The Eight of Swords by John Dickson Carr, 1934

 

 

Series: This is Dr. Gideon Fell #3

About the author: John Dickson Carr (1906 – 1977) was an American author, who also published using the pseudonyms Carter Dickson, Carr Dickson, and Roger Fairbairn. He lived in England for a number of years, and is often grouped among "British-style" mystery writers. Most (though not all) of his novels had English settings, especially country villages and estates, and English characters. His two best-known fictional detectives (Dr. Gideon Fell and Sir Henry Merrivale) were both English. (excerpt from this Wikipedia article.)

Major characters:

Residents of The Grange:

Colonel  --- Standish, publisher, county constable, owner  

Morley Standish, his son*

Hilda Doffit, the housemaid

Septimus Depping, tenant of the guest house

Patricia Depping, his daughter*

Raymond Storer, the valet

Achille Georges, the cook

Henry Morgan, writer of detective stories

Louis Spinelli, the local crook

Hugh Donovan, Sr., bishop of Mappleham, amateur criminologist

Hugh Donovan, Jr., his son

Rev. George Primley, the vicar

Chief Inspector Hadley

Dr. Gideon Fell

*engaged

 

Trademark of a Traitor by Kathleeen Moore Knight, 1943

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 Nick Duane and Martha Cleves are Americans in Panama. They have been talking about getting married, but Martha feels that their opinions on the war are too different. Martha feels that she needs to do something for the war effort and is returning to the States to do so. Nick rather stay out of the war and has been ordered by his father to the bank in Mexico City.

But then they find themselves in the middle of wartime intrigue. There's a mysterious package that they come into possession of and people are getting killed for it. They get cryptic instructions by a dying man on where to take and who to give it to. Martha is determined to take it, so Nick has no choice but to go along with her to keep her safe. They encounter danger at every turn. They can't be sure who to trust. Who is a Nazi agent and who is with the Allies? Will they get the item to the right person before it's too late? (Goodreads description)

Hasty Wedding by Mignon G. Eberhart, 1937

 

 

images only - no review

The Mystery of Mr. Bernard Brown by E. Phillips Oppenheim, 1896

 

AbeBooks

This title, also published as The New Tenant, is available for download from this page at FadedPage.com. It was made into a movie in 1921.

About the author: Edward Phillips Oppenheim (1866 – 1946) was an English novelist, a prolific writer of best-selling genre fiction, featuring glamorous characters, international intrigue and fast action. Notably easy to read, they were viewed as popular entertainments. He was featured on the cover of Time magazine in 1927. (wikipedia)

Major characters:

• Guy D. Thurwell, Esq., master of Thurwell Court
• Helen Thurwell, his daughter
• Mr. Bernard Brown, a.k.a. Bernard Maddison, their literary tenant
• Sir Geoffrey Kyniston, Helen's fiancé
• Rachel Kyniston, Sir Geoffrey's sister
• Benjamin Levy, Sr. private detective
• Benjamin Jr., his son
• Sir Allan Beaumerville, a "dilettante" physician

Locale: England

Synopsis: Helen Thurwell is enjoying breakfast al fresco at their Thurwell Court manse with her father, attorney Guy D. Thurwell. They discuss renting out their cottage, Falcon's Nest, on their property. They decide to rent it to a Mr. Bernard Brown, who applied by letter.  

Helen is engaged to Sir Geoffrey Kyniston; recently returned from a trip to the continent. Their engagement was a spur of the moment, and Helen has since cooled on him and now regrets it. She is friends with his sister, Rachel Kyniston. 

 

Guy Thurwell, returning from a bird hunt with his friends, discovers Sir Geoffrey is missing from the group. They backtrack to find him dead of a dagger wound. This is confirmed by Sir Allan Beaumerville, a "dilettante" ladies' physician. Rachel, although shocked, is somewhat relieved to be thus released from her engagement.

Rachel meets Bernard Brown and is attracted to his literary tastes, but mystified by his monastic life. She learns he also goes by Bernard Maddison, and has had several trips to the continent which he declines to discuss. She invites him to Thurwell court for a tête-à-tête, during which a raving Rachel Kyniston bursts in with the accusation that Bernard killed her brother in order to get Helen, and promptly falls down dead.

Helen, now a bit suspicious of Bernard's past, engages sketchy private detectives Benjamin Levy Sr. and his son Benjamin Jr. to probe into his history.

Review: Lots of flowery lovers-gazing-into-the-eyes descriptions here. Very small cast of characters (the list above is complete, and two are soon dead), I used process of elimination on the remainder and picked out the murderer right away. The sketchy private detectives were fun - I expected some shady dealings from them, but they turned out a respectable job.  

