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Serpents in Eden: Countryside Crimes (British Library Crime Classics)
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About Serpents In Eden: Countryside Crimes
Product Description Mystery crime fiction written in the Golden Age of Murder 'The lowest and vilest alleys in London do not present a more dreadful record of sin than does the smiling and beautiful countryside.... Think of the deeds of hellish cruelty, the hidden wickedness which may go on, year in, year out, in such places, and none the wiser.' ―Sherlock Holmes Many of the greatest British crime writers have explored the possibilities of crime in the countryside in lively and ingenious short stories. Serpents in Eden celebrates the rural British mystery by bringing together an eclectic mix of crime stories written over half a century. From a tale of poison-pen letters tearing apart a village community to a macabre mystery by Arthur Conan Doyle, the stories collected here reveal the dark truths hidden in an assortment of rural paradises. Among the writers included here are such major figures as G. K. Chesterton and Margery Allingham, along with a host of lesser-known discoveries whose best stories are among the unsung riches of the golden age of British crime fiction between the two world wars. Review Thirteen short stories, mostly written between the two world wars, reveal the dark side of life in the English countryside. The earliest entries revolve around the fair of face and strong of limb, each with a signature detective who effortlessly unravels a not very knotty puzzle. In M. McDonnell Bodkin's "Murder by Proxy," "young, handsome, debonair" Eric Neville advises his equally attractive cousin John to wire Mr. Beck in London to help discover who shot their uncle, Squire Neville, at his Dorset estate. In G.K. Chesterton's "The Fad of the Fisherman," Horne Fisher solves the murder of Sir Isaac Hook at his West Country manor house. In E.C. Bentley's "The Genuine Tabard," Philip Trent helps George D. Langley, "the finest-looking man in the room," expose a dodgy deal. Perhaps the best of the early puzzles is Arthur Conan Doyle's "The Black Doctor," in which Mr. Humphrey comes to the aid of a landowner accused of murdering his neighbor. The fun doesn't really start, though, until Margery Allingham unmasks the shady side of the Garden Field competition at the village flower show in "A Proper Mystery." Gladys Mitchell adds her take on the perils of Morris dancing in "Our Pageant." The indomitable Sgt. Beef solves the murder of an elderly spinster in Leo Bruce's "Clue in the Mustard." And Ethel Lina White offers a chilling tale of a damsel in distress in "The Scarecrow." But far and away the funniest take on country manners is Leonora Wodehouse's mordant "Inquest," which turns murder into suicide into murder. A volume that may not persuade readers that there's menace in every meadow but certainly shows that English crime isn't confined to the Smoke. ( Kirkus) This is a marvellous collection of short stories from the Golden Age of British crime fiction. This selection of stories contains work by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Gladys Mitchell, G K Chesterton, Anthony Berkeley and H C Bailey among others....The theme of this collection is murder in a rural setting. My particular favourite in this collection are E C Bentley's 'The Genuine Tabard' - which doesn't include a murder but is definitely worth reading for the sheer delight of the story. I also enjoyed 'The Gylston Slander' by Herbert Jenkins - poison pen letters; and 'The Naturalist at Law' by R Austin Freeman....All the stories in this collection are well worth reading and some will remain with you long after you have finished reading the book. In my opinion this is on of the best short story collections in this excellent series. ( Jillysheep) It is a great pleasure when a fan is able to discover a new and not-yet-read story from mystery fictions Golden Age (roughly the first half of the 20th century). The print and e-book publication of Serpents in Eden: Countryside Crimes, an anthology of lesser-known stories by some of the era's most talented writers, is the latest rel
