The Mystery of Villa Sineste by Walter Livingston (1931)

 

The Mystery of Villa Sineste  by Walter Livingston (1931)

dustjackets.com

About this edition: This edition contains a teaser of the first chapter of the next edition (The Hunterstone Outrage by Seldon Truss).

About the author: Walter Livingston is also the author of The Mystery of Burnleigh Manor, #5 in the Mystery League series.

Principal characters:

• Jack Winant, American architect
• Timothy Delancey, Irish, professional photographer
• Vincenza di Ponari, surgeon, owner of Villa Sineste
• ---- di Ponari, his wife
• Elaine di Ponari, his stepdaughter
• Guiseppe, his assistant/butler

Locale: Italy

Synopsis:

American architect Jack Winant is on a commission to document and disassemble an Italian villa and relocate it to the US. Irish photographer Timothy Delancey is along to photograph the villa for the construction documentation. 

On the flight to the villa (they never get there), the plane develops engine trouble and has a hard landing on the grounds of the legendary Villa Seneste. The two pilots are badly hurt, Winant and Delancey receive minor injuries. Di Ponari, a retired surgeon, brings the pilots to a separate building in the woods, called his 'sanitorium' for treatment. Winant and Delancey, are brought into the villa to recover for a day or two.

The locals avoid the place, legend has it that Villa Seneste has a bedroom in which all its occupants die mysterious deaths. 

Di Ponari's wife and stepdaughter, Elaine, reside in the villa also; and appear to be held captive. The wife is very ill, confined to bed, and dies quietly. 

Di Ponari reports the two pilots have died from their injuries; and defeats attempts by Winant and Delancey to contact outsiders for help.

Winant and Delancey seek to rescue Elaine, and find out what is going on in the 'sanitorium'. Di Ponari is working on a gruesome secret project there.

Review:

The book starts out strong and constructs a solid mystery despite having so few characters. However, after a while some help arrives from the outside - the Italian army (!), along with airplanes and trucks - definitely out of scale to the problem - and what is the problem anyway? A girl locked in her room, in no immediate danger. It goes downhill from there. The story turns into an Italian version of "Plan 9 From Outer Space" with grotesque medical experiments staggering back from the dead. 

The Mystery of Burnleigh Manor by Walter Livingston (1930)

 

photo: dustjackets.com

About this edition: Published in 1930. A preview chapter of #6 - The Invisible Host by Gwen Bristow and Bruce Manning is included in the back of the book.

About the author: Walter Livingston is also the author of The Mystery of Villa Sineste, #19 in the Mystery League series.

Characters:

• Edward Burnleigh, eldest of the three brothers, died by own hand 16 years previously
• Lord Cecil Burnleigh, middle brother, now owner of Burnleigh Manor
• Robert Burleigh, youngest brother, disappeared with Edward's wife 21 years previously
• Lady Burnleigh, wife of Edward; disappeared with Robert 21 years previously
• Glome, Cecil's servant
• Hooper, Edward's servant
• --- Riker, American architect, hired by Cecil to examine the Manor and plan for its restoration
• Captain Lowry, caretaker of the Manor and Lodge, resides in the Lodge
• Edith Lowry, his daughter

Locale: England

Timeline: A bit confusing but this seems to be the background:

• 21 years prior to story: Robert runs off with Lady Burnleigh (Edward's wife). Cecil searches for him without success.
• 16 years prior to story: Edward dies by his own hand on Christmas Eve. The Manor passes to Cecil.
• Present: Lord Cecil arrives with Riker to plan the Manor's restoration.

Synopsis:

Hmmm... well, it's not a murder mystery. No one gets murdered.

The story focuses on Burnleigh Manor, now a rundown boarded-up relic, along with the Lodge, a smaller well-kept residence at the gate on the same grounds. The Manor was the property of the eldest brother, Edward, until his death; when it passed to Cecil. The youngest brother, Robert, had run off with Edward's wife (Lady Burnleigh), both without a trace. Five years later, Edward dies by his own hand on Christmas Eve. The story begins sixteen years later.

Cecil, now owner of Burnleigh Manor, contracts with an American architect, -- Riker, to examine the manor and plan for its restoration. There are reports of intruders in the boarded-up Manor, with footprints found inside and some items missing.

Cecil and Riker arrive at the Manor. Riker is attracted to Emily Lowry, but she is aloof; yet constantly attracted to the Manor. As Riker begins his inspection,  he deals with trouble-making intruders who thoughtfully leave him little treatening notes (Phantom of the Opera style) and disappear down secret passages. The questions are: 

• Whatever happened to Robert and Lady Burnleigh? 
• Who is the person (s) still accessing the Manor, and how do they do it? 
• So what is troubling Edith, anyway?

Review:

Please see this review by Bev Hankins on her blog, My Reader's Block.