 

 

The Blue Sequin by R. Austin Freeman, 1929

 

cover image only - no review

The Case of the Running Man by Christopher Bush, 1958

 

cover image only - no review

This is Ludovic Travers #51

Three Witnesses by Rex Stout, 1954

 

Cover image only - no review

Gold Comes in Bricks by A.A. Fair, 1940

 

Cover image only - no review

This is Donald Lam & Bertha Cool #3 

The Red House Mystery by A.A. Milne, 1922

 

cover image only - no review

The Murder of a Quack by George Bellairs, 1943

 

cover image only - no review.

Series: This is Inspector Thomas Littlejohn #5

About the author: George Bellairs is the pseudonym of Harold Blundell (1902-1982), a British crime writer and bank manager. He wrote more than 50 books, most featuring the detective Inspector Thomas Littlejohn. He also wrote four novels under the pseudonym Hilary Landon. (wikipedia)

You may enjoy this review by Bev Hankins on My Reader's Block. 

Foggy, Foggy Death by Richard & Frances Lockridge, 1950

 

Series: This is Captain Heimrich #4.

About the author: Richard Orson Lockridge (1898 –1982) was an American writer of detective fiction. Richard Lockridge with his wife Frances (1896-1963) created one of the most famous American mystery series, Mr. and Mrs. North. (wikipedia).

Major characters:

• Lucretia Bromwell, the matriarch widow
• Scott Bromwell, her son
• Marta Bromwell, Scott's wife
• Elspeth "Pethy" Bromwell, their daughter
• Laurence "Lorry" Bromwell, their son
• Karen Mason, Lucretia's secretary
• William, the butler
• Flora, the maid
• Pauline James, the children's nurse
• Everett Hume, a.k.a. Stephen Nickel, the mysterious stranger
• Bill Higgins, a small time thief
• Captain Merton Heimrich

Locale: Westchester County, New York

Synopsis: The Bromwell estate, High Ridge, is controlled by widow matriarch Lucretia Bromwell. The estate is the center of a lot of drama; all revolving around Scott Bromwell's wife, Marta Bromwell. No one really wants her around, and Scott would love to separate if he can manage to keep the kids, Elspeth and Laurence. Tiptoeing around the family is Lucretia's secretary, Karen Mason, the only normal one of the batch, and our protagonist.

The fog has settled in firmly one night when everything happens all at once. A stranger, Everett Hume, shows up, looking to use the phone to call in help with his flat tire. Young Laurence has disappeared, and has apparently gone outside somewhere. During the search for Laurence, Karen Mason wanders into a swampy area and trips over the body of Marta. Everett Hume comes to her aid and declares it was murder. 

Police pull over a stop-sign violation and find a small time crook, Bill Higgins, driving the Bromwell Cadillac, with no explanation but a box full of Marta's jewels on board. Captain Merton Heimrich finds him the obvious suspect in Marta's death, but that only lasts until Higgins is murdered as well.

 

You may also enjoy this review by Bev Hankins on My Reader’s Block.

 

The Swimming Pool by Mary Roberts Rinehart, 1952

 

 

About the author: Mary Roberts Rinehart (1876 – 1958) was an American writer, often called the American Agatha Christie, although her first mystery novel was published 14 years before Christie's first novel in 1920. Rinehart is considered the source of the phrase "The butler did it" from her novel The Door (1930), although the novel does not use the exact phrase. Rinehart is also considered to have invented the "Had-I-But-Known" school of mystery writing, with the publication of The Circular Staircase (1908). (from a Wikipedia article).

Major characters:

• Lois Maynard, mystery writer, and our narrator
• Anne Harrison, her sister
• Martin Harrison, Anne's husband, an architect
• Bill Harrison, their adult son
• Phil Maynard, Lois' brother, a lawyer
• Judith Chandler, Lois' glamorous sister
• Ridgely Chandler, Judith's ex 
• Helga, the Maynard cook
• Jennie, the Maynard maid
• Terrence O' Brien, former policeman
• Dr. Bernard Townsend, psychiatrist
• Kate Henry, a.k.a. Selina Benjamin, drowning victim

Locale: Westchester County, New York

Synopsis: Lois Maynard narrates this story about the period after the depression, when her family lost most of their assets except their summer home, The Birches, in Westchester County, New York. The home - more a mansion - is clearly too big now. She lives there with her brother, lawyer Phil Maynard, and two servants. One sister, Anne Harrison, lives nearby with her husband and two adult children. Lois' other sister, Judith Chandler, is a glamorous jet-setter living in New York City.

