door locked and windows barred. Lord Peter demurs about investigating until the daughter confronts him months later. The solution is split into two parts. The locked room itself is nothing special, but the second part of the crime is decently clever and gives the story a little oomph.
All in all, Bodies from the Library 2 is a great collection. This collection has much more in the way of mysteries than the previous one and will be of more interest in that sense. Some of the stories here are a bit light, but nothing egregiously awful, and non-plot fiends will enjoy them too. Recommended
Other Reviews: In Search of the Classic Mystery Novel, FictionFan's Book Reviews, CrossExaminingCrime, The Invisible Event, My Reader's Block.
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