Judith in the process of divorcing her straight-and-narrow husband Ridgely Chandler. She arrives in a paranoia at The Birches. Lois accompanies her to Reno for her divorce. On the trip home, Judith faints on the train after seeing someone(?). Lois helps her, along with passenger Terrence O'Brien. 

O'Brien is a former policeman, now recovering from a wound in the military. Lois rents the gatehouse cottage on the estate to him. A woman bearing a superficial resemblance to Judith is found murdered in the swimming pool. 

Review: A murder mystery and a love story all in one, in the manner of Mignon G. Eberhart. The murder mystery was good, with people skulking around a decrepit mansion and the customary gatehouse. Instead of a wealthy setting, we have a rather sad post-depression era with the remaining family selling off assets one by one. The romance (Lois and Terrance) came slowly, and throughout I was unsure if he was a good guy or a bad guy.

The pool itself was a bit confusing to me. Its construction was unclear. It did not seem the usual man-made structure, but rather a natural pool with a stream feeding it, which has been somewhat improved for swimming - as was done in S.S. Van Dine's The Dragon Murder Case.

I did find it a bit confusing as to the time element. The story is told in three different time frames - when Lois was six (1928), when the pool murder occurred (late 1930's), and present day (when Lois is narrating in flashback). 

By the way ... I have had my copy for about thirty years. I was always puzzled by the abstract graphic on the cover, but I think I have figured it out. It is a cat looking out a window, which is a significant plot element in the story.  

You may also enjoy this review by Bev Hankins on My Reader’s Block.

Nomination for 2025’s Dream Reprint

Kate Jackson, at Crossexaminingcrime, is calling for nominations for the next classic crime novel to be reprinted in 2026. The criteria are:

1. The blogger (in this case, me) read the title in 2025
2. Classic crime fiction, published before 1970
3. Currently out of print, has not been reprinted after 2015.

Therefore, The Mystillery in all humility, nominates:

The Man Who Didn't Exist by Geoffrey Homes (1937)

About the author: Geoffrey Homes was a pseudonym of Daniel Mainwaring (1902-1977), an American novelist and screenwriter. He was born in California, and attended Fresno University. He held various jobs, including migrant fruit picker, private investigator and reporter, before turning to writing in the thirties.  

Synopsis: Newspaper reporter Robin Bishop is taking in an evening's entertainment at a seashore casino with his wife, Mary. He steps out onto the beach and finds a jacket folded neatly, with a note pinned to it. The note is a suicide note, signed by Zenophen Zwick. If this is true, it will be a nationwide sensation. Zenophen Zwick is the country's foremost mystery writer. It is known to be a pseudonym, but no one knows his actual name. Bishop and City Editor George Clark begin putting together the story, although a bit suspicious that it could just be a publicity stunt. 

Although no one knows who Zwick is, there are five writers who are distinct possiibilities. Robin sets out to verify if any of the five writers are missing, while Mary searches for clues in books by the five to determine if one of them is really Zwick.  

Why I enjoyed it:  I always enjoy stories where the investigator is a newspaper reporter, and the story includes scenes inside the newspaper offices - back in the day when it was a frenzy as competing papers fought it out on the streets in alternate editions, and the chaotic buildup to deadline; when the presses begin rumbing in the basement. It is also fascinating as Mary searches other author's works to find similarities in writing styles.

Please check out this post on Cross Examining Crime if you have your own nomination, or leave it in the comments on that page by 14th February 2026.

The Key Man by Valentine Williams, 1926

 

Secret Service series #3

 Adventurer Rex Garrett served for several years in the French Foreign Legion, enchanted by the mystique of Morocco. Now he is home in Paris and ready to settle down with his fiancée Sally. However, on his wedding night he receives a call for help from his old Legionnaires, and he is whisked off without a chance to say goodbye. Sally believes he has abandoned her. Rex finds himself in the Basque Country where a smuggling operation is centered around mysterious Pigeon House, overseen by the beautiful and dangerous Dona Inocencia Santin, who has her eyes on him as well.  

The Dead Shall Be Raised by George Bellairs, 1942

 

Series: This is Inspector Thomas Littlejohn #4, also published as Murder Will Speak

About the author: George Bellairs is the pseudonym of Harold Blundell (1902-1982), a British crime writer and bank manager. He wrote more than 50 books, most featuring the detective Inspector Thomas Littlejohn. He also wrote four novels under the pseudonym Hilary Landon. (wikipedia)

Major characters:

• Jeremy/Jerry Trickett, millworker (deceased 20 years ago)
• Enoch Sykes, millworker (deceased 20 years ago)
• Sir Caleb Haythornthwaite, last employer of Trickett and Sykes
• Bill o' Three Fingers, local tramp
• Mary (Tatham) Riles, former love of both Trickett and Sykes
• Mrs. Sykes, mother of Enoch
• Mrs. Myles, former employer of Trickett and Sykes
• Inspector Thomas Littlejohn
• Superintendent Tim Haworth
• (A complete list of characters is found at the beginning of Chapter VII.)

Locale: Waterfold village

Synopsis: It is Christmas, 1940, and Inspector Thomas Littlejohn of Scotland Yard is asked to assist in a case by local Superintendent Tim Haworth, having recently sung a leading role in Handel's Messiah. The performance is interrupted by the local Home Guard who have discovered a skeleton while digging a ditch - and it is believed to be Enoch Sykes who disappeared while wanted on suspicion of murder 20 years prior. The victim was Jeremy Trickett, a co-worker, and it was believed the result of a fight over a girl - Mary Tatham.

Now that Sykes' body is found, the search for him is over. But it is found he was also murdered - and at the same time as Trickett. The 20-year old theory of the case was no good. Now suspicion is directed at a third (unknown) person who killed them both. 

Littlejohn and Haworth are tasked with investigating a 20-year old crime, and few of the principals are still living. They do find one witness  - Bill o' Three Fingers, a tramp (missing one finger, thus the name), but before they can interview him, he is murdered also.

You may also enjoy this review by Bev Hankins on My Reader’s Block.

The Goblin Market by Helen McCloy, 1943

 

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Series: This is Dr. Basil Willing #6

About the author: Helen McCloy (1904-1994) was an American mystery writer, whose series character Dr. Basil Willing debuted in Dance of Death (1938). Willing believes, that "every criminal leaves psychic fingerprints, and he can't wear gloves to hide them." He appeared in 13 of McCloy's novels and in several of her short stories. McCloy often used the theme of doppelganger, but in the end of the story she showed a psychological or realistic explanation for the seemingly supernatural events. (wikipedia)

Major characters:

• Pete Halloran, correspondent for Occidental News Service
• Philip Stark, correspondent for Occidental News Service
• Vincente Almazam, office boy for Occidental News Service
• Patricia Mitchell ("Mitch"), correspondent for Coordinated Press
• Miguel Urizar, captain of municipal police
• Charley Eustis, US Consul
• Peranda de Castellar ("Martin"), director of CAE
• Consuelo Aquila, Peranda's mistress
• Clarence Emmett, Pan Am Processing Co.
• Dr. Basil Willing, New York psychologist

Locale: Santa Teresa, a Caribbean island during WWII

Synopsis: Out-of-work news correspondent Philip Stark is in Santa Teresa and at the end of his resources. He is about to approach Pete Halloran of Occidental News Service for work, but Halloran is found dead of a broken neck on the stairs outside his office. Stark contacts Occidental and is hired on as Halloran's replacement.; working with office boy Vincente Almazam.  

Stark meets glamourous Patricia "Mitch" Mitchell, correspondent for competing Coordinated Press. She tells him Halloran had been working on a big story, and discovering one of his telegrams is missing, suspects his death was murder. Police captain Miguel Urizar insists it was an accident, and does not want anyone to pursue it. 

One of the suspicious people on Stark's list is Peranda de Castellar, director of CAE, an oil exporter. His mistress, Consuelo Aquila, has some clues for Stark, but before they can rendezvous, she is found dead also; with Stark set up as the fall guy.

Review: I was confused for a bit. Dr. Basil Willing is supposedly a series detective. He gets a brief mention early on, when Halloran left behind a doodle of a slice of pie inside a square. Willing is described as being able to interpret dreams and doodles. But he is in New York. So they write and offer him $50 for his interpretation. Then nothing is more is heard of him and I figured he had his cameo mention and was forgotten - until the very end, when he enters the story in a big, surprising way.

I always enjoy stories with newspaper reporters as the prime investigators, as this one does not disappoint. Stark is a reporter in the mold of Peter Piper (by Nancy Barr Mavity), and silk stockings and stilettos competitor Patricia Mitchell reminds me of Brenda Starr (of comic book fame). 

The Estate of the Beckoning Lady by Margery Allingham, 1955

 

This is Albert Campion #15

Cover image only - no review